Miele Cat and Dog query

[Syke]

Thinking of buying one of these but am concerned at the cost of bags. Anyone know how many times these can be used before changing? Not just once, surely?

Regards and thanks in advance

P J Macguire

[Chris Bacon]

Dunno, but a Henry "Hound" or "Turbo" with electrically-driven brush head is a very good thing indeed, and bags are cheap (re- usable cloth bags also available IIRS).

[Tim S]

I've got a Miele Revolution something or the other - I think the bags are similar (maybe same) as the Cat 'n' Dog

Anyway - I don't change them that often - maybe one bag in 3-4 months.

Buy online, they are cheaper.

HTH

Tim

[Syke]

Thanks for that. Numatic Helpline suggested I would be as well with Henry Xtra which has an air powered head.

P J Macguire

[Chris Bacon]

I've got one of those... the boxy one, not the flash new "Airo" one. It worked very well once a bit of thin oil was added to the impeller and brush bearings inside, as the grease that was there was extremely sticky and seemed to simply glue the thing up! It was a disappointment until then - however, it may have seen some use, as I got it second-hand. The brush can lose power as suction is lost when the bag fills, so you need to change bags (or clean out the cloth ones).

[meow2222]

so fit a cloth bag, or buy something else. But stay away from anything with an airstream powered head brush, hopeless things. Cyclone will give you more suction than bags in practice.

NT

[Phil Anthropist]

If you need dust bags try

[Steve Rainbird]

Where do you buy them?

[peterd]

We've got one - had it about two years and it works very well, far superior to the Electrolux upright we used previously. Best place for bags is online at either

or (as above) reckon we change our bag about every 6 to 8 weeks but then it all depends on how big and dirty your house is, and how fastidious you are about keeping it clean !

The Miele original bags are cloth so can be emptied and reused, but this is probably not recommmended by the manufacturer.

Peter

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

"Steve Rainbird" typed

Wonderful outfit; next day delivery for orders placed before 4pm I think, £1 postage charge whatever size of order.

[mike]

[e-mail] wrote in news: [e-mail]:

I'd go along with that, I've got one; if you want to go that way get a motor driven head, but I don't know who makes them.

Also from bitter experience - before you go fo speacial animal hair picker- uppers, see how you get on with damp marigolds; you might be surprised.

mike

[Dan delaMare-Lyon]

Use once. The bags are actually part of the filtering system. You have a filter on the air entry and exit and the bag is a fobrous substance with a seal that closes when you remove them from the body.

They are £6.99 for 5 bags, but each pack comes with a new set of filters for the air paths - change them every box.

I've got a Solution 500 - which is just about what became the Cat and Dog range a few years back. Ours is 8 years old this year and is every bit as good as it was the day it was new.

You can get the bags at argos for £8.99/bag if you are in a hurry - but *DO NOT* use "compatible" bags - my mother has done this with hers intermittently and they are utter crap in comparision.

You could try and empty the bag and re-use - but it sucks up so much crap I don't mind replacing them personally.

Objectively - a Dyson at the time was £250 or more. The Miele was £160 off t'internet. I have not spent £90 on bags in 8 years - in fact I would expect I won't spend that in 20 years. Show my a Dyson that will last that long! Our Miele has fallen down the stairs numerous times as I'm a hamfisted monkey when using it - and it just keeps on ticking.

Miele are the only company that I have called for help when the air powered head stopped spinning and the chap at the parts desk said I didn't need a new one - just needed to dismantle it - and he stayed on the line and talked me through it over a cup of tea - amazing - truly amazing.

For reference the Cat and Dog uses the Miele FJM bags.

HTH

Cheers Dan.

[meow2222]

For hoovering up animals you need a lot of suction and powerful motorised brushing. That means cyclone not bags, and definitely not air driven brushes. Sometimes names can be driven more by marketing than real use.

Oh, the word 'after' is sitting by the keyboard, must have left it out somewhere.

Someone I know has a good hoover, but I'm not sure of the name. Perhaps Kirby, anyway it runs at very high motor speed, is intolerably loud, looks like something out of the 60s, and the result is impressive. And apparently cost, well, think 3-4x dyson cost.

NT

[Chris Bacon]

*WOW!*

Ebay?

Well.. I didn't know that they used those (as Numatic do)...

Sounds good... a call to Numatic can produce similar results.. perhaps Numatic are "Our" clone of Meile... or the other way around!

[Tim S]

I'm glad someone else answered that - I bought 4 boxes of bags two years ago and cannot for the life of me remember where. Still have plenty left.

Cheers

Tim

[Chris Bacon]

By gum, I bet you do. Even a small one would block the hose.

Air driven brushes are OK, but the 24V motorised brush you get in Numatic's "Henry Turbo" or other models is superb. They're "ours", too!

IMO Diesoons are POS.

[Tim S]

I second the bit about air powered heads. Just checked, my hoover is the Miele Revolution Power Plus, with the included electric head. That is astounding powerful - better than some uprights. Costs more than the Cat 'n' Dog, but worth it IMO.

Now, I've also got the car valet kit which has a small air powered beater head. It's not bad, handy for stairs - but it really isn't a patch on the motor head, agree with NT there.

I don't have any animals (only little monkeys ;-> ) but it picks up human hair OK round the bed very reliably - they even thought of putting a little slot along the length of the beater bar, so that when hair gets wrapped around it, you just run a pair of pointy sharp scissors along and cut it off - simple, but sheer genius.

Now, I find that the suction does remain pretty good for the life of the bag. A decent cyclone will probably beat it, but the Miele is good.

Cheers

Tim

[Owain]

Lots of small animals wouldn't block the hose. Ants, slugs, small mice, etc.

Owain

[The Medway Handyman]

Cyclones don't increase vacuum or (more important) airflow on a suction cleaner at all, they help to keep filters clean. Agreed that a dirty filter will reduce airflow but Henry bags are cheap as chips, you can get 100 for £40 online and they are Numatic originals, pirates are cheaper.

A Henry Turbo has a 24v power brush which is excellent IME, but I agree the air driven jobbies can be a pain.

Kirby are USA produced and sold by a multi level marketing outfit in the UK. Bit of a rip off IMO. A Sebo BS36 will run rings round it, or indeed anything else on the market.

[Rod]

Tim S wrote in news:4499b4b2$0$664$ [e-mail]:

Ho hum - not my experience. Yes - you can scissor along the bar once or, if you're lucky, twice. Then I find that I have to take it to pieces to make it work properly after that. And that takes quite a while. Sometimes hair curls round the extreme ends and forms a hard, matted plastic-like substance and I have to cut that off with a sharp knife.

The new style ('fluffy') bags are pretty good. And I am not sure if anything better is out there. Maybe Nilfisk (at a price)?