This concept has been around for quite a few years. In fact, the oldest system we found was installed in Sweden in the 1850's, a system where horses provided the mechanization to create the suction. And in Sinaia, Romania (about 50 miles north of Bucharest) the Peles Palace, originally built in the 1400's, had a built-in vacuum installed in the 1870's. Some of the other earlier systems were operated by a bellows chamber that servants would pump. The tubes were threaded copper and often the inlets were carved figureheads such as lions where a cork would plug their mouth when they were not in use. The systems then evolved into bicycle-driven types.

In the United States, the product gained notoriety in the early 1900s when electric motors became popular. These systems were made from heavy cast iron and offered a small pullout tray at the bottom for emptying. Only the upper elite, such as Henry Ford could afford these systems. This concept was replaced in the 1930s when World War II brought about the advent of small, portable motors that were ideally suited for portable vacuums. These portables, with which we are now so familiar, were fairly inexpensive and able to extract dust into some type of bag or canister that the individual had to lug around.

In the early 1960s the wonderful invention of PVC (PolyVinylChloride) pipe brought back the previous concept of a ducted vacuum system. A few more necessary inventions would still be needed to make the system truly effective. But, with the outlandish overstatements (accompanied by outrageous prices), a product was oversold that had underpowered motors, poor filtration systems, cumbersome hoses, poor attachments and an overall improperly designed system. Many of the people who tried these early systems were left with an unfavorable impression; many of them vowing never to buy one again.

Now that the new generation has landed and homeowners are making their nest comfortables, time is money, health is vogue, technology is welcomed, and value is critical. The homeowner who carefully considers the central vacuum option has only one logical choice — go for it! Custom Builder Magazine reported that 15 percent of all custom homes in the USA are getting central vacuums and the National Association of Home Builders found that 42 percent of consumers rate it as a desirable feature in new homes. In Western Canada every home being built automatically gets the plumbing while only 2 percent of all vacuums sold in the USA are central vacuums. The latest generation of central vacuums provides cleaning capabilities never before available. Larger capacities, stronger motors, quieter power units, lighter hoses, computer-assisted power brushes, better filtration, electrical powered inlet valves, smoother pipes and fittings all add up to the best device invented by mankind for the daily obliteration of household dirt and dust!