Oh dear, we've been vacuum shopping...

[madabouthoovers]

Yes I agree, the X4 is a better cleaner than the Miele S7, but bear in mind that Miele have only been making uprights since 2008 (excluding the stick vac and the Miele Art) so its only obvious that Sebo would win the battle on uprights.


The Miele S7, whilst a very pretty vacuum, with all the bells and whistles is just not robust enough. The rear wheel mechanism and the body plastics behind the rear wheels are prone to getting damaged, and the whole vacuum just feels to delicate, despite it weighing 10Kg odd. The X series is bulletproof, tried and tested, and been around for donkeys years. The only area they are delicate in is the cable to handle joint, where the cable can eventually fracture internally. This is easily fixed by opening the handle, removing the cable, chopping off about 10 cm of cable, and re-wiring it. The only other gripe with the X series is that they can fall over when using the hose - but if you hold the handle like Sebo suggest, or lay the vac on its back then its not a problem. (unless you have small children around who could then put their fingers in  the revolving brushroll).


The Felix is another great upright, even more versatile and convenient than the S7, so yes, Miele win the war on cylinders, as they have a much greater range than Sebo, but Sebo are the king of uprights. That may change if Miele bring out a lighter weight upright, and refine the S7's over engineered swivel and rear wheel system.

 

[kirbymodel2c]

Hi,

<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">Hi Chris, Hope your well and it was nice to see you again the other week. Why I'm glad you got a deal on the Sebo at £175. This is why lots of shops are closing down. People go to see what a machine is like in person and pick the "experts" brain then go on line and get it on line where quite often they don't have the same knowledge or overheads.</span>


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">If you had bought that Sebo off me I would of made Nothing on it....AT ALL at £175! In fact I would of made a loss. Then when you charge RRP some people think your trying to rip them off.</span>


 


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">I'm not going to even start on what's been said about Kirby....

</span>


 


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">James

</span>

 

[hi-loswitch98]

Sebo definitely win when it comes to Uprights, however despite the cord/handle area being a slight problem, it's so easy to fix & the X4 was the easiest Vacuum I had to clean up before I sold it.

 

[sptyks]

Well, I suppose to each his own...

I purchased my refurbished Kirby Sentria on ebay for $299.00 or 183 British Pounds. ( sorry, my keyboard does not have the Pound symbol) Is that a prohibitive cost for a Kirby Sentria in the UK? If you were to purchase a refurbished unit on ebay, there would be no pushy salesman involved.


 


<span style="font-size: 14px;">All that aside, I believe Kirby's agitation and airflow are at least equal to the SEBO's, but I have found that SEBO's hose suction to be less than that of a good canister vac.  And at only 183 pounds + shipping, you could afford a Kirby and a nice canister vac for all your above floor cleaning.</span>

 

[hi-loswitch98]

I would have thought people who use Kirbys go around Vacuuming the floors first then assemble the machine to do above floor cleaning. It would be a hassle changing it as you go along.

 

[madabouthoovers]

SPTYKS, buying a Kirby second hand is how most of us here in the UK acquire them, I bought all my Kirbys second hand on EBay, as non workers, or spares or repair. All 4 of them came to £100! But I had to work on them to bring them back from the abyss.


True enough we can get nice model Ultimate G's here for about £200, but many people would rather buy a brand new vac, rather than one that's several years old - even though the seller says its been "refurbished".


For what its worth, Sebo's are not that popular in the UK either, and the UK seems to still be in the grip of Dyson fever. Maybe one day, people will learn to stop wasting so much money on overpriced Malaysian built plastic vacs that are merely "fashion vacs",  that become obsolete and "yesterday's news"  within a couple of years.

 

[turbo500]

James, I remember you saying about the RRP price of the x1.1. I really wanted to stick by my local retailer. I got my red x1.1 from them for £199, but they just would not bring it back down to that. There wasn't much brain picking going on, it was a case of "how much?" really. I said we'd seen it online at £175, would you do it for £199?" but got a flat out no. And LOL, at your Kirby comment.

Sptyks, Rosh would not have bought 2 vacuums, especially not at £200 EACH.

 

[madabouthoovers]

I'm surprised the dealer didn't say "well I suggest you go and buy it online then sir" when you said about it being £175 online - it puts them on the defensive, and makes them think - "well if you can get it for that online, what are you wasting my time coming here for then?"

 

[sptyks]

I agree with this 100% 


<div style="margin-top: 44px;">
Maybe one day, people will learn to stop wasting so much money on overpriced Malaysian built plastic vacs that are merely "fashion vacs",  that become obsolete and "yesterday's news"  within a couple of years.


</div>

 

[tolivac]

Why would someone want a dusty,dirty,clacky,cumbersome Dyson when the Sebo is lighter-easier,and has a bag making it cleaner to service-and the Sebo has a brushroll that can amount to something-the Dysons either have brushrolls that don't much of anything-or tear tuffs out of your carpet and spin around in the bin so it LOOKS like its picking up something.But I like my Kirbys best overall!The Sebo is one of the few clean air machines that work well.The brushroll is easiest to service in the Sebo-just undo the floor nozzle side cap and pull out the beater brush-for cleaning it or replacement.

 

[spiraclean]

Nice one! Did you splash out on any of the optional tools to go with it, or will those be coming at a later date? Getting kitted out with the full kit and caboodle can be hard to resist!

That stuffed bag is pretty impressive, bit of a surprise considering the Panasonic isn't a half bad cleaner at all. As mentioned before I didn't get those results myself, but I feel that's more down to incompatibility with my carpet (which really seems to clean better with either a cylinder, or a low-to-moderate suction upright). The Sebo X is by no means short on suction, and has a nice stiff brush roller, so for the overwhelming majority of people it will do an excellent job. It's obviously working out nicely for you guys as proven by the picture, and it will be interesting to see how quickly the next bag fills and how long that takes to taper off to a normal level.

As for Kirby, while I like them, they are best suited to those who actually enjoy cleaning and have both the time and inclination to get stuck in. OK if you're prepared to go round the house once with the upright, then again with the hose setup for everything else, but not for those who prefer to switch back and forth between floor and above-floor cleaning before moving on to the next room. That's why so many used Kirbys of all ages often come with tool sets still in A1 condition with nothing missing... They rarely make it out of the cupboard.

 

[kirbymodel2c]

Hi Chris,

<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">Hi Chris, I wasn't saying you was brain picking lol. I'd expect you to know more than the sale person. I'm talking about the public in general. Coming in wanting to know what's the best vac for pets, The weight and suction of something, How long it might last, Are spares available etc etc. Then once you've spent time answering all their questions  it's.... Ok "we'll think about it"

</span>


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">Sometimes they come back sometimes they don't. So you don't know if your wasting your time or not with someone.</span>


 


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">One thing I don't tell the public is how to repair their vac. Why would I do myself out of money?? I'm a business not a charity

</span>


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">Also if you did tell someone what to do esp over the phone and they do it wrong they blame you...."You told me to do it" So best to keep quite when asked lol.</span>


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">Mind you it makes you laugh when they phone you up and say...."My hoovers broke, What's wrong with it?" Let me just get my crystal ball.

</span>


 


<span style="font-size: large; font-family: book antiqua,palatino;">James

</span>


 

 

[spiraclean]

James,

That does sound all too familiar I afraid. I used to work for a small independent chain, and while customers knew our service, delivery and after care was better, they would still insist they wanted to "think about it". Which meant buying it from Comet instead.

Wonder how that's working out for them now Comet have gone. Good luck with the non existent after sales service (which wasn't even all that great when it actually did still exist), I'm sure the twenty quid saving more than makes up for that.

 

[nycwriter]

Depends on the Kirby ...

As a New York City apartment dweller I never thought a "bulky, heavy" Kirby would be appropriate until I got my D80. It's actually smaller and lighter than my Fantom Thunder that I'd been using with no problem.

I can't speak to the Sentria since I've never used one in my space, though, but I'm assuming it has a wider brush roll then my D80, which would make it more tricky to maneuver through tight spaces.

 

[tolivac]

My Kirby tools don't get used that much-use one of my canisters instead-just use my Kirby for the WW carpet.I have used the tools on occasion just for the heck of it.Just have to be careful what I pick up.Since the motor and fan are turning faster with the hose-a quarter,pebble,could be a bad thing for the fan.Not an issue for canisters or the M1.

 

[alexhoovers94]

Get me a Hoover Turbopower!!!!
Non of this modern (cough, crap)

Please ignore the messy background!

 

[hi-loswitch98]

Is there still floor to vacuum in your house Alex?

 

[madabouthoovers]

AlexHoovers94 's house is gonna be featured on "Hoarding - Buried Alive" this year I believe - lol


 


(Buried alive by Hoover Turbopowers)!

 

[hi-loswitch98]

Haha Steve.

 

[alexhoovers94]

Currently not, no.
It is normally untidy but not this bad.