What kind of VACUUM CLEANER do you have or recommend?

[Aimeedyan]

DH and I are in the market for one, and I've been told by EVERYONE I know that Dyson is the way to go but we can NOT swing $500 for a Dyson.

Overstock has some great deals on a Hoover Windtunnel, Dirt Devil Vision, Eukeka Wirlwind, and some Panasonics.

Any thoughts? Recommendations?

 

[antkim]

I LOVE my Dyson and I think I paid a little under 400.00 for it-go to amazon.com!!

 

[crz4mm2]

I have a hoover windtunnel and I love it. It works very very well. I have had it about 3 or 4 years and haven't had any problems with it.

I would love to have an expensive vac (not that the windtunnel was really cheap!) but I don' t like to clean and figure I could use that $$$ on something I LIKE
Good luck picking a vac. I got mine on a 20% off sale so it was much more reasonable.

 

[ladydancer]

I love my electrolux. I can run the beater bars on carpet or turn them off for bare floors. It has great suction!

It is a canister type not an upright vacuum.

Canister types:
Pro....
More suction power
Easier to go from vacuuming to adding attachments than uprights.
Easier to vacuum stairs.

Uprights:
Con:
Less suction power
Harder to go from vacuuming to adding attachments because you have to take time to attach a hose.

 

[helenabear]

Out of all of those listed, I'd pick (and did) the Hoover Windtunnel. My husband was looking at a Dyson not too long ago and except for one attachment, the Hoover was rated above it and among the top out there (at least according to the review). I was happy that "my pick" was still considered tops

 

[cati]

I have the Hoover and a electrolux canister. I love my Hoover for a quick vacuum through the house. I use my electrolux when I want a really deep cleaning. Great for allergies.

 

[Pooh67_68]

Years ago I had a Hoover Canister and really liked it. Now I have a Kirby and love it, but they are alot more expensive than even a Dyson.

 

[soccerchick]

I'm sooo glad you posted this because I was going to ask the same thing. I HATE my current one. Costco has the Dyson DC07 for $429.00. My Dh said to go ahead and get it since a friend of mine bought one and loves it (she has a dog and cat and likes its suction power for all the animal hair). I decided to check out Consumer Reports first B4 dropping that much money on a vacuum cleaner. Consumer Reports has the Eureka Boss Smart Vac model 4870 as a CR Best Buy @ $140. It has good to excellent ratings for everything. The Dyson ranked a Fair (next to lowest rating) for ease of use and noise. The noise part doesn't bother me too much, but ease of use did. The other evaluated features all scored good to excellent for the Dyson.

TFYI. The Hoover Windtunnel self-propelled also scored very well with lots of excellents;its only bad rating was for noise. CR had the price as 300. (model series U6439-900, and similar)

Anyone with a Dyson have trouble w/"ease of use"?

 

[Toby'sFriend]

I have a Hoover windtunnel and have no complaints. I can never believe the amount of dirt I empty out of that cannister.

 

[GarrettJD]

I have a cheapo Eureka Boss that cost me about $50. It doesn't work right anymore. Guess you get what you pay for.

 

[Wishing on a star]

AVOID Eureka! I have never seen one that didn't huff and puff the dust! Most models are cheap and loud.

When I bought mine, I went to Sears because they had almost every vacuum available on a big display where you could try them out. Now, I am NOT a fan of Sears. I did not buy my Kenmore Progressive because I fell for the salesmans pitch. After much carefull consideration and test driving several models. For the price... (I think I paid two hundred something for the model with a lot of bells and whistles) this one won out hands down!

I have had it for 2-3 years now and it is still great! Of course most all vacuums make too much noise for me, but this one was quieter with a better 'pitch' than the Hoover Windtunnel. It is full HEPA when all the HEPA bags and filters are used. It uses the same 'Windtunnel technology' that Hoover developed - it Sucks the air and dust up and into the bag with the motor/fan being at the end of the line. NOT with the motor at the front end of the line trying to blow the dust and dirt into the bag.

Also, if you vacuum bare flooring and not just carpet. When you put this vacuum on bare-floor cleaning, it doesn't just move the beater bars up while it continues to spin dispersing a lot of the dust and dirt. The beater bar completely disengages.

After I bought it, it ended up on Consumers top picks! I have been satisfied.

I am sure that some of the very expensive vacuums (electrolux) may be better. But, like you, I think that spending enough money to help fund a good part of a trip to WDW just to vacuum my floors is nuts!

So, this was my pick.

Hey Soccerchick - You are right. while I really like my Kenmore... more than the Hoover Windtunnel... My MIL has the Hoover Windtunnel Self Propelled. it is indeed loud. But the self propel mechanism in both forward and reverse is awesome!

 

[SyracuseWolvrine]

My parents had a Royal "Commercial" model in our old house, and it worked great. I think they may have actually gotten it from a Hotel/Restaurant supply store.

 

[huey duey & luey]

I am also looking for a new vacuum. I bought a Eureka cannistar from sears 1 1/2 years ago. It is already broken. It was about 250, so not cheap that it shouldnt last.. I called Eureka and found out they have been bought by Electrolux (so I am basically SOOL, plus it was past 1 year.)
Tara

 

[ZachnElli]

I have a Hoover Windtunnel self propelled vaccuum and I hate it! I think it was a lemon and I've had it in several times to be fixed for lack of suction. I will never buy another Hoover. I bought the Hoover in April 2003, had to keep the receipt handy for every time I took it in to be fixed. Thank God my new house has a central vac and that I LOVE!

 

[IceQueen777]

I know you didn't want us to tell you Dyson, so sorry....but Dyson is the only vacuum that hasn't lost suction over time for me. I have tried several brands and they have all given out on me after 2 or so years (maybe it is due to my hairy sheltie...boy can he shed!). I finally decided that instead of wasting $100.00 or more every few years that I would break down and get the Dyson. I am glad I did.

 

[mbb]

Handimate Jr. attachment for the stairs and couch etc...

Here in Canada, it cost approx $400...I'll bet that in the US, it retails for far less!

Love it Love it...and we went from a central vac system to the Windtunnel, and a few others in between..

Good luck!


edit:
Look what I found!
The best vacuum ever!

HTH!!

 

[AZKathy]

We found our Dyson at Best Buy in the Open Box area. Someone bought it and returned it, so we got a good discount on that vacuum cleaner. It could be worth a try to see if there are any Dysons over at your Best Buy already opened at a discounted price.

 

[AWD]

We recently bought a Dyson at Best Buy for around $400, and it's a great vacuum....POWERFUL suction. I have had Oreck in the past which I also paid $400, and I needed to have it repaired a few times. The Dyson is heavier to push than the Oreck, but I
like it SO much better. A lot of stores sell the Dyson, so shop around for the best price if you decide you want it. Our Target had a higher price than Best Buy

 

[POLLY ANN]

I have a Kirby and as long as you change the bag when it's full, the suction is fantastic. I have had mine for about 8 years. Prior to this one I had a 1985 model, and although there wasn't anything wrong with it, I traded it for the new one.

Have you ever gone into a Kirby store and looked at their older, used models to see what their prices are? I highly recommend one.

 

[Jeafl]

We just bought an Oreck last weekend. It has a 100% warranty for 21 years, including parts and labor. I am very hard on my vacuum cleaners. I bought a Kenmore that Consumer Reports rated as excellent and I hated it. It was extremely heavy, and it didn't get very close to walls and furniture. I also went through 3 Eurekas, and a Hoover in the past 10 years with no luck. So far, I love the Oreck. It weighs less than 8 lbs. so it's a breeze to use. It also has 2 speeds, one for bare floors and one for carpets. I figure since it has the full warranty at least I won't have to pay for repairs for the next 21 years. You also can bring it in for a free tune-up once a year for the next 21 years. So far so good though, it seems to have great suction.