What kind of Vacuum do you use?

[kaichu dento]

Our house has all hardwood floors, however one of our cats has very thick coat of long and fine fur that gets all over the rugs and furniture. We bought a Bissel Pet Eraser (or something like that, I'm at work) and it does an awesome job. Being bagless is a nice touch. We love it.

If I had special needs like this I might search for a special vacuum, but not having specific needs I was very happy with all the small and powerful vacuums I found at apartment disposal areas in Japan while I was living there.

 

[jimbofish]

3 vintage Eureka cannisters, one of which is at least 40 yrs. old, and two slightly newer versions... only 35 and 30 yrs. Buying bags is becoming difficult... thrift stores and garage sales.

I picked up a newer Bissel upright/convertible model from the curbside a while back. Had a bad connection for the removable pack. Bissel sent a re-furbed replacement just for the cost of cutting off the power cord and sending it to them. The same connector went bad on the replacement after a few yrs. They replaced that one also! They'll get my business from now on also.

 

[127.0.0.1]

I just went to pick up some supplies at Lowes for a customer, and he asked me to look for a new vacuum cleaner for him while I was there, because he's immobile, so I looked at all the models they had, which included 3-4 new Dyson vac's, which are WAY overpriced considering they are made entirely of plastic, and I mean cheap, thin plastic. Plus they wanted $349 - $499 for them. But I also looked at their mechanisms, and the ball type wheel on the Dyson ball looks to me as if it will probably break fairly easily at some point. Its just not very sturdy feeling IMO.

Now the other major vaccuum companies are coming up with their own "never lose suction" vaccuums with HEPA filters that are made of the same basic components. So I bought him a Hoover Windtunnel upright for $169, and its a great vac so far. He's had it 2 months and it sucks the same or more debris out of the carpet than some earlier $500 vacuums I've seen from the 90's like the Rainbow. It seems fairly well made, compared with modern vacs. Its not as good as some of the Electrolux vacs from the early 70's which were metal mostly, as I recall. We had one of those for like the first 20 years of my life!

it's been a while, but i saw this and have to say something

Dyson specifically engineers the vacs to handle dropping down stairs, bashing against walls...etc. yanking the
hose...abuse from all angles.

Nothing, not one millimeter of the Dyson has been engineered poorly or an afterthought.

You cannot kill one, it won't break. Ok if you are a knob and decide to intentionally break it fine...but
the plastic is designed to flex and take abuse, and be strong where it needs to, and have gaps where
there needs to be flex and gaps.... The vac is designed to tighten up and seal perfectly when turned on,
and looser when off so you can easily dump the canister and reinstall it.

The ball breaking ? go ahead, go to Lowes and knock one off the shelf and see if
it breaks. lemme save you the trouble...it won't. This ain't yer granpappies bakelite plastic....

You just cannot write off Dyson as 'thin plastic' because all that plastic and design is
the result of -serious- testing and redesign and 'back to the drawing board'.
It is about as perfect a consumer product as you can buy and that is no lie.

Dyson owners know what I am saying...

 

[markr6]

That's funny the OP mentions the horrible Bissel from Walmart. I wonder if mine is the same model? I bought a Bissel there about 7 years ago and I really like it; still going strong! I don't know the model but it's a burgundy color and I believe it only cost about $48. Definitely got my money out of it!

My wife and I are considering getting a dog, maybe a husky...so time for the big guns! I will need to invest in a bagless since they shed alot.

 

[RNDDUDE]

We have two Miele's, one with the powered head. Very high quality stuff, extremely quiet, expensive. Best units i've ever used.

 

[bmstrong]

That's funny the OP mentions the horrible Bissel from Walmart. I wonder if mine is the same model? I bought a Bissel there about 7 years ago and I really like it; still going strong! I don't know the model but it's a burgundy color and I believe it only cost about $48. Definitely got my money out of it!

My wife and I are considering getting a dog, maybe a husky...so time for the big guns! I will need to invest in a bagless since they shed alot.

Same one. Terrible thing, it mocks and laughs at me every time I use it.

 

[BobBrian]

We have a dog, and the Roomba 980 is just perfect for collecting the hair from around the house. Moreover, out dog can easily ignore the Roomba, but not a regular vacuum cleaner. Every morning I set it off, and when we come home floor is always clean. You can find more info on robotic cleaners on robotbox website

 

[harro]

A Shark Navigator which would be good if you could get bits for them in Aus, and a 2001 Kirby which just keeps on keeping on. Its noisy, its a ' dirty air ' vacuum, meaning dirty air passes through the fan, not filtered like most modern designs. It literally sucks the carpet off the floor which makes it a real chore to push, unless you use the power drive, and it looks so bloody funky with its cyclops headlight, the cat disappears for a week when you drag it out. BUT, it does suck really well.

:twothumbs

 

[tokaji]

We use a Miele S8. Powerful and high qualiy.

 

[jabe1]

Shark DLX, oreck, the shark is great because you can turn off the brush on hardwood floors and it has as much suction as any other household vac I've tried. The Oreck is just a survivor. All of this Dyson talk... try repairing one. They do wear out, especially the brushes and bearings.

 

[RBR]

.....

 

[honeycityhk]

I use a robot vacuum. Not the best way to keep clean but it keeps the area relatively clean and saves time.

 

[alpg88]

got Dyson v10 few days ago. like everything except short run time on high, low and med, modes are almost useless. and it does not scare my cat nearly as much as old eurika.

 

[alpg88]

All of this Dyson talk... try repairing one. They do wear out, especially the brushes and bearings.

it is no different than any other vacuum. all bearings and brushes wear out. (however every vacuum i owned never had bearing or brush issues, i replace them about once in 5 years, but they still work, the reason i replace them, mt pets fur makes it stink after a while), but i do agree to some extent, my v10 looks and feels like a very delicate thing. i hope i'll get usual 5 years out of it.

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

At church we use a Windsor Sensor XP18. Wonderful, commercial vacuum. It has a brain and a clutch for when things go wrong. I check the bay every once in a while for a refurbished one for home use.

~ Chance

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

At home we use a couple of vacuums. The Eureka BOSS was highly rated by Consumer Reports. It's been a great vacuum except for one issue......

I don't know what caused it, but after a few years of service it just wouldn't shut off. Oops! Seems to have gotten a little hot.

~ Chance

 

[PartyPete]

I've had a bagless Bissell for about 10 years. Replaced the belt once.