Everything on the planet has pros/cons, no exception here. But the cons are few,IMO. You will no doubt get more. (Opinions if not cons)
Expense has to be weighed against longevity. Portable vacs invariably have the air stream cooling the motor which leads to eventual death from whatever the bag/filter system cannot remove. Some central units do not do this.
Standby power consumption is not a given, but control systems having a coil/control energized in this service would be low watt consumers. Your off grid situation could complicate the whole picture however.
In new construction the installation is of relative ease. Floor plates can be had. The inlets are gated until use, typically one at a time.
Don't base your assessment on one video. The units are quiet in the main. The larger the inlet the lower the airstream velocity.
Many people see the long hose and its storage as a con.

I had one in one house I owned. It came with the house. I never used it.

That said, we are having one roughed-in in our new build. It will cost $400. We can then add the actual vacuum system later, if we decided we want one.

Compared to the cost of even a top-line vac, CHV's are more expensive. The bigger your house, the bigger the differential.

The vac ducts should be done at the same time of the actual studwork in order to have the fewest bends, as well as the fewest holes put in the studs. CHV *can* be installed in a finished house, but installation of ductwork will involve much more labor, and there may be difficulties reaching the second floor.

It's been a long while, but I've lived with them, and had the same "con": too few connecting ports. (Okay, maybe not everyone vacs their closet ceilings, but if you do, allow for the extra distance to reach in the farthest corners.)

The CHVs I used had standby nothing. The on/off switch was located in the closet with the hose storage; and off was off. I'm apparently out-of-date, because I can see no reason for any part of the CHV to be on "standby".

As far as off-grid affects, I suspect you'll need to shop carefully because -- as with most appliances -- motor startup is your biggest draw of current. Be sure the vac is on a separate line from anything else which may have a high startup, such as fridge or freezer.

they are one of the best gadgets one can have in a house. we use ours almost every day.
another advantage is health concerns. floor vacs,no matter how expensive, put dust back into the inside air. a central vac can remove all dust to the outside.

The long, PITA hose is the only drawback I can think of.

First let me say that I use my system all the time and it works great. DH is a major cynic and just knew it was going to be a maintenance mess 24/7. That hasn't been the case at all. No problems whatsoever except the following:

- Yep, the hose is a pain to lug around but then so is a vacuum. Also the hose kinks easily which freaks me out because I think I'm going to burn up the motor or something. It's probably a cheap hose and a good quality new one would run about $200.

- I have two vacpans, one in the laundry/mudroom and one in the kitchen. Never use them. Don't know why, just don't. Yes, they are very very loud while the attachments with the hose is super quiet.

- We have bagless and it's pretty messy emptying the thing. However, it's located in the garage so I don't really care as much as if it were in the house.

- Once, one of the inlets had water in it. We assumed it was condensation because it was a particularly humid day. We monitored it for a while but it never happened again. I did a google search and found this happens sometimes in colder climates with the inlet tubes going into an uninsulated attic.

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In our new house we installed a vacuflo with the 'Hide a Hose' system, which as the name implies hides the hose in the walls. 3, 40 foot hoses, 1 vacupan, wand with assorted accessories, Maxair power unit (located in the garage) = $3,500. My opinion - the price is the 'con'.

The installation cost more than the unit. (We now live in SW Louisiana where white labor is expensive).

I absolutely love it, mostly because of the hide a hose.
I use it all the time!The rental house we lived in whilst building had a central vacuum system that I didn't like. The hoses were very cumbersome to carry around and manouver.

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I've had a vacuum system and wouldn't hit a dog in the fanny with it. Give me my Dyson any day.

I love mine. I currently have a hide-a-hose and In my old house I had a regular hose that I had to lug around and it was the drawback in that system, but with the HAH I don't have to lug it around the same way. The only thing I wish I had is the remote on/off, but not a big deal.

One thing that is a drawback with either system is the hose on outside wall corners if rubbing against them it can make the corner look a little worn. Bigger issue in my old house due to non-rounded drywall corners. In the new house we have rounded corners. I used a hose sock at the old house and the hide-a-hose comes with it and it helps, but there is still some.

I've heard nothing but positive things about the HAH. Last week, installers were here to look over our house plans and they will be contacting us soon with an estimate. Anyone like to share their opinions as well as approximate cost?

Had a VacuFlo in the last house and told DH I wouldn't move unless I could have it in the new house as well. I didn't have HAH and planned to install it in this house, but the two area installers have no experience with it and were very negative. That, coupled with the additional cost (which for all I know, might have been inflated. They really didn't want to learn this new stuff) made DH very negative, too, so I gave it up.

I had a vac pan in the old kitchen and used it almost daily -- My Golden Retriever made wads of shed hair and the vac pan was GREAT to get rid of it. I planned two in this house but the installer talked me into Vrooms instead. Jury's still out on those. We're not moved in yet so I haven't really learned their pros and cons.

I wouldn't live without a central vac. Yes, the long hose is annoyhing, but not nearly as annoying as a push vac that lets dust back in the air.

I have had a NUtone central for 32 years. Never had to replace a bit of it, only added to it. I am sure the newby's are even way better. I have 4,000+ square feet on 3 floors. I could not live without it. It SUCKS!

I have never had a central vac but plan to put one in my house when I build it.

I know HAH is a bit expensive to put one in every room but are normal vacuum outlets that expensive that you don't put one in every room? I always assumed there would be an outlet in each room but from what I have read that isn't the case.

I came across The Hose Genie which is a powered retractable hose. I don't know much about it other than it allows the use of powered attachements and the wall opening is large compared to others but I haven't found anyone that actually has one.

I never heard of a Vroom before, so I Googled. Looks interesting. Please post when you have had a chance to evaluate them.

IMO.. I would think that will be a lot of germs "stays" in those in-wall embedded hose, and more difficult to clean them up compared to the regular vacuum machine ..

We have a hide-a-hose with 7 wall units (including one in the garage). The only thing I don't like about it is that the hose is killing my baseboards, plinth blocks, and doorway casings.

You do know this thread is over 4 yrs old! I have a cloth covering over my hose and it doesn't damage baseboards or corners.

I have cloth covering mine, too.