Welcome to my review of the Riccar Prima canister vacuum, the newest model from Tacony. This same model is also sold as the Simplicity Wonder, but the only difference is the color, everything else is the same. Since I have the Prima version, that's the name I will be using for the review, but everything applies to the wonder as well. I started collecting vacuums a few years ago, I much prefer canister vacuums rather than uprights, and this is one vacuum I am happy to have in my collection.
This vacuum would probably fit in to the compact size category, it's definitely smaller than some other canisters such as the Sebo Airbelt D1, and it uses a 10 amp motor. However, just because it's 10 amps rather than 12, don't let this fool you. The suction on this vacuum is great, and it will easily clean as good as, if not better than, many vacuums that have 12 amp motors. The amp rating just indicates how much power a motor draws, there are many other things that contribute to cleaning performance such as fan size, type of filtration, etc. When I visited the vacuum museum, I got to play with some canister vacuums that only used 5 or 7 amp motors, but they would easily be able to clean hard floors, and some carpet. I would much rather have a vacuum that uses a bit less energy but is designed well.
The prima comes in 2 models, a straight suction version and a version with an electric hose that can support a power nozzle. If you get your vacuum from the Tacony outlet store, more on that below, the price is the same, so I would suggest getting the electric hose version, even if you don't need a power nozzle, that way you can upgrade to that later. The nice thing about the Prima is that it's customizable, you can choose which power nozzle you want, and there are 3 available. If you only have area rugs, you can get the small power nozzle. Than there is a large power nozzle that provides 2 brush strips, and if you want the top of the line model, you can get the version with 3 brush strips and a dirt detection light. I have all hard wood floors, so I did not get a power nozzle, but I did get the electric hose version of the vacuum since I have a mini electric brush which I use for cleaning my matress and furniture. The electric hose has a standard 2 prong female connector for connecting a corded power head. Also, the wand that is included has the cord management built in, and Tacony's power nozzles can connect to the hose directly, or to the telescopic wand.
The hose that is provided with the vacuum is very good quality. On each end, a hose protector is installed to prevent it from becoming damaged. The hose connects to the top of the vacuum, and when you push it in, you will hear it click in to place. The hose does not swivel on the vacuum end, but it does on the end that you hold. It provides a gas pump style handle that is very easy to hold, and if you have the electric hose version, it has a switch that allows you to turn on and off any powered attachments that are connected. It also has an indicator light to indicate that the power nozzle is active. The last thing on the hose worth mentioning is a valve to reduce suction. You can do this either using the valve on the hose or by using the slider on the vacuum itself to reduce the motor speed.
The wheels on this vacuum are great. It has two rubber wheels on the back and one caster in the front. You will have no problems getting this vacuum to follow you around, and it turns really easily. On my floors, I can't even tell when the vacuum is rolling, the wheels are that good.
On the top of the vacuum there are 2 simple controls, an on off push button and a slider to control the speed of the motor. This vacuum does not try to get fancy by putting the speed controls on the hose itself or by using electronic speed controls. I think this is a good thing, these features require complicated circuit boards which could possibly fail. Personally, I don't even think the motor speed control is needed, the valve on the hose is quite sufficient for this purpose.
Changing the bag and filter is very easy. Just open the lid, lift up on the bag holder and pull out the bag. You can then slip a new bag in to the holder, push it in to place and press down on the holder to complete the process. The compartment will not close unless a bag is properly inserted. There is also a hepa filter that you will need to change every couple of years, this is done by pulling out the old filter and inserting a new one. That's the only maintenance this vacuum requires. There is no need to keep track of a premotor filter, a dust compartment filter, an exhaust filter, etc.
You get some good attachments with this vacuum, a crevace tool, a floor tool that has a brush and a cloth attached, and a combination dusting and apolstry tool. In order to maximize air flow, the hose and hose end are slightly larger than the standard size, but an adapter is available that will allow you to use standard size attachments. For me, this is a good thing, because my favorite floor cleaning tool, the Wessel Werk quick clean RD 285 uses a standard 32 MM size and would not fit this hose without the adapter. The hose size is the same as Miele hoses, so if you have an adapter that allows you to use standard attachments with Miele vacuums, it will work on this vacuum as well.
If you want to purchase this vacuum, or for that matter, any other Tacony product, I would suggest purchasing from the outlet store in St. James Missouri. The prices are quite a bit cheaper. For example, on the Riccar web site, this vacuum, without the power nozzle sells for $499. If you get it from the outlet store, the price is $299. This is because you are not going through a dealer. They can ship items, so you shouldn't have to travel to St. James Missouri to get these products at a good price. You can contact the store at 1-866-444-9004.
In conclusion, I would say that this is one of the best, if not the best canister vacuums you can buy. It's also very quiet, you can easily have a normal conversation while the vacuum is running at full power. When the vacuum was being developed, the designers tried to include all of the good features of previous vacuum models from the vacuum museum, and I would say they have done a great job with that. There are only two things I would have changed. I would have skipped the motor speed control, it's really not needed if there is a valve on the hose and I would have used a standard hose end rather than require an adapter to use standard attachments. This is definitely one vacuum I am proud to have in my collection, if you are looking for a good canister vacuum, you can't go wrong with the Prima or Wonder.
This vacuum would probably fit in to the compact size category, it's definitely smaller than some other canisters such as the Sebo Airbelt D1, and it uses a 10 amp motor. However, just because it's 10 amps rather than 12, don't let this fool you. The suction on this vacuum is great, and it will easily clean as good as, if not better than, many vacuums that have 12 amp motors. The amp rating just indicates how much power a motor draws, there are many other things that contribute to cleaning performance such as fan size, type of filtration, etc. When I visited the vacuum museum, I got to play with some canister vacuums that only used 5 or 7 amp motors, but they would easily be able to clean hard floors, and some carpet. I would much rather have a vacuum that uses a bit less energy but is designed well.
The prima comes in 2 models, a straight suction version and a version with an electric hose that can support a power nozzle. If you get your vacuum from the Tacony outlet store, more on that below, the price is the same, so I would suggest getting the electric hose version, even if you don't need a power nozzle, that way you can upgrade to that later. The nice thing about the Prima is that it's customizable, you can choose which power nozzle you want, and there are 3 available. If you only have area rugs, you can get the small power nozzle. Than there is a large power nozzle that provides 2 brush strips, and if you want the top of the line model, you can get the version with 3 brush strips and a dirt detection light. I have all hard wood floors, so I did not get a power nozzle, but I did get the electric hose version of the vacuum since I have a mini electric brush which I use for cleaning my matress and furniture. The electric hose has a standard 2 prong female connector for connecting a corded power head. Also, the wand that is included has the cord management built in, and Tacony's power nozzles can connect to the hose directly, or to the telescopic wand.
The hose that is provided with the vacuum is very good quality. On each end, a hose protector is installed to prevent it from becoming damaged. The hose connects to the top of the vacuum, and when you push it in, you will hear it click in to place. The hose does not swivel on the vacuum end, but it does on the end that you hold. It provides a gas pump style handle that is very easy to hold, and if you have the electric hose version, it has a switch that allows you to turn on and off any powered attachments that are connected. It also has an indicator light to indicate that the power nozzle is active. The last thing on the hose worth mentioning is a valve to reduce suction. You can do this either using the valve on the hose or by using the slider on the vacuum itself to reduce the motor speed.
The wheels on this vacuum are great. It has two rubber wheels on the back and one caster in the front. You will have no problems getting this vacuum to follow you around, and it turns really easily. On my floors, I can't even tell when the vacuum is rolling, the wheels are that good.
On the top of the vacuum there are 2 simple controls, an on off push button and a slider to control the speed of the motor. This vacuum does not try to get fancy by putting the speed controls on the hose itself or by using electronic speed controls. I think this is a good thing, these features require complicated circuit boards which could possibly fail. Personally, I don't even think the motor speed control is needed, the valve on the hose is quite sufficient for this purpose.
Changing the bag and filter is very easy. Just open the lid, lift up on the bag holder and pull out the bag. You can then slip a new bag in to the holder, push it in to place and press down on the holder to complete the process. The compartment will not close unless a bag is properly inserted. There is also a hepa filter that you will need to change every couple of years, this is done by pulling out the old filter and inserting a new one. That's the only maintenance this vacuum requires. There is no need to keep track of a premotor filter, a dust compartment filter, an exhaust filter, etc.
You get some good attachments with this vacuum, a crevace tool, a floor tool that has a brush and a cloth attached, and a combination dusting and apolstry tool. In order to maximize air flow, the hose and hose end are slightly larger than the standard size, but an adapter is available that will allow you to use standard size attachments. For me, this is a good thing, because my favorite floor cleaning tool, the Wessel Werk quick clean RD 285 uses a standard 32 MM size and would not fit this hose without the adapter. The hose size is the same as Miele hoses, so if you have an adapter that allows you to use standard attachments with Miele vacuums, it will work on this vacuum as well.
If you want to purchase this vacuum, or for that matter, any other Tacony product, I would suggest purchasing from the outlet store in St. James Missouri. The prices are quite a bit cheaper. For example, on the Riccar web site, this vacuum, without the power nozzle sells for $499. If you get it from the outlet store, the price is $299. This is because you are not going through a dealer. They can ship items, so you shouldn't have to travel to St. James Missouri to get these products at a good price. You can contact the store at 1-866-444-9004.
In conclusion, I would say that this is one of the best, if not the best canister vacuums you can buy. It's also very quiet, you can easily have a normal conversation while the vacuum is running at full power. When the vacuum was being developed, the designers tried to include all of the good features of previous vacuum models from the vacuum museum, and I would say they have done a great job with that. There are only two things I would have changed. I would have skipped the motor speed control, it's really not needed if there is a valve on the hose and I would have used a standard hose end rather than require an adapter to use standard attachments. This is definitely one vacuum I am proud to have in my collection, if you are looking for a good canister vacuum, you can't go wrong with the Prima or Wonder.
