Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

I would like to hear the experiences of owners/users of the following lightweight bagged uprights in comparison to the Orecks and each other

HOOVER PLATINUM

BISSELL, now available as Karcher, Tornado, Powerflite and MaidLight

RICCAR and SIMPLICITY

HOOVER and ROYAL clean n' light

any others I have missed/neglected to mention

with regard to deep cleaning an various carpet/floor surfaces, surface litter/pet hair pickup, bare floor cleaning, edge cleaning, cleaning under furniture (nozzle raising up or not) noise, ease of use, and cost of maintenance

I would say Oreck wins the under $300 title while the high end goes to the Riccar SL5 with it's metal agitator and lifetime belt.  One thing I have noticed with our customers is that the majority of female shoppers prefer the feel of the Riccar unit and especially the handle (SL3's and up) over the Oreck D grip.

Dusty

Oreck has just introduced a new TOL  XL called ' The Pilot'  It has a swivel neck and a new double helix brush roll..
Offering upright, hand held canister, battery electrikbroom, and 12 V car vac as a package. No wonder Hoover cut their price!

Trebor wrote:

I like the platinum pilot...nice...but even with the extras its overpriced...even if it is an oreck. I like the $300 oreck set up...great bang for the buck with many years of service life.....some really great  upright vacs with a long life are availiable at or under $300.....seems like a good place to start looking...in my view.

turtle1

dusty wrote:

I totally agree on your sl-5 views.....i only wish it [ sl-3 -sl-5 ] had a metal handle shaft like the orecks.....that to me would make it the champ overall...or at least pretty darn hard to beat.

turtle1

There are other lightweights worth considering:
Sanitaire SC9050 DuraLite Lightweight Commercial Vacuum Cleaner at 10 pounds.

For what it's worth, Dyson does offer a lightweight vacuum as well. The performance was middling in Consumer Reports, but I mention it because they tend to have fairly positive user reviews.

Although canister vacuums tend to weigh more overall, I'm not sure that they wouldn't be a better option for someone wanting a lightweight vacuum. Certainly with some you feel like you're dragging along a dead pig. However, most of the time, you're just pushing the power nozzle with the canister parked. My mother in law who's in her 70's uses a 20+ year old Rainbow. While it would be heavy to carry everything at once full of water, in practice you don't. The canister rolls, and you only push the powerhead and the hose. Dragging along the canister might be a drag, but in general it sits while you move the power nozzle.

Severus wrote:

Hi Severus,

A lot has to do with whomever's preferred manner of cleaning. I think a well-designed canister vacuum not only handles floors well but makes tasks like stair cleaning a lot simpler and also eliminates the need and expense of two devices if you want to do more than just floors. (Hoover and Oreck lightweights provide enough oomph for carpet and bare floor cleaning but offer small portables to take up the slack above the floor.) However, a vacuum really has to fit the user's personal likes if it is to be regularly employed. For housekeepers accustomed to handling above the floor work like dusting, etc., by hand, a lightweight upright is probably a good deal.

Venson

Severus wrote:

Totally forgot about the 9050.....ive yet to run across one....and havent heard anything on how it performs. wonder if its durability is on par with its comm. red line  big brothers tho? Anybody have a chance to test or use one yet?

turtle1

Well, I have been in the vacuum business for awhile now. I have sold my share of lightweights. As far as power and cleaning capability, Riccar outperforms any Oreck. Oreck only cleans the surface, it does not do a deep cleaning as the Riccar. We sell alot more Riccars than Oreck

tomtlb66 wrote:

I hear this often as a selling point for RICCAR/SIMPLICITY lightweight uprights.  Consumer Reports rates RICCAR/SIMPLICITY lightweight models over ORECK, but not by much of a difference, in fact very close in comparative tests.  Explain please, if you will, the reasons that the RICCAR Supralite deep cleans carpets better than ORECK which you say is a surface cleaner.  What gives the RICCAR the edge as a deep cleaner vice ORECK as just a surface cleaner.  In features and performance?

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:

1. Bigger motor Fan 2. Stiffer Brush Roll. Not only a deeper clean but actually vibrates the dirt up from the carpet and MUCH easier to push than an Oreck 3. Long lasting Belts (One version even has a Hall Sensor that shuts off the brushroll, virtually giving the machine a lifetime belt). Oreck belts should be replaced 6-8 months to ensure optimum efficency. 4. The Aluminum Handle Orecks almost always loosen at the screws making the handle sloppy and harder to control.