Dyson, worth the hype? - Page 4

ALL VACUUMS SUCK!

Sorry, I had to.

We own 2 (the 'standard' yellow upright and the handheld 'Root 6')

I enthusiastically recommend the standard vacuums. Not that I have a great deal of experience with various brands, but it is definitely the best I've owned by a considerable margin.

I would not recommend the handheld. Battery life is atrocious and it's really not that much better than a $30.00 unit. If there was a way to use it plugged in and not worry about the battery running out after about 1.5 minutes of use, I'd be a little happier with it. Definitely not worth the $150 price tag.

I'm sure the vacs are a little costlier due to all the hype/advertising, but I think that, at least some of them, can back it up.

You too? I still have the Electrolux SuperJ that I sold my mom... thing still works great with a motor tune up (1) and a replacement power nozzle motor. Needs a hose (leaking a bit of vacuum there).

A vacuum shop that we have dealt with doesn't like the Dyson because it has the same problem shared by many uprights: too long of suction path. I think it goes from the nozzle up thru the handle to the top of the canister thing... the motor is pulling vacuum thru all of this. They recommend a Sanitaire, saying that the suction is so strong it can actually pull dirt from the bottom of the carpet pad. I may pick one of these up...

We also have an Oreck XL, that while light, I don't particularly care for.

My wife researched vacuums a bit before buying. She bought a miele. Dyson is definitely the bose of vacuums.

Or to put it another way:

Dyson is definitely NOT the bose of vacuums. more like the Grado

We have 2 of them used many times a day and they still pick up better than any other make used before and we've had quite a few.

Dyson IS the Bose of vacuums, it's all marketing and hype. They are actually pretty bad vacuums. All bagless vacuums are. Bagless vacuums are terrible for allergies (they spew the dirt everywhere when you dump them) too.

I'd email the guy that runs this site. He has some huge page on his site, somewhere, ranking different brands of vacuums, but I cannot find it right now. I emailed him with my budget, and he gave me a great recommendation, and it was for a vacuum that he didn't even sell. I got my vacuum from http://www.abcvacuumwarehouse.com/.

Edit: Found the page. Vacuum Cleaners - Vacuum Cleaner Bags - Filter

We've had an Electrolux Renaissance for over 10 years and it works fantastically; the only service we performed during its lifetime was for a new hose (which Electrolux still stocks and manufacturers).

I was actually considering a Dyson to replace my Electrolux - just out of pure curiosity - but the vacuum cleaner service man advised that I should steer clear of them due to their frequent and expensive breakdowns; a comment reinforced by the dozens of Dysons awaiting service in the shop.

Basically, I'd suggest buying from a company that is both more reliable and (according to the repair men) better in general.

I used to sell Kirby cleaners. They work very well, but are way too expensive. I have also read quite a few consumer reports over the years on cleaners (I've bought four cleaners over the past 25 years) - I'm an information junkie before I purchase anything.

It seems that in order for a cleaner to work effectively on hard surfaces you need three things, suck, collect, air filter. many decent cleaners meet all three requirements without any problem. After meeting the fundamental criteria it comes down to attachments and how effective they are. Can they get close to the skirting boards, does it come with a brush etc. These attachments are aften the primary difference in whether the cleaner can pick up 90% or 99% of small loose material.

On carpet however, the only real way to get the dust and dirt is to use a power-head. The power-head 'beats' the carpet to release the dirt and dust. Once the particles get to the bottom of the carpet fibres almost no cleaner will get it out with suction alone.

Cleaners without power-heads fall a long way behind in this test - and even more so if pet hair is involved.

On the subject at hand. From all the consumer reports (Choice in Australia) I have read, on hard surfaces the difference is minimal. On carpet however, the difference between all of the better cleaners generally comes down to whether they have a power head (big step up from non power-head machines), and then how good the power head is.

When I sold Kirby I used to get prospective buyers to vacuum a rug (or whatever other carpert) with their current cleaner as many times as they liked; 10 or 1000, I didn't care. Then I would go over the same area with the Kirby. On almost every occassion I would get considerably more dirt and dust out of the carpet (we had this little window device with a white filter in it to show the dust and dirt). Only once did this fail. That was with this little old lady using an Electrolux with a power-head - no dirt left for the Kirby to get.

Power is the other issue. Don't get all fussed with the 1800 versus 2200 watt model. Pretty much all decent cleaners have enough suction. The other things to look for are whether the hose will kink if it's twisted (cheap ones will), and how long the power lead is (for some odd reason cheap cleaners often have quite short leads - plugging and unplugging in every room = PITA). For non-uprights, can you drag it around the house without it falling over every three seconds. And, finally the HEPA filter is also a good idea.

Having said all of this, do I think Dyson is better? Well, I've never owned one, but that is because I have never felt justified in paying the extra $ over the cleaners that I have bought in the same cleaning efficiency range.

I disagree that they are the Bose of cleaners. They do review well, but no better than many others. Is the (typically) extra price worth it?

My 2 cents ...

and bose sounds better than htib crap, too. Point is, price is way over quality, and the difference is marketting.

Definitely a plus. Nothing like sweating from the heat, then dying from the smell. Hoo-wee!

I don't know what pricing is like in the US, but in Australia the Kirby is certainly the most expensive.

Here's a review from an ebay seller on some good and bad points of the dyson.

eBay Australia Guides - DYSON VACUUM CLEANER, THE GOOD THE BAD POINTS