| Built in 1928, the Historic Oroville State Theatre is a community performance space for the city of Oroville, CA. The three-story facility hosts dance recitals, symphonic orchestras, award ceremonies, and theater arts serving every type of community group from very young children to established professional companies.“The community loves this theatre,” said Operations Manager Glennis Roseberry. “In maintaining the theatre, our goal is to go the extra mile and make sure we offer a clean, welcoming house.”Like most historic buildings, Oroville State Theatre comes with its own set of cleaning challenges. There are three flights of stairs that need to be thoroughly vacuumed. Curtains and fabric acoustic panels around the theatre accumulate dust. In the auditorium, 600 seats bolted to the floor are difficult to maneuver and have lots of crevices that trap dirt.
In pursuit of creating a cleaner, more welcoming environment, a generous supporter of the theatre donated a ProTeam® GoFree® Flex Pro cordless backpack vacuum. The six-quart unit allows for approximately 75 minutes of continuous cleaning on a single charge, enough time for Roseberry to complete her vacuuming routine. “The GoFree Flex Pro works just as well on hard surfaces as on carpet,” said Roseberry. “One of the best features is the versatility. I can get places that I can’t easily get with a corded vacuum, like maneuvering between the seats, cleaning the upholstery, and doing the stairways.” Previously, Roseberry and her volunteer staff used an upright vacuum, but it was cumbersome to maneuver, the hose and attachments often couldn’t reach, and airborne dust became a problem. Worst of all, glitter would get everywhere and be nearly impossible to pick up. “We accumulate a huge amount of glitter and dust on the hard surface stairs that lead down to the dressing rooms in the basement. When you have 100 little dancers, you have a lot of glitter,” said Roseberry. “The ProTeam vacuum picks up glitter and keeps it.” Overall the GoFree Flex Pro reduced vacuuming time by 45 minutes to one hour compared to that of an upright. Fabric panels, curtains, and architectural details are now clean, and Roseberry noticed that the air feels cleaner too. “With the GoFree Flex Pro, I can do a lot more a lot faster,” said Roseberry. “The wand is easier to move from side to side than pushing an upright vacuum back and forth. Once the harness is fit to you, you don’t really feel it on your bac |
