Has a Truro doctor designed the world’s smallest bagless vacuum cleaner?
Could a Truro doctor be the first person in the Guinness Book of Records to hold the record for having the world’s smallest vacuum cleaner? For many people, a vacuum cleaner is small enough to manoeuvre around the house. Our industrial vacuum cleaners can be used in warehouses and on airport terminals. According to the Plymouth Herald, Doctor Toby Bateson may have set a precedent.
A Dyson clone for a dolls house?
Toby’s cleaner is 2.8 cm tall, about the same size as an eraser. Owing to its small size, you handle what is probably the world’s smallest vacuum cleaner in the same way as a rubber. You hold onto the cylindrical cleaner with your fingertips and place it on the area you wish to clean. This video clip shows you how it picks up dust.
For the time being, it has limited uses. Mr. Bateson is seen using the vacuum cleaner to pick up sawdust. It could be a good tool for picking up bits of pencil erasers. There is potential for his design for add-ons. A dainty little brush attachment and a slim extension hose could be good. The accessory pack, if one was to be considered, would take up more room than its cylindrical section.
Instead of being a quirky desktop toy, there is potential for serious uses. The world’s smallest vacuum cleaner could be used for blowing dust off electronic components. As to whether Mr. Bateson has developed a Dyson clone for a dolls house, he is almost there. Except, dolls houses tend to be the preserve of hobbyists with cash to burn rather than as a young child’s plaything.
Would we buy one?
Should Dr. Bateson’s miniature marvel hit the shelves, we think it could be a good stocking filler. We hope he succeeds.
Some straightforward tips on getting the better of leaf fall season
Autumn leaves image by Moomusician (via Shutterstock).
To many of us, this is autumn. In rail speak, autumn is known as The Leaf Fall Season. We have all heard about the ‘leaves on the line’ comment for the best part of three decades. From St. Helens Junction to Georgemas Junction, or Liverpool Lime Street to Birchwood and Selly Oak, it’s the bane of railways. As a consequence, the leaf fall season has an effect on timetables. Continue reading “The Leaf Fall Season: Infographic”
Leicester City Council head supports ban on chewing gum in city centre
Yuk: A spat out piece of chewing gum. Even worse on the pavement. Image by Sasha Gromov (via Shutterstock).
From St. Helens to St. Austell, there is one scourge of the streets that is more annoying than dog poop. Worse than half eaten takeaways plonked on the floor. They are an absolute pain in the rear end, because the best of industrial vacuum cleaners can struggle with this material. We are referring to chewing gum and bubble gum.
A look at the Scott Fetzer company’s iconic Kirby vacuum cleaner
In relation to architecture, John Ruskin gave us these sage words: “When we build, let us think that we build forever.” This phrase can be applicable to luxury goods. With cars, the Rolls Royce, Bentley, and Lexus marques. For cameras, the Leitz Company’s Leica cameras set the gold standard. With vacuum cleaners, some might say the same about the Kirby vacuum cleaner. Continue reading “Iconic Vacuum Cleaners: The Kirby Vacuum”
One’s looking for a part-time cleaner at the Palace of Holyroodhouse
A change from the usual shop floor or office: the Palace of Holyroodhouse is situated just outside the centre of Edinburgh. This week, The Royal Household will enable you to “deliver the exceptional”. Image by Samot (via Shutterstock).
Fancy a move to Edinburgh? The Royal Household are looking for a part-time cleaner at the Palace of Holyroodhouse. It is an ideal position for cleaners seeking a fresh challenge in unique surroundings and a change from the office or shop floor.
The Royal Household’s vacancy pays £8,580 per annum for a 20-hour week, working five out of seven days in a week. Plus you also get a 15% non-contributory pension with an option to boost your payments or draw down your contribution rate in favour of higher earnings. You also get 33 days holiday pay, including Scottish and British Bank Holidays, and free lunch. Staff social and recreational facilities are among the perks.
The Palace of Holyroodhouse is no ordinary cleaning assignment. Your work will include cleaning and caring for irreplaceable items. For example, rare paintings and furniture of historical interest. Successful applicants will get to clean public areas, State rooms, and staff offices. Providing a first class cleaning service for the Royal Family as well as the general public could go a long way on your future C.V.
The Palace of Holyroodhouse is the official Scottish residence of our reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth the Second. It was built between 1671 and 1678 in a quadrangle layout which it retains today. Holyroodhouse is at the eastern end of Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. It is also said to be haunted by the ghost of Bald Agnes. Agnes Simpson was stripped and tortured in 1592 after being accused of witchcraft.
To apply for this position, all applications should be submitted by the 29 October 2016, 11.55 pm.
Sheffield car parks cleaning contract won by Parking Services, the council’s in-house providers
Back in municipal control: Thirty-five of Sheffield’s car parks. Image of Sheffield Millennium Square and Town Hall by Shahid Khan (via Shutterstock).
Thirty-five of Sheffield’s car parks will be cleaned by the city council’s in-house providers. Parking Services, part of Sheffield City Council’s Transport, Traffic and Parking Services division, regained the contract after a two-year absence. In August 2014, services were contracted out to a private contractor due to staffing issues. The public sector body lacked enough staff to provide a first rate service.
Less waste: with fewer carrier bags being taken at the checkout, the 5p levy has resulted in more people reusing previously purchased bags. Image by Monticello (via Shutterstock).
This time one year ago, the 5p bag levy was akin to being the spawn of Satan. For a time, charging for carrier bags seemed like Armageddon for some commentators (though Kwik Save did so from the 1980s till its demise in 2007). Almost to the point it was claimed that oceans would rise; that house prices would fall; and that aeroplanes would fall from the sky. A year on, none of the hysterics happened. We lived our lives normally and adapted to the changes pretty well.
How well did we adjust to the five pence levy? Very well indeed. A survey from Cardiff University has noticed some changes in shoppers’ habits since its imposition. Though similar schemes are successful in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, its success in England was a potentially sterner test. The results are staggering. It was stated that:
90% of shoppers reuse their carrier bags;
Only 7% of shoppers opt for carrier bags at the checkout;
One in two shoppers take their own bags for the carriage of clothing;
Increased support for 5p levy – and similar waste management levies for plastic water bottles.
As a result of the five pence levy, 90% of us shoppers reuse previously purchased carrier bags. Alongside single use bags that are widely available, this has meant reusable jute bags, rucksacks, and longer lasting ‘Bag For Life’ plastic carrier bags. As a consequence, only 7% of shoppers buy a bag each time they visit their local shops. This is a substantial drop from 25% in October 2015.
With clothiers eschewing plastic bags in favour of fashionable paper-based carrier bags, more shoppers have elected to reuse them instead of plumping for new bags. Last October, 10% of those surveyed did just that. Today, this figure stands at 50%.
Professor Wouter Poortinga, who headed the study at Cardiff University said: “Overall, our research has shown that the English carrier bag charge has had a strong and positive impact on people’s attitudes and behaviours and that it successfully disrupted people using plastic bags.
“We’ve seen that the charge has become increasingly popular with the English population since it was introduced, and that it has changed attitudes towards waste policies as well.”
Increased support for five pence levy and similar waste management schemes
In spite of the doomsday predictions from some quarters, 51% of shoppers favoured the 5p levy on the 05 October 2015. Today, this figure has climbed to 62%. Plus, there is increased support for the extension of similar schemes. For example, a levy on plastic water bottles. Or a much needed boost for rinse and return schemes (who remembers returning empty pop bottles to the local off-licence?). Among the suggestions mooted is a deposit scheme for plastic bottles, or a levy on disposable coffee cups.
So far, Starbucks Coffee rewards its customers with a modest discount for using their own mug instead of a disposable one. This is one small step, but advertising it as a discount for individual mugs rather than a levy for disposables is the way to go. So far, for disposable cup recycling, this is only the beginning.
Overview: Carrier Bag Charges
There has been a 5p levy on carrier bags in England since the 05 October 2015. Retail businesses with fewer than 200 employees are exempt from the charge, which should benefit independent shops. Furthermore, free carrier bags can only be dispensed if used to carry fresh food (for example: meat from the local butchers, or a small bag for the carriage of takeaway food including sandwiches).
For more details, GOV.UK has a helpful guide, which includes a video clip.
Shocking findings on why a coffee mug is best washed at home
Home is Where Your Mug Should Be Washed: the University of Arizona’s research recommends washing your works mug at home, in a dishwasher. Image by Anton Watman (via Shutterstock).
The works kitchen or brewing up area is in many cases a good help for many colleagues. It saves on the cost of several Costabucks coffees. Some have microwave ovens which are good for warming up food from home. Some even have dishwashers. Nothing beats being able to use your own mug as well.
But – and this is a massive but – the University of Arizona has revealed a study that would chill Britain’s tea lovers to the bone. With the communal nature of the office or site kitchen, the chances of bacteria are far greater. You may be better off eating your sandwiches off the floor after one of Clean Hire’s industrial vacuums have put in a shift.
The report was created by Charles Gerba, a professor of environmental microbiology at University of Arizona. He said that washing up sponges are a magnet for bacteria, owing to the amount of mugs that have been cleaned. Instead of one mug, the same sponge may have been used on twenty of them.
Though a little inconvenient, he suggests getting your favourite coffee mug washed at home. If available, in a dishwasher. There are two figures alone, which are a good enough reason for carting your mug on the 1754 train from St. Helens Junction (other National Rail stations are available of course). Firstly, 90% – yes a staggering 90% – of cups in the control group harboured dangerous germs like e Coli and salmonella.
Secondly, 20% of mugs contained traces of faecal matter. This due to some colleagues who may have refrained from washing their hands after using the toilet.
So, the moral of the story is: whilst at home, wash your office mug in the dishwasher. You could consider using paper cups, but tea in a styrofoam or paper cup can never beat a proper mug.
Clean Hire, 19 September 2016
How a central vacuum cleaner, underneath the former West Side Line in New York City aims to keep the city’s much-loved elevated park in tip-top condition.
A revolutionary system of pneumatic tubes is set to improve the cleanliness of one of New York City’s most popular open spaces. Pneumatic tubes, akin to a giant central vacuum cleaner, will be used to keep the High Line linear park clean. It is part of a plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions in NYC by 80%, by 2050.
All of the tubes will be placed underneath the park’s elevated walkway, which is 1.5 mile in length from The West Village to 34th Street. The city’s proposed network of tubes is inspired by a similar system on Roosevelt Island and is championed by ClosedLoops, who have overseen the project’s development since 2010.
At pedestrian level, there will be a trio of bins every few yards. One bin will be used for the disposal of food waste (half-eaten burgers and sandwiches) with a second one for recyclable refuse, and a third one for non-recyclable rubbish. These will be connected to a pneumatic tube. There will be a separate pneumatic tube for restaurant food waste and a branch from Chelsea Market.
Like an enormous central vacuum cleaner, the allegorical vacuum bags will be the system’s anaerobic digestion facilities. The waste is containerised and sent by rail for recycling. Its railhead is a few yards from the northern end of High Line park (which is the junction of 34th Street and 12th Avenue).
As part of its environmental strategy, the giant central vacuum cleaner will see fewer dustcarts along the High Line park. The idea’s nothing new; it is reminiscent of similar practices In the UK with local authority housing estates. Known as the Garchey system, the waste disposal unit of a sink would be an outlet for disposing refuse.
This was implemented in the now-demolished Quarry Hill Flats in Leeds, and at the soon to be fully-refurbished Park Hill Estate in Sheffield. As waste consumption increased due to consumer spending, its limitations were evident. New York’s scheme aims to improve on previous practices and we think they could be on to a winner.
Clean Hire, 14 September 2016.
Norwegian study states how lung conditions like COPD are caused by cleaning chemicals
Bad news for lung functioning: some cleaning chemicals can irritate the respiratory system, with professional cleaners most likely to be affected. Image by Iakov Filimonov (via Shutterstock).
If you wish to duck out of the household chores, this week’s story should give you a valid reason. In a Norwegian study, it was revealed that certain cleaning chemicals could trigger respiratory diseases like COPD. From a survey of 5,000 women over a 20-year period, it was revealed that:
Professional cleaners saw a 17% decline in lung function compared the average woman;
Lung function dropped by 14% over the 20-year period with women who did most of the household chores.
Cleaning chemicals like ammonia can irritate the airwaves and other substances that are likely to cause an allergic reaction. Due to the increased potency of today’s cleaning products, they are more likely to cause respiratory disorders like COPD, bronchitis, and emphysema.
The study was conducted by Oistein Svanes, from the University of Bergen in Norway. His response to the findings: “Cleaning your home is a regular activity, and that’s why this concerns so many people.
“We need to start being much more aware of the chemicals we’re releasing into the air we breathe when we use things like cleaning spray.”
Dr. Gareth Walters, of the West Midlands NHS Regional Occupational Lung Disease Service, said: “It is a concern because it’s the first evidence that there’s some long-term damage to lungs due to exposure to cleaning agents.”
With concerns over MRSA and superbugs, domestic cleaning chemicals are using the same substances of their industrial equivalents. Though these make for more effective cleaning, the smaller space of a family home have made the chemicals bad for asthma sufferers.
Possible allergy triggers
Be aware of the following cleaning chemicals:
Methylisothiazolinone (MI/MIT): you will find this chemical in kitchen and floor sprays. Some beauty products also contain MI/MIT.
Benzalkonium chloride (Quaternary Ammonium Compound): popular as a disinfectant in household cleaners (for floors and hard surfaces).
Chlorine-based agents (Sodium Hypochlorite): used as the active
ingredient in bleach.
Isothiazolinones: these are used in some washing-up liquids and laundry washing liquids.
Some scents within cleaning agents (for example, limonene) can also trigger allergies.
As with any cleaning chemicals – home or industrial – make sure your room is well ventilated. Some extra protection, like gloves and a face mask, could be a good idea. Also, consider purchasing products where the cleaning agent can be applied with a cloth, instead of aerosol-based products.
Clean Hire, 31 August 2016.
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