Speaking of vacuums, looking for the best one for pets

[jaaron]

Embarrassingly, I have 3 Mieles-- one upstairs, one downstairs and one at the beach house. Two big dogs, 3 big kids and lots of sand.

They're expensive, but the suction is incredible (I've never used a Dyson, but my housekeeper tells me that Mieles far surpass Dysons) and they last forever. The one at the beach house is at least 15 years old.

The newest one is bagless and I concur about emptying the capsule outside. The only teensy annoying thing about it is that there's a battery in the handle that needs to be replace occasionally.

 

[jaaron]

@YadaYadaYada I find that no matter which brand of vacuum I buy, my dogs cannot figure out how to plug it in and use it themselves.

They're saving their strength for the day you turn your back on a roast chicken.

 

[OdetteOdile]

@YadaYadaYada Do you mostly have rugs or mostly hard floors? Do you have a strong preference of cordless versus cord? These are my thoughts:

If you have mostly rugs, I would check out the Sebo Felix or Sebo Dart. These machines are built to last. It uses a bag, and because of that, it retains the fine particles better. It is satisfying to pull out the stuffed full bag, and put in a new one. I have a Sebo Felix and it is great at picking up dog fur, dirt, etc., but I do not have cats or birds, so I am not sure how it does for litter and birdseed. It is a versatile vacuum. Check out some youtube videos. I greatly prefer an upright vacuum to a canister vacuum.

I have also heard amazing things about Miele, and I would not hesitate to recommend them. This topic came up on my town's Facebook community forum and everyone was raving about their Miele vacuums. Most had a canister type.

The other issue - cord versus cordless. This is my own opinion. If you are going to really invest in a vacuum and you want it to last, I would go for a corded vacuum. My cordless vacuums die within a year or two, and I am tired of pouring money down the drain. That said, I LOVE using cordless vacuums because they are so convenient.

I use my Sebo Felix on all my rugs and I love how effective it is. I use my cordless vacuum on my hardwood floors, and I love how convenient it is. I have been happy with the Shark Navigator. I would love to have the Dyson cordless that everyone on this forum loves, but I am not going to spend that much money on a cordless vacuum.

Do you have a vacuum store near you? I bought my Sebo locally, and the store also highly recommended Miele.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@jaaron, no need to be embarrassed, if I had two levels you bet I would have a vacuum on each! I had a Dyson I really loved a long time ago like almost 20 years, so to think a Miele might be even better? That may be the winner.

@OdetteOdile we have mainly laminate in our house, no hardwood since we are on slab so I'm mainly looking for a vacuum for hard surfaces. Haven't heard of Sebo but I will definitely look into them, thanks for the suggestion!

 

[inne]

I also have a Miele - pretty sure it's a C2. It is amazing and probably the best practical thing I've ever bought.

 

[Big Fat Facets]

I also have miele. Its great but heavier. I've had it for well over 8 years and no issues. Love that essential oil can be used with it to freshen up the house.

we have hardwood and stone throughout and area rugs. but the biggy are the two cats...

Ive been looking for a cordless though...

 

[missy]

Honestly if one vacuums often (and with pets and allergies it's a necessity) one needs more than one vacuum in a two story house IMO. We have a Dyson cordless upstairs and downstairs and a few more for good measure lol. I will never go back to corded. Greg vacuums with a shop vac in his shop and shed and he has one in the third floor attic as well. And I use Dyson cordless everywhere else. It is worth the investment to have multiple vacuums if one has pets and a big house.

Ive been looking for a cordless though...

@Big Fat Facets I have not tried the Miele and it sounds pretty good but I love my cordless Dyson very much and I vacuum up cat litter with it too without any problems for over a decade or more. It's good for hardwood and area rugs and carpet too. And lightweight compared to other vacuums I have tried.

There are some great vacuums out there be it Miele or Dyson or other brands. The key is finding what is comfortable for you and what works for your situation.

 

[kenny]

Vacuums, asthma, allergies, dust, work, cost, hassle lugging it around, power, noise.
So many factors.

Back in 1999 I bought and installed a Nutone Central vac in this house.
I LOOOOOVE it!

I have a 40 foot hose and one outlet in the center of the floor plan.
That hose reaches all 4 corners of the house.

Vacuum filter bags don't trap everything.
If they did they'd inflate enormously, then pop like a balloon.
Air, and the smallest particles get through the tiny holes in the bag.

ALL vacuum bags, even HEPA bags, let the finest particles through, like pollen, mildew and allergens, etc.

Here's a snip for Wikipedia for Hypoallergenic vacuum cleaner ...
... studies have shown that even vacuum cleaners featuring HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filters tend to release a large amount of allergens back into the air in the exhaust.

That gunk gets blown back into the room.
It settles one the floor, the furniture, lingers in the air you breath it into your lungs.

The best thing about a central vac is 100% of that dirty exhaust air gets sent OUTSIDE your house in a PVC pipe.
No more dusting your house an hour after you vacuum.
No heavy motor to lug around the house.
The motor unit is permanently installed in your basement, garage, a closet.
So, I just push around the tube and head, which is very light and nearly silent.
The bag is huge; I replace it about every 9 months.

Also since the motor is not subject to design compromises, like being lightweight and quiet, it can be optimized for one thing POWER.
And let me tell you, my vacuum really really sucks, and sucks hard!

The motor is industrial strength and super high quality.
The motor in my unit lasted 20 years, 1999 to 2019.
Then I ordered a replacement motor for IIRC $150 and replaced it myself in 20 minutes.

I cannot recommend central vacs strongly enough.
My Nutone was $600 and I installed myself in our old 1400 sq ft house.

Y'allz probably have much larger houses so installing pipes into existing walls won't be cheap.
But you can lower the price by ignoring quotes and advice from contractors.
It may be cheaper to install two power units, one on each side of the house, in the garage or in closets, maybe one upstairs and another downstairs and just plug the long hose directly into them.
This would result in massive installations savings since you'd be installing no tubes, or fewer, in walls.
Installation contractors won't mention this since they'd make less money.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@inne, another vote for Miele! I didn't realize how popular they are.

@Big Fat Facets, do you mind me asking why you are also in the market for a cordless? Do you plan on using the Miele for all over cleaning and the cordless for spot cleaning or something else?

@missy, the lightness of a cordless is definitely appealing as well as having no cord to contend with. Dyson was the first vacuum I really loved, just want to make the right decision. I swear picking names for the kids was easier!

@kenny thanks for the input on central vac. Our house is less than 1300 square feet, no basement. Did you install the pvc pipe yourself? I'm just not sure I could give up a closet since space is already so limited.

 

[rainydaze]

I have bought soooo many vacuums. For some reason they have been the bane of my existence!

I had a Dyson years ago (15+?) that I loved. Since then I have hated everything until Shark (which I resisted for years because I thought it was a gimmick vacuum).

I hate the Mieles. I know that's a strong word, but they really don't work for me. I seem to be the only one, so maybe it's the way I want to use the machine? I want to get as much done with one or two plug ins, hardwood and carpet, stairs & windows & wandwork, under furniture, and I don't want to fight with the machine to move it,

On the Miele cannister the cord and hose are too short. The canister does not follow me nicely (in part because the hose is too short). It bumps around and gets caught on things and tips over. The bags fill up very quickly. I have three cats and a dog, and three kids, so it's put to the test. As far as suction goes, it's fantastic, and it is built like a tank. The Miele upright has a nice cord length, but the unit is very heavy and the hose, while long, resists stretching to any useful length. It pulls the machine right up against me which hurts and is cumbersome. It clogs easily (I am fairly careful but with a full house, something inevitably gets in there. It is impossible to unclog without taking it in for service, which is a major pain). Again the suction is fantastic, but I couldn't ignore the rest to make this worth it. I'd rather vacuum a little more often with a machine that doesn't fight me the whole way. I still have them but never use them and have been trying to sell them.

The Dyson cordless I got held very little battery life. It didn't wow me with it's cleaning, but I have a lot to clean. It didn't pick up a lot of debris so I had to pull out the corded vacuums anyway. I sold it.

Much to my surprise, I landed on Shark. I have two Powered LiftAways. The latest one I have is a Duo with the extra front roller brush. It works beautifully at cleaning hard floors (and carpets, but I see you have mostly laminate). With one Shark I can do everything - hard floors, carpets, underneath furniture, stairs, windows and cobwebs, etc. The cord is plenty long for me to do most of one floor without replugging elsewhere (something I require - the Miele cannister only let me do one room at a time). The hose is super long and stretches easily. The Duo especially does a great job of picking up a ton of debris, large or small. It polishes the hard floors nicely, getting the dust. Come to think of it, I haven't had any issues with the Sharks clogging, but they're easy to get into if that happens (something I loved about that long-ago Dyson, so easy to unclog!).

So that would be my recommendation. A Shark Powered LiftAway with Duo Clean.

 

[stepcutnut]

@YadaYadaYada we have had several of the original Dyson Animal upright vacuums and loved them, as they died I replaced them with the new Dyson Animal rollerball uprights and we both kind of hate them! So they are going to become my animal room vacuums as I search for a replacement. I have now been looking at cordless vacs. One of the things I really dislike about cordless items though is the battery needing replacement too often(as in dying and having to buy a new one). Hoping to make the right decision on my next purchase-good luck!

 

[yssie]

We have a Dyson Animal (Ball, three years old) and got a Dyson cordless stick (latest version) earlier this year. We also have a $80 Bissell upright (two years old).

The Bissell’s suction embarrasses the Dyson Animal! The new Dyson stick has fantastic suction on “max suction”, but the charge lasts only ~twenty minutes. I’m not sure what the “low” and “medium” suction settings are meant for - they don’t even manage hair off a wood floor.

When it’s time for a new vacuum I’m planning to pony up for a Miele. With eight animals a reliable and strong vacuum cleaner is not optional!

 

[Austina]

I’ve had over 20 vacuums, and none of them lasted more than a couple of years, until I got Henry. He’s been the vest vac I’ve ever had, coped with big hairy dogs, building debris and everything else in between.

Many years ago when I took yet another vac in to be repaired, the repair man told me that he thanked Dyson every day for keeping him in business. When I asked him which was the best vac, he recommended Henry, and said unless I throw him off a building, or suck up liquids in him (he has brothers that do that!!!), it was indestructible. 12 years later, he’s still going strong.

 

[Arcadian]

Embarrassingly, I have 3 Mieles-- one upstairs, one downstairs and one at the beach house. Two big dogs, 3 big kids and lots of sand.

They're expensive, but the suction is incredible (I've never used a Dyson, but my housekeeper tells me that Mieles far surpass Dysons) and they last forever. The one at the beach house is at least 15 years old.

The newest one is bagless and I concur about emptying the capsule outside. The only teensy annoying thing about it is that there's a battery in the handle that needs to be replace occasionally.

I love my Miele but admittedly its not the best when you have a flea infestation (which I never had until I moved to Florida!) for that, I got super loud and cheapy 60 dollar vac that is bagless (thankful!!)

But otherwise yes I'm all for Miele vacs. We have a white pearl that just won't die (but OMG its so heavy!!)

 

[sparlie]

When we moved from our house into our condo I wanted a great vacuum since I had a commercial grade central vac in our house and I knew it would be difficult to find another vacuum I would be happy with. I purchased a Miele based on the reviews and have been very happy with it for 5 years now.

 

[Big Fat Facets]

@Big Fat Facets, do you mind me asking why you are also in the market for a cordless? Do you plan on using the Miele for all over cleaning and the cordless for spot cleaning or something else?

the reason that
Im looking for a cordless is because the miele is rather heavy. As a result, my husband does the vacuuming. And im thinking by getting a cordless i can reduce of some his burden. But he hasnt been very agreeable to it as he doesn't mind doing the vacuuming. I suppose its my way of trying to help him. I (my husband) uses the miele for all floor surfaces, furniture between washing. (We have linen slipcovers that get removed and laundered.)

the only dyson product we have is an air purifier/filter. its nice. we like it. A friend of ours has a dyson upright with the rolly ball. we decided on the miele almost a decade ago (8 yrs) because it was top of the line at the time and came highly recommended. we had handled our friends dyson and then went to have a look at the miele and decided on it. but when i actually came to using it....whew heavy. its a bit of a work out...

edit*****
im going to look into a central vac after reading what kenny had to say about it.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@rainydaze thank you for your reply and recommendation, I don't think the Dysons are made like they used to be, at least the uprights. My original Animal was solid, the last Dyson I had plastic that felt flimsy and there was no handle on the wand (a pet peeve of mine) so it got returned. I will look into that Shark.

@stepcutnut, I share your exact feelings about the older Dysons vs the new. I'm still totally undecided about what to go with.

@yssie, we have a Bissell and I love it on the carpet but it is less impressive on hard surfaces, at least mine. With eight animals though you need a great vacuum. I typed that and realized we have 7 including the birds!

 

[YadaYadaYada]

@Austina, okay I feel silly saying this but that has to be the most cheerful vacuum I'be ever seen and it has very good reviews so thank you for the recommendation.

@Arcadian, we had fleas years ago, like over 10 and at the time we had walk to walk carpet through the house. A nightmare! I love the laminate, durable and easy to clean.

Thanks for the Miele recommendation @sparlie!

@Big Fat Facets thanks for sharing your thoughts, all very helpful, I do like the central vac idea if only our house had more closet space.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

Just wanted to come back and update. The husband was in the mood to buy something today so he told me to pick a vacuum lol! This is romance at 20 years of togetherness.

So I went with a Dyson V8 Pro Absolute, Dyson is having a sale on their site so it was right around $375 after tax. Not bad I think. I really want to thank you all for your suggestions!