Test Drive of Miele

[williamr1248]

I went to a nice vac store and tried out a Miele Canister.
The machine they showed me was a S5381 (I think).
This is not the first time I have looked at Miele's. I still have very mixed feelings about the machines.
On the positive side:
(1) very very quiet
(2) seems to be well constucted
(3) easy to push and user friendly
(4) beautiful color
On the negative side:
(1) bags and filter are very pricey
(2) bag is small
(3) tools are small
(4) electric power brush did not seem to pull up the nap very well on test carpet
Has anyone had any experience with the Miele canisters?

 

[suckolux]

I have a new Titan, kicks butt pretty good actually. I can agree with some of your points though. I would add, pretty short power cord. Well made, good power,I mean seriously good power.The powerhead is smaller, very quiet, and really picks up my carpet well, better than my Progressive Kenmore, not up to the Concept 1.

 

[piano_god]

IMHO, Miele canisters are the pinnacle of all modern machine

As a lifelong vacuum geek and someone who works in a vacuum store, I appreciate that Miele designs not only from a user standpoint, but from a service standpoint too. For a modern machine, they are one of the easiest machines to work on.

Bags are expensive, but include the pre-motor filter as well as the Super Air Clean filter which is used if you do not want use the HEPA filter. It's also worth noting that Miele HyClean / AirClean bags do not leak dust into the bag compartment like a lot of paper / synthetic bags that are used in other machines.

There are three powerhead options for the S2 and S5 series. The best being the SEB 236, which technically is the Wessel Werk EBK 340. All powerheads are manufactured by Wessel Werk to Miele's design specifications.

Attachments onboard are compact like most machines in the marketplace, but there is a broad selection of additional tools available. Fittings are 1 3/8" diameter, like most european machines.

Here in Canada, until October 3rd, all Miele machines come with a 10 year parts and labour warranty. The standard warranty here is 5 years parts and labour, 7 years on the motor.

I am not positive, but I think it is still 1 year parts and labour, 7 years on the motor in the USA, though...

And before I forget, I have five Miele's...

 

[tolivac]

the Filtrete,and HyClean meile bags may look small-but you can can PACK a lot of dirt in them-much more than a conventioanl paper bag.They are worth the cost.I have pulled bags like these out of my Meiles that were practically dirt and dust "bricks" before the machine lost cleaning power.Same if this style bag used in other machines.Far better than paper bags-and actually cheaper-you use LESS of the Filtrete style bags as opposed to the paper ones which you can only fill about half full before you have to replace them becasue the pores are clogged with fine dirt.

 

[eluxca]

I agree with you on the bags, Rex. You can fill them insanely full and the machine still has suction power. I love my Aquarius after 2 years of use. The only shortcoming is a shortish cord; otherwise it is a well-rounded everyday vacuum.

Rob, go with the TOL machines, Earth (I think this is the Aquarius replacement?) or the Capricorn. Ther're still made in Germany and still feel like a Miele. Get the parquet brush, it is amazing.

John

 

[compactelectra]

Rob

I completely understand. It took me a long time to come over to the Miele. Price was the main obstacle for me. I finally sucumbed and bought one. Now I'm sold. They are powerful, quiet and well made. Not to mention easy on the eyes. Lots of selection with respect to attachments. When asked to recommend a machine for someone who could afford it, I thought a bit and recommended a Miele. Here are mine behind Tania on her last visit. She's back this weekend for an adventure - more later.

 

[suckolux]

I love to play with my nostalgia machines, but like the feel of clean after the Miele is done. Even stops any sneezing for me.

 

[williamr1248]

Test Drive of a Miele

Thanks for all the information about the Miele. I will just have to get over myself with the cost of those bags! I am used to taking about 10 seconds to empty the Rainbow and NO cost for bags and filters and no dusty smell or oder. My 18 year old Rainbow SE still has not a hint of dust inside the motor housing.
Tania will back me up here, I hate to store the filth,dirt and germs in the closet. I also LOVE the older machines but you will NEVER see me using the old machines upstairs. It makes no sense to me no matter how good a machine picks it up off the rug if it just throws it all over the drapes,tables and furniture. I am told the Miele is very good with filtration.
They sure are beautiful machines.
The dealer did show me that wonderful floor tool. Great design.

 

[sanimatic]

Miele S7 upright

Hey Rob, I don't mean to get off topic because I use uprights only, so I have no familiarity with Miele Canisters.

When the Miele S7 Upright came out in USA, I had to jump on the bandwagon having no history what so ever with Miele, and I have to say from a filtration standpoint, the bag and filter system will rid your worries about dust, germs, etc in the closet.

The HyClean bag can pack up like a brick and the machine still has terrific suction. As a contact lense wearer, and someone with horrendous allergies, I can tell instantly when a vac is sending any dust out in the air, and I have to say that on my Miele upright, there is no trace of dust in the air.

Maybe an apples to oranges comparison to what you are considering, but I wanted to applaud the Miele design as to filtration.

Chris.

 

[magic-clean]

Red Velvet

here. As others have mentioned, a quiet & competent cleaner. Very good bare floor brush and great suction even with the power dialed down. Very pleasant to use.

But a little disappointing in the reliability department for what the machine costs. Wish we had the generous Canadian warranty in the US. Cord reel has broken and been repaired. Now the 'park' feature has failed a couple weeks ago. The park switch is attached to a very this plastic tab that is part of the cleaner body and has cracked. So as I've been told, in order to restore this feature, the cleaner body must be replaced. I've simply bypassed the feature. Not nice on 4 year old well cared for $1200 cleaner.

I think if we were doing this again, I'd buy the least featured Miele canister for bare & above the floor cleaning and get a separate upright for carpeting.

 

[thermokid]

Terrific Miele's

I have three Miele's.. The Red Star started it for me, although I wasn't to fond of the power nozzle on it. It had kind of a cheesy brush roll in it... Recently I bought a Capricorn and got the top of the line power nozzle with it. Very fine machine. When I bought the Capricorn from my old Hoover dealer in California he talked me into buying a S7 upright also. It is the Tango model.... I Love them all.. I didn't know they made other attachments for them other then the ones that came with the machines...however I do have the turbo brush that goes on the hose and it works very good on Wiener dog hair.....

 

[tolivac]

I have the Red Velvet as well as the Capricorn.The hose end on the Capricorn is easier to use with hand tools-the Red Velvet hose nozzle is awkward to use with hand tools-but is comfortable to use with floor tools.Will take a Meile over a Rainbow anytime.The filtration of the Meile is better than a Rainbow-Water is not an ideal filter-It won't trap what it can't "wet"-Ashes,Plaster dust,large amaount of flour-in the instruction book on my Rainbow e2 they tell you NOT to try to pick up large amounts of those items-they will clog the HEPA exhaust filter.Rainbow had to add that filter because the water filter won't trap everything.and many Rainbows I have taken apart-their fans and fan housings were coated in fine dust.

 

[williamr1248]

Rest Drive of the Miele

Rex,
Thanks for your comments. I have an interest in a Miele IF I can just get past that much money for a plastic vac. My real stopping point was the price of the bags and filters.
Of course as a vac collector I would NEVER pick up flour,fireplace ash or plaster dust with ANY of my machines so that has never been an issue for my Rainbow.
I have been investigating the new Rainbow with the hepa filter. What I have found so far is that if you use the machine correctly that filter stays clean and is washable.
What I like about my old Rainbow is that the house actually smells good after I use it and you do not have to store the filth in the closet. It kind of seems like with most vacuuums you are spending time ALWAYS trying to stop the nasty smell and leaking dust or changing bags,cleaning bins and replacing filters. It takes me about 20 seconds to flush the dirt in the bathroom and I am done. I also notice that unlike so many of my machines,even if I clean the garage my Rainbow does not lose air flow. I tried one of my other vacuums and even with a hepa bag it lost a lot of air flow in just a few minutes in the garage.
I just need to make up my mind on which Miele. I don't know why they make so many models and they all seem so much alike.
I have been told GOOD things from Fred and John. The Miele may be one of those vacuums that you MUST use to get what makes them so good. Again I thank you for all your information. I will give you guys an update when I get a Miele (and you know as a collector I will have to have one)

 

[tolivac]

Rob: I think if you try the Meile you may like it better than the Rainbow.I like the Meile better.I don't have any odor problems,leaking dust,etc with any of my bagged vacuums.I wouldn't use any of my vacuums to clean the garage except for my Shop Vac.-or the leaf blower-just blow the stuff outside.Truthfully the Meile is a very high quality machine for being plastic-the plastic they use is very high grade-and Meile has a VERY high quality motor.I haven't had any odor problems with any of my Meiles-the Filtrete style bags keep down the smells-same as with using the Filtrete type bags in my Kirbys.I also don't use My Rainbow to pick up the debris like ash,plaster dust,etc-use one of my NSS M1's or the Shop Vac.The M1 is actually better than the Shop Vac.And yes-did clean a freinds fireplace with the M1-but replaced the paper bag afterwards.
Another thing on Rainbows-DO NOT dump the bin in the toilet--I knew of someone that did this over the years-and she got a hell of a Roto Rooter bill to clean her plumbing in her house.The waste from the vacuum in combination with your waste-hardens to almost like concrete in the plumbing drain line.It took 3 sawtooth Roto Rooter blades to clean the plumbing-and the teeth were worn off them.These blades are a high quality spring steel-pretty tough-normally used as the name says-to cut thru tree or plant roots that get into drain lines.I empty my Rainbows bin in the garden after picking out the carpet or other lint.That I put in the trash.Then no plumbing worries.

 

[joshdonnell]

miele

i think the miele is the best and better then the rainbow