Do you remember your household vacs?

[justjunque]

The earliest vacuum memory I have is a gold and brown Hoover Portable. Around the same time, there were two blue Hoover Lark stick vacuums.
Probably when my parents had their first deep pile carpet installed in their room, vacuums with brushrolls appeared. I remember an orange Eureka canister with power nozzle, and a light blue Eureka upright with no headlight, and a Dial-A-Nap. That one was nearly identical to the model 2010 I picked up a while back.
Some time in the early/mid 1980s, they bought their first Electrolux from a door to door salesman. That's pretty much all they bought from that point on. They would agree to letting the salesman sell them a new one every few years or so. They've had entry level models, and I remember a top-of-the-line Renaissance for a while. Mom wasn't crazy about that one, but wanted more features than the bottom-of-the-line. So, she's had an Epic 6500, and now the Aerus equivalent, the Lux Legacy ever since. I don't know how long she's had the current Legacy, but it's got some mileage on it. Unless the motor quits or something, I doubt that she'll ever replace it at this point.
Several years ago, she did buy something cordless and bagless. It might even be a small Dyson of some sort. I never even see it when I visit, and kind of forget that she even has it. I don't think the battery stays charged very long any more.

My paternal grandmother had an older Electrolux, but all I remember about it was that it had runners, not wheels.
The only vacuum I ever remember seeing at my maternal grandmother's was a stick vacuum of some sort. Possibly a Regina Electrikbroom, but I'm not sure. I don't even remember what color it was.

Beyond that, I know that one aunt and uncle had a 1970s/1980s Eureka self-propelled upright, that the self-propel stopped working. I don't remember it clearly, but it seems like it was white or beige, with brown trim. You'd think I'd remember it better, because my aunt gave it to me when they bought something else. I don't remember what they replaced it with.
And, when we were moving from that apartment to our house, I didn't immediately take the Eureka with me. And, somehow, it disappeared.
I have a feeling I know where it went, but I can't prove it. And, I don't want to cause problems, since it's a family situation. I'm sure it's long gone now anyway.

For our household, there's too many to list. But, the first one we ever bought new, and our first official household vacuum, was an Oreck XL Classic, and the Buster B that came with it. I still have both.

 

[blackheart]

It's mine now!

We had a Kirby Legend II. I traded my parents a G3 to obtain it back in the late 2000s and then in the last few years upgraded mom to a Sentria.
we also had a Dirt Devil 103.

 

[rdwdcp]

I still have my Mum's Old DC07 which is a big part of my childhood

 

[doratheexplorer]

My immediate family's vacuums and their backstories!

My parents:

1:1998: Eureka The Boss Special Edition Bravo II Widetrack (7821):
Parents bought brand new at Kmart after they moved into my childhood mobile home. Was the best vacuum they had and lasted the longest, also being the machine that fostered my love for vacuums. Unfortunately the motor burned up in it in early 2012 presumably due to these Bravo II's tendency to suffer from fan bearing failure after about a decade of use. However, I recently got and restored one after desperately looking for another for YEARS!

2:2012: Bissell Cleanview Helix (82H1):
As the Bravo died a few months before and we no longer had a full sized vacuum, my dad used his recently acquired disability backpay to buy this as well as two window AC units and a few other things we needed for the house around April or so that year. Unfortunately our household's long hair mixed with the fact that due to personal reasons my parents would only vacuum every month and a half on average at that point and not always clean the brushroll out meant the brushroll bearings failed in late 2014 and with my dads' medical issues as well as me not working on vacuums just yet meant that the machine was promptly thrown out after the 2nd or 3rd belt it ate.

3:2015: Eureka The Boss Power Plus (4703): As we were halfway through a deep clean when the Bissell failed, we desperately needed a new vacuum but couldn't afford to buy one. So my aunt who lived two doors up from us came to the rescue and gave us this which was her spare vacuum. It was past due for a filter replacement so it reeked of wet dog and because my aunt also has long hair and my parents never checked the brushroll, the belt began burning up the second time we used it and my dad threw it out as well. We would then go a little over two years with no vacuum at all (I know, I know, but don't judge as both of my parents had personal stuff going on)

4:2017: Bissell Powerforce Bagged (3522):
A former friend of my dad gave him this 2003 Powerforce that he got from an estate sale and was cleaning out some of his hoard when my dad went to visit so he gave him this when he was told we badly needed a vacuum. At this point I was collecting so I took over the maintenance and usage of it. Was in great shape for its' age and only needed the foot hose to be unclogged as well as a new set of attachments as the originals were all missing. Used it regularly for a few months until March 2018 when I convinced my dad to buy a new vacuum for the house so I could add it to my collection and keep it from being destroyed by my sister's ex who started living with us at the time. To this day I still have it and it works perfectly!

5:2018: Bissell Powerforce Helix (2191):
This is the machine I got my dad to buy as the new communal vacuum. I then added the 3522 to my collection and began using this at our house, and allowed anyone else to use it as I didn't care what happened to it. It was used until we moved out of our trusty little single wide I grew up in and into my maternal GP's house to live with them. As they had the soon to be mentioned Eureka Powerline, I took the 2191 into my personal collection and use it to this day as a shop vac/beater vacuum.


My maternal grandparents:
Note: Unsure what they had before 2011 but I think it was another Eureka such as a Maxima as I found the crevice tool to one in the garage when we moved in.
1:2011: Eureka Powerline (4773): Persumably bought to replace another Eureka with the same crevice tool, they faitfully used it up until about two months after we moved in, when the screw mounts on the hose partially broke off from someone pulling on the hose too hard. I was going to repair it for them, but as I was busy getting settled in, my grandmother went ahead and went out to Walmart to purchase a 2191 later that week as she wanted another communal vacuum for the house and didn't want to wait any longer for me to repair the Eureka. Which not going to lie, offended me at first, but it worked out though as the Eureka then became mine, and I have it to this day with larger screws being used to hold the hose on as I still haven't gotten around to replacing it.

2:2019: Bissell Powerforce Helix (2191)
To this day, this is still the main house vacuum although it became a backup a few months ago when I put a 2015 Cleanview I have in it's place as it is so boring to use.


My paternal grandparents:
Note: Unsure what they had before the FQ but believe it was possibly an Electrolux canister.
1:1992(?): Filter Queen Majestic Triple Crown:
They told me they got it from a Door To Door salesman in 1992 however when I looked up the model history of FQs, it shown that the Triple Crown came out later so it was probably later than '92. Either way, it ran until 2007 when the motor burned up while my grandad was vacuuming their living room, so bad that it apparently filled the room full of smoke. However based on their reports of poor performance towards the end as well as their track record for a few years past that point, I believe it died due to a lack of maintenance.

2:2007: Bissell Powerforce Bagless (6579-3): Bought at Walmart to replace the FQ which 2 year old me then played with as a toy for a few months, it only lasted a few months until the belt burned up while my grandad was vacuuming the hallway due to hair buildup in the brushroll and a lack of maintenance as you may guess. Of course he threw it out having known nothing about vacuums at that point. Unfortunately my first vivid vacuum memory is sitting on the couch and watching smoke pour from the hood as he came up the hall with it, though I have faint memories of it being used before then.

3:2008: Dirt Devil Featherlite Bagless (UD40135): Bought to replace the 6579-3, it was used until mid 2010 when stink bugs were sucked up in it and my grandad didn't know that the F1 filter can (and should!) be replaced periodically so he retired it as a car/shop vac and bought another Powerforce to replace it.

4:2010: Bissell Powerforce Bagless (6583): Besides the FQ, this was the second longest lifespan of a vacuum that they owned, mostly due to the fact I took over servicing it around mid 2015 but also because my grandad finally realized that vacuums require maintenance, LOL. I also remember looking over in my carseat and reading the side of the box next to me the night they picked it up, as well as a faint memory of the assembly and first use. It was used as the main vacuum until 2018 when it had entered my collection, which had since grew to where I was using other machines in their house regularly (I keep my collection at their house). Only major thing it needed was a brushroll in 2019, and then it still ran beautifully until I regretfully sold it with some other machines of mine at a yard sale in mid 2020 as I went on a 3 year vacuum collecting hiatus.

5:2013: Hoover Tempo Widepath (U5140900):
Another aunt of mine bought this new from a local vac shop in 2008 after her house was built, but prefers canisters so she gave it to my grandparents after she purchased a shiny new orange Kenmore Progressive that AFAIK, she still owns to this day. It then became the backup vacuum which came in handy as it was used for almost the entirety of 2014 after the 6583's belt got broken. Of course the Bissell went back to the main vacuum after the belt was finally replaced due to being lighter and bagless, and it stayed as an occasional backup until 2017 when it became one of the first machines to make up my collection. Still have it to this day, as well as all of the purchase literature that my aunt gave us with it including the receipt from 2008!


Nowadays I use a beat up '06 Bissell Lift Off Revolution of mine as their main vacuum as their poor old miniature pinscher has since became diabetic, blind and frequently has accidents in the carpet to the point I won't use my good machines outside of mt bedroom and vacuum room where the dog isn't allowed to go. (Poor baby, it's not his fault!)

Misc:
I also had two Eureka Superbrooms growing up. One was a maroon color with the brushroll which I played with at my grandparents until it mysteriously disappeared after I took it home in '09, and no one knows what happened to it. The other was a yellow one that was straight suction, and that one I had until around 2012 when little me thought it would be smart to stick a coin into the exhaust vents on the side of it which promptly killed it as it was dead as a doornail when I went to use it next. The yellow one I got from a neighbor when I was real little, and IIRC that's the same case with the red one.

And sorry, I know this was SUPER long but figured others would enjoy hearing what machines I grew up around!

 

[vacuumfan123]

1997: Kirby G4

Before I was born, heard the dealer pressured them into purchasing it and I have fond memories of using that vacuum and now I own it personally.

2006: Rainbow E2 Gold
dealer Found a reason we should upgrade from the old Kirby we had and so we did. Rainbow does not clean as well as the Kirby but they still use it for their sitting room.

2018: Vacumaid SR38 (found out our house had plumbing for a central vacuum)

The central vacuum is primarily used for cleaning the garage and cars. A vac-pan was also installed later on and that was used until replaced by the LG cordless vacuum. The central vacuum is still used for cleaning the vast amounts of carpets in the basement and also the long hallways in the house as it is the most convenient with the large powerhead and Hayden 120v powered inlets.

2019: Roborock S6 robot vacuum (despise it)

This was purchased to clean the main level of the home daily and is scheduled to do so but whenever I visit, it is always stuck somewhere.

2023 iRobot roomba 692 (also hate it)

The roomba was purchased to be used for the laundry room to clean up cat litter and was bought on clearance for a very low price but all it does a relatively poor job.

2024: LG all in one cordless vacuum.
This is what they use to clean the kitchen/breakfast rooms and was used to replace the vac-pans in the kitchen and it really does seem like a nice vacuum to use especially since there is no heavy central vacuum hose.