Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Hi guys this is my first post here, Me and my wife are looking for the best possible vacuum that we can buy as my wife is allergic to most things, and I have breathing issues :( I'm a total noob in this and tried to read but I'm still confused. Please help, price is no object. Thank you

Miele vacuums are grotesquely over priced. No vacuum is worth more than about $600 or so. If you bargain hard enough and know what you are doing you can get the Kirby sales person down to $900 when they routinely sell for $2500 and up. There is a lot of profit, unnecessary profit, built into the prices of high end vacuums. Mieles have altogether inadequate attachments, cheap childrens toys really, powered floor brushes that are inadequate for deep pile American carpets and tiny dust bag chambers. Oh, and price filters and dust bags for a Miele. Do you throw $5 bills in the trash? I don't, but price Miele bags and see how fast they fill up. That twist upright is heavy. Really heavy. I wouldn't push that thing around my house. At least a Sebo upright is light in comparison. And the twist feature is not well executed. It comes off as a gimmick. The machine is too bulky to get under some of my furniture that just about any canister powered floor brush, or my Sebo slips right under. Other than name and snob appeal I fail to see the attraction to Miele vacuums and they certainly are not worth the high price. Before you think I like the Sebo, consider that the belt sensor, designed to protect the two belts from breaking if the brush jams, is fooled by the drag of my deep pile carpeting and shuts the vacuum down. I cannot even use it in my home, so it is relegated to vacuuming the indoor outdoor carpet in the garage. What a waste of money. The Euro stuff is over priced and doesn't have the beans to deal with deep pile American carpets. Don't waste your money.

You didn't mention what type of flooring you are cleaning? Also what type of vacuum do you, or your wife prefer. Upright, Canister? Aerus (Electrolux), Meile, Sebo, Rainbow, Sirena, Kirby, Simplicity, Riccar, Filter Queen, and yes Panasonic. All make good machines. What I would recommend is that you visit a vacuum store, or several of them, not a Wal-Mart, and test drive a few different models. Once you have your hands on them, you can get a better idea what will work for you. Here is a caution I will give you when purchasing. Don't buy the first one you try, as another may work better for you. Several of the models I mentioned, specifically Kirby and Rainbow, Filter Queen, are only sold in home. Try a few first, don't allow them to pressure you. Also, be cautious of Panasonic, though good machines. Panasonic is pulling out of the North American vacuum market, and though you may be able to get a good deal, the cost of expendables (bags and filters) may be prohibitive in the future. Also keep in mind the availability of replacement parts (these are plastic machines) There is an abundance of generic manufacturers, but if you go with a Panny, you may want to lay in a stash of supplies for future use.

Since we both admire Panasonic vacuums I wanted to mention that Tacony Corp. (Riccar, Simplicity, Carpet Pro, Fuller Brush and others) closely copied the basic Panasonic Jet Flo design for a great many of their uprights. I have a Riccar Vibrance Classic and it literally could be something Panasonic made. No, parts are not interchangeable but darn close. They certainly follow the basic Panasonic design with some minor differences. Riccar's very first vacuum model 1950 was a shamless copy of an early Panasonic upright made in Taiwan by, I believe, Genome. Riccar and Simplicity canisters are over priced for what you get but many of the uprights are a good value. Tacony has been moving their upright manufacturing to the US over time and recently I noticed their Carpet Pro commercial uprights, which are all Panasonic copies, are being made in the US instead of China. I hope their Fuller Brush brand follows suit soon. Btw, you can use Tacony type A bags and Kenmore type Q bags in most Panasonic and Tacony Corp. uprights. That is how I get around the scarcity of Panasonic branded bags. The type O bag is a bit larger but fits if you tuck it in before closing the bag chamber lid. Some of the Tacony filters look like they would fit old Panasonics with a little bit of trimming with a scissors.