Need New Vacuum - Recommend?

[johnwayne]

My Hoover bagless upright just destroyed itself. Need to buy a new vacuum. I know this might produce a lot of opinions, but I have to ask - What should I buy and why?

Anyone?

JW

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per [e-mail]:

I would consider:

- Noise. I have used only two vacuums that do not hurt my ears: a muy expensivo (and heavy) Miele and a $125 Shark.

- Consumables Cost: Bags cost money. Some bagless vacuums have "Filters" that also cost money. Other bagless vacs have no consumables - you have to rinse a piece of foam and that's it.

- Weight: Some vacuums are quite heavy, which could be a consideration if they have to be carried up-and-down stairs.

- Convenience of the hose/wand option: Some vacs don't even have it, but those that do vary in convenience of deployment.

We have two of those Mieles, but I did not have experience with the Shark when I bought them. If I were doing it over again, I would start with a Shark and, if it worked out long-run, get another one for convenience.

[gonjah]

I never bought into the bag-less thing and Hoovers have always performed well for me. I think I've only bought 2 in about 40 years. Cheap to repair and parts are very easy to find.

If I had money to burn I'd probably buy a Rainbow. I've demoed a few and they are impressive. They seem to be worth it but I just can't see spending that much on an appliance that I only use a few minutes a week. If someone in your house has allergy problems, and you love your carpets, a Rainbow would probably be worth looking into.

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, Not interested in built-in type? For upright I am for Miel. Expensive but worth it. My house has built in one. Two size power heads with DC motors light and powerful. I think Dyson is over rated. Go to the store and try out the Miel.

[Bill Gill]

One of the local newspaper columnists had a column about buying things off of TV. He said the only thing that worked was the Shark. He recommended it.

Bill

[Dan Espen]

If you can, go for whole house. I had mine installed in about half a day. Quiet, powerful, light.

[philoÂÂ]

My Electrolux that was made 60 years ago is still in perfect working order. I've had it for 40 years and replaced the hose once.

I did a quick on-line search and from the on-line reviews I saw, they still make a hi-quality item.

My wife has a 40 year old Kirby that's still working perfectly...they are a bit more expensive I think.

What ever you do...do not get a Dirt Devil.

Years ago I had the opportunity to try to use a new one and it spewed dust out the exhaust...even with a new bag.

[Ed Pawlowski]

I'd ditch the carpet and go with hardwood or tile. My health is more important that any carpet.

[Ed Pawlowski]

The bagless just look messy to deal with. Both our vacuums are over 25 years old so I can't say how good the brands are today. One is Electrolux, the other a Hoover.

Personally, I like the idea of taking out a bag and putting it into the trash bag with no mess, nothing else to clean.

I've heard good things (but never used them) about the Shark and Meihle brands so they may be worth checking out. The Rainbow and the other door to door brand are greatly overrated from everything I've read. Dyson is overpriced

[bobmct]

I've had several hoovers with disposable bags. Always worked well for years and years. I also have a kirby that was purchased 25+ years ago. A pain to clean so its used little. A few years ago I purchased a hoover bagless and I HATE it. Stinks, filters cost a bundle and even disassembling, cleaning, and new filters it still stinks. So in order to get something general I just purchased a $63 Might Mite from Amazon as it has both bags and a very good review. Its materials seem cheap compared to the other brands but it works really well. So I'd rather replace a bagged $63 unit if necessary. Good luck.

[ng_reader]

ametek motor. the best.

as for home use, without built-in (and retrofitting built-in is not much more having a home built and ordering built-in), check out sanitaire

[notbob]

I'd consider buying an older used vacuum cleaner. The new stuff is junk.

Agree. Those things will last for freakin' ever! OTOH, not the best vacuum for picking dirt up outta yer carpet.

I'd recommend a used Kenmore canister w/ powerhead. Those things blew away the competition in their day. Even smoked Kirby's and commercial Hoovers. I've done time as a janitor, in my youth, so have vacuumed more than a few carpets with a lotta brands.

Agree. Total junk. I've watched my grown daughter and my ex-wife and late sister-in-law buy at least 3 of those bagless swirly chamber vacuums (Hoover, Eureka). They all ended up in the dumpster, in short time.

Look around before you toss big $$$. I have a perfectly fine Kirby I'll sell you for $75. Older commercial Hoovers (upright/bag) were quite good. I found one in a dumpster with only the beater brush band broken (say fast five times!). Fixed it fer about $5 and used it fer yrs.

Most older vacuum cleaners will last a long time. That's why there are used vacuum cleaner businesses. If a machine is 30 yrs old and still works great, it will probably work better than ANY newer vacuums on the mkt, today.

jes my 2¢ nb

[CRNG]

On Sun, 23 Nov 2014 07:27:45 -0500, [e-mail] wrote in

Whatever you consider, don't get a Dyson... any Dyson. They are way over priced and over rated (probably due to very expensive advertising).

[notbob]

Yep.

I couldn't think of the name, but yes, Dyson is mostly hype. Much like Cutco knives.

nb

[philoÂÂ]

I was a member of an organization and they had a new Dirt Devil that just spewed out dust. One day as I was driving there & I saw a vacuum cleaner in the trash...probably a Kirby.

I took it with me and just pulled out a lot of dog-hair with the needle nose...the darn thing worked great, so I threw the Dirt Devil away.

Years later I found out that those Kirby's really cost a lot of money new. OTOH: When I had to buy replacement bags I did not get soaked...and the replacement drive belt was something like two bucks.

[johnwayne]

Thanks all.

Consumers likes the Shark and Hoover, both bagless I think. Know nothing about a Miehle - Gotta check who carries that.

My Hoover is a so-called Bagless Upright 'twin chamber system' Model U5290-900.

I dunno what broke on my Hoover - I have medical/in home care for me and my dimentia-laden, handicapped wife, and the lady actually broke the thing, but didn't tell me. I just went to clean it and found it deceased. I found it hard, if not impossible to take apart - with lots of screws - some hidden I'm thinking. As I was working on it four or five large 2-3" gray plastic pieces fell out, leaving one inside rattling around. The motor is jammed, The belt for the brush thingee is broken. I plan to scrap it.

Thanks

JW

[Norminn]

I have a Hoover Windtunnel, which I love. We are two retirees and one small dog, so it doesn't get heavy use. It has hepa filter, so no dust backfiring from it and no odor. I am surprised at how much junk, especially real fine silty dust, it get from our white shag carpet. It is very noisy and not great for bare floors, but those are easy to sweep and mop. There is a "power" brush that fits the hose for furniture, but it doesn't have a motor, works on suction power, and is pretty weak. Don't know the price because it was a gift from our son.

My 50+ y/o Electrolux tank model still works, but hose is iffy so it loses power; not worth using any more.

[notbob]

Yes. They were sold door-to-door (remember that?). The price was whatever the salesman could wrest from the mark's wallet. I've heard of Kirby's w/ attachments selling as high as $1700! Same with encyclopedias, cookware, and knife salesmen (Cutco).

Yep. Many used vacuum cleaner shops are built around a Kirby servicing license. Kirby's will easily go --and have-- for half a century with only a few bucks fer parts, to keep 'em flying. Mainly cuz they're built --and weigh!-- like tanks. I think Oreck built their rep on being the antithesis of Kirby. IOW, very light in weight (8 lb). They certainly don't pick up any better than a Kirby.

nb

[Percival P. Cassidy]

Yes, Dyson are expensive, but I don't know how the price compares with others. We love ours -- one of the early models.

I happened to be in the UK when the court there ruled against Hoover (and another?) for infringement of Dyson's patents -- after spending a lot of money dissing Dyson.

Perce

[philoÂÂ]

A Kirby is very good, but even at $1000 it would be too much money.

A used one would probably be a good deal though.