Cylindrical or Rotary? That Is the Question

Cleaning professionals in Europe and other parts of the world, often implement new cleaning technologies, products, and equipment years before they became popular in the United States. For instance, while microfiber cleaning cloths and mops have been used in Europe for more than 20 years, it has been only in the past few years that they have become commonplace in this country.

The same applies to cylindrical brush technology. Cylindrical floor machines—that have roller brushes on each end, as compared to traditional rotary buffers with a single rotary disk—have been used in Europe for about 20 years.

They were developed to tackle a specific problem: many buildings in Europe are centuries old, and because of this their floors are often uneven or sloped. Additionally, many of the floors in these old buildings are made of stone, marble, and similar materials rather than the smooth-surface tile and linoleum that are common in this country.

However, just like the microfiber example mentioned earlier, cylindrical floor machines have recently generated a growing interest and following in the United States—and Tornado Industries is the only U. S. manufacturer producing them. The following evaluation should help distributors and cleaning professionals better understand how cylindrical and rotary systems differ and which might best fit their needs.  It may also answer a few questions and help clarify some of the features and benefits cylindrical brush technology offers.

• Traditional rotary buffers use pads and rotate horizontally, from side to side, at approximately 175 to 300 revolutions per minute (rpm). Cylindrical machines have brushes and are multidirectional—they can be maneuvered side to side, forward and backward—at 1,000 to 1,400 rpm.

• Some floor care experts recommend using slower rotary machines when performing restoration work on stone-type floors. However, for more common floor care tasks, such as polishing, scrubbing, and stripping, the cylindrical machine offers greater contact pressure. This along with its higher rpm can enhance cleaning results.

• The pads on rotary machines have a tendency to “throw” cleaning solution on baseboards and walls. Additionally, because they are round, it is hard to line them up against the wall for edge cleaning. Because of this, some floor care technicians find it better to do “edge work” by hand instead of with the machine.
  
  Cylindrical machines have contra-rotating rollers that rotate inward, so splashing solution against walls and baseboards is not a problem. In addition, because the machines have a square base, they can line up directly against baseboards to facilitate edge and corner cleaning.

• With a rotary machine, the cleaning solution may be unevenly distributed because of the pads’ horizontal rotation. To rectify this, floor care technicians need to make several passes over the same floor area to evenly apply the solution. With a cylindrical machine, a film of cleaning solution forms between the two parallel rollers. This allows the machine to better penetrate the floor with detergent, apply it more evenly to the floor, and improve productivity.

• When working on structured floors, such as rubber-studded floors and uneven or stone floors, cylindrical technology produces superior results, compared to a rotary machine. This is because the brushes these machines use have greater penetrating capabilities.

Overall, cylindrical machines are more versatile than traditional rotary machines. And, because they apply cleaning solution more effectively with higher rpm and contact pressure, they are apt to be more economical as well.

Tornado’s BR 400
And now, along with our top-selling BR Vario, Tornado’s BR 400 cylindrical scrubber is garnering considerable interest.  This machine is perfect for restaurant, hotel, and hospital floor care—wherever a versatile, powerful, yet compact scrubber is needed.

Some of the BR 400’s features include:

• Removable two-chamber water tank system for greater flexibility
• Fluid-level indicators and easy-access operator controls
• Brushes and squeegee strips that can be changed in a matter of minutes
• Hand controls for pump and brush drive
• Variable contact pressure that can be individually adjusted for each type of floor
• Brush contact pressure that is up to seven times higher than on single-disk machines

The best way to see if a cylindrical machine such as the BR 400 is right for you is by testing these machines yourself—under “real-life” conditions. In our experience, these cylindrical machines, with all their features and benefits, sell themselves.