With Bagless Vacuum Cleaners - do you empty the container after every use or when it gets full?

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hi-loswitch98

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Apr 29, 2013
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What do you do?

I always thought that it was essential to empty the dust container after every use but then again I haven't had much experience with Bagless Cleaners.

I guess it does depend on how the machine is designed & the capacity of the Dust Bin.

Thanks for any replies!
 
It depends on what you are looking for

Many bagless cleaners lose suction so quickly that it's more than advisory to empty it mid-use; it's often essential, as is cleaning the main filter. Of course, a good deal of consumers don't do that, or at the end of a cleaning session, they do it when it looks full, and quite frankly, I don't think they can be blamed as there has been very little to suggest otherwise.

A Dyson cleaner will of course go on & on until the tank is full, so it's not necessary to empty that until it's ready, and in fact on models where the dust could not be emptied from the bottom of the tank, it was a bit of a job to do and was probably best left for as long as possible anyway.
 
I think it depends on the kind of bagless cyclonic vac you have. Back in the day when I owned Dyson you could get away with going past the Max empty suggestive line but the older types depend on the filter design, particularly if you know in the back of your mind that you will have to attack the filter to be cleaned. It is one reason to why I prefer bagged vacs - there's very little to clean dependent on the brand you have.
 
I do as advised in the operating instructions, all my bagless cleaners say empty when the dirt reaches the MAX line but they all have decent cyclone systems. If I had one of those horriable pleated filter in the bin types I'd be emptying and tapping the filter after every use.

Dan
 
I'd say that it's all a matter of ...

<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;">... personal preference.  When I use my bagless machines -- either one of my two Dysons (DC07 All Floors upright, DC11 Telescope cylinder), one of my two Electrolux Twinclean cylinders, or my Electrolux PowerSystem Z1720 upright -- I prefer to empty the bin thoroughly when I'm done cleaning.  And sometimes, I have to dump out the bin midway through the job when I'm doing a heavy clean!</span>


 


<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms,geneva;">-- Bill W.  </span>
 
Its not just that though - if you have or own a cheap bagless cyclonic with a paper pleated filter you have to know in your mind what you're picking up that will clog easily and thus cut the suction. Doesn't matter if its a Hoover Jazz, Dust Manager or even a Bissell bagless - if it uses the old cyclonic filter cleaning principle after each use, its pointless to call it reliable. Not when you have to clean it out all of the time.

Dependent on the kind of dust you're picking up, some brands and their associated models can get away with different types of dust that doesn't necessarily clog up the filter quickly.

Yet again though, if your machine has a bag theres none of that extra bit of work.
 
Hoover Jazz & Dustmanager

just a heads up that the Hoover Jazz and Dust Manager use 2 different bagless systems. The DM uses a crappy low efficiency, direct filter cyclone in a dustbox that leaks. The Jazz uses a high efficiency, multiple dust seperation cyclone similar to (but not the same as) a Dyson or a Vax Mach. The Slalom, Freedom, Jazz and Turbo Power all use a high efficiency cyclone. The rest of Hoovers range uses the crappy filters. The cyclone isn't as efficient as a Dyson, but it's still 100% better than any of the cheaper cyclones. If anything, the Hoover Airvolution cyclone and the Vax Mach cyclones are more similar to the original Dyson Dual cyclone than anything else.

Back on topic, I don't own a bagless vacuum. I have had several Dysons over the years and always kept them for a few months and then sold them on. I've always preferred bags as I'm highly allergic to dust and therefore emptying a bagless vacuum usually sets off a sneezing, wheezing, itchy eye fit. The last Dyson I owned was a DC04 Absolute - I actually quite like the DC04's and if I was to own a Dyson for daily use, it would be one of these. I just emptied it when it was full - I didn't see any point in emptying it every time.

turbo500++5-27-2013-06-37-41.jpg
 
Indeed the only way a bagless is effective in picking up dirt is when the bin is emptied after each use, which is why a bagged is much more convenient.

It is actually a huge step BACKWARDS for vacuum cleaners, as they used to have to be emptied after each use when the "shake-out" bags were still in use in the 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s then paper bags were fitted and made things a lot easier.

Bagless has just brought us back to those days of unhygienic messy empting all the time.
 
I should probably add that my previous statement was in relation to cheaper (more common) bagless machines such as the Dust Manager and similar.

More advanced cyclones can be left for a while before emptying but are still much higher maintenance than bagged.

Of course in some applications a bagless machine is better and I do actually own one (though it never comes within 6 feet of another cleaner and has more dust on the outside than in the bin) so I'm not totally biasted towards bagged, I just prefer them.
 
Indeed the only way a bagless is effective is when the bin i

Sorry Jamie, but I disagree entirely. If you use a bagless cleaner with a high efficiency, multi-cyclonic system, you shouldn't need to empty the cleaner after each use and you should only need to wash the filters every few months. 3-6 months, depending on use and what you've been cleaning up.

It's these type of cyclones that need emptying and cleaning after each use with the pleated HEPA filters actually in the dust bin and no dust seperation system. The Dyson cyclone works by seperating dust particles, with larger particles being spun out of the air first in the bottom of the cyclone, the air passing through the different cyclones as it does, the particles get smaller and smaller, so only very very fine dust ever reaches the filer. Whereas on these, all the dust and dirt is coming into direct contact with the filters, meaning they require more maintenance.

turbo500++5-27-2013-06-45-14.jpg
 
Bagless has just brought us back to those days of unhygienic

well, not entirely. These is a significant difference between tipping a plastic bin full of dust into the trash or shaking out a cloth bag. The cloth bag is porous and so will retain dust particles, despite how many times you shake it (oooo-errrr Mrs!). Plastic isn't, so the dust will just slide out with minimum retention.
 
With the Dust Manager Upright though the dirt enters just below the filter so it shouldn't need emptying after each use or am I wrong.
 
the dirt enters just below the filter

That doesn't really make any difference, to be honest. The suction is still coming through the filter above, so more dirt and dust is coming into contact with the filters than on the Jazz or other multi-cyclonic cleaner. The DM is also one of the most notorious cleaners for leaking dust into the bag chamber (or box chamber) and motor. It's amazing how many dust managers you see covered in dust and burnt out at the tip. They've been on sale for far too long now, it's about time Hoover scrapped them in favour of the Jazz, Turbo Power and Globe
 
"Sorry Jamie, but I disagree entirely. If you use a bagless cleaner with a high efficiency, multi-cyclonic system, you shouldn't need to empty the cleaner after each use and you should only need to wash the filters every few months. 3-6 months, depending on use and what you've been cleaning up." Yes I agree totally, as per my follow up to the first reply.

"well, not entirely. These is a significant difference between tipping a plastic bin full of dust into the trash or shaking out a cloth bag. The cloth bag is porous and so will retain dust particles, despite how many times you shake it (oooo-errrr Mrs!). Plastic isn't, so the dust will just slide out with minimum retention." Ah yes, but shaking out a cloth bag is so much more entertaining and think about the calories burnt. Excercise bike? No thank you, I've got my shake out bag.
 
"The DM is also one of the most notorious cleaners for leaking dust into the bag chamber (or box chamber) and motor. It's amazing how many dust managers you see covered in dust and burnt out at the tip." I concur Chris, our DM lasted 6 months before tripping the thermal cut out every 10 minutes and eventually going up in smoke (quite literally).
 
Jamie, you had a Dustmanager? I did not know this. You poor thing. My neighbours have just replaced a rather battered DC03 with a Dustmanager. Between that and the cheapo Vax on the other side, it's like living next to bloody Heathrow airport come cleaning day!
 
Ha ha, I can only imagine.

Yes indeed I did suffer the dreaded Dust Manager.

That was the second vacuum Hoover managed to bugger up, after the Pure Power of course.
 
I was recently involved with this type of discussion with a friend who owns a very large Black Lab and a very large Border Collie. He has a Dirt Devil bagless featherlite (with that horrible pleated filter in the middle). I gave him a Simplicity Symmetry to try out. He's a fireman, so only vacuums once a week. The bin in the bagless would fill two or three times in one trip around the house, he banged out the filter at the end during the final emptying.

The Simplicity cleaned fine. Since Kevin couldn't see the dirt, he kept on vacuuming until the dirt backed up in the hose. There's so much dog hair, dog food, mud from their paws, etc. Two big dogs make one large mess of a house. The problem with the bags is the Kevin would never buy them. Not because he was opposed to spending the money, but because they didn't carry them at wal-mart. He hated the Simplicity because it USED bags.

While most vacuum collectors go on and on about how much they hate bagless - bagless wasn't designed for us. It was designed for someone like my friend Kevin. I realized that for him, bagless was a godsend, even the dreaded pleated filter was better than a bag - because he didn't have to buy them. Wound up giving him a simple Hoover WindtunnelMAX Multi-Cyclonic and he couldn't he happier with it. After two months, and about 20 full bins of dirt, the pre-motor filter still passed just as much air as when the machine was new. Just a slight coating of fine dust.

There are so many people for whom bags are NOT the answer. We must realize that most vacuum consumers are not like us - the 'sanitary' aspect of the disposable bag (invented by Air-Way in 1920) is no longer a viable option for many folks - people with large families or pets. We have to understand that to MOST people, disposable bags are a total waste of money - you're throwing the cost of the bag into the trash can. No matter how WE feel about bags/bagless - it's the ultimate consumer who drives vacuum manufacturers to make the types of cleaners they do. Most people consider bagless to be a step ABOVE bags - by eliminating the need to remember to purchase something AND by being able to see how much dirt is collected and when it's time to empty.
 
Another point, which I had not considered until Mom broke her Hoover Elite. I loaned her the dc18 for her senior apt, cream plush carpet. How do you like it mom? Well the hose is handy, but its kinda heavy and how am I supposed to dump this son of a ----- out up here in my apt? Hmm, no big can right outside her door. I went shopping for lightweight, plastic vac that day.
 
Actually Hoover have improved the filter bin on the Dustmanager range, replacing the angular cartridge with a round paper HEPA type and offering plastic mesh inside.

The shake out bag was more of a mess than the cyclonic paper pleated types still on sale today and who was the brand that went for the shake out process? Hoover! From the leaking Permabag system to the poor leaking standard of previous Dustmanagers, one would have hoped Hoover would have learnt from experience and stuck with the disposable paper bag.

sebo_fan++5-27-2013-13-09-26.jpg.png
 
Every bagless cleaner I have had I have always emptied after every use, for one I don't like the dirt sitting in the cleaners container over night, plus I like to see how much dirt I have picked up when I vacuum.

My current cleaner's instruction book (Morphy Richards Lift Away Clarity, sold as Shark Navigator Lift Away in the USA) recommends emptying after each use, possibly as the bin is not that big. I don't find it inconvenient. I also wash the foam filter once a week as it does get dirty quickly. I did leave it for a few weeks and noticed a slight reduction in power, however the felt filter underneath and the HEPA filters are still squeaky clean. The big thick foam filter seems very effective.
 
I always wondered how Shark got away with a 'no loss of suction' claim on a single-cyclone upright - but I will say I've seen my share of Shark Lift Away's and even with very dirty foam filters, they still have decent suction. The new Shark Rotator is a very big selling machine in the USA right now, people who do not have the funds to buy a Dyson (and many who do) instead buy the Shark. And most people are pleased with it - UNTIL they have a problem. The Shark warranty requires the entire machine be sent to New York (customer pays shipping) along with $40 for the return shipping. Can't purchase any parts for the power brush, you must replace it entirely. Most parts are on 'back order', if you can find an English speaking person in their Customer Service department to take your order. I consider the Shark to be an 'orphan' as most people will not be able to obtain professional repair service on it locally.
 

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