Poor filtration on new vacuums

[hepa]

I've noticed a disturbing trend with recent middle to lower end bagless vacuum cleaners here lately.. Almost all the Bissell, Eureka, and Hoover's I have seen have either had only foam filters, or cheap *HEPA Media* where most of the dust can escape past the unit.

I guess being a severe allergy sufferer I notice it more, but it seems like companies can try a little more..

I know all you bag fan's hate bagless unit's anyways to begin with, but I just dislike the bag on my Oreck. My Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away has a sealed HEPA system + the way the bin is designed I can quickly take it outside and slowly release the dirt into a bin or have my partner do it and it's no different than a bag to me.

 

[loganvac]

I'm not surprised...

Along with the new department store machines being built cheaper, the filtration system is built more poorly as well because its another part of the vacuum. I agree with you, they should try alittle harder. Filtration is a must for me, along with many other homes. Alot of the vacuum companies are failing to realize this.

 

[dysonman1]

I noticed that Eureka's newest bagless machines only use a foam pre-motor filter with no exhaust filter. I believe the leaking fine dust and clogging effect of the dust on the foam filter, contributes to a very short motor life - something that's beneficial to manufacturers and retailers alike.

 

[marks_here]

I don't know how they can call them vacuum cleaners when they leak so much dust. It's almost like the good old days where you vacuum first & dust everything last!

 

[parwaz786]

Machines like Dyson, Miele and Numatics are the best IMHO for filtration.

 

[sebo_fan]

Most home owners I know in the UK empty their bagless vacs inside the home rather than go out in the cold. I have a bagless vac myself out of the many bagged ones I have. There's good reason to have one I think if it doesn't leak dust.

It comes down to cost. Even some bagged vacs on the market are poorly built. Most brands these days are just out to make money.

 

[floor-a-matic]

TriStar A101 (EXL, MG1, MG2, MG3 & CS) have sealed HEPA filtration that beats a Diesoon, Miele or Shark anyday

 

[kenkart]

A Filter Queen has always

Filtered as good or better than anything out there..

 

[hvrvaclvr]

I hate the filtration with my Eureka Airspeed One Turbo! I have allergies and this vacuum is the worst filtering vacuum I own. I went out to Walmart to get it the day it was launched because I really like my original Airspeed.

Not only is that foam filter atrocious, the vacuum is soooo flimsy.

 

[Mike81]

Also AEG/Electrolux UltraSilencer, UltraOne and UltraActive + other Ultra models are proven to have fully sealed system. Tests was done by the consumer reports in several European countries.

 

[niclonnic]

That's true

I hate the filter setup on the Bissell Powerforce Helix ($47.84)! I have allergies and this vacuum does a really poor job at filtration. The filters (outer foam and inner pleated) get dirty so fast it's not even funny.

On the Eureka AirSpeed Unlimited Rewind ($100) I formerly owned, despite it being dual-cyclonic and having "no loss of suction," the foam filter dirties quickly after a few uses. In addition, it has an "anti-allergen" exhaust filter that is NOT HEPA. It got dirty with carbon dust after a few uses. Plus, this filter is not washable and must be replaced every 6 months.

My Hoover Windtunnel 2 Rewind Pet ($140) actually has a pretty good filtration system! It has a "HEPA filter with activated carbon" that absorbs pet odors. In my mind it works fairly well.

My Bissell C4 Cyclonic canister vacuum ($300) has an excellent filtration system! Plus, it's extremely quiet. I have only sneezed once while using this vacuum.

So, in the end, I think that vacuum manufacturers are trying to save money with these cheap machines. The cheaper the vacuum, the worse the filtration system is going to be.

 

[man114]

Some, like the Bissell Healthy Home at least try. I bought a cheap Eureka Airspeed for my breezeway and it was absolutely awful. I gave it to my friend for his apartment.

Emptying the bin inside is fine with something like the Rainbow, most others you'll generate some dust.

 

[vacuumkid47]

I'm not much for......

the newer Shark machines, Dyson, or Bissell. I have a few Bissells, and all of them are a pain in the heine to clean out, ESPECIALLY the fliters. I think every 5 minutes, it gets clogged. Dyson, hohoho, don't get me started. LOL Shark on the other hand I like but, a bit on the expensive side. I would buy a Kirby Avalir for $500 in Orange City, IA. At least it can last a lifetime.

 

[fantomlightning]

The...

UltraActive may be fine with the final HEPA, but the rest is fairly atrocious. I love mine, don't get me wrong, but in mine Capture managed to find it's way past the cyclone, pre-motor filter, the insulation around the motor, and into the HEPA in large quantities.

 

[Mike81]

UltraActive

I own the UltraPerformer (same as UltraActive). And yes, cyclone isn't very effective. Foam filter gets dirty pretty quickly, and needs to be washed regularly. I have two foam pre motor filters for that reason. So when I wash the dirty one, one clean is dry and ready to be used.
I haven't had problems with dust or any other particles going to the Hepa filter. However I wash the foam filter rather regularly.
Bagged UltraOne is model to go if you want best from the Electrolux. It uses very high quality and filtration S-Bags. It also has more airflow than U.Active and is quieter (80Db vs 70 Db)
One my biggest mistakes was selling my 5 yearl old UltraOne. But I needed the money.

UltraActive cyclone test (flour and fine dust):

http://https//www.youtube.com/watch?v=KemPr8-XVQY

 

[mark40511]

I've never been able to figure out

if my Epic 6500 is *SEALED*. It certainly does not have a hepa, but an after filter on the top that fits snugly and I feel no air escaping the machine other than through that filter....There is only the bag, then that filter, but it does pretty good at filtering I think (not as good as my rainbow) but there's no dust at all in the bin that holds the bag, which I find amazing, because the bags feel so cheap.....

My shark does a great job at filtering too..

 

[seamusuk]

At the end of the day ...

Not being funny but if you have severe allergies why are you even looking at cheap bagless piles of junk ? If cost is that much of an issue maybe look for a decent quality older bagged machine ?
Just my 2 cents....
Seamus

 

[dys0nb0y]

Just because it's Bagless doesn't mean it's plastic junk.

 

[turbo500]

Just because it's Bagless doesn't mean it's plas

Where did anybody say that?

The fact of the matter is, the examples that the original poster has mentioned as poor filteration machines ARE cheap plastic junk. Nobody said anything about all bagless vacuums being like that.