31 March 10
Vacuum Grail
We’re continuing to quest for the right vacuum cleaner for us. When Pica was in Maine last week, she asked her brother-in-law his opinion, and he first said get a Sears Kenmore and then thought better of this and said no, no, ask somebody who repairs vacuum cleaners. What brands do they hate working on? What models rarely come in to their shop for repairs?
More research today by Pica, including asking her Facebook pals. The common wisdom is that they all break after a year or so. Pica called the vacuum repair guy in town (I’m amazed there still is a vacuum repair store in town) who a) hates Dysons (a brand about which there is a considerable cult) since they are difficult to repair, overhyped, and have lots of unnecessary junk on them and b) only sells three brands — Panasonic, Sanyo, and Shark — because they still have a majority of metal rather than plastic parts.
There you have it. One vacuum cleaner review site lists thirteen different brands, with many models for each, and I have little expectation for longevity from any of them. Sigh. I don’t like machines that can’t be repaired.
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Actually, that wasn’t quite the common wisdom I got. I think it can be summarized more neatly that the people who loved their Dysons — and they love them fiercely — haven’t had repairs needed (yet); and the others say don’t spend too much because they all break anyway.
We have had our Electrolux vacuum for more than 20 years and have NEVER had a repair. We now have it at the beach where it is a true workhorse, contending with sand mostly. It just keeps on sucking, no matter what we put in front of it!
we have a miele that we have had for 10 years and its still like brand new. its worth the investment.
My mother, who is 87, bought a Kirby from a door-to-door sales person a couple of years ago. She says she paid around $1000 for it. It has a very retro look, like something out of the first half of the previous century. I used it on her carpet, her floors, and to clean the refrigerator coils ( nifty special attachment for that). I am extremely impressed with it. It is powerful and a joy to use and it looks like it will last a long time and be repairable. For myself, I just bought a Hoover from Amazon for around $140. It is good enough for me. I buy the cheap vacuums, use them for about ten years and get a new one because I am too lazy to find out where to get a new brush roller for it. Years ago I bought a very modern vacuum with all sorts of attachments. I forget the brand but for a year after I bought it I could not buy a bag for it anywhere. After that experiance I made a rule to never buy anything but Hoover or Eureka because every grocery store carried their bags. I don’t know about now because I have been getting bags at Target. I haven’t bought a bag for the new one yet. I will probably get them from Amazon because I have “free” shipping for most things.
I’ve had my Hoover for 23 years. I had it repaired a few years ago because the cord was detaching. Guy came out to my house and fixed it in the garage – put an extra long cord on it, too – fabulous! Still does a good job.