Tackling Vertical Surfaces With Backpack Vacuums

Using backpack vacuums can save departments time and money

When cleaning facilities that have multiple surfaces, it can sometimes be difficult to find the right tool for the job. That is where backpack vacuums come in.

A good backpack vacuum can clean a variety of surfaces and they have attachments for those hard to reach places. It is no wonder that this equipment has made it possible to clean facilities more quickly and efficiently than ever before, which in most cases leads to a cost savings for cleaning departments.

Going Vertical

Vacuums are most widely used for horizontal surfaces such as carpets and hard floors. But it’s the vertical surfaces that are often ignored, yet they tend to accumulate large amounts of dust and dirt.

Vacuums were once overlooked for these tasks because their attachments couldn’t extend up or into hard to reach areas. But that’s no longer the case.

Experts agree that backpack vacuums are a great tool for tackling vertical surfaces. They come with attachments that fit on the end of the hose and are designed to fit into crevices that other cleaning tools can’t.

“Today, there are specialized tools for backpack vacuums that will allow the cleaning technician to maintain vertical surfaces on a regular basis,” says Richard Bodo, former textile division chair at the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC). “Maintaining vents, light fixtures, corners, furniture and other such surfaces with regular vacuuming will allow them to stay clean longer, and vastly extend the need for expensive and time consuming restorative cleaning.”

Backpack vacuums and their multitude of attachments also allow custodial workers to save time by limiting trips to the janitor’s closet. Quickly switch an attachment and workers can tackle ceilings, cobwebs, cube walls or upholstery.

Keith Schneringer, director of channel marketing and sustainability at Waxie Sanitary Supply, explains that using backpack vacuums to clean vertical surfaces saves time and money because most other methods are inefficient, particularly if one is using a duster or a cloth. Those tools may pick up the bigger particles, but the smaller particles are just being pushed around.

“Instead of knocking dirt and debris down or pushing it around, using the vacuum cleans, traps and removes the dirt,” Schneringer explains. “You won’t have to clean as frequently because the vacuum removes dust and dirt from the environment that is being cleaned.”

They are also great for specialized tasks. For example, many backpack vacuums come with a brush head. This can be used on surfaces such as fabric walls, furniture and hard floors.