How to Hack Your Regular Vacuum to Reach Into Tight Spaces
It’s been several years since a reader told me about an affordable, super-effective tool I could attach to my vacuum cleaner’s hose that would let me vacuum places that no vacuum had ever gone before. Every time I use it, I wonder how I had lived so long without VaccuFlex.
Meet VaccuFlex Kit
What’s so ingenious about a VaccuFlex Kit is that by combining its seven parts—which are food-grade and therefore safe to use in the kitchen—I can create the perfect combination to fit any size vacuum cleaner hose to get into any size space.
Vaccuflex plus my Shark Vaccum is not like some little battery-powered mini vac. With this remarkable add-on accessory, I have all of the power of my Shark behind VaccuFlex.
Clothes dryer
My first clue that things were not quite right with my clothes dryer was when suddenly it was taking forever to get anything dry!
I’d checked and re-checked the lint trap, so that wasn’t the problem. Turns out it was all kinds of lint that had been trapped behind the trap farther inside the machine. And in the dryer vent line.
My laundry appliances are stacked so pulling the dryer down to get into those areas from the back was not at all practical. That’s when in desperation, I ordered a VaccuFlex kit.
I removed the lint trap and stuck that hose all the way into that area. It was amazing. Sharky nearly filled itself before I stopped pulling out lint balls. Then I went outdoors to vacuum through the outside of the dryer vent. And that fixed the problem.
Kitchen
I use a clean VaccuFlex tube to vacuum all the crumbs and bits out of my kitchen drawers. It’s super easy and fast because there is no need to remove flatware, utensils, etc.
And that area around my coffee grinder? That thing is messy and throws fine coffee grinds into cracks, crevices, and drawer guides. VaccuFlex to the rescue for that and for reaching under the refrigerator, too.
Automobile
To me, car vacs can be troublesome. They’re either too wimpy and powerless, or the cord is too short; or if cordless, lacking in runtime. Using a full-power vacuum cleaner with VaccuFlex is the way to detail the inside of a car.
See that tiny hose? That can get into the tightest spots to super-suction out all of the stuff that accumulates in car seats, floors, door compartments, center console, and dashboard. This is the way to vacuum tight spaces!
Door and window tracks
What is it about door and window tracks that they simply refuse to get clean? It’s the corners and that area right next to the tracks that can be absolutely impossible to keep clean!
The solution is to make sure those areas are perfectly dry, then put VaccuFlex on the job. I’ve discovered it’s easier to first loosen the dirt and debris with a good brush.
Clogged sink
Warning: To perform this household rescue, you must attach VaccuFlex to a wet-dry vacuum. Shark vacuums are NOT wet-dry! This Vacmaster is my choice for an excellent wet-dry vacuum, which works well with Vaccuflex.
If you have a hopelessly clogged sink, it’s possible that you can quickly clear that clog with VaccuFlex attached to a wet-dry vacuum. Video demonstration.
There are so many other ways VaccuFlex has made my life easier—cleaning out air returns, condensation lines, p-traps, and HVAC systems, to name a few.
Such a great invention!
Resources
EverydayCheapskate is reader supported. We participate in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide publishers with fees by linking to Amazon.com and other affiliated sites. Thanks!
Amazon now has this in stock.
Yes.
In my son’s apartment complex the maintenance guy uses a leaf blower in the dryer vent to shoot that lint right out the trap, and clear the hose. (then the birds use it for nesting) I’ve been using the leaf blower in my home dryer and feel so proud when that blast of lint flies out!
Great tip, Cally.Thanks.
I just ordered this product using your link at Amazon.com. Thanks for always being so helpful.
Aloha Mary, just letting you know, the VacuuFlex in not available from Amazon right now. 🙁
Available direct from the manufacturer at VACCUFLEX $21.95 + shipping
Mary – the vacu flex sounds like a dream for many of my problems. But it is not available on Amazon – got that ‘don’t know if or when it will be available message’. Any idea where to find it?
Available direct from the manufacturer at VACCUFLEX $21.95 + shipping