Need vac. sweeper advice from the LOYL's..

[Joe Tonich]

Came home from work yesterday and SWMBO left me a note that she has HAD IT with her vac. cleaner. It's one of the bagless ones and she hates it. We have 3 cats, a dog, and 2 boys and between the fur and all.........you know what I mean.

So......my question is.......which one does LOYL have/want and why does she like/want it? Hopefully this will be the last one I have to buy........

Thanks,

Joe

[Lee DeRaud]

Dyson: accept no substitutes.

[Jim Dunn]

If possible install a vacumn system for the whole house. That way you can run it to the shop.:) My wife wouldn't have any other type. She had an old Kirby bagless and it put more dust in the air than it cleaned.

[Mike Cutler]

Joe.

We have a whole house vac, an dhave had numerous "quality vacuums" through the years.
Believe it or not. We use the Fein Turbo II that I got for the shop more than any other.
I thought I was going to lose it to the house for awhile.
I'd use this an excuse to get a Fein or a Festool. If it doesn't work out for her. Blame it on me, get her a new vac, and keep the Fein or Festool for yourself.;)
Seriously though. The Fein is an excellent vacuum for household chores. I'm certain that the Festool is every bit as good.

[Dennis Peacock]

The LOML has fallen in love with the Orek. Says it works really well, light in weight but heavy on cleaning. Other than that? If I were you? Get "Deb" a Festool Dust Extractor. Hard to beat a "green machine". ;)

[Bruce Page]

Dyson: accept no substitutes.
Dito. Works great and the wife loves it.

[Joe Pelonio]

I don't have a brand but do have shopping advice for you. Our problem is fir needles from our 100 foot trees, and two dogs (golden and golden mix). We ended up with a professional model upright that cost $600 and was well worth it, I don't know the name (am at work) but it's not one people would know since they are normally marketed to janitorial supply places.

What we did was take a large zip-loc bag full of dog hair and fir needles to a local place that sells only vacuum cleaners. After explaining to the owner that our vacuums continually clog up and even the brush motor belts were popping off because the debris would pass thru it, he showed us 3 models. We'd put the needles and hair onto his carpet, grind it in a bit with our feet, then try it. After we'd look under the machine to see
if any signs of it were still caught in the brush.

[Jim Becker]

Dyson. . . .

[Vaughn McMillan]

I've got a Dyson and an almost 20-year old Rainbow. (I was the only single guy on the block with three vacuums, including the Shop Vac). LOML prefers the Rainbow, and it's a great machine, but I prefer the Dyson, since it's easier to empty. I use the Dyson on the frou-frou carpeting in my shop, too, and the occasional screw or chunk of wood doesn't seem to bother it.

- Vaughn

[John Hart]

Joe,
Small World. I just went through the exact same thing. We just got back from the store and I saw this thread.
Decided on the Kenmore Progressive Canister Vacuum. Bagless was the pits for the same reasons you pointed out...so this is a bag type with a HEPA filter....easy to detach the power head...easy for other attachment stuff. Lightweight....etc etc. On sale for $300...down from $350.
The similar model without the telescopic powerhead thingy is $50 less.

Good luck

[Joe Tonich]

Ok.....Dyson has caught my interest.............

How about sucking up unseen pennies, screws, the occasional sock or rug? Can't count how many times I've removed the motors from vac's to remove sucked up things.

Central vac is out of the question. The previous owners drywalled every ceiling in the basement and you can't run anything unless it's going along the walls.

Anyone have one of these? Hoover Wind Tunnel...http://www.govacuum.com/howitupru6up.html It was another I was looking at.

Thanks,

Joe

[John Hart]

[quote=Joe Tonich]...
Anyone have one of these? Hoover Wind Tunnel...http://www.govacuum.com/howitupru6up.html It was another I was looking at....[quote]

Had a terrible time with the Hoover. Maybe it was just a bad lot...dunno. But it was notorious for burning up belts and I kinda thought it gunked up too easy and smelled bad (not from the belts though)

[JayStPeter]

Joe,

We have the 5 or 6 year old version of the windtunnel you linked. It has been a good vac. We have the same negative feelings about bagless as your wife.
The positive is that it is quite powerful and cleans great. The first bag filled almost immediately with what our old vaccum apparently didn't pick up. All the necessary maintenance items (bags, filters, belts) are available at most of the local places like Target, Wallymart and the borgs.
There are only two small negatives I can think of. First, the attachment hose has a twist lock that can untwist as you're vaccuming with the attachments. You have to sort of preload a little twist in the hose when you use it. Second, it's a little heavy so my wife doesn't like hauling it up and down the steps.
My wife is not the least bit careful with the vac. She destroyed our last (Dirt Devil) in just a couple years. This one has held up well aside from tons of scuffs and scratches in the plastic.

Jay

[Bruce Page]

Joe,
We had a Wind Tunnel, gave it to the DIL when we got the Dyson. The WT worked ok, but was very loud. LOML vacuumed the whole house with the WT then re-vacuumed with the then new Dyson. The Dyson’s canister was full with the dirt & dog hair that the WT didn’t pick up. The WT is ~ ½ the price of the Dyson though. The Dyson is bag-less but very easy to empty, much easier than the WT or any bag style vac that we’ve ever owned.

[Lee DeRaud]

I've got a Dyson and an almost 20-year old Rainbow. (I was the only single guy on the block with three vacuums, including the Shop Vac). LOML prefers the Rainbow, and it's a great machine, but I prefer the Dyson, since it's easier to empty. I use the Dyson on the frou-frou carpeting in my shop, too, and the occasional screw or chunk of wood doesn't seem to bother it.The Dyson is on the heavy side...OTOH, it has really good wheels and the lift-point is nicely balanced. And it's far and away the quietest vacuum I've ever heard.

[Wes Bischel]

Joe,

I bought a new vac earlier this year to replace an old upright and Electrolux torpedo ("Nothing suck like electrolux!!") I went to Consumer Reports and signed up for their one month subscription online to read their reviews. We test drove a few different models and finally went with their "Best Value" Eureka Boss Smart vac. There was a Sears Kenmore unit and one Hoover they spoke highly of as well.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=6795328&type=product&id=1095432951673
(Walmart and others carry them as well - just used the link as an example)
The Eureka has a bag and a separate HEPA filter (neither of which is too expensive to replace). It has a hose with attachments on board plus has an easy switch to go from carpet to floor - very important for us - I got tired of dragging two vacuums through the house. I will say though - it has got to be one of the ugliest things I have seen on the market.:rolleyes:
We have a similar problem with our 3yo and the shedding machine (dog). The old upright couldn't get the dog hair out of the tight weave of our oriental rugs - this unit does it with one pass. For $150 (versus $500) I am thrilled with the performance of the Eureka. One thing that steered us away from the Dysons (beside cost) was the height - not being able to get under some of our furniture - may not be an issue for you though.

Good luck with your search,

FWIW
Wes

[Joe Mioux]

Our first good vacuum was a Rainbow. I really liked that one, but LOML didn't like dealing with the water. She dumped that for a Kirby, she really likes that one, however since moving into the new house, we have central vac. There is a lot to be said About just moving the power head and the hose around the house. especially if you live in a two story house as we do.

Now our Kirby sets neglected down in the basement.

[Larry James]

No personal experience, but wife says: Simplicity Freedom - 8 pounds, ergonomic handle, HEPA filter, made in the USA, etc.

www.simplicityvac.com

[Vaughn McMillan]

The Dyson is on the heavy side...OTOH, it has really good wheels and the lift-point is nicely balanced. And it's far and away the quietest vacuum I've ever heard.
The reason LOML prefers the Rainbow is because it feels lighter to roll around, but I agree with you about the Dyson wheels and balance. Neither seems to have a problem with the occasional penny or screw, either, although I occasionally have to cut off the dog and people hair that gets wrapped around the roller brush on either of them. (Danged long-haired people. Menace to society and vacuum cleaners.) And the Dyson is indeed quiet, but the Rainbow's a bit quieter. (But the Rainbow was twice the cost of the Dyson...20 years ago.)

- Vaughn

[Lee DeRaud]

(But the Rainbow was twice the cost of the Dyson...20 years ago.)Whoa! That truly sucks.:cool:

[Frank Hagan]

We have a Hoover Wind Tunnel bagless design, and it works well. It was reported by Consumer Reports as being better with most dirt than the Dyson, but I always take magazine reviews with a grain of salt. The upright doesn't do as well on bare floors, IMHO, as our old Sears canister vac.

Stay away from the Bissell bagless vacs ... they have three filters you replace instead of the bags, and they are messy to deal with. We have one at work that every one hates.

The other thing I hate are HEPA filters ... on every vac I've seen used in a house with dogs, the HEPA filters stink to high heaven. They filter fine enough to get organic material in them that breeds bacteria, and then they start stinking. You end up replacing bags, etc. thinking you have something dead that was sucked up. The fix is easy, either shoot the dog or remove the HEPA filter and run the vacuum without it. I always make sure you CAN remove the HEPA filter and have the vac run normally when we buy them.

[Bruce Page]

Interesting, the Dyson has a lifetime HEPA filter. I haven’t noticed any odors in the year or so that we have had it. Perhaps living in the desert with its low humidity is a factor.

[Dick Parr]

Joe, Mickey has the Hoover Wind Tunnel and wants me to get her one of the Dyson's. It looked good at the time but she is not very happy with it.

[Lee DeRaud]

Interesting, the Dyson has a lifetime HEPA filter. I haven’t noticed any odors in the year or so that we have had it. Perhaps living in the desert with its low humidity is a factor. Same here. Might be that cyclone design: I don't think much stuff actually gets that far...or at least there's not much there when I do the six-month filter wash.

[Bruce Page]

Same here. Might be that cyclone design: I don't think much stuff actually gets that far...or at least there's not much there when I do the six-month filter wash.
Yer supposed to wash it? :eek: I think LOML takes care of that..

[Lee DeRaud]

Yer supposed to wash it? :eek: I think LOML takes care of that..Every six months, although like most such things, I suspect that's overkill. There's a little reminder sign under the dust bin. (Of course, if you're not the one who empties it, you'll never see the sign.:p )

[Bob Johnson2]

If you want a canister...
My wife cleans homes for a living and had it down to the Miele , until they made them too small for comercial use. This should not eliminate them for the home though. They have started making them in China and are now mostly plastic, still a top vac. Sebo is the new choice for us, quite a bit better built then the Meile although you pay for it. Looks pretty ugly though.
We probably look at them a bit different then those who want one just for their house, ours need to take a beating. She cleans about 10 or 12 homes a week and we try to get at least a year out of them, if she's lucky 2. I guess that may work out to 10-20 years of normal use. These are considered home vacs, not commercial, the commercial ones are too big and heavy.

[Bill Lewis]

DYSON!

It really does perform as advertised.

When we first got it my wife tried in on the oriental rug in the family room. Even though it had just been vacuumed with a Kirby; there was a very noticeable difference in the appearence of the rugs. It was much brighter and cleaner than before. This was also made evident by amount of dirt in the collection chamber. It was very impressive.

We only have carpet in the upstairs bedrooms, the rest of the house is mostly rugs over hardwood flooring or tile. It gets used on all surfaces and does a good job doing so.

We have pets, all from the shedder families. A german shedder, an austrailian shedder, and two sheddermease cats. It does a good job with pet hair.

Another side note, I read an article about Dyson about 5 years ago. Long before we ever considered getting his machine. As I recall, he tried to sell his idea to the major vacuum cleaner companies, but they weren't interested. They wanted to maintain their replacement bags sales. So he went out on his own, and a following formed. Then, the majors started copying his designs. He sued them and won.

[Chip Olson]

If possible install a vacumn system for the whole house. That way you can run it to the shop.:)

Conversely, has anyone ever adapted their shop dust collector into a central-vac system? :-)

[Lee DeRaud]

Conversely, has anyone ever adapted their shop dust collector into a central-vac system? :-)Oh, right, like SWMBO's gonna remember to shut the blast gates when she's done with the family room...:rolleyes: :p :eek: :cool:

[Doug Jones]

Nobody mentioned the Irobot Roomba Vacuum. Of course I can't either since I have no experience with it (but the concept behind it is just way cool). We have the Bissell CleanView, its Ok but I like what I'm hearing about this Dyson.