Vacuum Cleaner - Dyson, Bissell, what ????

Broke the handle off our vacuum cleaner the other day. Its a plastic handle that joins to the metal arm and it snapped right at the curve, where it would make it pretty much impossible to epoxy or otherwise repair. The vacuum is a old one, at least a dozen years old, and probably not worth the effort to take into the shop for repairs.

I was wondering if those Dyson vacuums actually work the way they claim to work? Are they worth the money?

Bissell just came out with a knock off of the Dyson vacuum, there are probably others too? Bissell has a HEPA filter hooked up to their unit and I'm not sure if that means it won't blow dust around the house or if that means there will just be another "consumable" part that we will have to buy & change on a regular basis. Bissell calls theirs the Healthy Home Vacuum.

Anyone have any experience with these things? Is a Dyson worth roughly $500? Seems pretty darn expensive to me, when most other vacuums are roughly 1/2 that price. Does a Dyson suck up TWICE the dirt for twice the price or is it all advertising hype? The Bissell is $249 at Sears and there is a $20 rebate.

What about brands like Eureka? Hoover? Kenmore (Sears)?

And what about Oreck? Those are about $500 too?

Bissell http://www.bissell.com/images/IncludeContent/HHV_DRTV-20/29/index.html

I've noticed the Dyson advertisements no longer say "the ONLY vacuum that doesn't lose suction" and they now say "the FIRST vacuum . . . " so obviously Bissell and others have come up with similar designs. But are they just cheap wanna-be copies? Or are they good machines that cost less because they don't have the Dyson brand name?

Dyson does have a 5 year warrenty that makes it somewhat attractive, even at double the price.

Thoughts?

I have a small dyson (not an upright) that I bought a couple of years ago. At the time I was living in a townehome with hardwood floors and didnt need an upright. Now I wish I had the upright becasue of where I live now. All carpet. I have had no problems what so ever with mine. It still picks up just as good today as when I bought it. Two of my friends also bought dysons and they are both happy with theirs as well.

I will say Consumer reports dosent recomend dysons. They recomend Eureka "the boss" smart vac

No Kirby in your list?

Are you looking only at uprights?

If a canister would work for you, Filter Queen is a great choice. I've seen people use their Majestic model for years as a shop vac and they still can't kill it. Ours is about 10 years old now and it's like new. The new ones have a gear driven power nozzle so there's no more belts.

Roomba.

Just looking at uprights, no canister models. I'm open to any brand I can get locally, I'm also wondering what the heck the difference is between a $250 vacuum and a $500 vacuum? I'll pay for performance if it is DOUBLE the performance, but if I'm paying for "hype" then I think it would be waste of money to spend double.

REDDOGTWO said:

Roomba.

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Well we already have Snowball Puff and he is pretty small and close to the floor, when we spill something Misha ususally just pushes Snowball into the mess and soaks it up

We bought one of these this year:

http://www.hoover.com/db/xq/asp.hvrProductMain/CatID.5/SubID.6/ProdID.211/ModID.1784/qx/WindTunnelElectronicBagless.htm

It really sucks. In fact the first time we vacuumed with it we were disgusted at home much stuff it picked up.

I don't really like bagless as it's a pain to clean up the canister but we now use our old bagged Vacuum to clean the dust out of the filter of the new one. The dust filter sure gets clogged up with crud fast.

The carpet agitator is very aggressive on this vacuum too.

I think the Dysan's are pretty good to but they do cost more.

B_Skurka said:

I'm also wondering what the heck the difference is between a $250 vacuum and a $500 vacuum?

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Come on Bob, I know you're smarter than that... The difference is $250. :StickOutT

I'm not a vacuum expert (nor did I sleep at a Holiday Inn Express last night) but from what I've seen, a lot of the cost difference has to do with quality of the parts used in the machine. In today's market, there's lots of very powerful vacuums that could probably suck crap-weasel in but some are built to last a lifetime where others may get you 10-15-20 years.

Neither are rated very high at all by Consumer Reports. As a matter of fact, the Dyson is rated rather poorly. A $60 Hoover model is rated higher than any models from Dyson or Bissell. With 5 kids, I've sort of really gotten into vacuum cleaners, if you know what I mean. I've found over the years that CR is pretty darn accurate in their vacuum ratings. They rate a Eureka Smart Vac Ultra ($150) near the top and they rate it as a best value unit.

Although they are rather expensive and heavy, the Kirby cleaners are almost always rated as one of the better performers as well the longest lasting brands. If you go by a pawn shop you can almost always find a year old Kirby that an "ex" Kirby salesman sold to the pawn shop. You see, Kirby vacuum cleaner salespeople are required to buy their own demo model right away. When they quit a month later it's quite normal for them to just take them to a pawn shop and get whatever they can out of them. Several years ago I picked up a brand new Kirby (Generation 5 or 6?) that was pawned by a guy who bought his new vacuum cleaner and then immediately quit; only to find that the local Kirby dealer wouldn't refund his money. It came with all the attachments and shampooer. The bags last longer than most, hold more than most, and the units seem to be second to none at performance. CR only knocks them due to weight (but they are self propelled) and they are not the quietest vac. Neither of these matter to me; I just want the job done. And, for $250 cash, I thought it was an absolute steal considering it listed for something like $1600 or so.

Another that is high rated is the Electrolux Oxygen 3. I purchased the model they had out in 1989 when my son was born. It still works fine and gets used several times a week. The bags are smaller and it isn't self propelled, but it seems to perform just as well.

For both upright and canister vacuums, year after year, Sears seems to have the top rated vacs. In the latest tests, the Sears Progressive 25614 ($350) was tops in the canister style while the Sears Progressive with Direct Drive ($300) was top rated in the upright style.

bczoom said:

In today's market, there's lots of very powerful vacuums that could probably suck crap-weasel in but some are built to last a lifetime where others may get you 10-15-20 years.

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Yup, you can get a very powerful, and extremely loud, plastic piece of crap that will suck start a Harley, but it won't last a year with my crew. As Brian mentioned earlier, I've abused the crap out of one of those extremely high dollar ($1900 list) Filter Queen canisters. They seem to work better than any shop vac made for drywall dust. Of course, I got my Filter Queen the same way I did the Kirby. CR doesn't like the Filter Queen because it isn't good on hard floors. I don't use it on hard floors. Duh!

My MIL shows the Dyson units at our local Sam's Club. She thought they were pretty cool but admitted that they have gone through 3 of them so far just using them as demo units. That's enough to make me not comfortable with one. Besides, the guy who makes them sounds like some fag. Oops! I'm not supposed to say that. Scratch that part...

Dargo said:

CR doesn't like the Filter Queen because it isn't good on hard floors. I don't use it on hard floors. Duh!

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Ahhh, did they take the beater-bar off and put on the wood floor attachment?

I agree about the drywall dust but I'd better not do that again. Mrs. Zoom didn't care much for me pulling that trick...

Dargo said:

For both upright and canister vacuums, year after year, Sears seems to have the top rated vacs. In the latest tests, the Sears Progressive 25614 ($350) was tops in the canister style while the Sears Progressive with Direct Drive ($300) was top rated in the upright style.

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I went to the Sears website and found several "Progressive" uprights, none said Direct Drive in the description.

Which one did CR like


Kenmore Progressive Bagless Upright with Inteli-Clean System $349


Kenmore Progressive Upright Vacuum with Inteli-Clean System, Slate Blue $349


Kenmore Progressive Bagless Upright with Inteli-Clean System Reg $349, now $299


Kenmore Progressive Upright Vacuum with Inteli-Clean System, Slate Blue Reg $349, now $299

My Grandma uses a Rainbow vaccuum that she has had and used daily since my mother was a little girl.

I have no idea what they cost, but they sure are (were) durable.

We had a Dyson's Animal. Beth didn't like the way it worked so after it lived in the basement for a while she gave it away.

We're back to the Kenmore.

jim

My wife purchased a Bissell, and it can go though a filter every time you use it. She got tired of cleaning and replacing the filters and started to use it without one of the filters that kept clogging. It took me a few hours to clean the vacuum and get it working again. Personally, I don't like any of the newer vacuums since they all have filters that clog so often. We have a whole house built in vacuum that works great, but the wife doesn't like dragging the hose all over the place, so it doesn't get use any longer. With 3 dogs, we have more than our share of dog hair and vacuums are just one of those items that need to be replaced every year or so when they wear out.

Well I am surprised at how you guys are all talking about the short life spans of vacuums. The 2 that we own are identical, except one now has a broken handle. Both are at least a dozen years old (now that I think about it, closer to 15 years old is probably more accurate). Both are Kent commerical units, Kent is (or was) made by Electrolux. These are modular hotel vacuums. Both still work great, its just one handle snapped off. Both have managed dog hair from a Malamute, a Sheltland Sheepdog & 3 Akitas.

I'm thinking I may want to try to find a replacement handle for mine.

Here is a link to Kent, which I didn't even know was still in business! This looks almost identical to our vacuums. I'd bet the handle fits!
http://www.kenteuroclean.com/Products/UprightVacuums/DuraVac_152.aspx#

Here is where I purchase vacuums for our stores ........ http://www.powr-flite.com/. Good commercial units and they have a very comprehensive parts department that can supply repair parts for many brands. This is where a lot of commercial vacuum cleaner repair shops get there parts from.

B_Skurka said:

I went to the Sears website and found several "Progressive" uprights, none said Direct Drive in the description.

Which one did CR like...

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Oops. It was the Progressive model 35922.

Bob,

Maybe you wouldn't be able to do this but: Have you thought about retrofitting a central vacuum system into your house? When we built our house 10 years ago I installed a Beam central vacuum system. It SUCKS!!.............in a good way. I installed an outlet in the garage so it's easy to keep our vehicles clean, at least on the inside.

Kevin

The Dyson ROCKS! We have gone through our share of Hoover's, Kenmore's, etc. -- I finally broke down and bought my wife a Dyson. This is by far the best vacuum we've ever owned. She absolutely loves it! Ours is purple and aqua -- wicked cool.

Gatorboy said:

Ours is purple and aqua --.

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Fag


P.S. I knew you'd appreciate my comment.

For better or worse, we buy ours at Costco:
http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?Prodid=11121938&search=vacuum&Sp=S&Mo=22&cm_re=1-_-Top_Left_Nav-_-Top_search&Nr=P_CatalogName:BC&Ns=P_Price|1||P_SignDesc1&N=0&whse=BC&Dx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntk=All&Dr=P_CatalogName:BC&Ne=4000000&D=vacuum&Ntt=vacuum&No=7&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Nty=1&topnav=&s=1

While these only last 5 years or so, they have the extra benefit of really putting out the btus- as in heating the room. If my heating system ever breaks down, all I have to do is run the vacuum for about 5 minutes and the room is up to 75 degrees. I would recommend ear protection with this model though- its as loud as a 747 on takeoff. Oh, and the thing tends to stink up the room if the filter is the least bit dirty.
Bone

Oh man, I went to that site and accidentally hit "add to my cart". Can you get it out for me?

Dargo said:

Oh man, I went to that site and accidentally hit "add to my cart". Can you get it out for me?

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That's okay, Brent........Just put it on your Capital 1 "No Hassel" card....................

The wife wanted a Dyson. Bought her one ($500). Like every other vacuume it is a plastic POS. Total waste of money, IMO. She still thinks it's the cat's pajamas. (I think due to guilt of the cost of the damn thing.)

My mom has a Orek XL. Nice vacuume. Good support by a REPAIR shop for belts and what not. I like the idea of a pawn shop Kirby, though.

Does anyone vacuume hardwood floors here? What do you use?

Monica has a Kirby G5 that she got when she was a Kirby salesman for about 6 weeks. SHHHHH, she didn't pay for it. But, if you really act interested you can usually get them for about $795 - 850 down from the $1600.

Ours does a really good job. Monica uses the shampooer quite a bit, but we found their shampoo works the best. Have tried others in it and it just didn't work as well. She uses the vacuum part almost every day. We have had no problems with it, other than we were taking it somewhere and I was pissed and through it into the bed of the truck. I broke one of the cord clips. She also somehow managed to cut the cord so I had to cut it apart and resolder, but nothing that is the fault of the sweeper.

She is watching the Dysons because she says when when (I say if) we get a new house, she isn't carrying the Kirby up and down the stairs. It is interesting to hear the opinions on that one. I'll have to share those with her.

Well I am pretty conviced I will stay with our Kent Vacuum if I can get the part. I talked with Kent today, they gave me the name of an authorized parts supplier and it turns out that I do business with that company. I am in the process of trying to confirm with the company that they are, in fact, a parts supplier.

If I can get a handle, it is a no brainer to keep the vacuum I have, despite its age. It sure seems like all your responses here indicate that most vacuums are cheaply built. These Kent units are all plastic but the plastic is very high impact and even at roughly 12 to 15 years old, these vacuums are in great shape (except for the one that has a broken handle). I like the dual motor design with one for the beater bar and another for the suction.

I would say this to anyone who is in the market for a vacuum, the commercial grade hotel vacuums seem to be a bargain compared to the consumer grade vacuums. I'm not sure if they has as much suction as some of the super-hyped consumer vacuums, but they seem to have enough to do a good job, and the commercial vacs also seem to be a heck of a lot more durable.

B_Skurka said:

These Kent units are all plastic but the plastic is very high impact ...

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Doesn't matter, it's a POS to Av8r.

yup

Gatorboy said:

Doesn't matter, it's a POS to Av8r.

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A Point Of Sale vaccuum cleaner?!

I am on my second Dyson, the older one lives upstairs and only vaccuums up there as it is a smaller area than downstairs and due to its' age, overheats. It has a cut out switch which operates when it feels it gets too hot and under normal circumstances this does not happen upstairs. Downstairs is a larger area and now sports a newer Dyson. I have the benefit too, that I don't have to lug a heavy cleaner up and down stairs. Both of the Dysons are the upright models, but for heavy cleaning (builders rubbish, wood shavings etc., I bring in the 'workshop' cleaner, which is an old Goblin (long rectangular body with a pipe at the end), this was given to me about 30 years ago, to be a temporary dust extractor on my polishing machine, but it is such a wonderful cleaner that it has never made it to being a dust extractor. It makes terrible noises, but still keeps going!!!