Panasonic MC-UG302

[richardc1983]

My brother has just bought one of these:

My brothers idea of getting a bagged he thought it was backwards way. I explained this is why you are replacing your bagless after a year because it was pap! The Morphy Richards was leaking air so was whistling and the seals had failed on the dust box. I hate bagless vacuums!

My parents had the panasonic model about 10 years ago and it was a fab machine with good suction, easy to push around and simple and no fuss. The difference between the new model is there is no longer a switch to turn the brush bar off when using the tools, this is a shame to be fair.

What do you guys think to this model. The only other contender was the MC-UG304 (black version) or a hoover purepower that had good reviews on argos.

Would you have reccomneded something else? His budget was about £70-£80. He hasnt had to pay though as he has taken the morphy richards back under the sales of goods act as it has failed a year and 3 months after purchase. Despite having a 2 year warranty Morphy Richards said that because they didnt register the product within 28 days of purchase that they only offer a 1 year warranty. So he took it up with Argos who honoured the 2 years.




http://www.panasonic.co.uk/html/en_.../Upright/MC-UG302/Overview/5075735/index.html

 

[turbo500]

that had good reviews on argos

Never trust Argos reviews. Argos shoppers gave the Bush branded Vestel washing machines 5 star reviews. Says it all.

The PurePowers are pretty average performers, VERY loud with awfully cheap construction. The handle release and carpet height adjuster are the first things to go. The on switch can be pretty tempremental too. The brushroll is seriously underwhelming, being too long and soft. Thankfully, you can still pick up and activator to go in it, which will improve performance slightly.

Although the current Panasonic's are a lot more basic than the old 400 series that you're refering to, they're still probably the best upright on the market under £100. Lightweight, solid construction and pretty high performing.

 

[ryry_87]

Yeh I agree with chris, I had the same machine in burgundy that I bought new in 2008, had it a few years and it was a great little vacuum. was nice and light to use, easy to maintain and it did a good enough job

 

[richardc1983]

Yeah I am thinking of getting one for the house and getting rid of the henry and the Sanitaire. Reason being is got wooden floors and dont need the upright apart from the rugs and its a pain getting the henry out of the cupboard to do the downstairs and keeping the sanitaire upstairs to do the upstairs.

What do you think?

 

[turbo500]

Richard, do you just have bare floors and rugs, no carpet? I wouldn't recommend going for an upright at all, if that's the case. A cylinder with an air-driven turbo brush or an upright with brush controls for bare floors would be better. A Sebo Felix might be a good idea? 



http://www.redsale.co.uk/sebo-felix-vogue-1300w-upright-vacuum-cleaner.html

 

[turbo500]

Or maybe a Miele Cat & Dog? Currys currently have the older style on offer (I actually prefer these over the new ones)



http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/miele-s766-cat-dog-cylinder-vacuum-cleaner-red-16424027-pdt.html

 

[turbo500]

Or the Sebo K1, if you're wanting something a bit lighter?



http://www.go-electrical.co.uk/laun...der-vacuum-cleaner-black-and-silver-grey.html

 

[richardc1983]

I just have carpet on the landing and stairs and rugs. The rest is wooden floors. The trouble is storage with a cylinder vac otherwise would just keep the henry and buy a airo brush for the rugs. Uprights are easier to store and the panasonic has onboard tools should I need them.

Not sure how it picks up on wooden floors though as some vacs just flick the dirt about on hard surfaces. Thats what the sanitaire does when it comes to grit or cat litter.

 

[richardc1983]

Also dont have much money to spend where the panasonics can be bought 2nd hand for about £30 in good condition too.

 

[turbo500]

I wouldn't recommend the Panasonic - they're one of the only vacuums left on the market that still has beater bars, so it'll more than likely just scratch your bare floors. A second hand Panasonic with beater bar controls would be better, or maybe a second hand Sebo?[this post was last edited: 3/20/2013-05:22]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SEBO-X4-E...446?pt=UK_Vacuum_Cleaners&hash=item1c312b502e

 

[turbo500]

If you were to buy something more expensive, you'd more than likely make your money back selling the Henry and the Sanitaire on eBay - both sell easilly and make quite a bit.

I used one of these Panasonic's a few months back and was VERY impressed. The tools are not on-board, but they attach through a port at the back of the cleaner (like an old Lux 500). They also have full in-handle brush controls so you can turn the brushroll off for bare floors. They're also pretty lighweight and quiet. [this post was last edited: 3/20/2013-05:52]

http://www.sonicdirect.co.uk/Uprigh...t&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=googlemerchant

 

[sebo_fan]

Don't bother - Keep Henry!

Richard -

I don't like the high power Panasonic uprights - reason being that out of all the things that are good about them, they have 2 drive belts to replace - the Panasonic MC UG522 I bought (which is a new model for 2013) uses one drive belt and a slight more modern design on offer with a slightly better longer hose - but still, its a traditional upright and the prices new from Amazon UK are around £70 to £80. Also the newer model has an entire wooden brush roll with no beater bars (see thread on here http://www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?18722)

However looking at all the responses you have got and knowing that you are in the market for cheaper cost machines, I'd say stick with Henry. Henry is by far the best choice for your flooring needs and as you rightly justify, buying the Airobrush will be enough for the amount of carpet you have and leaving the brush head out for the carpet care would be just enough if space is limiting! The suction floor head on Henry alone is great for hard flooring and there's really no need in selling Henry if you want good reliability, massive dust bags as you already know and practicality due to the long hose.

Click the link below for the Panasonic upright if you're interested. My verified review is also on there for that model.

HOWEVER, if you feel that getting Henry out is a chore, it would still be a chore with just about any other cylinder on the market - generally speaking if you have carpets and as you say rugs to deal with, depending on how shaggy they are (knowing full well that brush rolls could destroy or the drive belts themselves requiring to be replaced), get yourself a GTech cordless sweeper.

If it was me, I'd just keep the Henry though and invest in the Airobrush. Cleanstore UK sell them for £24-99 which is a bit of a bargain if you don't like EBAY or Amazon UK, though they may be cheaper there.

Check by http://www.cleanstore.co.uk/products/Product.asp?ID=1324

http://www.amazon.co.uk/product-reviews/B009377MDO/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

 

[sebo_fan]

Also, forgot to add...
The Panasonic-MC-UG614 that Chris refers to comes with an attachment bag of tools that would be required to be manually fitted - although based on an U.S Kenmore, I found it anything but lightweight - the floor head is massive and though it swivels, its not as agile as other swivel vacuums. It does feature a brush roll on/off but the plastics are not as expected for the asking price and it comes with a silly push in plastic stand at the back that can't be stored on the machine to keep the upright stable from falling over.

The bagged one I bought shares the same bags with this model, though and the MC UG522 is a lot easier to steer because of its fixed traditional position as well as being a heck of a lot lighter.

 

[richardc1983]

Thank you for the info so far. Loving the sebo x1 & x4 do you know what pick up is like on hard floors?

 

[turbo500]

I've found the Sebo X series pick up on hard floors to be pretty good. Even though the brushroll gives the carpet a good grooming, it doesn't do any damage on hard floors and picks up really well

 

[turbo500]

Richard, I'll do a video tonight of the Sebo on hard floor pick up.

 

[sebo_fan]

Richard - the Xs are good - the dark grey hood and light grey bin X1 Automatics are the best for cheap cost effective running and that model comes with a 1000 watt motor compared to the all white model that is rated at 850 watts and has slightly lower suction. Only downside to the X1Automatic is that being older, it cuts off the suction if you ever require the stair cleaning air driven turbo brush AND has a metal soleplate with no rubber squeegee built in.

Also all of the X models have an auto sensor adjustment so you have to give it a couple of seconds each time you switch it on to sense the thickness or thinness of the carpet.

The later X1.1 has an 1150 watt motor compared to the 1300 watts of the X4 - both newer models have a stepped motor that can use the turbo brush attachment and doesn't cut the suction off when the tool is fixed on. Both also have plastic sole plates and rubber squeegee built in for hard floors - they are also replaceable and available from SEBO.

 

[richardc1983]

What do you mean by cuts suction off when turbo brush is on as I use one for the car, sofa & stairs.

Thanks for your advice so far

 

[sebo_fan]

The X1 Automatic switches off if the turbo brush has been added to the hose - or it should do! It recognises it as a clog in the hose.

Of course the exception to the rule are refurbished X1's AND the light grey with dark grey hood models *thus fitted with the 1000 watt motor. I bought one a couple of months ago and it takes a fair old time for my refurb'd X1 to recognise that the turbo brush has been added on the end of the hose before one of the lights start blinking on and off.

The newer X1.1, X4 and X5 don't shut off - SEBO updated the motor to compensate for the turbo brush when it is added on.