Can anyone recommend a vacuum cleaner that picks up long hair? My current vaccuum cleaner gets clogged with hair or the belt ends up breaking because there's so much hair jammed in there.
I've had three vacuum cleaners and every one has succumbed to long hair. In some ways, I view this as a triumph of man...
I suggest to get a vacuum cleaner that can easily be disassembled so that hair can be manually removed. You can ask the store salesman to demonstrate how easily each model's carpet brush can be removed and replaced (he'll look at you less strangely if you explain that because of your 3+ feet of hair, you'll be doing this rather often). I've even modified my Sears Kenmore to allow for removal of hair that wraps around the bearings.
Another useful technique is to rake the carpets before vacuuming. My girlfriend bought me a small leaf rake to use indoors. One's toes can also make a usable rake. This will reduce the frequency with which the vacuum cleaner needs to be disassembled and cleaned.
Hope this helps!
Ed
Ha ha ha Ed! (And my own hair is only about 1/2 the length of your.)
EVERY time I vacuum now I first turn the thing over and spend about 5 mins. cutting the hair away with sissors.
How about a hose such as the town has to get the leaves with in the Autumn? Now, that should work for sure.
Justin
Hmmm, an indoor street sweeper. Now there's an idea (;-)
My girlfriend used to tell me that whenever she described to her friends all the things I do because of my long hair, they'd find it rather incredulous!
Ed
or get those wet and dry shop vac, those are real good, plus it will suck up anything, even puddles of water. You could even clean the carpet with soap and stuff then suck it all up with it. Plus theres no moving part except the vacuum itself so it wont get clogged. Just use an attachment with brush for carpets. Its strong enough that it should suck anything up.
Another benefit is you dont need vacuum cleaner bags that costs lots... just open it up and dump the content into a trash can.
I use a wet/dry shop vac and haven't had any problems with hair yet.
Lol!! That's a great idea, Ed. And since I'm a gardener, I already have plenty of rakes --- in many different shapes & sizes, in fact! Now, if I just wasn't such a lazy house-keeper...
- Ken
ROFL! Hey Ed, I know the problem well. That is the exact reason I don't have a beater bar type vacuum. It would likely take fewer than 10 of my 3 to 3 1/2 foot shed strands of hair to disable or destroy the beater bar assembly. That is why I have a bag/cannister type. One day, it ceased to suck up dirt. I was unaware of the cause. I eventually discovered that a ball of my hair managed to completely clog the hose. I had to plunge a long metal rod down the hose to get the clog out.
Absalom

I'm going to have to get a small rake ... that's a great suggestion! I too have vacuum problems, good thing I don't have roommates anymore as I'm sure it would be a topic of discussion.
As you can see my hair is not nearlu as long as EdG or Ansalom - but I have been noticing increasing problems with the vacuum and shower drain - but one get's use to it.
Karsten