Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

New Dirt Devil Hand Cleaner on the market.  Haven't seen it in person.  But it appears and sounds interesting. 

Affordable price at $54 plus a 3 Year Warranty on parts and Motor! 

The Energy Star approval.  I don't think there are any HVAC-s/hand helds now on the global vacuum market with the Energy Star.  DD has the first and only [so far].

http://www.dirtdevil.com/Products/productDetail.aspx?id=348247

Carmine D.

"Powerful 15.6 volts of suction power".

They've mangled that!

Since when did voltage equate to suction power?

Trilobite:

I agree with you but I have also noticed that it is commonly equated to suction power in product advertisements. 

FWIW, most hand helds [excluding dyson] range in volts from 9.6 to 18 and have run times from 10 minutes to 50 minutes.  I haven't read the AccuCharge User Guide yet so I don't know it's run time.  The DD Kurv for $53 has 9.6 volts with a run time of 15 minute and charge time of 15 hours.  The ReadiVac is 14.4 volts for $38.  The Shark is 15.6 volts for $34 with a run time of 14 minutes and charge time of 16 hours and the Black and Decker Pivot Vac is 18 volts for $54 with a run time of 10 minutes and charge time of 16 hours. 

Not sure about the stick vacs and voltage.  The new ErgoRapido for $100 has a run time of 12 minutes and a charge time of 15 hours.  Almost comparable to the Pronto save only a 12 hour charge time.

BTW, Consumer Reports in its October 2008 edition rates and ranks sticks, brooms, and hand vacs, both corded and cordless.  But CR does not make any correlation between volts, power, suction and run time. 

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:

Update:

According to Appliance Magazine, TTI Floorcare, Glenwillow OH, is the first to market a hand held and stick with the Energy Star rating.  How does it work?

Most cordless appliances can't shut off the charging process once fully charged.  Result: The excess electricity produces heat and the heat build up degrades battery materials, fluids, battery life and run time.  AccuCharge reduces the electricity from the adaptor to a trickle [which makes it up to 70 percent more energy efficient] once the appliance is charged.  This prevents overcharging and its resultant negative consequences on the product and performance. And also wins the Energy Star Rating.

Thanks again Venson for the posting the link for Appliance magazine with an article that has a description from Mike Mullens, TTI Floorcare Engineer, Glenwillow, OH, explaining the process.

Carmine D.

http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/10/23/is-it-green-cordless-vacuum-cleaners/

Hello DIB:

Impressive chart, thanks for posting.  What, no comments on the Dirt Devil, TTI Floorcare, Glenwillow Ohio, innovation for battery charging and the Energy Star rating?  You let us down. 

For comparative purposes the the DD Extreme Power retails for $39 and the AccuCharge for $54.

Carmine D.

Circuit City, BEST BUY and several other retailers have added the Dirt Devil AccuCharge Stick  vacuum and hand held to their sales venue for $49.95-$59.95.

Carmine D.

The Dirt Devil Web Site has videos of the 2 AccuCharge products for the interested. 

http://www.dirtdevil.com/accucharge/

Carmine D.

Hi Carmine,

Thanks.  I went to the AccuCharge web page.  I like the two-year warranty and the on-off switch for the brush roll -- like the new Hoover Platinum stick  A first for stick vacswith power nozzles isn't it?  However, the videos play down maintenance for both the stick and hand vac -- "Just remove the filter and dump" or something to that effect.  They do state that the stick vac is for quick pick-ups but offer no estimate of run-time.  Those things would be nice to know but in this case also, the $65.00 price may allow those details to be overlooked.

Best,

Venson

Hi Venson:

Some of the more expensive Regina Electrik Brooms were eqipped with revolving brushes [$100 plus].  The HOOVER Slider cordless Stick Vacuum also has a revovling brush with gear driven belt [retails for $25-$50].  One of the reasons I like the Slider better than the straight suction Dirt Devil Cruz [$79-$99].  However after 2 years of usage, the battery in the Slider will only hold its charge for half the time [10-15 minutes] when new [20-30 minutes].  Slider has a one year unconditional warranty.  Cruz, I believe, is 2 years.  Not sure how well the battery charge/run time will hold up in the Cruz.  Too new and I gifted to my granddaughters who enjoy assisting their Mom with home cleaning using the Slider [2.5 pounds] and Cruz [8.5 pounds].

Carmine D.   

Hi Carmine,

I meant the bare floor switch as being a first for stick vacs with power nozzles.

Venson

Yes, the brush shut off is a nice feature especially for cordless.  Why?  I believe, don't have scientific evidence, just personal usage, with the brushroll engaged, the battery charge drains quicker.  I presume the usage under stress on rugs but not sure.

Carmine D.

Hi,

Active brushrolls may fling stuff out of the vacs cleaning path on bare floors so the switch is not a bad thing if these vac have any power to them.

Venson

Best Buy -- vac department looks like a wasteland -- has the Accu-Charge stick for $60.00.

Venson