I know this might seem like an odd question, and this might be the wrong community (if it is, pls tell), but I’m currently looking for a reliable, but very cheap vacuum cleaners.
For years my family just bought the cheapest name brand vacuum that they could find in the nearest store, but they all suck (pun intended) these days. I think most of companies just whitelabel asian vacuums and sell them for as much profit as possible, and the end users end up with vacuums where random plastic clips break and the vacuum just not turning on, directly after the warranty expired.
Our new Philips one just kicked the bucket, and now we try to not repeat our mistakes. Is there any secret brand for our purposes?
We practically vacuum the whole house daily because of the dog hair. We’ve had bad experiences both with bagless and non-bagless, so that doesn’t matter, as long as the bags are reasonably priced. The budget is pretty much what the cheapest supermarket vacuum would cost, and probably not much more.
The vacuum needs to be available in Germany.
I hope theres some good household tech out there anymore, god I love capitalism so much
If you have any questions, let me know
They come in two power settings: high, and low. And both of them will rip your dick off.
Unfortunately may be out of your budget, but I have a Dyson V10 “animal” (this includes all kind of accessories for dog hairs) and it is super powerful, light, etc. but may be too expensive for you. There’s all kind of new version like V15 etc.
Else the Shark one are not that bad and cheaper.
I’ve heard good things about Dyson, but no way a normal family is able to afford such a thing
We have a Dyson rechargeable for small pickups. It’s nice, but nowhere near worth the hype. Lots of ABS and technology that is legit, but hardly revolutionary like they claim. I also had to replace the power-tool style battery after about three years, which is fair but unremarkable for a plastic box full of 18650 cells.
I have a Dyson. It’s really quite terrible with weak suction. I got it free from my sister-in-law when it “broke”. It took me an hour to disassemble it and clear out all the clogged sections. In order to keep it working it needs a full disassemble and cleaning around once a year. It’s an excellent example of a shitty design.
My other vacuum is one I got 18 years ago that still works well. The brand has since gone to shit so I can’t recommend them now.
What to look for:
First look at the amps on the bottom. Amps = suction power. The more amps it draws the stronger the motor is.
Second you want a beater bar. This is the belt driven part that spins. This makes the vacuum much more effective on carpet. It gets pet hair a lot better.
Third you want something with common easily replaced air filters. These clog easily and need to be replaced constantly. Look for machines with oversized filters.
And last, look for something simple to break apart and fix that you can find affordable replacement parts for online. Fixing a broken vacuum is generally pretty simple.
These are generally midrange machines not the cheapest but not the most expensive. In the long-term these tend to be the most economical in terms of performance/cost.
Dyson’s are overpriced pieces of shit. They are about gimmicks and often perform worse than other brands. What they lack in performance they make up in their advertising budget.
I personally have a Shark vacuum that I got on sale at Costco. It was $200 cheaper than the Dyson and much lighter.
Get on eBay and pick up a used Miele canister vac. The C1 is underpowered but C2 and 3 are good
You can get brand new but scratched items for €70 or so.
They haven’t gone downhill, they’re still excellent quality
Henry also makes incredibly reliable vacs, but they’re a horrible design and fall over constantly, as well as catching on every corner
Gotta second the Miele. We have the C3 and it is fantastic. Our friend who is allergic to cats barely had any trouble when she comes over because of that vacuum, she even ended up buying one too.
They are expensive so hopefully you can find a used one. There are also places that will repair them, so you don’t need to trash them if something breaks.
I don’t know about buy it for life, but an Oreck XL is a good value and easily repairable. We had one for about 12 years. It ran through many bags, about half a dozen belts, one puppy-chewed power cord, a few disassemblies to remove foreign objects that were too big for its rather small intake, and one replacement wooden brush cylinder. I doubt the consumables and repair parts even hit a hundred bucks for over a decade. When it finally went (cracked interior housing that refused to respond to super glue and cable ties), we just got another. In the interim, it’s just a good flat-floor vacuum. We have a random cheap-ass hoover with attachments for nooks and crannies, and because it gets little use, it’s lasted quite a while as well, though it wouldn’t last a year if it were the “main” vac.
My mom had one for 20 years before the motor finally gave up. Got a new one of the same model to replace it and it’s still going 15 years later.
I’ve got a Miele canister vacuum and it has way more options than I really need, but man is it easy to work with just like the Oreck was. The nice part with the canister is that I can use it for anything. Except water. Get the ShopVac for that.
Miele is always a safe bet. We bought a Bosch modular vacuum with a wall mounted charging station. It’s battery powered and you can swap the battery with your power drill. A little pricey but worth the quality. Especially the rug brush that used to be exclusive to Vorwerk vacuums.
