Vacuumalex Answers Your Questions to Upright Vacuum Ratings

[vacuumalex]

Vacuumalex Responding to Questions
Hi there,
Thanks for all the input. I just wanted to answer some of your questions. First, I don't personally own a Kirby, I have only used my friend's. It is a superior cleaner, but I think that my Royal is just a touch better. The vacuums that I have had with plastic fans didn't clean as well as those with metal fans. I do agree Royals' are not as good of quality as they used to be, it's unfortunate. I am also not a big fan of bypass motor vacuums. I think that the best one I have used is a Dirt Devil MVP. I liked it better than a Hoover Windtunnel or Eureka Boss. However, like I said, the Dirt Devil had good suction but when the brush wore out it cleaned pretty poorly. One other reason I don't like bypasses is because most of the time, the suction is only on one side, I think that the suction needs to be in the center and the brushroll casing needs to be curved like that of some other vacuums. This would direct the dirt into the suction rather that hoping the suction will pull it off to the side. I have never used a Hoover Dial-A-Matic so I can't say how they work. As for Concepts Ones and Two's, I have vacuumed some very tough carpets in my time and the Hoover Concept One by far out performed any bypass model that was used on the same carpet. This is where I have had most of my experience with Hoover Windtunnels and Eureka Bosses. It has just always been my experience that bypass vacuums while convienent with attachments, are not as good of cleaners as those like the Royal, Kirby, Concept One and Twos or Hoover Elite or Sanitaires etc. When I have shopped for new vacuums and have tested Sebos or Mieles, it took several passes to effectively clean the carpet when the same carpet was cleaned much better and quicker by other models, in particular, Royal, Riccar and Sanitaires. While Sanitaires are very good cleaners I still think the Hoover Elites of the early/mid 1990's and early 2000's had a slight edge above the Sanitaires. The situation is similar to comparing Royals and Kirbys, they are both excellent vacuums, it is only my opinion that I believe one cleans slightly better than the other. Hope that this helps clear up any confusion. Thanks! Alex

 

[petek]

Alex, why are you starting new posts answering to a post you already have in progress. It's very confusing for everybody.

 

[tristar]

If nobody responds to these "new" threads, they'll die where they were posted. Easy enough solution no?

 

[ohio_tuec]

Alex, I just want to say I understand and respect everything you posted above. We all have our "favorites" and no matter what machine we may feel is superior, every machine may have its flaws in another mind's eye. I do feel however, if you do try a bypass vacuum, the Dial-A-Matic is the machine by which all others MUST be judged. True, it does not have a center suction inlet, and the brushroll may have been flawed, but overall, I've come to find it is an excellent performer. I myself dislike the fact that sometimes the plastic frame cracks where the metal handle is inserted. I really thought the Dirt Devil clean air could be a competitor, but time as proven otherwise. Most early Dirt Devils were discarded of years ago due to motor failure. On the contrary, many DAM's 40+ years old, are still proving their worth today! The power drive versions were unnecessarily heavy, but for Hoover, it was a first.