Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Today I fortuitously stopped at the local Oreck dealer. 

Mike, the owner of several Oreck franchises and a few multi-brand stores had brought his new Edge upright from home, as stock had not arrived yet.

It has a more powerful motor, with a true  floating head. LED lights, infinite speed control AND and on-board stretch hose with a permanently attached telescopic crevice tool that is automatically active when the handle is in the upright position.  It lacks the Pilot's pivot head and the Halo's germ killing light. A model incorporating all three features is under development.  It is still easy to push, although it weighs 10 lb and requires a bit more effort than previous models.

There is a commercial OBT upright made by Stein (Sebo) that is very nice at only 450.00.  Oreck WILL be offering a bagless upright, but dealer participation is optional.  The new canister is color matched to the Edge and designed to be leaned on as the user vacuums stairs. Odd looking bare floor/crevice tool, no swivel neck. The bristles fold in to form the crevice tool, and the wand is inserted into a neck that curves more than 60 and less than 90 degrees, much like the OLD bare floor tools made of wood with the metal neck screwed on. A turbo tool is included and a dusting brush.

A cute little bagless canister is available for 49.99  Oreck has increased market share and has 89% brand recognition as a vacuum cleaner. They have become #1in  air purifier sales. (Mike did not say if that was dollar volume, or units or both.

The price of the Edge and matching canister will be about 750.00

Oreck is still marketing, still developing product, and still building a loyal customer base.

vacmanuk wrote:

Both these bag styles are used in USA Mieles with 1200 watts of suction, the highest rated wattage for USA MIELE canns [SO FAR].  The difference in the two bags is the FJM is a 3.7 qt capacity [used on models that are retired in the USA] and the G/N is 4.8 qt [currently available models in the USA].  From the MIELE description of G/N bag:

Type G/N AirClean Improved Technology Thanks to the new innovative, automatic dustbag collar, a plastic flap on the AirClean dustbag closes the bag opening automatically when the dust compartment lid is opened. When the dust compartment lid is closed, a part of the suction hose connector presses the closed flap open, allowing the passage of air into the dustbag.This offers convenience benefits on removal of a full dustbag and even when the dust compartment lid is opened. When the dust flap is open, the colored hygiene seal integrated into the new collar ensures a tight fit and prevents dust escaping past the collar. Protective Netting: The protective netting on the inner and outer surfaces of the dustbag offers visible protection against damage to the filter material and also improves the bag's tear-proof properties along the welded seams. The benefit of the protective netting is immediately obvious to anyone who has experienced a dustbag bursting while vacuuming. The function of the netting is further supported by fibers surrounding the mesh. In order to bring attention to this netting, an exclusive-to-Miele, gray, silvery material has been used on the outside of the bag. Airflow Guides: Airflow guides inside the dustbag deflect the passage of dust-laden air on entry so as to achieve optimum use of the dustbag's capacity, increasing dust storage capacity by up to 25%. This allows prolonged use of the dustbag. Finally, the airflow guides also assume the role of the impact protection foil used on the previous dustbag version, ensuring that sharp, pointed objects do not result in perforation of the bag. There are two airflow guides: one each on the two inner surfaces of the dustbag. The guide on the upper inner surface is silver-colored so as to be readily visible to users when the dustbag collar is opened. Filter Material: As the filter material has also been improved, Miele is confident the HyClean dustbags will achieve even better performance than the old Intensive Clean Plus dustbags in consumer tests. In comparison to IntensiveClean Plus dustbags, suction power loss with a dust quantity of 400 grams has been reduced by 33%. This means that a HyClean dustbag lasts much longer than an IntensiveClean Plus bag. Performance: Extended bag life and improvements to suction power are two excellent reasons to make sure you use only genuine, Miele HyClean dustbags. These three features: airflow guides, improved filter material and the protective netting are, in combination, what makes the Miele HyClean dustbags your only choice for your Miele vacuum cleaner.

From the MIELE description of FJM bags:

Carmine D.

Carmine -what was the purpose of putting all that info in? I'm only wondering because I was referring to the paper bags against the synthetics. Both types - the Intensive types and the replacement HyClean ones are both synthetic and built for the higher powered motors. Even Miele UK warn against using the paper bags in more modern machines to avoid bursting bags!

vacmanuk wrote:

I found the info useful and helpful. 

Conclusions: 

• In the USA, the highest wattage is 1200 for MIELE canns [as opposed to the UK].  The UK warning is not relevant for the cloth/paper bags in the USA [not yet].  When/if the wattage increases on USA MIELE models it may but that's not the case yet [and may not be, time will tell].  
• The G/N bags from the MIELE description write up allows for more dirt capacity [25%] and reduced loss of suction as bags fills with more dirt [I highlighted those parts in the MIELE G/N write-up].  Tho, for sale purposes the FJM and G/N are the same in prices. 
• FJM [smaller bag capacity] appears to be phasing out in existing USA MIELE models [like several of the retired S4/S5 models] in favor of the G/N type [larger bag capacity] in the USA MIELE models [even the more compact S2 line].

Carmine D.

The warning in the UK was given out for owners of Miele vacuums from 1970s to 1980s i.e. heavy vacuums as the ones I had put photos on here. The GN bags already fit the S2. The S2 has NEVER had the FJM series bags and was intended to be a budget compact model to the S5. Miele no longer make paper bags for its current line up of vacuums and nor since 2004 when the IntensiveClean bags were introduced to curb the paper bags from bursting.

vacmanuk wrote:

I summarize and conclude my findings with: The G/N bag type is the preferred MIELE cann bag in the USA due to the larger dirt capacity [4.8 qt] and improved suction with the bags.  Which gets back to the point that bag design and function are improving in dirt size, quality of filtering, improved air flow and therefore improved prolonged suction even with full dirt bags.

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:

So what is the expected cost of bags and filters for a Miele canister for a typical household for say 5 years? 

Severus wrote:

Hello Severus:

The correct answer is "it depends on usage and living/cleaning space."  I calculate for any MIELE cann with usage every day in a house with 1700 sq feet and pet/children, the cost of the G/N bags at most with pre-motor filters would be about $40 per year or $200 for 5 years [high end estimates].  Less if bags and filters are made in bulk purchase.  Caveat is that this cost does not count the cost of the post motor filter.

Carmine D.

PS: Some related facts of interest to the above question/answer.  In the 1940's, 30 percent of Americans owned their own homes.  That percentage increased after WW2 to a high of 70 percent in 2004.  It has been dropping quickly ever since and the last current estimate was 62 percent of Americans with 11 percent in foreclosure and 17 percent in arrears on monthly mortgage payments.  I think it is safe to say that owning a home will no longer be THE American dream despite the rhetoric/lack thereof that comes out of Washington DC.  Also new home sizes/living spaces have been decreasing in recent years to keep new homes more affordable despite the recession and high unemployment rates nationwide.  I think that trend [smaller new home construction] will continue long into the forseeable future.

CarmineD wrote:

Carmine,

thanks for your estimate. 

I can't recall where I read it, but I read that in Canada the foreclosure rate is far less than 1%.  It was speculated that in Canada, the mortgage company can go after your belongings if you default, which provides an incentive to pay.    In the US, we have laws to protect people who are irresponsible.  In Canada if you don't make your house payment, and they foreclose - apparently they can take away your Miele vacuum and other possessions to make up a difference between what the house sale yields and what you owe. 

http://library.hsh.com/articles/government-programs/how-canada-avoided-the-foreclosure-crisis.html

Severus wrote:

Your welcome.  Interesting article.  I would add one more difference that I know US lenders have [and Canada may/may not].  Home foreclosure insurance.  Home lenders in the USA, probably in part knowing the bubble had to burst, always insured home mortgages.  In the event of default by home owners, lenders get their money for the defaulted loans.  No incentive for lenders to modify loans and work with the borrowers to keep them in their homes.  Slick!  Perhaps a scam.

The question is what is the result of the end of the American dream [home onwership] on the vacuum industry?  Big one to tackle.  While the vacuum industry in the USA has been hitting 20 Million sales every years for the last 10 years, the average price of a new vacuum has declined.  At some point will the 20 million sales fall and continue to do so to a new number?

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:

Given that the current federal government has no respect for contract law, and sees no problem with negating and rewriting contracts, the lenders are wise to buy the insurance...

I'm not sure about the other brands, but I don't think Rainbow will do a demo in an apartment.