Ok, I went for it. Let me start of by saying it was a really bad day. I went to spend the day with my friend Larry and his aunt. We were going to eat out and go to some thrift stores... pretty much the same thing we always do. Well, thrift stores are all closed on Monday apparently (except Salvation Army and Goodwill, and all they have is overpriced junk... they did have a brown Self Propelled Dialamatic for 10 bucks, but I have an orange one already... I'd have gotten that sucker if I didn't already have one.... they also had a Eureka Aero canister that looked to be from late 80s or early 90s for 20 bucks with power nozzle but it was missing attachments and attachment cover). After eating at the chinese buffet for lunch and being disappointed that no thrift stores were open, I had an allergic reaction to something I ate and the pressure on my chest was just unbearable. It's happened before (when I eat bananas, canadian bacon, scallops (hives with scallops) or salmon), but I didn't have any of those things, so I don't know what it was, but I was in AGONY. After it passed, I got such a sinus headache (I'd been stuffy from allergies) I could barely stand, and again I wanted to cry! I took a nap at my friend's aunt's house and then just had to do something to make me feel better. He wanted to clean her great room anyway, and I thought what better to clean it with than a new vacuum.... it would give us a chance to put the machine through its paces. We went to Wal-mart, but theirs didn't have the power paw.... I've never liked turbine tools anyway, but the one that came with my WindTunnel is awesome for getting pet hair off the furniture, so I wanted it. Went to Home Depot, but their selection of vacuums was dismal... they used to have a lot, and the don't anymore. So, went to Lowes, and spent a lot more than I wanted to, but I got the exact machine I wanted with all accessories.... and I was depressed and hurting, but as soon as I got that vacuum in my hand and took it out of the box, all the pain magically went away (trust me, it was the vacuum, the Sudafed had nothing to do with it LOL). It's a beautiful purple color! Plus, I have 90 days to return it if I get buyer's remorse (I shouldn't though, I should enjoy my money every now and then, I work hard for it and shouldn't feel like I need to save EVERYTHING I make, plus since vacuums are my only passion (unless you count food LOL) it's OK to spend a few dollars on them.... I wonder how much money "real" men spend on cars and tools and sporting stuff sometimes!!!).
When I turned that sucker on, it practically flew out my hands and across the room! The sound is a nice pleasant throaty sound, and the air flow is clearly heard in floor or attachment mode. We used the power paw, upholstery tool, and dusting brush, not to mention the upright part for all the carpet. It did a great job! Larry even accidentally sucked up a piece of glass fruit (a pepper or mushroom or something) when he was dusting and it didn't hurt the machine at all. This machine was just like the ones I used to sell at Sears save the color and the power paw feature. When we were done, we cut open the bag (I bought extras) to get out the glass fruit and you should have seen all the mess in that thing after just doing one room.... that had just been vacuumed with an Electrolux Discovery mind you. It was crazy!
There are a few things I don't like about it and I will list them below: (I knew most of these things already due to my experience with these vacs at Sears, but the good far out weighs the bad)
Handle hard to release from and return to upright position
Hose doesn't stay securely attached to the clips
cord wrap area crowded
power paw not powerful, it's effective, but the WindTunnel's blows this one out of the water, also my power paw didn't come with Riser Visor and I'd have liked that for the backs of couches and things
bag door won't close w/o a bag
bag hard/weird to install, bit of a learning curve needed
light off to one side and points at the ceiling instead of the floor... it looks cool, but not effective
very heavy
nested extension wands weird to figure out
power switch too low on machine body to reach easily....
no bag check indicator, not that they work most of the time anyway!
manual poorly written, lacks details, and is too short
What I love:
It's a powerful machine with a great sound and looks awesome, I love the contours, and especially the color.
Dusting brush and upholstery tool seem better quality than those included with most modern vacuums
brush shuts off when in upright position
handle very comfortable
rubber coated wheels
hose does NOT fight you like and Windtunnel hose, and it's anchored at the bottom so that the machine follows instead of falls... more like a Dyson instead of a WindTunnel
cord clip is high on handle and secure.... I use a cord clip on every vacuum that has it and it really helps
SEALED hepa filter, rubber gasket to seal the air flow, unlike the Hoover which just has the filter sitting there with no seal at all
belt view and brushroll view windows
Includes an extra belt, almost NO modern vacuum does that, though they all used to
By the way, what did they make that belt out of anyway? Nylon? I guess so it won't snap when the bare floor feature is activated? I think this one uses a tensioner for the bare floor function.
If I had a choice between this and the S/P WindTunnel, I'd go for Hoover hands down. It's more powerful, easier to use (bare floor selector is easy, bag change is intuitive, power switch is on handle, wands are both the same), has the bag check and dirt finder indicators... and just a better overall more quality feel. However, I am glad that as collectors, we can have as many vacuums as we can fit in our homes and don't have to chose between one or the other!
I may post pics, or a video comparing it with the WindTunnel in a friendly cleaning competition. Winner gets a new HEPA filter for a prize LOL
Thanks guys
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