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
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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
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.
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.
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.
We went to a little shop that repairs vacuums and such and found an old Electrolux cannister vacuum from the 70s or 80s for relatively cheap. Apparently they are quite popular with people who clean houses professionally as they last a long time and are repairable. It’s a bit of a pain to drag around the cannister but really not too bad over all and works very well.
Not the OP, but that’s a great idea.
Like the OP, my spouse and I have become quite tired of those (overpriced) full-plastic pseudo brands that are worth shit, and we’re also not that interested in connected robotic battery-powered vacuums either. I will check around if I can find some good old school wired vacuum, and also ask my local thrift store owner if they have any idea where I could find some around here.
This was a few years ago but I was able to google something like “vacuum repair” to find this place where we got ours. They had lots of used repaired ones but we had to hunt around the shop a bit til we found the one we liked
These very well could be out of your price range, but I really encourage you to consider a robot vacuum. https://valetudo.cloud/pages/general/supported-robots.html
I got my first one back in 2017 and they’re wonderful.
I second this. Have a Roomba that goes a couple times a week and it is great for picking up cat hair!
Yes this.
Check out the don’t vacuum me site and pick a ‘hackable’ robot. Add Valetudo and you’re set.
Using a Roborock S6 here, started by home assistant when no one is home.
For the occasional jobs/accidents, we use a Hyundai cordless. Really robust, easy to clean and properly designed.
Wish that was an option, but the animals wouldn’t want to share they’re space with robots I’m afraid.
I have to say I never use my I robot vacuum…it’s terrible loud and goes over the same place constantly. I’m very meh over the 2023 model.
And here I thought someone was just going to say they all suck. My brain is just wired for terrible jokes…
Third. Love my roomba, works well to keep the dog hair to a minimum. We’ve also got a Shark which is also great. Both were quite expensive but I’d say worth it. I love not having to hoover regularly but having the shark for spot jobs and upstairs now and then really helps too.
If you’re planning to use it every day, I suggest you consider investing a bit more and get a good one! Spend your money where you spend your time
The term my husband uses is, “Buy it nice, or buy it twice!”
Have you tried used vacuums from op shops/ thrift stores/ flea markets?
New vacuums in the budget category are not built to stand up to daily use. It may be worthwhile to look for a secondhand premium brand.
What used options would be good to keep an eye out for?
Dyson, Kirby are great if you can find one secondhand. (They’re also great new, but very expensive).
In Europe, Miele are supposed to be very good.
I got a Miele a few years ago and love it it’s a little pricy, but they are well made and have good warranties. A vacuum repair person recommended the brand to me saying that when they do finally break, they are much easier repair.
But are their current models still good, or have they also gone down the profit maximising route?
Sebo is more reliable these days, I’m really happy with mine.
Looks like they are still very good. I have the C1 which is still made in Germany. I wouldn’t buy a model made in China, regardless of manufacturer, but to each their own.
https://www.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/comments/1cban91/miele_vacuum_worth_the_cost/
https://www.rtings.com/vacuum/reviews/miele
The biggest knock Rtings has us the cost of operation (filter and bag replacements) but you can get reusable options for both. I have two very sheddy dogs and one reusable bag has worked fine as long as I’ve owned the vacuum.
Advice for any purchase really that I learned far to late, cheap is expensive. A $400 vacuum that is made well, repairable, and will run for 20+ years is better than a new $120 vacuum every 5 years.
Honestly, they all suck… I’ll see myself out
New riddle unlocked:
What sucks, when it doesn’t suck?
I previously had the Roborock S4, and upgraded to a Roborock S8 with the auto-emptying dock last year. I have a husky mix, and so my home gets quite hairy. Having a robot vacuum that can empty itself without me having to really do much is a lifesaver. Roborock also offers spare parts, and you can take these machines apart to fix them, if the need arises; none of my machines have ever broken down though.
You don’t need to connect the robot to the app, but I don’t think you get the scheduling functionality without it. You can of course always just press the button to start it manually, and that’s what I’ve been doing most of the time since I want it running when I’m out and that time window tends to shift a bit.
Yesterday I also learned that there’s OSS you can flash onto the machine to decouple it from Xiaomi’s stuff, which I think is great.
Is it Valetudo?
One thing to do is to check thrift stores for old busted ass Kirby or comparable vacuum cleaners. Even an Oreck XL. Those old tanks are usually nothing more than a motor, belt, and switch so they’re pretty easy and cheap to fix. No circuit boards or anything, very much ‘buy it for life’ but once in a while you might spot one sitting around for 10-20 bucks/euros in some thrift store because the belt is off a little and the owner mistakenly thought it’s a really expensive repair and dumped it off
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.
I don’t have a specific vacuum recommendation, but here is a trustworthy ratings site that covers them.
Also, look at Amazon bestsellers rankings. There are different types of vacuums (upright, canister, stick, etc.).
I have a Dyson v8 and a Dyson v11 and have no complaints except for long term battery life.
I also have a shark little portable shop vac, the messmaster. It’s also very handy.
I don’t know whether it’s available in Germany but the Oreck XL is a reliable bagged upright. No fancy tubes or attachments. No need to adjust for carpet height or bare floors. Just a simple straightforward light, reliable vacuum.
My folks have had one for years, they have a dog. My sibling got one that had been used daily in a small business for years, works great for their pets. I picked one up at an estate sale, replaced the brush roller and it works like new. We have a long haired cat that leaves tumbleweeds in its wake.
They all suck.
How are they dying? The only issues I tend to run into are the belt wearing or people sucking up shit that gets them clogged. Every time one of our vacuums stops working, my wife is about to order a new one and I disassemble the broken one and find it’s full of tape and bread ties and fabric scraps and, naturally, dog hair. I have to do this all the freaking time because neither my wife nor kids gives any fucks what they suck up.
I haven’t had one actually break in years and we buy cheaper vacuums, so I would look into a full disassembly and cleaning out the guts and cutting hair off the roller before necessarily seeking a replacement. If you’ve already done that, then fair enough, but I’ve brought back dead vacuums at least a dozen times.
Mostly little plastic clips and pieces. This includes: The connectors for the pipe, the wheels of both the hoover and the head, the opening mechanism, the wall plug, the mechanism for winding up the cable, the mechanism for adjusting the pipe length.
All pretty minor, but at some point it’s just a pain to continue using it, and we decide to retire it, for our own sanity
That does sound annoying. Especially the cord winder, I forgot I did run into that and it wasn’t worth messing with it. Idk why your experience is so different but good luck in your search!
We hada Philips and a Dyson, which were in our opinion trash. We now have a Nilfisk for the last five/six years, holds really well.
Dyson is overpriced trash.
I have a v8 Animal for casual stuff that’s like seven years old or something and I love it very much. It was 300USD on sale and I wouldn’t vacuum anywhere near as much if I didn’t have it.
That said, for a corded vacuum, I 100% would go for a canister bag vacuum. They’re infinitely better than bagless and last forever.
I purchased my Dyson in 2002 or 2003, I don’t remember the model. But we bought it cause it was on sale, and at the time had the best reviews. It turned out to be the best vacuum, it’s was so good my SIL and FIL went out and bought the same model. I love it and am dreading trying to find a replacement when it dies.
It’s disappointing to hear their vacuums are not the same quality they used to be. Mine was so good!
Unfortunately , The plastic body on mine is starting get brittle. However, the motor, cord and tubing are all holding up great.
I agree. I maintained a dyson (I think it was a V6) for a couple of years. They are generally designed so well, it literally pokes your eye where they made the materials extra thin to break earlier (for example the pipe connection mechanism and the electrical connectors)
I gave up when the main body started to break. Using a Philips now. Better in many ways but still far from perfect.
The availability of spare parts is really good though for dysons. Lot of cheap stuff on Amazon and eBay. Buying a spare battery for the Philips for example is much harder.
