Miele upright vacuum

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I don't care to use the attachments on any upright. If it's attachments I need, I'll get out the canister. This is why I like the Riccar Supralight. It does not even try do double duty with all the extra hoses and attachments.

I've got a Kirby and yes, it does do deep cleaning well, but I never use the attachments. My house cleaner has no interest in using the Kirby as she finds it too big and clumsy.

I tried selling a Kirby and had to practically give it away. I've sold several Mieles and had no trouble getting top dollar.
 
So after all the replies about the upright I decided to just get the canisters. Lucky I found a used one on eBay. It was for bidding and I was the highest bidder at $127 plus free shipping. I am excited about it. It's a compact c1 electro+.

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Kirby-they should stick to what WORKS-their present designs work fine-better than most others.If it works-why change it?Something that works is NOT "outdated".
Pawnbrokers-Generally they only want DTD premium vacuums such as Kirbys,Rainbows,Filter Queen,TrisTarLux,,etc.A Miele upright or canister wouldn't interest them.
 
Pictured Mile canister-you got an EXCELLENT buy-far better than the upright and will be easier to use.In my collection of canisters-have several Mieles along with one upright.The dealer here also promotes the canisters over the Miele uprights.
 
My Hoover Juniors work, doesn’t make them modern or overall better than what is available today...

You people need to look at this in the eyes of a consumer and not a collector, consumers don’t want the faffing about.
 
After many years of exploring, buying, using and researching vacuums, I personally prefer a pair of vacuums: an upright for deep cleaning carpets and a suction only canister for everything else. That’s the set up we had in the house when I was growing up - and it’s the easy way to go. Because of this, I’d love to see Miele create a bare-bones Oreck-like lightweight upright that would be an optional companion piece to their canisters...though a fan-first classic configuration, it could feature Miele’s best filtering dust bag. And cord storage where the bottom hook swivels, not the top hook.
 
RE Pawn brokers - I was not getting at what types of vacuums they would accept, but rather what types of people need to use pawn brokers to get extra cash. The same type that would need pay day loans. And would be scammed into buying over priced products from door to door salesmen. Agree with AlexHoover94. I'm a collector. I have a Kirby. I enjoy using it once in a while and it does a good job. But I wouldn't buy a new one from a d2d salesman, I don't expect to ever re-sell it for much money, the attachments aren't worth the bother, it's not maneuverable, non-vacuum collectors don't want to use it nor would I on a regular basis.
 
Used to own the Miele Jazz. I bought it from my best friend, who bought it and didn't like it after a few months. After being used in my home (by someone other than me) for about a year, the time had come where it wasn't being used any longer and I sold it to my good friend and fellow vacuum collector, Chase S. from Texas. He's pictured using it the day he bought it from me.

It's now on its third owner, nothing has broken on it, and Chase uses it all the time. It's still heavy and awkward to use and steer. Never had any problem with its cleaning ability. But, it's been owned by three men. If a woman had to use that beast, I can see where she would come to hate it.

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My mom has...

A Miele Dynamic U1 which I bought for her. She was previously using whatever cheap bagless vacuum was out there. She loves the Miele, as do I. They are built well, they clean well, and have great filtration. She uses the genuine bags and I gotta say though they are a little pricey (since they are cloth HEPA bags) but they are well worth it. Every box of bags also comes with a brand new filter. In a nutshell, Miele uprights are great in my opinion, never used a canister from them though so I cannot comment on those.
 
I also do the canister-upright cleaning teams.My Kirby tools---often get used on OTHER vacuums!The Kurby dust brush is EXCELLENT-use it with any canister vacuum it fits on-including my centrals.The Kirby bare floor-carpet surface tool is HORRIBLE-they should discard that design.There was a time I used my Kirby Sentria,Avalir as a "powernossle" with my MD central vacuum-best of both worlds!-BUT awkward.You needed two outlets-one for the Kirby and the other for the MD central-and on separate circuits.
 
"Kirby and miele are two different machines. Why are we comparing them?"

US vs. Europe? Steel vs. Plastic? Old vs. New?c Non-sealed vs. Sealed? Which is Best of Best? Because people elect not to read the original question in the thread?

Not sure...
 
Miele upright

When our 'Which?' magazine tested the Miele upright in its S7 guise several years ago now, it got good marks for dirt removal, and was the quietest upright on test.

Reading online reviews from UK customers, there were several grumbles:

- the weight of the machine;
- plastic cover parts falling off the retractable rear wheels;
- the main handle with integrated electrics proved not to be reliable for a few folk;
- somebody moaned about pet hair NOT being picked up. I think that was put down to the type of carpet involved.

And I'm sure someone on here had concerns regarding the accessory hose collapsing under its own suction power.
 
"When it comes down to reliability, The Kirby wins hands down over the Miele upright, and that's a fact you can take to the bank"


 


That statement is invalid.


 


I agree with others above, two completely different machines.


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Alex,


 


I am afraid that you are wrong. This statement is completely valid!


 


"When it comes down to reliability, The Kirby wins hands down over the Miele upright, and that's a fact you can take to the bank"


 


If these two machines were both of the same design, then their reliability numbers would be the same or similar. It is because they are of quite different design, that their reliability factor is so different. One machine (Miele) is of a very complex design and made of many plastic parts that tend to break after a relatively short time or under heavy usage.  The other machine (Kirby) is far less complex and made of mostly metal parts which stand up well over time and heavy usage.


 


It is because these two machines are so different in design, that one is so much more reliable than the other.


 


 


 


 


 

[this post was last edited: 10/27/2017-10:44]
 
@sptyks we really are comparing apples and orange Gatorade here.
I would definitely say that A Miele is a simpler design. And more robust.
The reasoning behind that. No transmission. No complicated tool system. No rubber belt and wooden brush roller to wear out. Direct air motors have proven themselves over and over again. Very few users will prefer Kirby to A Miele.
The repair rate seems to be about the same from my experience.
I think the Kirby's are elegant machines I have several in my collection. Kirby's are definitely special vacuums. But comparing something that was basically designed in 1989 to something that was designed in 2008 of course the newer item is going to be better. I believe both belong in one's vacuum collection! But for the average Joe Miele U1 unbeatable value at $399.
 
Vacuumdevil

Playing the devil myself here:

Please Tell us about Miele's Lifetime rebuild program.

Those wooden brush rolls you speak about, Tell us about the ease of user replacement with the Miele.

Belts, I can change a belt myself in a Kirby for $1.50, and a twist of a belt lifter, how much does it cost with a Miele?

The G series Kirbys may have the transmission, but no electronics to shut it down.
 
Some people prefer the raw beauty, thick steel and ease of shade tree mechanic repair of a 1960's-something muscle-car while others prefer the creature comforts of a modern day sports car. I think a similar concept here.
 
my 2c and some info

In terms of reliability and longevity Kirby is the clear cut victor and on carpet i'd say it's the better performer due to it's much higher airflow and deeper agitation. It's also much easier to work on, and the parts don't seem as expensive. It also has an edge in versatility. I will say i'm quite dissapointed in their warranty as it's a mere 3 years and they don't even cover labor.

But the Miele wins in other catergories, it has better features like the swivel neck, sealed filtration, electronic speed control, and on board tools. It also has some of the best hard floor cleaning i've seen from an upright (excluding the use of tools) It's warranty is 7/7/1 7 year motors, 7 year casing but only 1 on everything else the nice thing is Miele covers labor.

Belt cost:
Kirby 2.99
Miele ~29.95 (about for a conversion kit) which includes the plastic case that goes around the belt

I don't see the point of arguing about which is better than which. Vacuums are not a one size fits all item. While the Kirby is undoubtedly a good quality product with some of the best carpet cleaning ability it simply is not for everyone.
 
One last thought regarding the latest Vacuum cleaner technology which the Miele upright has vs 25 year old Kirby Technology:


 


Why does my 25 year old Kirby G3 outclean my friend's 2 year old Miele Cat & Dog upright on carpet? This was a test that my friend and I conducted at my home last year.


 


He brought his Miele Cat & Dog to my place and we tested the machines by placing 1/2 cup of salt on two separate areas of my living room carpet. We rubbed the salt into the carpet. We each did ten passes over our section of carpet. He used his Miele and I used my G3. Both machines had new HEPA bags and new filters for the Miele.


 


After 10 passes I got my Sentria (third machine) with the Dirtmeter installed on it and put a black test pad in it. I went over each area for 2 passes with a new black test pad for each area.


 


The Results: The area vacuumed with the Miele had more than twice the salt on the test pad as the area vacuumed with the G3.


 


Conclusion: It just proves that a Vacuum cleaner made with 2015 technology will not necessarily outclean a machine made with 1991 technology. In this case it was the 1991 technology that won.


 


 
 
@kirbysthebest
Miele does not haveLifetime rebuild program simply because in 20 years they'll be newer technology and the Machine is cost-effective enough to replace in that time.

Mila brush rollers and belts are designed to last a lifetime of the product and generally do.
Eliminating the need and hassle of changing a belt.


I see 2x -3x Kirby G10 vacuums in for service than I do Miele uprights.
Also there seems to be a motor bearing issue with the G10. I would argue that previous generations of Kirby's or a better value and more reliable.

Then there's price$400 to $600 new versus a #1,000. to $3,000 new.

There's also on board tools &a bypass motor that produces three times the suction with relatively close air flow .

All that being said I have more Kirby's then mieles in my collection.😀
 
The Kirby no matter what model-is more likely to be around after 20yrs-the Miele is not likely to be around after that.It will be in the trade in pile or the dumpster.Suction is NOT what is really important for floor-carpet cleaning---Its AIRFLOW!AIRFLOW!AIRFLOW! Which the Kirby has more of.And the Kirbys air inlet is closer to the floor than the Miele-as well as a more direct airpath.Service --Kirbys are more popular then the Miele upright.
 
"There's also on board tools &a bypass motor that produces three times the suction with relatively close air flow . "

The motor specs sure, as the vortex motor is rated for 141cfm and i've measured an avalir at 144 or 147 cfm

BUT

At the carpet nozzle where the flow matters most the Miele upright measures in at 49.82 CFM, in carpet mode, where the avalir was measured at it's nozzle at 144-147 cfm
 
Ultimately, we can throw numbers around all day, but what really matters is what gets the dirt out of the carpet. Personally, I don't feel the Kirby is the most effective at removing things like sand, the nozzle is too wide and dilutes the machines power compared to something like a Royal with a narrower nozzle, also the brush isn't aggressive enough for my liking. I feel a Convertible or a F&G Eureka will get better results. The Miele works well, cleans well, and I feel is more aggressive on the carpet. Ultimately, I don't use a Miele or Kirby as my primary vacuum, my preference tends to be Rainbows, Riccar Radiance, Riccar central vac, that sort of thing. Machines with high airflow and aggressive agitation (not carpet shredders though).
 
I don't feel the Kirby is the most effective

. . .at removing sand.

That made me giggle.
Kirby is Gold rated with the Carpet and Rug institute as well as has an energy efficiency rating. I couldn't find Miele listed. You can buy different brushrolls for your needs, ranging from soft to brillo.

What we need to concede to is the fact that at this level we are talking grains of sand, not buckets in difference. I do, however, challenge you to do a sand test with these machines. You may just be surprised.
 

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