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Sanitaire Mighty Mite
SC3683
Eureka/Sanitaire
Avg. Price: $100
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For when you don't need a power head
by cprohman (spam2here@alltel.net)
Posted on 6/26/2003 |
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This vacuum would make a good choice any time you don't need a power head. Thus you could use it in a home, apartment, or business with no carpet. It would also make a great second vac in a home to compliment a traditional upright. Many people like uprights for carpet, but find that it isn't handy for above the floor cleaning, so they get a handheld to compliment it. This vac will do a much better job of above the floor cleaning than a dustbuster for not much more money. Handhelds typically don't have the greatest suction, and tend to leak a lot of dust.
This vacuum is a suction only canister, meaning it has no power head for cleaning carpets. It has a very nice bare floor tool, which can also be used as a suction only tool on rugs in a pinch. It also comes with a very nice variable length metal wand, and an excellent dusting brush, along with an upholstery nozzle and a crevice tool. The tools can be placed in the body of the vacuum, or on a tool caddy on the wand, depending on which you find more convenient.
This vacuum is very light weight, at only 10 lbs. You can drag it around like a conventional canister, or you can fasten the strap on your shoulders and go. I personally like using it the shoulder strap mode because you can vacuum and go. Unfortunately, the cord is only about 20 feet long, so you quickly find yourself at the end of your range because you just keep moving and sucking any dirt in sight, and there is nothing to slow you down.
Suction is exceptional in this little vacuum despite it's small size. The 10 Amp motor makes it as powerful as any canister out there. The bags are big and easy to change. You just open one end, pull the bag out, and drop a new one in. The bags aren't expensive, either, and are available for $1-2 each, depending on grade. I recommend either the DVC "Microlined" bags, the Enviracare bags, or the "Filteraire" bags because the base bags leak too much dust, enough to be visible on the inside of the bag compartment after just a few minutes of vacuuming. You can equip the vacuum with a HEPA filter, in which case you definitely want the better bags. Base bags catch only particles about 30 microns and up, and the better bags catch 5 microns and up. With a HEPA filter it will catch down to .3 microns. Most allergens such as pollen are in the 5-15 micron range, but dust mite droppings are more like 1 micron. If you are allergic to dust mite droppings, I would recommend adding the HEPA filter.
For what it's worth, the sizes some microparticles are:
Cotton Dust: 15-30 microns
Dust Mites: 10-30 microns
Pollen: 7 to 15 microns
Yeast: 4-6 microns
Paper dust: 4-6 microns
Fungus: most 1-4 microns, some up to 15 microns
Fine chalk, drywall dust: 1-4 microns
Bacteria: .5-4 microns, 98% are over 1 micron
Anthrax: 1 micron long by 4 microns wide
Dust Mite Droppings: .5-1.5 microns
Tobacco Smoke .4 microns
Smallpox - .2 microns
Asbestos - .1-10 microns
Lead dust - .05-5 microns
The Mighty Mite product line is pretty confusing, especially since some are "Eureka" and one is "Sanitaire Red" and some are "Sanitaire Blue". The version I bought (3683) is the commercial version ("Sanitaire Red"), and it comes with a heavy duty power cord, and a powerful 10 Amp motor, a telescoping metal wand, a deluxe bare floor and carpet tool with a metal sole, and a red body.
Breaking out the "Mighty Mite" product line out, there are essentially two different families, one can be fitted with a HEPA filter, the other has a blower port. Most versions weigh under 10 lbs, but the when you add the HEPA filter they are two pounds heavier. The ones which can have a HEPA filter for allergy users are the 3683, 3685, and 3686. The 3685 and 3686 come with the HEPA filter already installed, but the 3683 and 3686 have the nice telescoping metal wand and better tools.
Among the models with a blower port, the 3670, and 3681 have 9 Amp motors which aren't as powerful, while the limited edition 3684 has a 12 Amp motor, the most powerful in the line, but it's a pound heavier and doesn't have the nice telescoping wand. There are also bagless versions (3690,3695), but I can't comment on them. Most bagless vacs have less suction than the bagged version and are a pain to dump, and in a small portable canister, I think a bagged version would probably be a better choice.
All in all, the Sanitaire version of the "Mighty Mite" is an outstanding value, providing maximum suction in a tiny, very portable size. Eureka claims the "Mighty Mite" series is the best selling canister of all time, and I can see why. I personally would recommend choosing one of the models with the metal telescoping wand, which would be the 3683 (no HEPA, Heavy cord) or the 3686 (HEPA).
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Light, powerful, good tools
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No power head, cord is short (20')
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Date Purchased:
Jan 03
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Price Paid:
$100
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Recommended:
Yes
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