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+--- Thread: RICK - TELL US ABOUT THE X-VAC (/showthread.php?tid=361)
RICK - TELL US ABOUT THE X-VAC - SLOTOOLS - 03-20-2013
I think I need one- haha!
Just looking for your analysis and review as not only a seller, but also as a user in the field.
ease of use?
weight and feel.
Replaceable or serviceable parts that may require maintenance?
RE: RICK - TELL US ABOUT THE X-VAC - encapman - 03-20-2013
(03-20-2013, 07:04 PM)SLOTOOLS Wrote: ease of use?
weight and feel.
Replaceable or serviceable parts that may require maintenance?
Ease of use: Not bad. It pulls itself - kind of self propelled.
Weight: It's a beast.
Servicing: I don't see much go wrong with them, nothing in fact. Have used one in our cleaning business for a few years and we sell them. They seem to last and last.
This is a LARGE unit. It is intended to be a beast and it is. It has a massive brush roller and a powerful motor to match. It digs into the fiber and helps to pull crud up to the surface.
Where the X-Vac shines compared to other pile lifters is that it does a better job of swallowing what it pulls up. The vac chamber is well designed to have an improved airflow. I have owned 2 Certified pile lifters in the past and they were not good at swallowing soil (they'd more likely spit it right back onto the carpet).
The benefit of the X-Vac is twofold. The obvious benefit is that it does a reasonable job of pulling open the fiber so that dry soil can be brought to the surface. This is a challenge in a commercial setting since the carpet is often crushed down. So any vac that can dig into the commercial pile is a help.
The second benefit (and this one is not as obvious) is that by pulling up the pile and opening up the crushed and matted fiber makes the carpet more receptive to cleaning. If the fibers are more open and upright the pile is easier to address with whichever cleaning method you are using.
A good pile lifting prior to cleaning can often make a noticeable difference. In the case of that red carpet, the carpet was markedly better looking before we started running the Cimex.
So those are the benefits. Now the drawback. In spite of the better than average soil recovery of the X-Vac - a good commercial vacuum is still a better vacuum cleaner for soil consumption. The reason is simply that the brush roller opening on the pile lifter is so large that it doesn't seal and create as much soil lift as a vacuum cleaner can. Yet as I mentioned the X-Vac is the star in the soil recovery department, compared to other pile lifters.
In a perfect world, you'd maybe run an X-Vac followed by a good commercial vacuum. But in realistic terms, most cleaners will opt for one or the other. For me I like the fact that the X-Vac opens the pile, in addition to swallowing dry soil very well.
So that's the long and short of the X-Vac. It's a nice tool for a commercial cleaner.
http://www.excellent-supply.com/X-Vac-Pile-Lifter_p_133.html
![[Image: x-vac.jpg]](http://www.excellent-supply.com/images/x-vac.jpg)
RE: RICK - TELL US ABOUT THE X-VAC - Derek - 03-21-2013
and it looks a lot nicer than my certified imo.
does anyone think a CRB can replace a pilelifter?
RE: RICK - TELL US ABOUT THE X-VAC - encapman - 03-21-2013
(03-21-2013, 11:00 AM)Derek Wrote: does anyone think a CRB can replace a pilelifter?
Yes, the collection hoppers on the Brush & Clean machines (now called StrongDry) do a pretty good job of recovering dry soil, even though there isn't any vacuum suction. Think of it as a Bissel carpet sweeper on steroids.