Ball sucking done right
March 25, 2014 7:02 AM   Subscribe

 
Well that sucked.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 7:11 AM on March 25, 2014


Better with kittens.
posted by Devonian at 7:22 AM on March 25, 2014 [1 favorite]


There's a whole lot of vacuum cleaner tubing laying around at work these days; I'll try to refrain from pilfering some. But I can't shake the feeling that the kids would appreciate a vacuum transport system in the house...
posted by Harald74 at 7:26 AM on March 25, 2014


Paradoxically does and does not suck balls!
posted by drlith at 7:28 AM on March 25, 2014 [1 favorite]


While it's so busy sucking balls (oh what fun to type those words) can it also spray some disinfectant on them, or expose them to ultraviolet light?
posted by haunted by Leonard Cohen at 7:30 AM on March 25, 2014


I've seen a lot of those sorts of things in soft play areas here in the UK. They sometimes also have air cannons that you can use to fire the balls at other kids, as well as blowers that float balls in the air.

can it also spray some disinfectant on them, or expose them to ultraviolet light

Maybe they could include HEPA-filtered sterile bubbles for the kids to ride in, although they'd need bigger pipes and a bit more suction to gain maximum fun from that scenario.
posted by pipeski at 7:45 AM on March 25, 2014


This gives me an idea for a fast food vending machine. (needs some fine tuning)
posted by furtive at 7:58 AM on March 25, 2014


Present them.
posted by Saxon Kane at 7:59 AM on March 25, 2014 [1 favorite]


But does it give haircuts?
posted by oceanjesse at 8:15 AM on March 25, 2014


I want this to be like a constant waterfall of balls, but three-dimensional, not a sheet, so that you can just be in a space full of constantly dropping balls.
posted by Rock Steady at 8:59 AM on March 25, 2014




But does it give haircuts?

Hairdos?
posted by Lutoslawski at 9:14 AM on March 25, 2014 [1 favorite]


It was fun, but the article called them "billiard balls" and I was expecting something much more fraught with danger.
posted by benito.strauss at 9:40 AM on March 25, 2014


Better with kittens.

My house is filled with fishtanks; so much so that we have one entire room dedicated to breeder and grow out tanks, all of which need to be cleaned and have regular water changes done. To that end, we have a long clear plastic tube that attaches to the shop sink, and when water runs through it, it creates a siphon effect that allows you to effortlessly pull water from a tank more than thirty feet away.

I also have four cats, who all sit watching the tube whenever it is in use, and the moment a bubble or piece of algae races along its length, the cats all go batshit, chasing it around the coils and crashing into one another to catch the fast moving thing.

I've often thought that making a big ten foot ring of the tube with a pump along the length, filled with water and a couple of air bubbles to get pushed around, would make for the greatest cat toy ever.

Now I'm thinking that balls and a vacuum could be an excellent alternative.
posted by quin at 11:33 AM on March 25, 2014 [1 favorite]


Is that Günter Schultz of KMFDM? Weeeeeird...
posted by ChrisR at 11:54 AM on March 25, 2014


While not as pretty, this is certainly not a new idea. The play area at Silver Dollar City had this system for years - balls get sucked up by vacuum tubes, bounced around in a big clear globe, and carried up top to be used again in the pneumatic guns on the balcony. That's right. Ball sucking and shooting.
posted by shinynewnick at 12:00 PM on March 25, 2014


But does it give haircuts?

Hairdos?


Oh how I wish it were just hairdos.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 1:04 PM on March 25, 2014 [3 favorites]


Oh how I wish it were just hairdos.

Hahahaha. OMG what.
posted by Lutoslawski at 1:41 PM on March 25, 2014


Really, have you never heard of the Flowbee? It certainly does suck.
posted by filthy light thief at 5:32 PM on March 25, 2014


haunted by Leonard Cohen: There is one of those at a kids' play place here in Kansas City that does just that - there's a target in the ball pit for the kids to throw the balls at - if they hit the target they get sucked up, sanitized, and spit back out from the ceiling.
posted by jferg at 9:27 AM on March 26, 2014


if they hit the target they get sucked up, sanitized, and spit back out from the ceiling.

I would think you'd want to sanitize the kids whose aim was a bit off even more.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 4:53 AM on March 27, 2014 [2 favorites]


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