Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Dyson is in the news frequently and so a dedicated thread.

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Trilobite wrote:
Oh gawd - is this forum filtering that B-word??

Trebor wrote:
If it wasn't so serious I would find it ludicrous that an independent would sell a customer something that he knew would require annual repair or maintenance costs.

M00seUK wrote:

Yes, and it is a pain in the bahookey!

HARDSELL wrote:

Hey HARDSELL:

You have to do the former, dirt bin dumping, much more frequently and as often as daily.  The latter, bag replacement, every month or longer.  Add periodic filter maintenance/replacement for those lifetime filters too in dysons.  Dah!  That's Trebor's point.  Of course, you have to be able to read and comprehend to understand it.  Fortunately for the illiterate, dyson provides 2 huge pages of illustrations to show users the proper way to dump a dirt bin so as not to get more dirt back in your face than in the trash.

I'm sure if any vacuum were named for you other than a dyson we would have to hear ad nauseam about your fondness for a DC07, which BTW you proudly sold after 3 years to buy a bagged Royal Emminence. 

Now tell us why dyson sales have tanked in the UK and world wide if they are as good as you would like us to believe!  Better yet, don't bother.  Here's an answer even you can understand with no mental exercise.  Users sell dysons after a few years, if they're lucky enough, and use the proceeds to buy bagged vacuums instead.  Dah!   

Carmine D.

Hardsell,

You still have not answered the question about bags made of Fitrete material holding much more dirt while losing very little suction when compared to regular bags. That was the major advantage Dyson had. Please tell me why would someone buy a Dyson NOW, over a bagged vaccum with filtrete bags. What are the advantages, besides not having to buy bags and filters?

Trebor wrote:
From my experience it's not the "no loss of suction" that sells Dysons it's simply the fact you don't buy bags or filters.  I had a customer today that chose a DC25 over a Riccar for that very reason.  I think that until the price of Filtrete bags drop substantially, Dyson will always have a market for their product....that and the fact that men think they're cool looking and for some reason have no problem spending bigger dollars on Dysons than they do anything else.  To this date, we've yet to sell a Dyson handvac to a woman....all male customers.

Dusty

Hello Dusty:

Just curious, how many of your dyson bagless customers, like the one mentioned, have household pets and still choose a dyson over a bagged/filtrete brand?  In the USA, the US Humane Society estimates 74 million households have one or more furry friends.  What about Canada?  Any figures on pets? 

I spend about $100 every two weeks on a special diabetic food for my English lab and have for over 7 years [the price has doubled in that time].  I have no problem kicking in a few extra bucks for filtrette vacuum bags so my dear Wife's allergies and sinuses are not bothered by our dog.  NOt sure how many in the USA suffer from severe allergy conditions.  Maybe 30 plus million?  And how many of those also have pets [likely buyers of filtrette paper].  Because of my Wife's condition, I can't use a bagless vacuum in our home once the tell tale pet odor sets into the vacuum.  With our long haired English lab breed it happens in short order.  Let an undumped dirt bin stay on the cleaner for a few days, and the smell is in the vacuum.

PS: I understand the new occupants of the White House plan to have a pet.  But one of the lovely daughters is allergic to pet hair and dander.  So it's making the pet find rather difficult.  SEBO is the vacuum brand, I understand for the WH, so I think they are okay in the vacuum department.

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote: According to Statistics Canada, there are approximately 3.5 million dogs and 4.5 million cats in the country. About half of all households have at least one pet.

It never ceases to amaze me how people will not spend the extra dollars (on vacuum related product) to provide some relief of allergies.  I seem to remember a post here from someone who bought a Miele for their allergies then bemoaned the cost of bags and actually considered buying something else.  For those of us in the business, we get that filtrete works and that it's worth the extra money.  For the majority of consumers filtrete is just another way to get more money out of them for something they don't enjoy doing (vacuuming) in the first place.  They'd much rather be buying an Ipod or a Blue Ray player rather than worrying about finding and buying bags...even if it will help with their allergies.  Until Joe Consumer gets what we do, their will always be a market for Dysons and all other bagless vacs.

Dusty

Dusty,

Isn't that just absolutely nuts the way people moan about the cost of vac bags? I have gotten to the point where I actually ask people if they ration toilet paper or paper towels. When I point out that they spend way more on those items which make their lives more snaitary and convenient, they usually nod and say, "You're right"

I also point out that the cost of motor oil is the cost of prolonging the useful life of their vehicle. The cost of bags is the cost of prolonging the useful life of their carpet, and reducing the frequency of professional cleaning. It's not a big deal. And if they talk about landfill, etc. Gotcha! disposable vacs pile up faster than full dustbags. Bags are the safe,clean, sanitary way to go

dusty wrote:
Hi Dusty,

The problem is that we tend to buy beyond our means because we are constatnly being told that it's the higher priced item that performs best.  Not everybody reads CR or researches what they buy.

In defense of the lady with the allergies - she felt she'd gone out and done a good thing by buying the Miele S7.  However, she was in no way aware of the cost of continued maintneance.  This is not necessarily her fault.  Apparently, the seller thought better of being up front about the subject and even here, it is usually our habit to to advise the purchase of a good though pricey vacuum and overlook mentioning what the annual maintenance costs may be. Who knows what her actual budget is and who has the right to say off the bat that she's able to to easily afford it? 

Buying a vacuum that is not "budget appropriate" even though there may be reason to expect better performance and durability is not always a good idea.  In this case she not only has allergy issues but a houseful of strays that she shelters.  Even though the bag is nicely sized in this particular vacuum, $18 a pop for a pack of four disposable bags can come up pretty fast.  AND, though I might do it myself if need had it so, I cannot in good conscience advise someone who's spent a bundle on a new vacuum how to re-use a disposable bag.

Is spending a lot necessary, maybe not?  Just looked through the top five in CRs current upright ratings and even Carmine's favorite, the $80 Hoover Tempo, is rated "Excellent" in regard to emissions. The $80 Tempo is less than one-tenth the MSRPof my S7.  Yes, I'm crazy about my Miele but in no way insist that it's the only way to go especially where budget is concerned.  If an $80 vacuum has the same emission levels as an $800 vacuum -- and cleans as well -- go for what you can afford.

In past, when there was far less issue made regarding filtration, more expensive "better" bagged  vacuums like Kirby and Electrolux were bought moreso due to the anticipation of quality. Kirby for the longest time had a shake out bag that spared consumers the outlay for paper bags and when it did go for disposables, it offered bags of generous size -- a money saver in the average home.  Lux, which turned to disposable bags around 1952, still offered a re-usable cloth bag that many budget-conscious owners bought and used with "automatic" models.

I will never be convinced that even the best of vacuum bags should run nearly $20 for a pack of four unless they've been handstitched, embroidered and gift-boxed, one by one by some poor unfortunate in Taiwan.  Nonetheless it is doubtful that this will ever be changed.  All the public will ever be told is, "This is wonderful!  Buy! Buy! Buy!"  Unfortunately, life is not all about buying vacuum bags or even iPods.  Last Monday I believe, there was report of 54,000 jobs being done away with.  Manufacturers and vendors, as is their privilege, may ask whatever price they want but getting it is a whole other deal.

Venson