| Like a lot of inventions over the years the | | | | few years before Hubert Booth of London came |
| invention of the vacuum cleaner is also | | | | up with the first electric vacuum. The only |
| surrounded with great debate as to who came | | | | problem was that the vacuum was so big it was |
| up with the first vacuum cleaner. We have to | | | | stored on the back of a trailer outside the |
| go as far back as the 1800's to try and | | | | house and a very long hose was run inside to |
| understand what people had in their homes and | | | | do the cleaning.As time went by more and more |
| how they went about cleaning.Firstly we can | | | | inventors had a go at coming up with the |
| trace one of the earliest and better known | | | | ultimate cleaner and one which could be used |
| devices back to 1860 when David Hess came up | | | | in the home without much fuss and was |
| with a way to solve a problem which | | | | portable. Then along came James Spangler in |
| housewives were having at the time. In those | | | | 1908 with the first portable suction cleaner. |
| days people used rugs on the bare wooden | | | | This cleaner proved to be extremely popular |
| floors to try and keep the dust down to a | | | | and for some reason he sold the patent to |
| minimum. Of course all the dust | | | | William Hoover. Yes, the man who's name has |
| | | | become synonymous with house cleaning. The |
| remained on the rug and the only way off was | | | | fact that the Hoover name stuck was a |
| to hang the rug and whack it with a stick. | | | | testament to how good and popular the early |
| Shortly after came the rug-beater, which | | | | cleaners were and now nearly 100 years later |
| resembled a tennis racket.However, it was | | | | the vacuum cleaner can still be best |
| only David Hess who thought there must be an | | | | described a clunky, noisy piece of hardware. |
| easier way to do the rug cleaning and he came | | | | |
| up with a Carpet Sweeper which had a rotating | | | | Although innovative designs such as the |
| brush with a bellows system which provided | | | | Dyson and the next generation robotic Roomba |
| the suction. Is or was this a 'vacuum | | | | are starting to give us some idea of what we |
| cleaner'? The machine also consisted of two | | | | can expect of 21st century vacuum |
| water chambers which | | | | cleaners.Whoever is responsible for the |
| | | | invention of the vacuum cleaner, of which I |
| collected the fine dust and particles. The | | | | believe there are many, would be proud to |
| only problem with this invention is that | | | | know that the principles of their early day |
| there is no proof it was ever produced.Then | | | | designs still remain in vacuum |
| along came Melville Bissell, who's surname | | | | |
| will sound familiar if you know your vacuum | | | | cleaners in millions of homes around the |
| cleaners, who also came up with a carpet | | | | world.Andrea runs a website devoted to |
| sweeper that picked up dirt and deposited it | | | | providing news, reviews, articles, best deals |
| in a pan behind the sweeper head.But it | | | | on top brand |
| wasn't until 1899, when what can be described | | | | |
| as the first 'motorized' cleaner, was | | | | vacuums such as Dyson Vacuum Cleaners, |
| invented by John Thurman and it was another | | | | Miele, Oreck and much more. |