Hi everybody I am planning on gifting my sister with a new vacuum cleaner for her house warming party. I have already shortlisted a few from this site https://www.the-vacmaster.ca/ . I am not looking for any particular price range. I just want it to make it last in the long run. If anybody has got any suggestions on this, it would be great.
Suggestions for a vacuum cleaner?
- Thread starter bessy
- Start date
Poorboy
Founder Poorboy's World
Is this for her house or for her car/garage?
Accumulator
Well-known member
bessy- Welcome to Autopia!
Be wary when it comes to Panasonic/Sears canisters. Mine have both had, uhm...issues...with the handle/controls going bad and especially not powering the powerheads (especially the little powerheads made for stairs/etc.). And the wheels on the regular powerheads are *VERY* fragile and once they break off they don`t stay on any more. I bought mine based on a CR recommendation and yeah they vacuum well but the whole finding/replacing parts thing got old fast and *oh man* are they a chore to disassemble for a thorough cleaning (not that I expect many people do that the way I do..).
That "finding replacement parts" has been a *huge* issue with all of my consumer-grade vacuums and extractors, they just aren`t available as little changes in design result in "sorry, can`t fix that any more". Gee, a cynic might think it`s intentional
Be wary when it comes to Panasonic/Sears canisters. Mine have both had, uhm...issues...with the handle/controls going bad and especially not powering the powerheads (especially the little powerheads made for stairs/etc.). And the wheels on the regular powerheads are *VERY* fragile and once they break off they don`t stay on any more. I bought mine based on a CR recommendation and yeah they vacuum well but the whole finding/replacing parts thing got old fast and *oh man* are they a chore to disassemble for a thorough cleaning (not that I expect many people do that the way I do..).
That "finding replacement parts" has been a *huge* issue with all of my consumer-grade vacuums and extractors, they just aren`t available as little changes in design result in "sorry, can`t fix that any more". Gee, a cynic might think it`s intentional
rlmccarty2000
Active member
I got a Metro-Vac for Christmas from my wife and, so far, I am not very impressed with its suction or quality. I know you were asking for suggestions, but Metro-Vac at it`s price point should be better. I think they need to look at the new technology on the market. I`ve got a Shark lift-away in the house and the suction is outstanding (and you can get tools for cleaning vehicles for it). You can use the Metro-Vac as a blower so that may figure into the equation. I believe Shark sells a vac just for automotive cleaning.
GearHead_1
Long Time Member
Ditto on the Sears canister vacuums. Not a good investment. If you are interested in an upright, Kirby makes a great vacuum, they are built like a tank and are made to be repaired and not replaced. They look the same as they did in the 60`s. These are pricey but the real issue is their door to door salesman. If you have a Kirby repair shop in your area and you buy one there you`ll avoid their sales people. I have both Dyson`s best and Kirby`s, the Kirby is a far superior machine though Dyson`s price for a good machine is a great value.
Good old reliable Kirby sweeps away most of the competition
Good old reliable Kirby sweeps away most of the competition
Many moons ago I bought my wife a Hoover WindTunnel, which at the time was the highest rated vacuum cleaner among several rating services and the Consumer Reports mags. Problem free. Even now she would probably let me go before the WindTunnel. I believe it`s still the highest rated vacuum out there.
Accumulator
Well-known member
Thanks for posting that...kinda a "the King`s New Clothes" sort of thing since so many people think they`re All That.
And huh, sounds like the Shark Vacuums are a lot better than they were back in the day (I had one of their very first ones, not good).
Accumulator
Well-known member
Huh, guess CR got it right for once! "Blind squirrel finds nut" comes to mind
Mike lambert
New member
For the garage, garage vac pro. House I highly recommend Dyson, 20 cats and 2 dogs and my wife can`t kill it!
ShakingHorizons
New member
I can`t stand bag-less vacuums, they fill to the brim instantly and ate disgusting to clean after every use! I`m in the market for a new BAGGED vacuum.
Mike lambert
New member
I have had the garage vac pro for 3 years, used 7 days a week with no problems. Hepa bags keep all the dust in the vacuum. I use 3 bags a year.
mustangmike
New member
Funny, my experience with the Sears canister vacuum has been opposite of what`s been posted so far. I`m on my second one, it`s been going great for over 10 years with no problems. I had another one before the one I have now, it didn`t wear out, I gave it to a relative who needed a vac and bought a new one. I also bought a Sears canister for my son who has been using it for years with no problems. Just saying.
RMD
Member
I was actually researching vacuums most of this evening before hitting autopia, so convenient timing on this post. There are a ton of review sites, some independent, some are basically ads. Recommendations and ratings vary depending on the type of surface you are cleaning, some are made for hard floors, uprights are usually designed for carpets, etc. Focus on what the predominant surfaces are in the house, and you can find the best performers in each price class. Some manufacturers make a range of models geared toward different surfaces, like Miele, which is the way I`m leaning, but that line can get pricey real fast.
Accumulator
Well-known member
Heh heh, that was good
mustangmike said:
See how YMMV applies! Noting that my canister gets used basically *every* day and that I expect a lot more than 10 years out of a vacuum (my oldest Hoover canister is from the `80s), I can`t help but wonder whether I`m just kinda hard on mine compared to most people.
JBM said:
And speaking of YMMV...my Orecks were all so utterly awful (all three of them including one of their big supposedly commercial ones) that I donated them to charity. Neither of the two uprights would get pet hair out of carpet, like...at all.
Mike lambert said:
With a hmmm-and-nod towards that "...20 cats..", I`ll say that all the Dyson owners I know like theirs. I always wondered if it was a "justify pricey unit" thing, but it sounds like yours is at least *holding up* just fine. Have you noticed it being hard on your carpets? That`s a rumor I keep hearing about `em, but only from people who don`t actually have/sell them.
RMD said:
Similar to the Dysons, every Miele owner I know loves theirs. Pricey indeed though, even the cost of the bags (unless you can buy generic knock-offs, which have worked great in my Hoover/Sears/Panasonics).
MattPersman
New member
Yes a dyson can be hard on Carpet but I also found that it mattered what kind of carpet. When I bought my current home one of the bedrooms had some definitely older carpet as the color was definitely not modern nor was the strand don`t know if it was considered shag or what. Anyways. If I left it in one spot for more than a couple seconds with the brush on it would start pulling them up. Fast forward to last year the last of the carpet in our home it was approx 5 years old at this point. Some sort of pet stain master from lowes. Middle of the line. Well pieces started pulling up from that. So apparently the brushes are pretty aggressive if stuff is loose. It will chew up
They are pretty good for the money. Last much longer than the 1-200 ones at big box stores it seems those all worked great the first few times vacuuming then slowly became less and less effective. So trash and or donate they went till dyson came out and a couple years later dropped the 5-600 on one pre ball stuff.
For shop vacs I like ridgid. Would like a wall mount unit but truthfully don`t use it enough to justify it
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
They are pretty good for the money. Last much longer than the 1-200 ones at big box stores it seems those all worked great the first few times vacuuming then slowly became less and less effective. So trash and or donate they went till dyson came out and a couple years later dropped the 5-600 on one pre ball stuff.
For shop vacs I like ridgid. Would like a wall mount unit but truthfully don`t use it enough to justify it
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
MattPersman
New member
Never heard of it. Might be fantastic. You can always go to a local vac shop and have them sell you on what they believe is best. Support a local small business
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Swanicyouth
New member
I have 3 Sharks - 2 cordless & a Navigator lift away. The Navigator is pretty legit. Good price, excellent suction, and it`s light and maneuverable. Build quality is on par with sub $200 price. Really after using it, I can`t see any other vacuum being worth more for me.
Now, Sharks cordless vacs are still using old school, non-lithium batteries. The one cordless I have I believe is called a Navigator Freestyle. It`s a lightweight version of the plug in Navigator. It`s not great, but it works ok for me since my house is 90%+ hardwood/tile floors.
The interesting thing is, I read a post on Reddit from some dude in the vacuum industry that says we are on the cusp of seeing REAL cordless full size vacuums for 2017. So, I`m going to wait and see what comes out.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk