To say that for many years I had a love/hate relationship with handheld vacuums would be to put it mildly. I love the idea of a cordless handheld vacuum that is charged up and always ready to make a quick pick-up—in fact, it is on my list of household must-haves.
But I hate when the thing runs for only a few minutes before it needs to be recharged, is heavy and awkward to use, and has such weak suction it really doesn’t do a very good job of picking up anything.
Backstory
It’s been more than 30 years since I got my first handheld Dustbuster. It would hold a charge for maybe two minutes if all the stars were properly aligned and I held it in just the right position. And the thing completely failed after only a few months—refusing to hold any charge at all. Rubbish!
If you have hard flooring, carpet or flat surfaces in your home, which just about covers every possibility—there are three specific vacuum cleaners that deserve your attention: an upright, a cordless stick vac and a cordless handheld. These are the worker bees that I own, love, and do not want to live without.
Once you familiarize yourself with these vacuums and their specific uses, you’ll know why each one gets my designation of for Best Inexpensive™ in its specific category. Because life is uncertain and things can change with a minute’s notice, today I am updating and republishing this post with new and exciting information.
In the decade since I met and fell in love with my first Shark upright vacuum, I’ve purchased, tested, given as gifts, and worked nearly to death (it’s really hard to wear out a Shark) many Shark vacuums because the company comes out with a new model or two about every week, or so it seems. I can say with confidence, there is no better basic corded, upright vacuum cleaner on earth.
https://www.everydaycheapskate.com/wp-content/uploads/PicMonkey-Collage-16-1310x833jpg.jpg8331310Mary Hunthttps://www.everydaycheapskate.com/wp-content/uploads/EC-Logo-by-Mary-Hunt-Tagline-Trimmed.pngMary Hunt2020-04-17 00:29:312020-09-27 18:10:10The 3 Vacuums I Use Every Day and Absolutely Swear By
Let me tell you about my mission to discover the Best Inexpensive bedsheets. It went on for many months. It cost a fortune because as you know, when I test products for you I purchase them myself. I do not want to be beholden in any way to a manufacturer, distributor, or company when it comes to determining what I believe is the Best Inexpensive option.
Sheet snob
When it comes to bedsheets, I am particular. Call me a sheet snob and you’d have me pegged, which means that my personal standards could be too high to be considered affordable.
It’s not a matter of decor or brand. It’s the way the sheets feel. They should be smooth and wrinkle-free. The sheets need to breathe and not stick to me. But they can’t be slick, slippery, crunchy, or noisy. The weave has to be tight and sheets can’t feel like sandpaper.
For me, sheets have to fit well, too. The fitted sheet cannot pop off the corners of the mattress; but it can’t be too big, so as to become baggy, which can lead to bunching up. Above all, my sheets must be 100% cotton. Not linen, not microfiber or polyester or any other type of fiber or blend thereof.
Seriously, if the sheets are not right, I don’t sleep well. And by well I mean sound asleep—not tossing, turning, and continuously waking up.
Where did the percale go?
There was a time when decent sheets were common and affordable. I don’t know for certain what’s happened there, but I blame it on synthetic fibers—microfiber, polyester, lyocell, and their manmade fiber-cousins that are cheap to manufacture.
We used to depend on the word “percale” to be the sign of a great sheet, but truth be told percale has nothing to do with fiber content. Percale refers to a type of tight weave, most often made from cotton, but not necessarily so. I’ve been fooled by percale sheets that turn out to be polyester percale or microfiber percale—not the fine cotton percale I remember from childhood.
Humidity, or the lack thereof, is a popular topic this time of year. Where I live in northern Colorado, it’s dry! We have like no humidity. Well, not exactly, but it averages in the low mid-20 percent during the summer and fall months. We have a humidifier in our home, and it runs 24/7 year-round for health and comfort.
Recently, lots of readers have inquired about how to deal with the opposite—high humidity, which can get pretty miserable. A dehumidifier can be a godsend for those who live in high humidity areas to remove excess moisture from indoor air.
What is a dehumidifier?
Think of a dehumidifier as a vacuum that sucks the air from a room, removing the moisture and blowing dry air back into the room again. The condensation drips into a collection tank inside the machine that must be emptied from time to time.
Many people find that a dehumidifier works together with the air conditioning system to keep the rooms in a home comfortable even on the hottest days with super high humidity. Others rely on a dehumidifier in place of an air conditioner.
Dehumidifiers come in a variety of sizes, typically rated according to how many square feet they can dehumidify and how many pints of water they can produce in a day. Most home dehumidifiers are controlled by thermostats and humidity sensors so you can make the room as hot and dry as you wish.
https://www.everydaycheapskate.com/wp-content/uploads/dehumidifier.jpg8331310Mary Hunthttps://www.everydaycheapskate.com/wp-content/uploads/EC-Logo-by-Mary-Hunt-Tagline-Trimmed.pngMary Hunt2019-09-05 07:42:082020-08-28 11:20:46Best Inexpensive Home Dehumidifiers and How to Choose
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