I need advice on a Vacuum Purchase

[bean29]

The vacuum head on my canister vac is shot and I must buy a new vacuum like this weekend.

My last 2-3 vacuums have been Sears Kenmore Canister Vacs.

Sears has a canister vac the Kenmore Progressive regular $479.99 on a door buster Fri Sat 9-1pm for $299.99.

vs.

an upright Hoover Wind Tunnel Max (bagged)
consumer reports says impressive carpet cleaning superb pet-hair pickup strong on bare floors 18.4 lbs. No suction control. $179.99

or the Hoover Wind Tunnel Air (Bagless)
I got it at Boston Store for $171.00 but the user reviews say carpet performance is really good, good on hardwood and picks stuff up from grout well. The only complaints seem to be in relation to the hose detaching somehow from it's base rendering it useless. I still have the base of my old canister vac, so I am not hugely concerned abt this. But I am worried my MIL or my kids will try to use it and break it. So I was going to return it from the store I bought it at and buy it from Sears and add repair /replacement coverage 2 yrs $25.50.

Just curious if anyone has opinions upright vs. canister and any experience with these specific models. The canister is a step down from the canister I had I think not sure. I need to do tile, area rugs and carpet. I do have stairs to do, but can use the old canister for that.

Some people say that after using for awhile the bagless seem to not pick up as well?

My family seems to want me to go to an upright - the problem is storage space - I keep it in master bedroom closet. The 2 pieces are kind of clumsy to haul around but it has always worked well for the variety of surfaces I deal with.

I was hoping for some feedback/advice from the MSN/WIR crowd.

Modified to fix my many spelling errors

[swamp]

I have a Dyson. I love it. I hate canisters.

[Colleenz]

I second the Dyson. Awesome for pet hair.

[bean29]

My SIL has a dyson too and really likes it.

People in the Hoover wind tunnel air review said they had dysons previosly and were very happy with the Wind Tunnel Air vs Dyson bc of the price difference.

Which Dyson do you have and is it heavy or lightweight?

[swamp]

I have the Dyson Animal and it's not overly heavy.

[Tiny]

I just bought a bagless upright (always had upright). It's a Hoover windtunnel something or other. It was $99 at Sam's (seen the same thing for $110 at Walmart and $119 at Kohls.
I have mostly hardwood floors and 'oriental' type rugs. I use the hose to clean off the zwiffer as I go from room to room. I don't have stairs. I have 2 cats (one light colored and one dark colored so there's always cat fur visible on something... the next set of cats will both be light or dark colored. ::sigh:

The vacumm cleaner is incredibly LOUD and the noise actually makes me cringe (along with terrifying the cats). It does do a good job of cleaning - but it may just be because it's new and the spinning brush thingy isn't all worn down. It's easy to empty the cannister (although I have to empty it 3 or 4 times as I clean the house which is kinda annoying). I also have to clean off the filter thingy when I'm done. I'm starting to think I clean the vacumm cleaner more than I clean the house.
Things I like: it's got a super long power cord.
Things I don't like: the on/off switch is operated by foot - I have to have TWO appendages on the cleaner to turn it off/on. I really dislike this - I didn't know I disliked this when I bought it.
Things I find humourous about it: it's marketed as having a super long attachement hose (which it does) by showing the cleaner at the bottom of stairs and a beautiful woman holding the hose + attachement at the top of the stairs. Unfortunately the cleaner is so light weight that you'd need someone holding down the cleaner at the bottom of the stairs to achieve the effect shown.

FWIW: I've never disliked bagged vacumm cleaners. I use a Sharpie to write the date on the new bag (so I know how long it's been in the cleaner) and go about my merry vacummning way. Bags have never been messy for me and I had no problem keeping a year's supply on hand (a new bag every 2 months or so).

I'd think about the qualities of the vaccumn you are use to using that you do like or dislike and then find a cleaner based on that. (Long cord? position of on/off switch? how easy to switch from floor cleaning to hose/tools? what kinds of surfaces are you cleaning? How easy to clean out (bag/bagless)? etc...)

[Tiny]

A friend has a Dyson and loves/hates it. She sez it's a major Pain to switch from floor cleaning to using the attachment. She's like me and switches back and forth constantly as she moves thru the vacumming chore. She loves that it works so well.

[Deleted]

I have a bagless Hoover WindTunnel, I'm not sure which one. It's great at picking up dog hair (I had 2 large dogs when I bought it), not so great on my wood floors though. I've had it several years, as long as I keep it clean, I haven't noticed a loss in suction.

I bought a Kenmore Intuition upright a few weeks ago. I bought new carpet and I can't use a brush on it, and I needed a vacuum that adjust to a higher height. It seems to work fine but it's so heavy I only use it in the room with the new carpet. I still use the Hoover everywhere else.

I've never had a canister vacuum, so I'm no help on the comparison. I always thought they'd be cumbersome, so I never considered buying one.

[Deleted]

I have two Hoover Wind Tunnels. We bought one at Target...gasp has it been 11 years ago??? when we inherited the cabin. We liked it so much that we bought another one when our old vacuumed died when we were living in AZ. It's been in storage for the last three years while we were in Germany.

Since I'm currently living in a dirty empty house and unsure of when our storage unit delivery will be, I went ahead and bought a Dirt Devil cannister vac at Target on Wednesday for $89. I noticed a Kenmore type yesterday at Sears for $99.

I guess I'm kind of odd about the vacs. I like the cannisters for the hardwood but prefer the uprights for carpets. We had a cheap Sharp cannister vac that we bought as a temporary vac which lasted some 16 years until the hose split. I'd buy that again if I could find it.

[Tiny]

Some people say that after using for awhile the bagless seem to not pick up as well?
My guess is this is true if they DON"T routinely clean the filter system/cannister. I read the owner instructions that came with my new bagless vacuum and it's got a whole lotta steps for cleaning off the filter and some other parts that are in the 'dirt catching cannister' part. You're suppose to clean all this stuff after every use. It's not like it takes alot of time, but it is an extra step to the vacuuming chore.

Another thing that effects how good a vacuum cleaner works is how worn the spinning brush thingy is... you can usually replace them and I suspect that after a couple years of weekly whole house vacuuming that the brush thingy does indeed wear out and not kickup the stuff on the carpet so well...

[Deleted]

Jul 27, 2012 11:24:58 GMT -5 Tiny said:

Some people say that after using for awhile the bagless seem to not pick up as well?
My guess is this is true if they DON"T routinely clean the filter system/cannister. I read the owner instructions that came with my new bagless vacuum and it's got a whole lotta steps for cleaning off the filter and some other parts that are in the 'dirt catching cannister' part. You're suppose to clean all this stuff after every use. It's not like it takes alot of time, but it is an extra step to the vacuuming chore.

Another thing that effects how good a vacuum cleaner works is how worn the spinning brush thingy is... you can usually replace them and I suspect that after a couple years of weekly whole house vacuuming that the brush thingy does indeed wear out and not kickup the stuff on the carpet so well...

I don't clean my WindTunnel after every use. But I can tell when it needs cleaning, so I guess that's the only time I do it. LOL Then again, I'm not vacuuming a whole house either.

[bean29]

ATSiaRU, thanks for mentioning the loudness - that was mentioned in the review and is a concern for me...I am very sensitive to loud noises.

When I had a bagless, I cleaned the cup every time I used it. DH said it does not work anymore - he took it to the office -not sure if he still has it with a cup full of dirt or what?

I never thought of putting a date on my vacuum cleaner bag - I do do that with my furnace filters. Thanks for the suggestion.

[kittensaver]

I love my Orick.

[deantrip]

We have a Riccar upright, really great for my wifes allergies as it has multiple filters and hepa bags.

[constanz22]

I didn't love my Dyson, but I think it was that particular model. BFF had the same one and wasn't crazy about it either. It did not do a great job for regular vacuuming. I did love the attachments, but not worth the price just for that. I sold it earlier this year and have a pretty basic Bissel Helix. It's fine for my needs right now and cost about $60.

[zibazinski]

Love my Dyson!

[Formerly SK]

Love my Dyson. I've had it 6+ years at this point without any problems. And it still shreds my little area rugs by the front door so I guess the suction is still pretty strong.

[wodehouse]

I was very happy with my 20 year old cheap Hoover upright from Target (it "beat as it sweeps as it cleans"). Then I got married... DW wanted a Kenmore cannister vac. I hated that thing, so very heavy and clunky and cheap. The hose connection broke. Eventually bought an "adjunct" vac... a compact Miele cannister. I love that thing, so cute (it's moon-cheese yellow-green color) and effective. Later dumped the Kenmore and got another, better, Miele cannister with electric carpet sweeper. I like that as well (still have the other Miele).

[Deleted]

I recommend that you buy one that sucks

[deantrip]

Jul 27, 2012 16:06:59 GMT -5 @robbase2012 said:

I recommend that you buy one that sucks

Get a shopvac then you can make it blow too!

[bean29]

hmm. Wodehouse, the Milee upight ratings are very good with the added note that they are quiet.

I will go back to consumer reports web site and look at the canniser vac ratings for Milees.

I wasn't planning to spend so much, but the Dysons are pricy too.