Pool Cleaning Videos Are Almost My Thing

 Continuing my series of discovering and cataloging Youtube genres, I've discovered Pool Cleaning Videos and they're somewhat compelling but not compelling enough, for reasons I'll explain.

There are at least two types of pool cleaning videos. In the first type, the pool is empty and they're cleaning the cement. These are fine, these are pleasing but you'll note they don't differ in any meaningful way from the Pressure Wash genre so I will omit talking about them. See below for an example.

Categories: "Things Going from Disorder to Order", "Cleaning", "Pressure Washing", "Oddly Satisfying."

The other type of pool cleaning video - the main one for the topic of this discussion - is a pool cleaning where the pool is full of water. You'll find my favorite example below.

Categories: "Things Going from Disorder to Order", "Cleaning", "Bright Colors", "Oddly Satisfying."

There are two aspects of this example I need to point out. First, you'll see the pouring of chemicals, the churning of the water and the color of the pool changing from dark dirt to a crystalline blue. It's an amazing phenomenon and one that I'd never seen before. This process is the main feature that all videos in this genre have in common. But as much as I find the color change satisfying, it's also too slow and usually involves "checking back in" periodically so you don't really get the satisfaction of watching it change before your eyes. This is the main disappointment of the genre - the pretty color change that I want to watch mostly happens off-screen.

The second aspect of this video to discuss is pretty rare and the reason this one rises above the rest... The part where they run some sort of pool vacuum and you watch the pool bottom getting cleaned in neat strips - the part starting around 11:00 - that's superb. That's the best. More of that please, because I haven't seen other videos that feature it.

So in summary, I find the Pool Cleaning Genre to be compelling but not as satisfying as other similar genres.

Simulated Marble Races

I've posted a number of youtube genres over the years under the heading of "oddly satisfying" but this one has to be the most pointless. Not just a marble race, but a virtual marble race. There are a million of these and they all have millions of views.

Please, no wagering.

I'm wondering if the same race is run multiple times, if the result is exactly the same each time.

Youtube Genre: Falling Rocks

This youtube video, entitled "Cobblestones unloading relaxing and healing." is my exemplar for this genre.

It is no doubt relaxing but is it also healing?

There are loads of these. The genre could be called "Falling Rocks," "Falling Stones," "Sifting Sands" or maybe something like "Unloading Stones from Barge." None of these is really a homerun. Maybe "Conveyor Belt Unloading" is another possibility but the weakness of that one is that the conveyor belt isn't the star of the show, it's the rocks.

It also seems that they mostly come from China and there's a lot of re-posting/stealing content. It ticks the "Oddly Satisfying" box and I don't know of any others - other than that you should watch it on mute while listening to something else.  I find it mesmerizing.

Super Sprint (NES) Speedrun

This may seem random, perhaps, but I find the movement of the cars around the curves of the track within Super Spring to be oddly satisfying. And since the aesthetic pleasure is directly proportional to the skill of the player, this world record run should be as good as it gets.

I watched this on mute, so if this guy says anything crazy, I didn't know that.

Team Leaf Blowing - A New Genre

 

There is a new genre of youtube video that's actually a sub-genre of lawncare videos - the Team Leaf Blowing genre.

Similar to pressure washing, carpet cleaning and mowing videos, the Team Leaf Blowing genre ticks the boxes for Oddly Satisfying, Cleaning and 'Disorder to Order.'

I've not dived into the videos enough to give a real analysis. For now, I'm still stuck in lawn mowing videos.

40 Minutes of Oddly Satisfying

 

The title of the video is specifically "Satisfying Videos Of Workers Doing Their Job Perfectly."

Snow Removal Videos

 

Although Snow Removal videos have a much more limited supply and probably a more limited demand than Pressure Washing or Lawn Care, etc. I do find them to be in that same category of "there's something oddly satisfying and hypnotic about this."

Mowing High Grass

 

In a previous episode, I was dismissive of lawn mowing videos. I may have been a little hasty in judgement.

Pressure Washing Videos are a Sleeping Giant

 There is an entire genre of pressure washing/power washing videos on Youtube and I find it even more enjoyable than the Restoration and Carpet Cleaning genres. The problem is: the videos produced aren't as good.

Pressure washing videos tick all the boxes of the previous two genres: both the "things going from disorder to order" and the "oddly satisfying" boxes as well as also claiming to be ASMR - I'll address  that later. There are also a few channels that add "charity" to the list - they do work for free and then sometimes get the owner's reaction and thanks. Look at the above video for one example.

The dirt peeling off the concrete in a clean line is something I could watch for hours, like I said, it's potentially my favorite genre so far. But it's also not a mature genre and that's the major downside. When you look at Restoration videos, they've discovered a strict set of rules that they all adhere to in order to maximize the pleasure of the viewer (and therefore their own profit). Carpet Cleaning, as I addressed in that post, is less well defined but there's at least one good channel out there. Pressure Washing is the least defined and it is to the point that there isn't even a single great channel. The video lengths range from 4 minutes to 1 hour, there are different types of audio, different styles of editing and different goals.

The #1 thing no one agrees on is audio. What should the audio of a pressure washing video be? Some people label it ASMR and strictly give the sound of the Pressure Washer. The sound of the tools works for Restoration Videos but I don't think it works here; I find the sound of the machinery to be irritating. Some channels seem to agree with me because they mute it all, then just overlay some music - but then it depends on whether you like the music. I've seen one channel that talks over the whole thing, explaining his job and basically turning it into a podcast with pleasing visuals. That's fine, as long as you're looking for a podcast all about pressure washing.

There's also a great diversity in style. Some people (most people?) talk into the camera at the beginning and end to explain the job. Some people intermix the pressure washing footage with lawn care footage (fixing the lawn often goes hand-in-hand with cleaning the walkways). That's unacceptable dilution. One of the best channels I've found (just above) starts his videos with footage of him driving to the site. For me, that's one of the worst things a person could do to ruin the experience - British traffic at 5x speed is a nightmare while I'm trying to relax. And, as previously mentioned, some people end with an "owner's response" which are sometimes sweet but generally underwhelming. It also breaks the people/object separation I explained previously.

Here's my final analysis and my recommendation for a new standard. First, as a viewer, the audio doesn't really matter. Turn on a pressure washing video, mute it and listen to something else that you enjoy - music or a podcast or whatever... then lie down and go into a happy place like it's an Opium Den in the 1800s. Now, for creators, here's the formula that wins the day (except if you're doing charity; in that case, keep doing what you're doing). Minimize addressing the camera (or don't do it at all), minimize talking (or not at all), have before/after footage if you want but keep it short. In short, maximize the percentage of pressure washing footage at all costs and minimize anything else you want to add. Speed up the footage so that it's faster than real time. Compile several jobs together to make videos that are 40 minutes to an hour (or more). That's it. That's the game.

In the end, like I said, there is no One Channel to Rule Them All.

If you'd like to see people washing for charity, check out the related channels: Cabin on the Hill, Lawn Care Juggernaut and The Boring Channel.

For hour-long compilations, check out Bournemoth Jet Washing (though he doesn't appear to make them anymore). Beware of the traffic.

And just another quality channel from another Brit: Flawless Cleaning Services.

A Digression on Carpet Cleaning Videos

Carpet cleaning (or rug cleaning) videos is another genre of youtube videos in the same vein as Restoration videos. It ticks both the "things going from disorder to order" and the "oddly satisfying" boxes; it's also ASMR according to the channel tags. Unlike the restoration genre, however, it doesn't seem to be as advanced and there are a number of channels that don't "get it." In fact, as far as I'm concerned, the entire genre mostly comes down to just one channel - the one above.

I have a number of questions about the nature of the cleaning. You'll note that he's constantly working side-to-side. You'd be constantly transporting dirt from the rug to another part of the rug. Wouldn't you want to work from the center outwards to get the dirt out of the rug as soon as possible? Similarly, dirt is constantly going from the surface, sinking downward to the bottom of the rug. Therefore, I would think that there should be constant flipping. Even more important than that, dirt, going downwards is hitting the tile and getting trapped. It seems to me you'd want to put the rug on top of something that allows the water to freely flow out - perhaps a screen. Do the professionals know best? Are there good rebuttals to these questions? I don't know.

One of the weaknesses of this genre, it seems, is that you really want the carpet to get clean to have that dramatic before and after contrast but that never really happens the way it "should." A carpet never gets fully clean, it only gets cleanER. It gets cleaner and cleaner and cleaner but at some point you just have to arbitrarily stop. As an ignorant newcomer, that diminishes the enjoyment... Though, you get used to it after several hours.

Slot Machine Restoration

 

So, everything I said about the Cash Register Restoration also applies here. I've always been fascinated with the mechanics, I'm in awe of any person's ability to understand all the parts and seeing it fixed is very pleasing.

Based on this video, I tried to find a youtube video that explained how slot machines work so I could solve the mystery, once and for all. It was surprisingly difficult and I didn't come up with anything definitive. When you search the subject, a million results of videos come up trying to teach you how to WIN at slot machines. It's just loads of Jimmy "The Scott" Jordan wannabes as far as the eye can see. 

But even though I didn't find a great video explaining the mechanism of slot machines, if you're interested, you can watch the best video I was able to find here.

I wish there was a Build Your Own Slot Machine Kit. Lockpicking kits are popular, legos are popular, you should be able to send away for a box full of metal parts and step-by-step instructions for the amateur person with too much time and no hobbies to build their own metal slot machine.

Restoration Videos are Hypnotic

 

After I watched one restoration video, my stream was flooded with a million more suggestions just like it. This alone is not surprising. But what I noticed was that of the myriad other suggestions, no two were from the same channel. That was a shock.

And you can tell that someone, somewhere, at some point in the past cracked the code because they're all following the same formula. Firstly, no talking. At no point in the video should you hear a human voice. If something needs to be communicated, it must be by text or gesture. Secondly, no humans (other than hands and arms). Secondly, no music, even for montages. The only sounds we hear are, first and foremost, the sound of the parts and tools and then secondly, occasionally, the ambient environment.

The effect is obvious. This is ASMR, this is the tranquility of Bob Ross meets the power tools of Norm Abram, this is oddly satisfying. This is that genre of videos that I don't know the name of which are pleasurable because they go from disorder to order. If you know the term for that, let me know.

One of the ways you can divide children (or people) is between those who are more interested in people and those who are more interested in things. Those who are more interested in people become nurses, teachers, social workers, etc. The people interested in things become engineers, inventors, mechanics. It's clear these videos appeal to the thing people in the extreme.

The most magical part of these videos is the sandblasting. You take the cruddiest, most decayed rusted metal and you think it's only fit for the trash and then you wave the sandblaster over it and it's like new - exactly like a magic wand. It's oddly satisfying, it's hypnotic. The second best part is the compliment to the sandblasting - powder coating (painting) the new, bright, shiny color.

The genre goes is a few directions. Most I've seen are old toys like the video above but there are also plastic toys from the 80s and 90s, electronics restorations (playstation, nintendo, etc) antique restorations (sowing machines, harvesters, cash registers), general machines (parking meters, intercoms, slot machines) and, of course, car restorations.

Game Grumps - Power Wash Simulator

 Arin and Dan step into the world of Oddly Satisfying. I don't play video games but if I did, I think I'd buy this.