Happy Faces in Distant Lands

Every now and then we receive letters, cards or emails from customers thanking us for our wonderful service or how well the products they bought from us have been working. We've been thanked for just about everything you can think of. Just recently we received a nice card from a young couple who purchased a new vacuum unit from us and is loving it to the fullest.

It's nice to get these praises from customers. It lets us know, that we're doing a great job providing them with great customer service, an easy to navigate website, and the personal attention you get when calling us. We strive for excellence in this dog-eat-dog world we live in. And with the economy in the shape it's in, it gives us a feeling of accomplishment knowing that our customers actually appreciate the service we provide for them.

We here at Thinkvacuums would just like to say Thank You for everything you, the customer, have done for us. With out you we would be who we are today.

NuTone Sucks...

...and they're proud of it! These new units sure are powerful. NuTone introduced the new VX series central vacuum, which are redefining the central vacuum industry. Over 40 years of making bathroom fans and intercom systems etc., the famous Nutone/Broun name has been a major influence in the central vacuum field and a household name for years.

Nutone has gotten a bad rap over the last couple of years due to them switching manufacturing facilities, now made in Canada. We have not had any bit of problems with them, and customer love the value of their Nutone. We praise them for doing a great job with their redesign. They set the bar for future central vacuum design and craftsmanship. We at Thinkvacuums.com sell more Nutones than any other central vacuum on the market. These new motors were re-designed from the ground up with expert engineering minds working on it.

Customers, beware of other websites playing the old "bait and switch" game. We know of one such website who attracts people with Nutone products just to try to switch them over to their own private-labeled brand, or a more expensive one. They even have comparisons to their own brand on the Nutone pages just to further persuade you to switch. It's because Nutones don't have a large enough profit margin as a private-labeled vacuum would. We think that with today's economy, Nutone is becoming the best bang for your buck. Sure, there may be other choices of vacuums out there, but for the price a Nutone is the best bet. That's what we focus on, getting you the right vacuum for you, not playing games to get you to spend more.
Read more about private-labeling vacuums.

Our helpful staff is always waiting to assist you with any questions you have. With 3-4 decades of knowledge, there's nothing we don't know about this industry. Please give us a call at 1-800-322-2965 and one of our trained operators will assist you with anything you need.

Exhaust Venting Nightmares

As we've seen this past Winter season; it's been a snowy one (so we've heard...Florida has been quite nice!). Recently we have been getting calls and questions about proper and safe venting outside from people up north. They've read through the central vacuum exhaust article on our website and had additional questions and concerns on solutions.

Here's a perfect situation: A customer calls us up this morning, who is a teacher and since because of the weather has been snowed in, so there's no school. She has noticed that her central vacuum system has been running hotter and louder than normal recently. With a quick inspection of the exhaust vent, she noticed that the vent had been completely covered over with ice from the previous snow storm. The exhaust louvers can't break through the ice to open and remove all the hot exhaust air coming out from the motor, that air gets trapped in the line and creates back pressure that, in return, will shorten the overall life of the central vacuum system.

We made a valid point on how it wouldn't be the best idea to take the outside option in regards to venting. We told her truthfully that there is no way the plastic louvers on the exhaust vent are going to function properly with the side of the house snowed over. She also made a point in saying that, all the heat that is generated inside the house would escape out through the vent to the the outside, resulting in an increase in utilities used to heat the home and that means more money to spend on heating bills. We advised her to purchase the ActiVacII exhaust filter as it will be the most logical and helpful solution to her needs.

Motor Size Isn't Everything

The most important component in any central vacuum system is the motor. There are four major suppliers to the central vacuum industry, Ametek Lamb Electric, the European made Domel, GS Motors and most recently the China made motor. These companies make several different motors which a central vacuum manufacturer can utilize. Some of these motors differ dramatically in cost, performance and reliability. When comparison shopping also look at the motor warranty. Simply put the longer the warranty the more confident the manufacture is in their product.

Some suppliers will say that the size of the motor is everything when it comes to suction power. Though in the past that may have been true, the European motor manufacturer Domel has been supplying high-efficiency 2300W 5.7" diameter motors that are even more powerful than the general 7.2" diameters, they are also much quieter and even more reliable. It has easily become Europe's best 5.7" diameter motor with a life-span of 18-30 years. And there have been some instances where they would last beyond 40 years, with of course proper maintance to the system.

When talking about Airflow, it's not the true measure of suction, it is simply the measure of the "volume" of air the motor is capable of moving and works in tandem with "Suction". Performance measurements are taken from the motor and do not factor any resistance found in a typical central vacuum system, such as, pipes, elbows, and inlets, this where the unreliability of the measure comes in place, when looking for true "suction" measurements. There is an equation that calculates roughly the true measure of suction, or Airwatts is it the combination of Airflow and Waterlift divided by 8.5 and there you have your Airwatts. Waterlift measures the suction strength of a central vacuum motor. Essentially, it tells how much "pull" or "lift" power the motor has. This measurement does not take into account piping, hoses or accessories etc., thus giving a false measurement of power.

So when looking for a new central vacuum makes sure that you're getting the right one for you and your home. Don't get conned into an inferior system. Remember Airwatts is the way to go.

Central Vacuum Motors
"How do I Measure Suction Power?"

New Year, New People

Sorry, its been sometime since our last Blog. Lots of things have happened over the New Year, we proud to introduce a couple new members to our staff. We have also have had a nice increase in business, so we've been occupied with giving our customers the best service and technical support we can provide.

First, we would like to introduce, Brian, he has been brought in to assist our ever growing presence on the web. His knowledge of Web analysis, and Marketing as proven to be a great resource for us. Returning with us is, Carol, she has been a vital member of our team for sometime now, and with her recent return, our numbers have never looked so good. She has done some remarkable work with our current position on the web and we are looking forward to more great work from these people. And now last, but not certainly least is our new Blogmaster/SEO specialist, Pete, he came strongly recommended from our current Webmaster. With these new additions to the staff, we expect to grow even more this year, than last year.

With all this "Green" initiative going around. We have taken this initiative and have applied to our store front. Using new CFL (compact-fluorescent lights) in our showroom and repair shop has begun to have an effect on our energy consumption. We have also begun to use recycled boxes and paper to print our orders and reports on. Recently, we have begun supplying our customers with the Living Green option for living. Providing an alternative solution to our current energy demands/problems

Also, with the sudden increase in business, it has been sometime since we've last updated our testimonial page. We have 40+ testimonials to add to the site, and more are coming in. We here at ThinkVacuums, we appreciate any comments about our service.

Happy New Years from Thinkvacuums!

Can you believe it'll be 2009 in only a few short hours? Even though it's only 9:30am as of this post all of the staff here at Thinkvacuums is pretty excited for the coming new year. We've got a lot of things planned that we know you're going to love.

We are starting the new year off strong, slashing prices left and right, after negotiating with our suppliers knowing that something must be done in this rough economy. Especially with today's gas prices being as low as they are, products are cheaper to produce due to fuel costs. Big changes for 2009 are coming...

We truly want to thank our customers for this prosperous year, and would like to give a shout out to all of our brave men and women overseas, fighting and risking their lives to preserve our great country. Those are the real heroes and we really appreciate everything they do for the sake of the United States.

I hope you all have a happy, healthy and safe new years, and we'll see you in 2009!

Are you using the correct PVC pipe?

The average person might just think that PVC pipe is PVC pipe and that's that, but there is more to it than that. There are different sizes, thicknesses, schedules, and the material they're made from. A lot of PVC pipe is made from used or recycled materials that often contains foreign materials like metal, stone or other non-PVC plastic materials that can cause poor glue adhesion, holes, tears, rough inside surfaces, inconsistent wall thicknesses, out-of-spec diameters, or easily cracked pipes. This recycled material basically comes from discarded plastic products or scrap that is gathered together, ground up, reheated, and re-extruded into vacuum pipe. Scrap material typically varies from lot to lot depending on what has been ground up.

PVC piping is the most important part of a central vacuum system, more important than even the vacuum unit itself. If you're using the wrong kind of pipes, they can clog, break, crack, and leak air which will cause a drastic reduction of suction power and performance in any central vac system. It's very difficult, time consuming and costly process to tear apart walls and crawl around looking for a leak or crack in the pipes...it's better to do it right the first time.

The correct PVC pipe to use is thin-wall Schedule 20 pipe. Every single central vacuum manufacturer will tell you to use schedule 20, and will always advise against using adapters for schedule 40 pipe to make them work with central vacuums. Schedule 20 pipe has smooth interiors and uses larger sweeping elbows to maximize airflow, while Schedule 40 pipe is all about thickness and generally has very rough interiors and sharper elbows which hamper airflow, especially around corners.

Thinkvacuums.com is the exclusive dealer for FlowMax Gold central vacuum PVC piping. FlowMax Gold is produced only from 100% virgin PVC material. We use no recycled material or ground-up plastic of any type in FlowMax Gold.
FlowMax Gold is manufactured to rigorous standards to ensure part to part consistency. Better cuts, consistent fit to fittings, and superior cement adhesion let you get the installation done right and quickly the first time – every time. Sorting pipe at the job site, having to cut out bad sections, or in the worst case, getting a callback to the job site of a finished home where finished walls must be torn apart to find a leak, all rob you of your time and profit.

Have you ever had a problem with your fittings being too loose or falling off the pipe? Have you ever had to hammer a fitting on to the end of a pipe? If so, you’ve probably been seeing the effects of bad or inconsistent pipe outside diameter.
Using our proprietary, outside diameter production control technology, we have remarkable control on the outside diameter of our FlowMax Gold. This means a superior and very consistent fit.

So save yourself time and money - get the right piping the first time.


It's also getting closer and closer to the end of the year! It went so fast it's unbelievable! We want to wish all of our friends, family, and customers a very happy and safe holiday and new years, and we'll see you next year!