Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

I just found this site. I really need to get a new vacuum cleaner. Right now I just have a Eureka Mighty Mite with a HEPA filter. I have recently taken in a long-haired chihuahua and a cat (for a friend who is not able to care for them any longer). I am allergic to (and have also grown very fond of) both the cat and dog and I also have quite bad dust, mold, and pollen allergies. I live in an older split level house: the two upper floors are bare wood with no rugs and the lower two floors are covered with wall-to-wall very-low-pile commercial carpet. The cat (bless her) is generally content to voluntarily stay in the basement all of the time with the exception of just one or two very brief morning strolls each day to the next two higher floors. She sheds what seems to a cat neophyte like myself to be an enormous amount of fur but I'm told by friends who are cat owners that it is a normal amount. The chihuahua just wants to be in the same room with me although I have kept her out of the bedrooms and bathroom on the top floor. I have looked at quite a few vacuum cleaners from the very inexpensive to Miele and Lindhaus and I still am unsure of what to get. I've never had to deal with pet hair and dander before. What would work best for pet hair and dander on low-pile commercial carpet and still be good for bare wood floors and have a good filtering system for allergens? I do know that I would like the self sealing type of bag that is in the Miele (and perhaps other brands?) because of my allergy problems. I can spend up to $850 if I have to but it would be much better for my budget to spend less. I'm sorry for the long-winded description. Advice would be very much appreciated. Thank you.

Venson, stop making so much sense, You know its bad for business

Nette wrote:

Hello Nette:

I vote with Venson and MOLE. 

HOOVER WT SP is the gold standard of carpet cleaning.  RATED NUMBER ONE by Consumer Reports in March 2009.  Along with a host of other HOOVER uprights ranked up there in the top 10.  Like the $80 HOOVER TEMPO.  Using HOOVER's 3M Filtrette bags would do the trick for the pets and allergies. 

One more suggestion, if you are not already familiar with ORECK's uprights you might take a look.  From the Silver series upright to the Platinum series, they work wonderfully for the requirements you stated above.  And also come with higher priced paper/cloth bags for HEPA rating.  Shop the ORECK sales on line/stores.  Recently the Silver series was on sale without all the extra giveaways [like the compact canister], just the upright, for $199.  It has one of the largest dirt bag capacities in the industry at over 6 quarts.  ORECK's comes with a free in home trial of 30 days.  If you don't like it, return it with no obligations at all.  Worth a look in the store if you have one close by.

BTW, MIELE and LINDHAUS are top shelf vacuums for quality and performance. 

Carmine D. 

Thank you Carmine and Venson for all the helpful info. It is tempting to go with a Miele just because I have to put on a dust mask and gloves and use antihistamine eyedrops whenever I change a regular vacuum cleaner bag. But it's something I've been doing for years so I can keep doing it if another vacuum is substantially better in regard to other factors: suction (picking up the pet hair) and filtration or is equivalent to Miele in regard to these factors but less expensive.

I am wondering about the lower-end upright Miele S7280s: Jazz, Salsa and Calypso. I understand the only difference between these vacuums is the color. I saw a couple of complaints about them on Amazon though: the complaints were about the machine not being as well built (pieces breaking off and funny noises) as other Mieles. They are about $150-$200 less than the Tango/Boleros. Are the Tangos/Boleros better built than the S7280s?

I did briefly try an Oreck at the vacuum store and it was definitely lighter to move than other vacuums. I will look into these vacuums some more.

Nette wrote:

Hi Nette:

The beauty of the ORECK bag is the self seal on the bag collar and docking platform for the bag.  Both work in concert to keep dust/dirt from leaking into the air during vacuum use and bag replacement.  My dear Wife has allergies and sinus problems.  We have a yellow lab that sheds year round.  She uses the ORECK with the regular CC bags.  No upgraded filter paper bags and we let the bag fill up.  No dander smell, no sinus and allergy flareups.  You may have to go with the more expensive HEPA rated bags.  But worth a look see and test.

Carmine D.

Nette wrote:
Hi Nette,

To the best of my knowledge, the lesser priced Miele uprights are the "same" save for the fact that the less expensive models use a dial mechanism to adjust speed. Again, try one out at a local vac shop to see what you think. These uprights are said to be okay for doing bare floors which still remains against my religion. Should you decide on the Jazz or similar models, also buy a generic bare floor tool plus an adapter that will allow you to fit it to the Miele wand. This should all add up to no more than 20 bucks. The extra-thrifty thing to do is just get the adapter and use the floor tool that came with your Mighty Mite.

Deep down I am a canister lover too but the Tango has allowed me to make exception. I do all the same stuff I've done with canisters I like. It's pretty easy to leave off rug cleaning and switch to above the floor tasks as you go. If you don't have a lot of furniture, etc., about the carpeted area in your home a good upright is usually a good deal. The best thing to do is kick the tires on one at your local vac shop.

As for complaints, stuff happens. However, though I may fuss about its silly pricing on certain things its products do come with long warranties and Miele does stand behind them. There is an available 800-number if you feel need to consult with Miele customer service directly.

If you're kind of good at arm wrestling, $500 to $550 would be considered a nice price for the Jazz.

If you decide you'd rather have a canister, think on the mid-size Riccar or Simplicity canisters with electric power nozzles. They are good and can be landed at prices well below that of comparable Miele canisters in local vac shops. (Let no one sell you on a cleaner with a turbo-nozzle for rug cleaning.)

Venson

Nette

Get a Miele cylinder - try EBay and see if you can get a discounted/but newish model. In the UK we have vacs that can be bought reconditioned. I don't know if they have that in the U.S/elsewere. The beauty of Miele is that you can custom build your own vacuum to your own requirements although Miele do make a Cat and Dog cylinder that comes with pet hair tools and a main turbo brush floor head. However on the basis that you have hard flooring I'd go for a basic spec Miele canister and then buy an optional HEPA filter cartridge. Whilst Miele also make charcoal filters the blue HEPA cartridge is better at keeping all allergens in. I currently have a Miele S4 compact canister with a HEPA cartridge fitted instead of the generic Super Air Clean filter. You can then buy a separate pet hair tool at a later date usually from Miele specialists and/or a hard floor brush for general use.

However since you have carpets as well check out Sebo's Felix upright/"medium size" stick vac. Although it can be used as a hand vac it has a much better use as an upright with a canister style swivel head. Sebo's Felix is also GHI and BAF approved and has a stop button on its electric floor head so you can use it on hard flooring. Sebo Felix is around $420 I think and uses bags which have fold over seal caps set into them.

Thanks so much everyone for taking the time and trouble to provide me with all the info. I looked into Orecks, the Miele 7280 and the Sebo Felix with the fold over seal cap vacuum bags. I found a very nice vacuum/appliance fix-it shop that sells Sebos. I bought a store demo model of the latest Felix "Premium" for $400 (it sells on Amazon for $559) and I will be trying it out over the next few days.

Nette wrote:
Great Nette,

Let us know what you think.

Best,

Venson

Nette wrote:

Very good choice.  Excellent price.  Let us know how well it meets your requirements after you take it through its paces.

Carmine D.

The Sebo works great in every way except in one key area: air filtration. Given the allergic reaction (nose, throat, eyes) I have within a couple of minutes of turning it on, it seems as if there is next to no air filtration despite its claims otherwise. I wasn't able to tell this in the store because I tried the vacuum for less than thirty seconds at a time (I tried it several times) as it's such a small shop and it was hard to avoid the other customers coming and going. Maybe this particular vacuum is just not working well but all of the filtration components seem to be installed correctly and in good shape. I had an old Nilfisk until a few years ago and its filtration was much better. I also have less of an allergic reaction using the little Mighty Mite with the HEPA filter (although in every other way the Mighty Mite is obviously not nearly as good a vacuum).

I can return the vacuum but the store charges a twenty percent restocking fee. I can probably exchange it for an Oreck and not be charged a restocking fee (the store doesn't carry Mieles).