What is the quietest vacuum cleaner of all time, and what is the noisiest? "Discuss."

[hoover1060]

some neat vacuums...

Nobody has yet mentioned the old Singer twin fan uprights, expecially the all plastic ones of the later 70's and 80's made for Sears and under the "Singer System" name. They were screamers!
I'd also add the Hoover Concept One and Elite to that list, as well as the Windtunnel for noisy machines.

For quiet I'd have to say Electrolux tanks are good(their uprights are noisy) and for a quiet upright a well tuned Hoover Convertible is positiveliy musical to listen to!

 

[converto-skip]

Electrolux Model G

I have to agree with the majority the lux G is the quietest of all vacuums

Skip...

 

[andy]

convertible

"for a quiet upright a well tuned Hoover Convertible is positiveliy musical to listen to!"

I'll second that. As a child, the only Convertibles I had experienced were well-used plastic versions which roared.

I'll never forget when I was in my late teens and I put new bearings in a metal Convertible from the 60's, and I just couldn't stop using it, because I loved the sweet purring noise it made.

 

[luxg]

Of course my vote goes to the Lux G as well!!

 

[timborow]

I wish these vacuum companies would start considering noise as a factor when building their new vacuums. I would think a 4 amp motor would be much cheaper to produce than a 12 amp. We all know that 4 amps on an upright is plently to clean a rug or bare floor, why do they insist on pushing these screaming 12 ampers? A 7 amp canister with good insulation around the motor would purr and clean just as well as these new 12 amps. I sure wish they would reconsider?

By the way, do any of you know if there is any material that can be used to insulate an Oreck motor to make it quieter?
Tim

 

[robbytuck]

besides Filter Queen...

How about the Modern Hygene tank from the early '50's. My grandmother had one and I remember how very quiet it was!


Best to all,

Bob

 

[charles~richard]

Modern Hygiene

I have a Modern Hygiene and don't think it's particularly quiet! The louvers on the back end do diffuse the sound somewhat but since there is no rear filter or cover back there, the sound of the motor is pretty clear and direct. It's a gorgeous machine though!

Of course, since it's really just a Royal in "fancy dress," that's exactly what it sounds like -- a contemporaneous Royal tank machine.



http://www.137.com/modern

 

[bigbubbacain]

My little Simplcity Prowler canister was very quiet. All I could hear was the air moving..

 

[air-waycharlie]

The new Mieles and Boschs are very quiet espically on the lower speeds. Even the lux Renny is quiet compared to a current Hoover, Kirby, Royal or Dyson.

 

[bigbubbacain]

Excuse my Simplicity remark. Here I am talking about newer machines in the vintage forum. Sorry! That's just what a little Attention Deficit Disorder and vacuum cleaners do to me.
As for quiet vintage machines, The SaniWay Mark IV gets my vote. I had a chance to buy one and I could kick myself for passing it up!

 

[frkirby511]

Sounds of Silence...!

No question, the Model G is exceptionally quiet; but so is the Model XXX. I would say the XXX and the G, even the Hospital G are about on par. I would say that they are the quietest.

I would also have to agree that the Convertable...the older models..well tuned....have a distinctive and wonderful sound - and though not the quietest, they are not the least bit annoying.

Also the Kirby 516 through to the Sanitronic, while certaily not quiet, have a very powerful sound that is almost musical.

No Kirby since then has come close to the sound of that later 500 series even though the later ones...especially the Legend and the G series do have a lot more suction.

 

[frkirby511]

Sounds of Silence...addition..

...forgot to add...

The Kirby sound I'm talking about is most apparent in the later 500 series with the hose attached and not the rug nozzle. No Kirby since then has reproduced this altogether distinctive sound.

Bruce

 

[bisonian]

Bison

... gets my vote for the loudest. Don't know about the Centurion, but the Mark I and Mark II can scream with the best of 'em. But the rheostat control makes it fun. Start on low, then ramp up, and your neighbors will swear there's a 707 taking off.

As for the Kirbys, no, they're not the quietest, but I find their lower pitch a lot less annoying than screamers like most Dirt Devils. The Kirby sounds more like a good quality power tool instead of a rabid kitchen appliance.

 

[tolivac]

The new Areos "Lux" Guardian canister sounds like a B-52 taking off in your living room compared to the older quieter model "G".I like the throaty roar of the Kirbys and Royals-and many other direct air machines.they use the smaller motors-they don't need 12A motors-the clean air machines do because they have to pull air thru all of those filters as well as the bag.Would like to find a Bison to compare with Kirbys and Royals.Still hunting for one.They sound like nice machines-would have been good competition to kirby.Kirby is the ONLY DTD upright vacuum.I have new canister vacs from Meile,Sebo and Riccar that are quiet.The motor mounts are a good thing that quiets them down.Otherwise the plastic bodies make a great sounding board for noisey motors to further amplify their sound.

 

[countryguy]

I have to agree that the Aerus 9000 (similiar to the Guardian) is very loud even compared to the Lux 6500 SR. I have a Lux 89 and it is super quiet. The Kirby is loudy but bearable and still quieter than the Aerus 9000.

 

[charles~richard]

Canadian Electroluxes

Yes, of course, I completely forgot about the Canadian Electroluxes. They ALL are quieter than their American cousins!

The ZB30 and ZB55 [et al] hum merrily along even quieter than the XXX; and the ZB88 and ZB89 are basically the same machine as the American G but with the LX/E/AE-style filter pad in the rear which makes those machines about as quiet as a Hospital G. Amazingly sweet sound!

 

[charles~richard]

Canadian ZB54

pretty, eh!

 

[charles~richard]

ZB89

Another Canadian beauty!

(And that's an old photo - when I had hair and more belly hahaha!)

 

[jaker15]

I know it's WAAAAY late

But the quietest I've heard is probably my grandma's Compact canister. It hums along in the background while you clean. Her Eureka ESP wasn't too loud, but ti wasn't quiet, either. It definitely had a musical quality to it!

 

[beerad]

Ahhhhh ok here we go..

Quietest vac I've experienced was a Taski

Also Hoover Connie model 854


And for the noisiest .......OMG....

It was a Red Dirt Devil featherlight lupright .

I've never heared such a scrrrrreaming , noisy vac as that one ,
I threw it away..