Around $300 budget

[phoenix02]

Hello all,

I am in the market for a vacuum. Much as I would like a Sebo or Miele, I can't really justify the expense, so I'm looking around the $300 proce point.

We currently have a Eureka bagless that my wife lost one of the bearing caps for the brush roller, and I'm not a big fan of the bagless cloud when you empty them. I also have a Tristar MG2, but the wife doesn't line the canister vac, she wants a lighter easy to use upright.

We have wall to wall carpet in most of the house, 4 cats and 4 girls in the house with long hair. The other bad thing about the Tristar is the need to disassemble the whole head to get the roller out to clean the hair tangles off of it.

I like the Shark options, but don't care to spend so much on a throw away machine. They do seem to do the best in preventing hair tangles around the brush roller, though.

That said, I'm looking seriously at the Hoover Hushtone as an Amazon return to be under my budget. Also the Hoover Complete Performance Advanced, but it seems to be a cheap throw away vac, More so than the Hushtone.

Alternatively I could go used. Sebos and Mieles in good shape are still above my budget. I've used Kirbys in the past and like their Performance, but they are too heavy and ungainly for my wife's preference. Before we moved to KY I had a Eureka Cordaway upright that did an ok job but not the best. I've also had a number of Hoover uprights, and I personally like the old Hoover and Electrolux cannisters, but again, not my wife's cup of tea.

Hepa style filtration, good side and front suction for getting up against walls, less hair tangles and easy removal beater brush, lighter and maneuverable, quality build (as much as possible) are my targets.

What would you all suggest?

 

[panasonicvac]

If you're willing to go for the extra mile, the Karcher CV380 that's made by SEBO would be an excellent choice for you. Though hair would still be wrapped around the brushroll, at least the brushroll is easy to remove and clean out. The Hoover HushTone is also a great choice. My only takeaway is they don't have any cloth bags available for them currently. I think your wife would really appreciate the weight and simplicity of a Oreck commercial. However hair would easily get tangled up in the brushroll and they don't have very good edge cleaning. A Powr-Flite Solar or a Cleanmax Zoom would have better edge cleaning than a Oreck. Sanitaire has a SEBO clone that'd be good for you but if it's rather too pricey, the QuietForce is what I'd suggest.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2HYZ5CH/ref=twister_B0CDK3BY7C?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[phoenix02]

I was thinking about the Karcher, being a stripped down Sebo Dart, but I don't think it comes with any attachments, does it?

The Sanitaire EVO looks to be a copy of a Sebo X4, right? It's in that same price range as the Karcher, so if I stretched the budget, asked her to use the Tristar for wand duty and just dedicate the upright to floor work, would the CV380 be a better buy than the Sanitaire?

I like that the Hoover is made in the USA, but we all know it just gets the final mile assembly of parts from China, so I don't know if that matters a whole lot. I wish they offered better bags, as well, but at least they are a sealed system with a Hepa final filter, so that's better than nothing I suppose.

We had an Oreck XL a long while back- it was easy to use, but as you said, very minimal side and front pickup. The biggest reason to not go back is that they are LOUD.

 

[panasonicvac]

The Sanitaire is a Chinese copy of the SEBO Essential G4 with a better exhaust filter but weaker pre motor filter. If attachments matter much to you, the Sanitaire would be a wiser choice as the Karcher wouldn't come with any. If not, then I'd absolutely buy the Karcher over the Sanitaire. Thankfully you can order attachments for it, but they're rather pricey unless you'd be ok with buying them later especially the tool caddy where you can store attachments on board. If I can't extend over the budget, my choices would come down between the Hoover and the Sanitaire QuietForce. Both are HEPA rated, both are certified gold from the Carpet and Rug Institute, both are quiet, both offer decent accessories, etc. Besides that the Hoover is assembled here in Tennesse, my vote for the Hoover would be mainly for the fact that it offers a lifetime belt and it'd shut itself off if something got jammed in the brushroll. Not to mention no screwdriver would be required to get into the brushroll.

 

[eurekaprince]

I’d go for a Kenmore Elite Pet Friendly 31150 bagged upright. It’s top-rated in Consumer Reports and is a Best Buy at only $270. It’s very good for deep carpet cleaning and you can shut off the brush roll to clean bare floors.

 

[eurekaprince]

If you want a lighter upright, the new Kenmore Bagged LiftAway Intuition BU4050 can’t be beat. It weighs only 15 pounds and only costs around $200. This Rose Gold version also has a hair eliminator feature that cleans hair off the brush roll. Highly rated by Consumer Reports for good carpet cleaning, though the power head is a bit narrower than usual.

 

[dysonman1]

You'll never get the definitive answer you're looking for. Some will tell you 'vintage is the way'. Some will tell you German 'out of budget' vacs are best. Some will say the old fashioned ones (like Kirby).

Try them out. It's like cars, no two people like exactly the same features. As the owner of over 600 vacs, (about 100 are 'new' models made in the last ten years), I can tell you it's not so difficult to buy one YOU like. Only you know your home, your cleaning routine, and your REAL budget. But a vac from a retailer with a Return Policy, and if you don't like the cleaner, return it.

 

[phoenix02]

So, I took my wife to a vacuum shop in Lexington to pick up a new roller belt for the Tristar.

I almost pulled the trigger on a Karcher Ranger- they dropped to $109 as ebay refurbished from Karcher and sold out pretty much immediately. That said, my wife wants a hose and attachments, so...

One thing led to another and we were looking at vacuums. I was looking at the Simplicity Scout Plus they had on closeout for $250. Seemed to have plenty of suction but very cheap feeling powerhead, screws to disassemble to de-hair the brush roller, hard to pull canister... just not the best. Better than the Tristar, but not good.

Then she looked at uprights, Reccar, Sebo Felix. Either too hard for her to push or too heavy, being built so much better than the cheapie bagless she was using.

They had a Reccar canister that was louder than the Simplicity and had a huge powerhead- easier to move the can, harder to move the head and less clearance. That was $600 on sale.

Then I made the mistake of showing her the Sebo canisters. We came home with a Sebo e3, my wallet $1200 lighter after tax and an upsell for a set of sebo attachments. I'll be paying on this for a while. Hopefully it'll last longer than that, ha ha.

Oh, I also expertly negotiated- considering my wife was already fawning over the vac so they knew they had a sale- and got 2 Tristar belts, a coffee cup I wanted, and a starter set of some French smelly alcohol lamp thing my wife wanted.

So... yeah. I got a heck of a vac. Paid far more than I had set out to. And I have a happy wife. Her birthday was yesterday, so I guess this counts towards that. I turn 40 in October, so we'll count it as my gift, too. Birthday gifts. For both of us. For 10 years.

 

[panasonicvac]

Congrats!

You my friend just got in my humble opinion the best portable vacuum on the market If you take good care of it, it'll last 20+ years where you'll get your money's worth!

 

[kirbyman65]

An oreck

I think you would love an oreck, they weigh 8 pounds, they clean so well and they are incredibly easy to repair. I had a guy tell me his wife said it practically floats on air. Another option would be a Riccar superlite they are pretty similar to an oreck.

 

[dysonman1]

Your original title to this thread was that you had $300 to spend on a vacuum. Since you spent $1300 on a vacuum, why didn't you say so at first? If we knew you were rich, we would have suggested expensive vacuums to begin with.

 

[phoenix02]

Ha- that's funny. Not rich at all, and didn't plan on spending much more than $300. $1200 was far more than I thought I would ever spend on a vacuum. My wife loved it and so I overextended myself to get it for her. If I was *rich* we wouldn't be vacuuming our own house, I assure you. I'm a woodworker by trade and 90% of my shop is vintage- some because it's made better, mostly because I can get it cheap and refurbish it myself.
Please don't cast aspersions without knowing the whole situation.

I will say this vacuum is light years ahead of anything I've used before. Tristar, Rainbow, Hoover, Electrolux, Panasonic, Eureka, Kirby- I'm quite smitten with it as well. Until now every other vacuum ai've ever owned has been hand down or vintage I've repaired myself.

 

[phoenix02]

Dysonman1, do you consider anyone that comes into your store that ends up buying an expensive vacuum rich? Even if you helped load it into a 15 year old Toyota Sienna instead of a G class?

How is it going with the Air Way ultra kleen you sell? I think it's the same vac as the Simplicity Scout Plus I was hoping to get until we saw how much better the Sebo was. Almost $1000 better? I didn't think so, but tempered with a 10 year warranty, it did sway me to the Sebo. Are they selling well with minimal problems? The big reason my wife went for the Sebo over it was the easily removable brush roll and how much smoother the Sebo rolls and follows when vacuuming than the Simplicity/ Air away. A surprise for me was that the Simplicity/ Air Way vac, while at a lower price point, felt a bit better made than the Riccar Prima, other than the power head. Riccar was better, but way too big. Simplicity seemed to have great suction as well.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

Michael,

You don't need to justify any purchase to anyone. It's your business, your wife, your money, and now, your vacuum. But, you're a smart man. You already know that. Cover yourself in Teflon for haters, bashers, etc.

 

[gottahaveahoove]

Oh,

And enjoy your vacuum..... this coming from a "hoover" guy.

 

[mark40511]

Just an FYI - I've been lusting over that Sebo E3 for the longest time now...

 

[dysonman1]

When a potential customer comes into my store and announces their budget (I ask) is $300, they are NOT shown vacuums for more than $300. They told me they cannot afford a more expensive machine. Why waste time showing someone a vacuum that's a THOUSAND dollars more? The most expensive vacuum I've ever sold in a store is $600. Door to Door is different, I sold $600 Rainbows in 1979. But in a store there's no captive audience.

I guess if someone is asking for advice, you give them advice based upon assuming they're telling you the whole truth. No one recommends a $1300 vacuum to someone with $300 in their 'budget'. You tell them what the best $300 vacuum is. I consider it an insult to talk about a vacuum that a customer TOLD you they cannot afford (even if they can but won't tell you). Until they tell me the truth, I cannot make an accurate recommendation. Even if they told me their budget was $2000, I still wouldn't sell them anything more than what they need. Of course, I'm talking about regular, normal people who need a new cleaner to whom a vacuum just an electrified broom (99% of the population).

 

[n0oxy]

you made a good choice

I realize you were not planning on spending that much money on a vacuum but you get what you pay for. In my opinion, Sebo is the best brand of vacuums that are currently made. They are built to last, you pay more for them but they will last many years. I always find it interesting when people say they would never spend that much on a vacuum, yet they have no problem with spending $200 every couple of years for a new cheap disposable vacuum. When you buy a Sebo, you buy once and you buy something that is built to last.
Mike

 

[panasonicvac]

$600?

That's also funny Tom because I just recently replied back on the other thread and happen to scroll through this one to read any new repplies, that Clean Obsessed Lux canister you've already sold about over a hundred definitely costs more than $600. And I'm sure you've sold other non door-to-door machines that cost more than $600 as well.