What are the types of vacuum cleaners?
Vacuum cleaner with bag: operation, advantages & disadvantages
Vacuum cleaners with a bag are the most affordable models in comparison. They catch the dirt in a bag, which can then be disposed of in the household waste. Since the dust is disposed of in an almost closed bag when emptying, no dust clouds are released - this is particularly relevant for people with house dust allergies. However, more waste is produced than with bagless variants.
Bagless cyclone vacuum cleaner: operation, advantages & disadvantages
Bagless cyclone vacuum cleaners collect the dirt in a dust container instead of a bag. When this is full, you empty it out in the household trash. However, this can be a dusty affair. Since cyclonic vacuum cleaners do not need bags, these models win the comparison with the bag variants in terms of economy as well as ecology.
Vacuum cleaner with water filter: operation, advantages & disadvantages
Vacuum cleaners with water filters promise high filtration performance. The air sucked in is passed through a water bath and thus filtered. The dust is bound in the water. This is particularly advantageous for allergy sufferers or pet owners. This is because pollen, dust mites, animal hair and other particles should be better removed from the air by the water filter. Emptying the filter succeeds without a cloud of dust, because dirt and dust are dissolved in the water.
air-Q Lab: The Aqua+ from Robert Thomas in the test
Vacuum cleaners are actually designed to remove dust from floors and furniture. According to the manufacturer, some devices can do even more. Can the ROBERT THOMAS Aqua+ Multi Clean X10 Parquet vacuum cleaner - a vacuum cleaner with a water filter - influence or even improve air quality? During the field test, we used an air-Q pro with 14 sensors to monitor air quality, recording humidity, VOCs, chemicals, particulates as well as nitrogen dioxide . In our evaluation, we present the three most relevant measured variables.
The test took place in a 15 m² room. We performed several test runs with the Aqua+ Multi Clean X10 Parquet with and without artificial contamination. We created a strong artificial contamination of the air with the help of an incense candle to be able to test the cleaning effect. The vacuum cleaner ran for a total of 30 minutes. The suction power was not checked; the device ran virtually "empty".
There are no laboratory conditions in our test room. The test was intended to explore whether an improvement in air quality is measurable within a normal vacuuming operation. The initial values in our residual room can be slightly influenced by values such as the temperature differences over the course of the day, plants and their moisture release, as well as the slightly varying degree of pollution depending on the combustion process of the incense candle.
Humidity measurement: Can the THOMAS Aqua+ vacuum cleaner improve the humidity in the room?
Within a runtime of 30 minutes, the humidity could be increased by approx. 10 percent with the THOMAS Aqua+. There was no other source of humidity in the room. This could be confirmed with a comparison measurement in which the humidity remained constant without an active vacuum cleaner.
Measurement of VOCs: Can the THOMAS Aqua+ vacuum cleaner neutralize VOCs in the air?
During the test run, the very high VOC value generated by the artificial pollution source was quickly reduced when the Robert Thomas vacuum cleaner was operated. Thus, the VOC level dropped from more than 9500 ppb (parts per billion) to about 7,500 ppb after 30 minutes. The VOCs present in the air in significant amounts can be dissolved quite effectively in the water of the vacuum cleaner. Towards the end of the period, the absorption capacity of the water decreases. This may be because saturation occurs and the maximum amount of VOCs soluble in the water is reached.
particulates-Measurement: Can the THOMAS Aqua+ vacuum cleaner filter particulates out of the air?
The combustion of the incense candle produced a very high fine dust value of approx. 200 µg/m³. This pollution was even visible, because a smoke haze could be perceived with the naked eye. The air in the small room was therefore heavily polluted with dust as well as particulates.
Within the operation of the ROBERT THOMAS Aqua+ Multi Clean X10 Parquet, the fine dust values of just under 200 μg/m³ were already halved after about half of the test period. Consistently, the fine dust load dropped to below 70 μg/m³ during the test phase. This is a reduction in particulate matter of around 67 percent from a very high starting level.
Conclusion
The ROBERT THOMAS Aqua+ Multi Clean X10 Parquet is first and foremost a vacuum cleaner. Vacuum cleaners are generally not suitable for continuous use as air cleaners. In the test, it showed a positive influence on the three particularly noticeable measured variables of humidity, VOCs as well as particulates. Thus the humidity content of the room air could be clearly influenced by the water filter vacuum cleaner. The vacuum cleaner acts as a very effective humidifier. This is because a great deal of air is pumped through the water and evaporates in the process.
The VOC particles in the air in the test scenario were reduced and the high load from the vacuum cleaner was eliminated. The water filter is effective against water-soluble VOCs and retains them in the water. Highly concentrated fine dusts could also be filtered out of the air with the Aqua+. The test result of our air-Q Lab shows: Using vacuum cleaners with water filters, such as the Aqua+, can provide noticeable air freshening and purification in addition to a clean floor.
(Contributing photo: air-Q)
