Vacuum Cleaner Recommendation?

Kirby, but lots of $$$. Will last forever.

Dunno, I'm still using a Hoover from the mid sixties. Damn thing's built like a tank.

Jon

Walmart oughta have something. My personal vac is a Hoover, that takes type A bags. Probably older than I am. Actually made of metal.

Oh... suggestion. Look for top fill. They hold more dirt, and less likely to clog.

Drive through any large apartment project on the closest weekend to the end of the month. Odds are you will find 2 or 3, sitting by the dumpsters, that just need to be field-stripped and have the dust bunnies removed, and the string cut away from the beater bar. No, I'm not joking. Done it more than once, for when my siblings were moving out on their own.

If you can't bring yourself to dumpster dive, go to local Goodwill or Salvation Army, or similar. They usually have a couple, even in this small town.

-- aem sends....

Nope.

It's a bit heavier than I expected, but seems to work fine. Like the hand attachment. Not motorized like a Powermate, the the airflow is sufficient to move the brush.

If your dumpster diving yields a Filter Queen, snag it. Best vacuum I've ever used. I wouldn't pay anywhere near what they ask for a *new* one, mind you, and their marketing smacks of Amway, but they're a damn fine vacuum cleaner.

nate

They all suck.

Blue and white? Mine's, can't remember what model. But it actually has some metal in it.

Actually, I've done much the same thing. Put on a belt and a bag. Take the unit outdoors. Take the bag out, and leave the tube sticking out of the zip pouch. Run the machine for a few seconds, to blow it out well.

But, some are more suckier than others.

Panasonic

My 85 year old mom died last year after buying a Kirby the previous year for $1800 to replace the one she bought in the 60's.

The old still worked fine.....I think she bought a new one to "help out that nice young man who was selling them". You'd think for that price you'd get a lifetime supply of bags delivered 4 times a year.

OP- Interested? Make me an offer. I'll see if my sister (executor) wants to sell it.

cheers Bob

Hi, No one uses built-in vacuum? I have been for last 40 years or so.

Mine's red and white, made in Canton, Ohio. Says it takes "AC only".

Jon

Friend of mine's got one of those at the beach house. Sure is a lot more quiet.

Jon

Kirby don't need no steenkin bags!

That's a good advantage. Maybe all the sound is contained in the mechanical room?

Always wondered about those - popular in big houses 100 or so years ago from what I've read. How well do they work? Do the outlets that aren't being used seal well? Does the pipework behind the walls ever jam up (presumably the wall pipework's wider than the vac hose so in theory it shouldn't happen, but still...)

Whatever happened to the days when you'd walk down to your local engineering place and just grab replacement bearings off the shelf? :-)