BEAM Featured in VISION House LA

LOS ANGELES -- A construction site in fashionable Pacific Palisades will become much more than an example of southern California luxury living. The home also will serve as an education and demonstration site for sustainable building and healthy living.

The VISION House Los Angeles incorporates California’s new mandatory green building standards, CalGreen, that emphasize performance, durability, energy efficiency, water conservation, indoor air quality, efficient systems, and sustainable materials. The project is a joint effort of Green Builder Media and Structure Home, a Los Angeles-based builder. The project team will host a wide variety of educational, promotional, and community-focused events during and after completion.

The BEAM Serenity QS Central Vacuum System chosen for the project delivers up to five times the deep cleaning power of a conventional vacuum. It removes 100 percent of contacted dirt and allergens from the living area without stirring up dust inside the home. The system has been clinically proven to relieve allergies. The BEAM system also qualifies for green building certification points in both the National Association of Homebuilders and LEED green building standards.

Remodling Season is Here

The return of warm weather throughout the country also marks the return of the home improvement season. Odds are you'll be among the millions of homeowners who will spend an estimated $113 billion on home remodling projects this year.

Certainly, most projects will add value to your home, but not necessarily as much as they will cost. Installing a BEAM Central Vacuum System comes very close, typically adding $1,200 or more to the value of the home. Plus, it will improve the air quality of the home.

Remodeling magazine has put together an excellent online tool to compare the cost and the value of a number of major improvements. And it breaks down the cost and benefits by region and by scale.

Mama Loves Her BEAM

It's fairly common for people to move into an existing home that is equipped with an old central vacuum. That was the case for Brett Martin, her husband three young children and white Labrador moved into a 1970s era home in Ohio. The old central vacuum power unit wasn't doing the job and the hose was worn out. So she relied on uprights to clean the house.

Brett, who founded the popular blog, Mamalovesherbargains, decided to give a central vacuum another try. She learned how a BEAM Central Vacuum System can relieve allergies -- an important consideration since one of her sons has allergies. She chose the BEAM Serenity QS Central Vacuum System with the BEAM Q PowerTeam. 

"We were wowed," she wrote.

Read her full product review.

BEAM Featured in Builder Concept Homes

One of the highlights of the International Builders Show is the unveiling of new homes that showcase the latest products and design. Centerline homes has built three near Orlando that are featured as Builder magazine's Builder Concept Homes for 2012.

Each of the homes is designed for a different generation in a community that seeks an broad mix of homes and homeowners. There's a Gen B home for Baby Boomers, a Gen X home and a Gen Y home.

BEAM Serenity IQS Central Vacuum Systems were installed in the Gen B and Gen X homes to assure healthy indoor air quality.

BEAM Rated Highest Quality Central Vacuum System

BEAM Central Vacuum Systems by Electrolux have been rated by builders and contractors as the highest quality central vacuum systems. The ratings are the result of Builder magazine's annual survey of readers to determine builders' preferences for brands in more than 100 different product categories. Read more.

3 Tips to Maintaining Your Central Vac System

Tens of thousands of homeowners have enjoyed years of reliable deep cleaning performance from their BEAM Central Vacuum Systems. It's not uncommon for a system to outlast three upright vacuums. 

Keeping your system in tip top shape year after year only takes a few minutes.

1. Empty your collection receptacle regularly. If the bucket is full the system won't perform at its optimum level. Typically the bucket should be emptied two or three times a year -- probably more if you have pets. Some homeowers will wrap a plastic bag in the bucket wrap and shake the permanent cloth filter into it to remove dust that collects on the outside of the filter.

2. Also make sure the inside of the bucket remains dry. It's okay to wash the bucket with warm soap and water after you empty it. But make sure the bucket is completely dry when you reattach it to the power unit. That will prevent any mold from forming in the bucket. And it will prevent freezing if your your power unit is installed in the garage.

3. Clean out your tubing system. Your BEAM dealer can provide you with tacky cloths called Tornado Power. Simply vacuum one into the system at each inlet valve. The cloths will remove any dust that may cling to joints in the tubing.

Growing Market for Central Vacs in Existing Homes

Historically, more than two-thirds of all the central vacuum systems sold in the U.S. have been installed in new homes. But that's changing. More and more consumers are having their existing homes retrofitted for central vacuum systems. There are a variety of reasons for this.

For starters, BEAM dealers have been educating customers that almost any home can be retrofitted for a central vacuum system without damaging or replacing sections of interior walls. As long as tubing can be routed horizontally between joists and vertically through an interior wall, utility chase or cold air return, the home can be equipped with a central vacuum system. The only openings required in walls are no larger than an inlet valve. 

Secondly, because of a volatile real estate market in many communities, a growing number of consumers are choosing to upgrade their existing homes, rather than sell and buy a new home. Central vacuum systesm have been shown to increase the value of homes, as well as to make the home environments cleaner and healthier.

A third factor is that many consumers want the added cleaning convenience a central vacuum system delivers. It's much easier to clean stairs with a hose that covers the entire staircase than trying to balance a portable vacuum on a stair tread, or to extend the central vacuum wand to reach ceiling corners, fans and vents.

To learn more about retrofitting a system into your home, contact your BEAM dealer.