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How to Care for Acrylic Flooring

April 30, 2013 By 1 Comment

Heather says:

Not too long ago on Facebook, I got a question about acrylic flooring that had become cloudy.

First I want to note that acrylic is a broad chemical term that simply means made of polymers or resins. So acrylic flooring can come in many forms, but in general people either mean linoleum,  laminate, or Pergo style flooring. (Linoleum, laminate, say that five times fast)

The basic care is the same for all of these flooring types since they are made of similar, although not identical, material.

Cloudy or dull finishes on acrylic flooring is caused by tiny nicks and scratches that get filled with dirt, over time. You ask where do the nicks and scratches in my linoleum come from? Outside. (You can also chemically etch -scratch- the surface of your flooring and create that delicious cloudy haze, too)

That’s why using doormats is so important. Relatively people, relatively. I’m not saying  saving your linoleum is the same as saving a life, but you will end up saving some cash in the long run and who doesn’t want to do that?

If doormats are of primary importance, daily sweeping and or vacuuming comes next on the list. Why? Weren’t you paying attention a moment ago? We’re getting rid of the grit that scratches the flooring. I still love my Roomba, but I did spring for an upgrade. We’ve talked about all kinds of vacuums over the years here at Home Ec 101, but I do want to point out that woot.com – that link up there in the header often has refurbished Dysons for an excellent price. Be careful though as checking in at woot can become addictive. I may or may not have quite the t-shirt problem.

(Oh, and if you do go through that link and find something neat, it’s affiliate which means I get a few pennies, which helps keep this site running. I love y’all, but *gasp* a little financial reward for 6 years of writing isn’t entirely unreasonable.  The minions are growing and didn’t I just buy them shoes? Yes, I do buy their shoes before I enable my geeky t-shirt addiction)

So much to our chagrin we find the solution to our problem -cloudy, dull flooring- comes through preventative maintenance.

Well, crap, you probably wouldn’t be here if your acrylic flooring wasn’t in rough shape.

You can apply an acrylic floor finish to restore shine. I won’t lie, it’s a complete pain in the butt.

You need to thoroughly clean your flooring, vacuum and sweep as though your life depended on it. Then you’ll need to strip the old finish  -and you absolutely must consult the manufacturer’s guidelines before doing this or you could easily cause permanent damage or void a warranty. Yuck.

Then apply an acrylic floor polish -again with going by your manufacturer’s recommendations- carefully following the directions.

And then, once your floor is all shiny and pretty -it’s never going to look brand new again, quit hoping for that- you can start following my original advice and invest in some door mats and regular upkeep. Because really? After all that work, you don’t want to have to do it again in just a few months.

Be sure to use a very mild and dilute cleaning agent when you do damp mop your flooring to prevent that chemical etching I mentioned earlier. Why? Because I said so.

Good luck.

Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

Filed Under: All, Clean It, Fix It Tagged With: ,

Fixing Scratches in an Enameled Cast Iron Sink

January 2, 2013 By 1 Comment

Dear Home Ec 101,

I have a fairly new (less than 1 year old) cast iron Kohler sink, it is the shiny black one, the manual recommended using the Kohler cast iron sink cleaner and I have used it regularly and I have used a plastic mat on the bottom of the sink, to try to prevent scratches. Yet I have some minor scratches. Is there any way to safely remove the scratches from my sink without harming the enamel?

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Again I LOVE your site and by the way I am hooked on Method products!! Love them!!

Signed,
Scratched in Scanlon
Heather says:

Take a deep breath, I have good news for you, dollars to donuts those are not actually scratches in your sink. I highly doubt you were sitting there with a chisel and hammer purpose trying to gouge your sink. That’s pretty much what it takes to mar the finish of a quality enamel finish. What you are actually seeing is called a “pot mark” and it’s just a scuff from the sink taking a tiny bit of metal off of your cookware.

It’s a lot like when somebody just barely grazes your car in a crowded parking lot and leaves a bit of their paint on your car. A bit of buffing is all it takes to get rid of their carelessness and it’s pretty much all that is needed here, too.

Go ahead and use the recommended cleaner, but find a cork, perhaps from last night’s wine-braised pot roast? Apply the cleaner full strength to the scratch on the cast iron sink and then use the cork to gently scrub the marks away and your sink will look good as new!

Pot marks will likely become a source of irritation over the years, but at least you now know that you have not inadvertently scratched your shiny, new sink. It’s going to look good as new for a long, long time.

Good luck and please let me know how it turns out.

Oh and thanks for letting me know about Method, I’ll be sure to pass that along.

Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

Filed Under: Clean It, Fix It Tagged With: ,

A Look Back at Method Over 2012

December 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Heather says:

I want to thank Method for being a sponsor of Home-Ec 101 this year. I’m choosy about who I want to work with here. I care about the influence I may have over some of your consumer choices.

Adam Lowry and Eric RyanAfter flying out to San Francisco last March and meeting the founders of the company and hearing their story, I felt comfortable with my choice to work with Method. When I met and spoke to Adam Lowry and Eric Ryan, the founders of the company, I felt even better.

I care about what your bring into your homes.

From the beginning I have advocated making healthier, greener choices when it comes to cleaning your home. The most economical of which is vinegar and water, which I still offer up as a useful choice.

However, not everyone wants to smell vinegar. I get that. (Also acidic cleaning solutions are not always the answer)

Method, as a company, makes products that are non-toxic and eco-friendly.

They only offer anti-bacterial cleaners where it makes sense. No, you do not need Tri-closan in your hand soap.

And pthalates, you remember pthalates, right? Yuck.

Remember their Ocean Plastic campaign from last month?

No, one small company can’t make a huge dent in the obscene amount of plastic in our oceans, but they can certainly be the example. They can set the bar and we can consciously choose to use their products and vote with our dollars. As an average citizen and consumer, all the phone calls in the world won’t make a difference, but consciously and consistently choosing to purchase products that align with our values does.

I’ve said it before when I talk about buying locally:

 I see this as frugality in the broadest sense of the term, it’s making an informed choice to purchase the most beneficial product rather than the one offered at the lowest immediate cost. There can be long-term financial impacts caused by short-term savings. . . 

And really this is part of why I don’t advocate the extreme couponing lifestyle. Please don’t take this as a condemnation, because that’s not where I’m going with this. I am -now- speaking from a place where I can make financial decisions that don’t feel desperate, it would be hypocritical to say NEVER do [X ] because in my life I have probably done [X] at some point and have no room to talk or finger point. If -and that is a big, big if- the budget allows me to make a choice based on my conscience, I will. Sometimes there isn’t a choice and I understand that, too.

December marks the last month of Method’s sponsorship of Home-Ec101 and other fine websites you may know (and love). I was -and am- proud to have been a part of their team during 2012 and am giddy with their news coming in 2013.

All I’m going to say, is you may not have to look as hard to find this little start-up that could. Breaking into the consumer product market is an incredible feat and as a company you deserve this.

Congratulations and thank you for all the soap¹.

¹Award yourself one Internetz if you can understand why that line reminds me of Douglas Adams.

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Hard Water Deposits in a Toilet Bowl

December 17, 2012 By 9 Comments

Dear Home-Ec 101,

During the walk-through when we purchased our current home, we flushed our toilets, but did not raise the lids. After we moved in, to our horror, two of our toilets were gross!

First problem, I am told that it is hard water deposits, so when toilet waste is flushed down, stuff catches on the way down. I have been able to remove what I can see after repeatedly cleaning. But there is still a smell. Second toilet, the bowl is black. Have tried a few cleaners, but with little results.

Help!!

Signed,
Down and Dirty in Delaware

Heather says:

I do not envy your grungy toilet problem. Nope, not even a little bit.

GlovesGet yourself some rubber gloves. You know, the heavy duty, no-nonsense, I’m about to use cleaners that mean business kind of gloves.

Now don’t worry, I’m not suggesting anything toxic, but acids, even those from non-toxic sources are not good for your skin. Ever cut a ton of citrus fruit and had your hands feel raw for a couple of days? It’s like that.

So get your gloves and either Bar Keepers Friend of your other favorite acidic cleanser.

Why acidic?

You’re going to be cleaning up some foul funk known as lime scale and urine scale. You know where the lime scale comes from -hard water- but urine scale is a special treat all on its own. It forms from the ammonium salts left behind when urine splashes and evaporates.

Yum.

I kid. Well, about the yum part, the urine scale is a fact of life, disgusting but we all have to deal.

Your also going to want some kind of scrubber – a generic scrub brush or even one of those nylon kitchen jobbers, but know that you WILL BE THROWING THAT OUT AFTERWARD, right? You can of course, wash and reuse the scrub brush, but please delegate it to the floors or bathroom use only.

Now turn off the water to the tank. (Righty tighty, lefty loosey)

Flush the toilet so there is no water in the bowl.

Put on your gloves, apply the cleanser to the bowl and give the inside a good scrub, as far down as you can reach and spend a lot of time up under the rim. (Many people forget to clean this area and all kinds of heinous funk can hide up here.) Don’t spend a lot of time with this scrubbing, you’re mostly just trying to make sure that the cleaner has gotten into every nook and cranny in the toilet bowl.

Now stand up, put the lid down on the toilet, take off your gloves, wash your hands, and set a timer for 30 minutes.

Go entertain yourself. Welcome back.

Remember when we’ve talked about how cleaning takes a few kinds of energy:

Thermal -not applicable or safe in this case – never, never, never pour hot water into your toilet, the thermal change can crack your bowl and that’s not fun for anyone. I don’t care what you read where on the interwebz. No. No. No. Got it?

Chemical – your cleanser -and with chemical energy comes the need for time for those chemical reactions to take place, that’s why you left the room for a little while.

Physical – yup, here’s where you and the scrub brush come in.

Now, put your gloves back on, wet your scrubber and go scrub the ever-living-snot out of that toilet bowl.

When you’re sure you’ve gotten as much as will come off this round, turn the water back on to the tank, and flush the toilet.

Flush it one more time and give it a little scrub with a standard toilet brush.

Flush again.

Now, leave the room for five minutes or so and come back and give the area a smell.

If it still smells funky, it’s not the bowl.

Turn the water back off. Empty the tank, and carefully remove it. (You’re going to have to disconnect the water line and undo a couple of bolts to do so).

Give the area that you couldn’t reach with the tank attached a thorough cleaning. Rinse, dry, give the area a little while to air out and come back. Do you still smell the funk?

If so, it may be either urine or other filth between the flooring and toilet or the wax ring may need to be replaced. Be prepared for this job to turn into more, if there is water damage to the flooring and / or sub flooring.

If you are a dude, this could be a one person job. I’m not a wuss, but ladies, moving a ceramic toilet bowl is more than I can handle on my own -those suckers are HEAVY- so you may have to call in a friend or significant other for physical help with this job. Do not hurt yourself trying to move more than you can do so safely.

Loosen the bolts that attach the toilet to the floor. Move the toilet out of the area and clean the area up to the drain as thoroughly as possible. Use a cleaner safe for your flooring.

Inspect the wax donut -or since you already have the toilet moved, replace it, while you have it out of the way and save yourself a project 3 years from now.

Look for water damage that may indicate the seal was compromised. If there is damage, that may be the real source of your odor,  but the repair is out of the scope of Home-Ec 101. That’s more of a 300 level course. Hire out if you must. You can, of course, put the toilet back together until you can afford the repair, just be glad you know the source and make sure this repair is high on your list of MUST-Dos, as water damage can get ugly in a hurry.

Put everything back together and enjoy your funk-free bathroom.

Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

Filed Under: Clean It Tagged With: ,

So, Are You Like Martha Stewart? Donna Reed?

December 7, 2012 By 15 Comments

Heather says:

When people ask what I do, after I joke about working in a bar, describe my job at FeedBlitz, talk about my app, I then have to explain Home-Ec101. This happens a lot and generally I get the confused puppy head-tilt.

I run a website on home economics -head tilt- I write about lifeskills for adults -increased angle of said head tilt-

Oh, so you’re like Martha Stewart?

Well, no, it’s a bit more basic than that. I’m not into frou-frou and I think there are a lot of people that genuinely need the basics more than frills.

I talk about cooking, cleaning, basic home repair, and laundry.

Oh, so you’re like Donna Reed?

No, not her either.

I bet your house is immaculate.

And it’s at this point that I just force a smile and try not to let out a huge guffaw. I have three kids. Who has three kids, more than one job, and an immaculate house?

Not this gal.

I know HOW to keep a clean house, but every so often in a while things -deadlines, the kids get the flu, I get called in to cover for a sick co-worker, etc all pile on and the daily chores just don’t get done.

Yesterday, if you had walked into my home, I probably would have died of embarrassment. Thank you for not coming over, by the way.

I admitted this over on Facebook -you are a fan, right?- and someone asked, “How do you get back on track after a couple days (or more) of not being able to do daily chores?”

I enter triage mode.

I either start a load of laundry -or restart it, if it was neglected in the machine for a couple of days.

I then head into the kitchen and start on the sink and dishes.

Next I clear counters and the table-papers may get put into a couple of piles -this depends on how long I have to perform the triage and everything else gets put away. The counters and table get a quick wipe down.

Next up come the bathrooms -not a deep clean- a dump some cleaner into the bowl, give it a quick swish -wash my hands, find the toothpaste cap and get the globs out of the sink. Then it’s wipe off the sink, followed by the toilet seat and rim. The bowl gets a scrub, a flush and I make sure there are clean towels.

Finally come the floors.

All the crap that shouldn’t be out and that will interfere with sweeping / vacuuming gets picked up and put away. -Sometimes I use a timer and put on music to encourage the minions’ help, but if they are at school, I just knock it out, asap.

I set Gertie -my robot minion- to go and I head upstairs to at least get the coffee cups out of my office and to vacuum the floor up there.

Everything piddly gets to wait until the next time the chore comes around in the rotation. This isn’t a perfect clean, this is a crisis clean for communal areas. My bedroom door can and will be shut until I have the bandwidth to deal with it and that’s okay. The same goes for the kids’ room.

No one is perfect. Not you, not me, and definitely not the perfectly coiffed lady in the coffee shop.

Hang in there. Things are going to eventually get better and well, even if they don’t, hanging in is the only option, so make the best of it.

 

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How to Remove Melted Microfiber from a Smooth Top Stove

November 28, 2012 By 1 Comment

Dear Home Ec 101,

I burned a microfiber rag on my flat top range as I thought it was cool and was wiping it off. The regular ceramic stove top cleaners are not taking it off. How can I remove the melted microfiber from my stove?

Signed,
Stuck in Sturbridge

Heather says:

Cleaning melted anything off of a smooth top range is kind of a pain in the rear. First, as you’ve noticed, microfiber cloth isn’t like your standard cotton, which would have simply scorched or burnt. Microfiber is a generic term for any fiber less than one denier per filament -the tiny strands that are twisted and woven together to eventually create a cloth -sometimes, like in the case of microfiber, that requires a whole heck of a lot of twisting and weaving.

A denier is really tiny, about ten micrometers. These really tiny filaments give microfiber cloths their excellent cleaning properties, but since they are generally made from polyesters, they have the unfortunate tendency to melt on hot surfaces. Razor Scraper

You take the good with the bad and then to clean up the bad, you find a razor scraper.

Don’t worry, these razor scrapers are super cheap and you can find them at any big box store -Walmart, Target or hardware store, like ACE or Lowes -these are simply examples, not a recommendation of where to spend your money.  If you do not currently live with your parents and do not already own a razor scraper, toss one in your Amazon shopping cart.

Why?

Because at some point, you’re going to need this stupidly, handy tool for something, whether it’s for removing melted microfiber, plastic bags, or sugar from your smooth top stove, getting burnt-on grime off of the interior of your oven, or even removing paint from glass, these suckers are handy and at just over two bucks a pop, there is no reason not to have one in your kitchen and one in the garage / workshop area. Also at that price point, it’s worth having in there, if you’re THIS close to free shipping, but not quite.

To use the razor scraper on your smooth top range, hold the scraper at about a 45° angle to the stove and push forward, not side- to-side, never side-to-side, that would be how you scratch your smooth top range.

Got it?

Always scrape back and forth, not sideways and do it at an angle. Picture the razor blade sliding between the plastic and the surface of your stove, prying off the stuck on bits. (Because that’s what it’s doing and why it’s best to use a very sharp blade. Please use common sense and caution when using this tool and hide it from the minions, if you have those lurking about.)

Questions?

Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

Filed Under: Clean It Tagged With: , ,

Getting Rid of Pet Urine Odor in Carpet

November 27, 2012 By 7 Comments

Dear Home-Ec 101,

I recently officially moved out of my parents house. I was living in a condo while at school, but  got a house with my fiance, and have been moving a lot of my old stuff from their house into our new home. While I was away at college though, my sister’s cats turned my old room into a cat playground. Unfortunately, this lead to cat hair and urine all over my old clothes. I have been going through and washing everything with vinegar, which has mostly helped with the smell. The only problem I’m having now is that the carpet and the room near the hallway that I sorted through the clothes smells faintly of urine. I can smell it pretty strongly when I walk into the bathroom, though I didn’t ever bring any of those clothes into that room.

Any ideas on what to do?

I’ve vacuumed all the carpet in the area, but the smell is still there.

Signed,
Catastrophe in Catawba

Heather says:

Sisters, cats, what do you do?

As far as the bathroom, if this is your first time living with a man. . . try wiping around the base of the toilet with an acidic, all-purpose cleaner. Let’s see if that doesn’t solve the urine odor in the bathroom. It’d be nice to blame the cat, but. . . I have my suspicions here. I have a part time job in a pub and yes, we all take turns cleaning the bathrooms. The women’s restrooms do not smell like urine, it’s a guy thing from splashing. Yuck, I know. Clean it up (ask him to clean it?) and carry-on with your day.

As far as the odor in the carpet, your best bet is to get an enzymatic carpet cleaner like Kids N Pets and rent a steam cleaner from the hardware or grocery store. Since the pet was not actually in your home, I doubt that any urine has wicked all the way to the padding. If that were the case, I would highly recommend hiring a professional carpet cleaner as their machines are generally in better condition, with more powerful extractors AND they often guarantee their services.

Just make sure you follow the directions on the steam cleaner AND run a fan, box or oscillating, over the carpet until it is completely dry. You do not want to remove the pet urine odor and replace it with the odor of  mildew. Bleh.

Good luck!

Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

Filed Under: Clean It Tagged With: , , , ,

How to Clean Throw Pillows

October 15, 2012 By 3 Comments

Dear Home Ec 101,

Can you tell me how to clean throw pillows? A friend made me a pillow cover for a throw pillow on my couch, but she sewed it shut over the pillow, so there is no way to remove the pillow to wash it.   Are there any options as far as cleaning the cover?
Signed,
Throw Down in Three River

Heather says

It was very kind of your friend to make you the throw pillow cover, but I certainly understand your dilemma. We’ll start broadly and then narrow it down to your specific case.

How to Clean Throw Pillows

In general cleaning a throw pillow is much like cleaning any upholstered furniture, since they are often made of the same material. Vacuum your throw pillows with the upholstery attachment each time you vacuum the couch or chair. Be careful, as decorative throw pillows may have delicate stitching or accents that may unravel with vigorous cleaning.

If your throw pillow is covered in silk or wool, it can and should be dry cleaned when necessary -read that as when looking dingy.

Throw pillows can be washed, preferably in a front load washer on the hand or delicate cycle and then dried thoroughly, first by drip drying and then on the fluff / tumble / no heat cycle in the dryer. Be absolutely sure that the pillow is completely dry before returning it to its place of honor or you’ll run the risk of developing the funk of mold or mildew. With a bulky item like a pillow, you are guaranteed a hard time trying to get rid of that odor.

If the decorative cover of your throw pillow has too many delicate items to run the risk of a trip through the washer, even on gentle, grab a seam ripper.

Yes, you’re going to do a little surgery on your throw pillow.

Carefully cut the thread that contains the last seam sewn for the pillow. This seam should be easy to identify as there will be some exposed stitching, no matter how careful your friend was. Hint: check near the corners.

Hand wash the cover of the pillow and then, close the seam with a slip stitch.

As I truly hate sewing, the decorative pillow would then be moved to a place of “honor” where it would rarely come in contact with the often grubby minions who seem to insist on wallowing on things I love, immediately after playing in the mud.

Good luck with your throw pillow and let me know how it turns out.

 Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

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How to Clean Your Carpet: Carpet Care 101

October 10, 2012 By 12 Comments

Dear Home-Ec 101,

What is your recommendation for having carpet professionally steam cleaned (whether to do so, and, if so, how frequently)?

In other words, can you tell me how to clean my carpet?

Signed,
Dingy in Dillon
Heather says:

The basics of carpet cleaning are pretty standard. However, it is important to adhere to your manufacturer’s recommendations or you run the risk of voiding the warranty and who wants to do that?

Dirt, even dirt that doesn’t stain damages your carpet by weakening the fibers through friction. Walking on your carpeting causes crush damage – this is part of the reason why quality carpet padding is so important, it cushions the fibers so they can handle more foot traffic.

How do you keep your carpet looking great for years?

You keep your carpet clean.

How to Clean Your Carpet

Start with vacuuming.

Vacuuming sounds easy enough, but we all know some people need vacuuming instructions spelled out clearly.

Adjust the height of the head of your vacuum so that the beater bar agitates the carpet fibers a couple of inches away from the head, but not so low that it becomes hard to push. The beater bar loosens the dirt and the suction and brushes whisk the dirt into the canister or bag. When vacuuming a room follow the whole top to bottom left to right mantra we discuss so often around here. Why? It gives you a place to start. If you don’t want to do it this way, just make sure that you vacuum the entire room with short, overlapping strokes.

Pay attention to high traffic areas, when you are vacuuming carpeting that has the potential to receive a lot of crush damage, vacuum against the general traffic flow. Use the vacuum to basically fluff up the fibers.

I didn’t write this rule, talk to the carpet manufacturers if it bothers you.

To keep your carpet clean:

Carpeting should be, at minimum, vacuumed thoroughly on a weekly basis. Busy households with kids and pets should add one quick vacuuming of high traffic areas to their weekly vacuuming for each household member, including large dogs. A household with two adults and two kids -who are home most of the time- would probably need to vacuum four times a week.

Now go ahead take into account if you aren’t ever home. If you have six people but pretty much live out of your mini-van know that you don’t have to vacuum six days a week.

Sorry. Having kids and pets means more responsibilities. As soon as you can teach your children to vacuum and make them take over at least the quick vacuuming.

Now to your actual question, what about professional steam carpet cleaning?

How often should I have my carpet steam cleaned?

Carpet steam cleaning should be done no more than twice a year, unless your warranty states otherwise. You can rent a carpet cleaning machine from local hardware and grocery stores, but – and this is especially important for those of us who live in humid climates- professional carpet cleaners have the ability to extract more water from the carpet and pad. Your carpet and padding will dry faster and probably be left cleaner than when steam cleaned by a poorly maintained rental unit.

If you have builder’s grade carpet, nothing is going to save it. Go ahead and use the rental machine and know that builder’s grade carpeting has a very short lifespan no matter how carefully you care for it.

If you have invested in quality carpeting and good padding, protect your investment by using a professional carpet cleaner.

Between carpet steam cleanings, spot clean carpeting and always, always, always make sure that the carpet and padding are dried thoroughly. Do not close the room, keep the windows open or run a box fan and allow the air to circulate. Mold and mildew in the carpeting are far worse than a little staining.

Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

Filed Under: Clean It Tagged With: ,

Help a Home-Ec Reader Find the Right Vacuum: A Friday Ask the Audience

September 28, 2012 By 24 Comments

Dear Home-Ec 101,
Target has a gift card promotion this week with the Dysons. I’ve been thinking about purchasing one but the only thing holding me back is the fact that my house isn’t covered in carpet except for the basement which isn’t a very large space. Can anyone recommend a vacuum cleaner that would be comparable to Dyson but cost less? I can’t see myself spending so much for such a little space.
Thanks!

Bagless in Baltimore

Heather says:

This is a fantastic question for the Home-Ec 101 Readers and an excellent opportunity for me to introduce you to my friend Dave Taylor. Dave runs AskDaveTaylor.com where he answers all kinds of tech questions. A recent question How to Research a Tech Product Before I Buy It translates beautifully to your question “Which vacuum cleaner should I purchase for a small space?”

Personally, I use a Roomba i530 on the main level of our home, which is all hard flooring, with very few rugs because I can’t make a decorating commitment of that magnitude, apparently. . . If you would like, here is my personal review of the iR0bot 530, with a lot of feedback from Home-Eccers. And, I just ordered an upgrade for my Roomba as it’s time to replace the brushes after some abuse from the other minions -the kind on two and four legs. I used Dave’s advice when I checked out the reviews of the iRobot 500 Series Upgrade (I have the white, but the black upgrade had more reviews).

Upstairs on the carpet, I use a factory reconditioned Dyson. Do you know what factory reconditioned means? Factory reconditioning is a process by which a returned product is checked, by the manufacturer, before being resold. By law a product returned to a store cannot be sold as new. Not every product is returned because of an actual defect, some people simply return an item because it doesn’t fit their needs or maybe there was a slight defect that was repaired. Factory reconditioned products are significantly cheaper than new. Occasionally factory reconditioned items have a couple cosmetic blemishes. In this case, it’s a vacuum, last I checked we didn’t spend weekends going to vacuum shows, showing off vintage models. Your vacuum is going to receive abuse, so why pay a premium? Now you have a way to purchase an actual Dyson vacuum cleaner without spending as much on a new Dyson vacuum.

Let’s do a quick comparison:

Over on Target.com we see the Dyson DC41 Animal Upright for $599. (eek!) Now, let’s head over to Amazon and put in Dyson Animal Reconditioned: (You aren’t going to get the LATEST model, but again with the, it’s a frigging vacuum). Look at that, the most expensive one is $309, which also has free shipping if you’re an Amazon Prime Member -I am simply for this and the streaming video perks- that’s down to nearly half the cost. Now, if that is still out of your intended budget (which I completely understand, we have carpeting in the upstairs bedroom and my office, and with our I-shed-all-the-time-basset-hound, I still feel justified having a the vacuum I do, but that’s a personal decision, judge away, if you must)

I have also tested a Bissell Pro-Lite Multi-Cyclonic Upright Vacuum and also found the Bissell performed well. This vacuum rings in at $119 brand spanking new. I did a quick search, but didn’t see a factory reconditioned option. You can certainly look on e-Bay and other sites to see if they are out there as an option.

Since I’m only one person and have only one house and have limited consumer product testing time and facilities, I’m opening this reader question up to the Home-Ec 101 audience.  What vacuum would YOU recommend, based on your experience, for a reader with a fairly small carpeted area?

Ready? Go!

Submit your questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.

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