Vacuum cleaner

[DawnM]

I just realized I am going to need one.  We are moving into our new house and don't have one.   I currently have a central Vac.  Man, I will miss that in the new place.

I would like to get something cordless if at all possible (DH thinks they don't suck as well as corded).  I also want something lightweight enough to carry around on all levels of the house, up and down stairs, etc.....

Suggestions?   Something that works well?

I have a 22 year old Kenmore that we can use for a little while but it is clunky, and takes bags, and I hate it.

[DawnM]

2 minutes ago, WendyAndMilo said:

I have clients who have a cordless dyson and it only lasts about fifteen minutes before needing to be recharged.  But otherwise they like it enough to keep it for tidying up single rooms.  Would not get it for the whole house though.

 

Well, Phooey.

[TCB]

I love my Shark vacuum! 

[PeterPan]

Get two, one for upstairs, one for down. And maybe mix 'em up, like a Roomba for one floor, canister vac for another. We have two floors, so we have a canister vac and roomba on one floor, upright on the other. Huge fan of the roomba and I'd love to have a 2nd.

Edited June 2, 2019 by PeterPan

[PeterPan]

1 hour ago, DawnM said:

I have a 22 year old Kenmore that we can use for a little while but it is clunky, and takes bags, and I hate it.

So I would put that in the basement (assuming it still works) and get a roomba and easy upright that you like for the main floor. Or roomba and bissell mop the main floor, upright for the bedrooms (upstairs?), old canister in the basement. 

Edited June 2, 2019 by PeterPan

[DawnM]

6 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

So I would put that in the basement (assuming it still works) and get a roomba and easy upright that you like for the main floor. Or roomba and bissell mop the main floor, upright for the bedrooms (upstairs?), old canister in the basement.

 

We don't have a basement in the new house.  It has a 3rd floor instead.  

Had a roomba and hated it.  Not sure it would clean the square footage we need either.

But that is a great idea to have the old one for just one specific floor, probably 3rd floor.  That floor has a hang out/media room, a bathroom, a bedroom, and a small room that could be used as a sewing/exercise room.  No closet but could hold a twin and a dresser if someone really needed it to.

Edited June 2, 2019 by DawnM

[PeterPan]

8 minutes ago, DawnM said:

 

We don't have a basement in the new house.  It has a 3rd floor instead.  

Had a roomba and hated it.  Not sure it would clean the square footage we need either.

Yeah I thought I remembered you not liking the roomba. But the point is I don't like carrying heavy vacs up and down stairs. The kenmore canister might be good in the bedrooms, as the long wand could get under beds. My dh loves our kenmore canister. 

And yes, that's why I need a 2nd roomba, because I spend my life waiting for it to charge, like I am right now, lol. Now that's not all bad, but our rooms are big enough that one run and it needs to recharge. I guess I could have gotten a more oomphy version, hmm. But yeah, didn't take long for me to get worn out on cleaning this house and hire robotic slaves. By the time I tidy and dust the room, I'm done. I've been cleaning this house all week and still don't have it done, sigh. True, I'm deep cleaning, but still big houses take more time to clean. Or I let it go too long. But they take time.

Are any of your surfaces solid or are they all carpeted? I have mostly hardwood with area rugs, pergo in the basement. We used to run a janitor's dust mop on the pergo. To make it go faster you end up wanting tools that fit the scale of the house, things that make it go faster. Like you want a vac with the widest head possible so you're getting done faster in big rooms. 

Edited June 2, 2019 by PeterPan

[DawnM]

Just now, PeterPan said:

Yeah I thought I remembered you not liking the roomba. But the point is I don't like carrying heavy vacs up and down stairs. The kenmore canister might be good in the bedrooms, as the long wand could get under beds. My dh loves our kenmore canister. 

And yes, that's why I need a 2nd roomba, because I spend my life waiting for it to charge, like I am right now, lol. Now that's not all bad, but our rooms are big enough that one run and it needs to recharge. I guess I could have gotten a more oomphy version, hmm. But yeah, didn't take long for me to get worn out on cleaning this house and hire robotic slaves. By the time I tidy and dust the room, I'm done. I've been cleaning this house all week and still don't have it done, sigh. True, I'm deep cleaning, but still big houses take more time to clean. Or I let it go too long. But they take time.

Are any of your surfaces solid or are they all carpeted? I have mostly hardwood with area rugs, pergo in the basement. We used to run a janitor's dust mop on the pergo. To make it go faster you end up wanting tools that fit the scale of the house, things that make it go faster. Like you want a vac with the widest head possible so you're getting done faster in big rooms. 

 

Oh, it isn't a canister, it is a Kenmore upright......did I say canister?  I am tired.....sorry.

The house has various surfaces. 

Kitchen, bathrooms, laundry, sunroom is tile

Main living areas and office on the main floor: Hardwood

Some bedrooms and all hallways upstairs: Hardwood

Some bedrooms and hang out rec room: Carpet

[itsheresomewhere]

Shark duoclean and Miele are my two favorites.  Especially, the shark for those of us with long hair. 

[PeterPan]

12 minutes ago, DawnM said:

Some bedrooms and hang out rec room: Carpet

Yeah, that would seem the place your upright best fits. 

Have you seen the Bissell mop thing? It's the crosswave. I got it after the women here said it would change my life, lol. It's a little bit noisy for kinda everyday, but it's a whiz. My main floor is all tile and hardwood. Well actually the kitchen is commercial vinyl. So I can clean everything (well not the oriental rugs, but entry rugs and everything hard surface) on the main floor with the crosswave. I roomba with somewhat regularity and then breakdown and use the Bissell. I don't know about an upright on hardwood. I guess I'm just finicky about my hardwood and worried it would get scratched by an upright. Don't know. 

I keep a swiffer (the floor kind with the dry head) for the baths, as that's all they need. I've never used the swiffer wet mop thing, hmm. But yeah, I just throw a swiffer in the corner of the bath so it's easy to keep it clean. I'd at least do that on each floor, so you aren't tromping up and down all those stairs with stuff.

Here's the crosswave

 

[DawnM]

1 minute ago, PeterPan said:

Yeah, that would seem the place your upright best fits. 

Have you seen the Bissell mop thing? It's the crosswave. I got it after the women here said it would change my life, lol. It's a little bit noisy for kinda everyday, but it's a whiz. My main floor is all tile and hardwood. Well actually the kitchen is commercial vinyl. So I can clean everything (well not the oriental rugs, but entry rugs and everything hard surface) on the main floor with the crosswave. I roomba with somewhat regularity and then breakdown and use the Bissell. I don't know about an upright on hardwood. I guess I'm just finicky about my hardwood and worried it would get scratched by an upright. Don't know. 

I keep a swiffer (the floor kind with the dry head) for the baths, as that's all they need. I've never used the swiffer wet mop thing, hmm. But yeah, I just throw a swiffer in the corner of the bath so it's easy to keep it clean. I'd at least do that on each floor, so you aren't tromping up and down all those stairs with stuff.

Here's the crosswave

 

 

I have not seen these.  I haven't paid attention to vacuums at all in the 13 years I have had this house, since we have a Central Vac, and it has a hardwood floor attachment, so we have just used that.

[PeterPan]

1 minute ago, DawnM said:

 

I have not seen these.  I haven't paid attention to vacuums at all in the 13 years I have had this house, since we have a Central Vac, and it has a hardwood floor attachment, so we have just used that.

Is there a basement or crawl space to put in a central vac and be done with it? I turned one down, but that may not be to my credit, lol. If it's what you're used to, maybe lobby for it? Well you have too many floors to retrofit, foo. To me a *canister* vac would be the logical equivalent to what you're used to. It would give you the hardwood attachment, have tools, be light to move. I think Miele makes one. 

[DawnM]

17 minutes ago, PeterPan said:

Is there a basement or crawl space to put in a central vac and be done with it? I turned one down, but that may not be to my credit, lol. If it's what you're used to, maybe lobby for it? Well you have too many floors to retrofit, foo. To me a *canister* vac would be the logical equivalent to what you're used to. It would give you the hardwood attachment, have tools, be light to move. I think Miele makes one. 

 

Isn't it a pain to carry around?  Bulky?

I am ok without spending thousands to add a central vac.  I have a lot more things to spend that kind of $$ on right now.

Edited June 2, 2019 by DawnM

[KathyBC]

I'm satisfied with our Shark Navigator.

[Liz CA]

Miele.

Not sure if they have anything cordless but cordless IMHO are just for picking up 5 little pieces of sawdust.  🙂

[PrincessMommy]

Another happy Shark Navigator customer.  It does both rugs and hardwoord very nicely.

The Bissle Crosswave looks very interesting to me too.  

[PeterPan]

7 hours ago, DawnM said:

Isn't it a pain to carry around?  Bulky?

I eliminate that problem by having separate units on each floor. I personally don't want to carry ANY vacuum up and down stairs. So you could put your old vac on one floor where it would suit the type of flooring (maybe the carpeted bedrooms?) and then buy units that fit the flooring types on the other levels.

Will your stairs be carpeted?  My stairs are hardwood, so I sweep them. If your stairs are carpeted, you can either use the motorized extension on some vacs *or* you could buy a handheld vac for that. I bought my mother a little Eureka, which isn't too expensive but is very lightweight. Like I said, stretching and hauling equipment up and downstairs is not for me. Just something to think through since you'll have several flights. My men wear boots in the house (sigh), so I'm forever cleaning stairs these days.

Do you have hardwood now? On our hardwood, dust, nerf darts, things skitter, meaning I need to clean under the furniture every single time. The Shark has tools, so I guess it could work. I use a Swiffer duster under my furniture or I just move the small pieces, run the roomba, and put everything back. We had an upright vac that we were using everywhere and dh, who was doing most of this cleaning, found it inconvenient. That's why he went to the canister and took the upright downstairs. 

The plus side is, if you start with something and don't love it, you just move it to another floor and buy another, lol. Regular department stores won't let you try things, but a vacuum store will. You might see if there are any near you. You'll pay more, but you can actually test drive them, see if you like the noise level and how heavy they are, etc. There can be really different feels with uprights because some have self-propelling motors, which you may or may not like. I find uprights unwieldy, but when I bought for my mother that's what I got her.

I suppose I'd be a different woman and a lot fitter/trimmer if I pushed an upright instead of running my roomba. 

[PeterPan]

3 hours ago, PrincessMommy said:

The Bissle Crosswave looks very interesting to me too.  

It's only downsides are noise and needing to empty the waste tank. For me that's usually twice to one tank of cleaning solution. But as far as function, it has been really good. Makes basic mopping much less fatiguing. It's not really a substitute for a vac for every day, but for mopping it has been really helpful. I would be up/down/up/down a lot more if I were doing that by hand. But guys wear boots in my kitchen a lot, so it tends to get filthy.

[DawnM]

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

I eliminate that problem by having separate units on each floor. I personally don't want to carry ANY vacuum up and down stairs. So you could put your old vac on one floor where it would suit the type of flooring (maybe the carpeted bedrooms?) and then buy units that fit the flooring types on the other levels.

 

One of them is $1,000, so I don't think i will be getting 3 if I get that one!

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

Will your stairs be carpeted?  My stairs are hardwood, so I sweep them. If your stairs are carpeted, you can either use the motorized extension on some vacs *or* you could buy a handheld vac for that. I bought my mother a little Eureka, which isn't too expensive but is very lightweight. Like I said, stretching and hauling equipment up and downstairs is not for me. Just something to think through since you'll have several flights. My men wear boots in the house (sigh), so I'm forever cleaning stairs these days.

 

The back stairs are carpeted  but the main ones are wood.  

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

Do you have hardwood now?On our hardwood, dust, nerf darts, things skitter, meaning I need to clean under the furniture every single time. The Shark has tools, so I guess it could work. I use a Swiffer duster under my furniture or I just move the small pieces, run the roomba, and put everything back. We had an upright vac that we were using everywhere and dh, who was doing most of this cleaning, found it inconvenient. That's why he went to the canister and took the upright downstairs. 

 

Yes, right now our entire main floor is hardwood and the upstairs is carpeted.  A swiffer is a good idea.  Our master is down in this house and we have those beds that go up and down and the mechanics underneath dont' allow for easy cleaning.

1 hour ago, PeterPan said:

The plus side is, if you start with something and don't love it, you just move it to another floor and buy another, lol. Regular department stores won't let you try things, but a vacuum store will. You might see if there are any near you. You'll pay more, but you can actually test drive them, see if you like the noise level and how heavy they are, etc. There can be really different feels with uprights because some have self-propelling motors, which you may or may not like. I find uprights unwieldy, but when I bought for my mother that's what I got her.

I suppose I'd be a different woman and a lot fitter/trimmer if I pushed an upright instead of running my roomba. 

 

Costco would also let me try and return.  They have some, although I haven't looked recently.

[Selkie]

Our house is three stories and about 90% hardwood/10% tile. No carpet at all. We have three Shark vacuums, one for each floor of the house. 

We have lots of stairs - four staircases, all hardwood, and I use the Shark attachments to vacuum them. The Shark doesn't weigh that much, so it's easy to carry up and down steps.

We tried a Roomba, but it didn't do a good job for us. Our house is big and we have lots of dogs, so the Roomba had a tough time keeping up.

[fairfarmhand]

I like my oreck upright. Easy to carry. But no attachment for stairs. And it plugs in. I do have a separate hand vac also from oreck that I like.

[fairfarmhand]

Also, my oreck is 21 years old and still going strong.

[Janeway]

I have this Dyson battery operated one from Christmas. I don't know how I lived without it before! I HATED my Dyson plug in. I do have a plug in one upstairs still, not Dyson. I gave away my Dyson plug in as I hated it that much. 

[PeterPan]

2 hours ago, Selkie said:

Our house is three stories and about 90% hardwood/10% tile. No carpet at all. We have three Shark vacuums, one for each floor of the house. 

And you know the plus is if her budget is $1k, she probably can get 3 of them! Or start with one, haha.

Just your tip of the day, I got my Bissell Crosswave with Kohls. They were running % off plus more plus bucks plus the sale price, so it came out really good. I wouldn't have thought to look there otherwise, because normally they're so overpriced. And right now they're running those deals and do have some Sharks, so you could see if they'd come out a good price. I guess you could buy 3, have Kohls Cash galore, and then just return them if you don't like them.

Ooo, not to be dumb, but are they *plugged in* at Kohls? Then you could try them, hehe. Or buy one, try at home, return, buy with all the promos.

Edited June 3, 2019 by PeterPan