Upright Vacuums Reviews

I would not buy this vacuum if I had to do it again. I had the same problem that other customers reported with the roller getting stuck. Even after checking to make sure there is no hair caught up in it, it still doesn't budge. I went over a carpet patch where there was a small but visible ball of dog hair lying loose on top of the carpet and even after going back and forth over it MANY times not a single bit of it was picked up by this vacuum. Plus, each time I use it I spend(waste) an absurd amount of time cleaning every filter, the roller and even unscrewing the base to clean it out = hoping it will result in greater suction but the performance has still been declining since the first use. These are the reasons this vacuum is cheap, but if it only lasts for six months before losing all suction I think you'd get more for your money by saving up for a more expensive vacuum that lasts.

I've had this vacuum for one year and had to replace the roller brush 4 times! The 1st 3 I got free from the company and the last I had to buy for $25. They claim the roller is not covered under the warranty. The roller will seize up and melt after about 3 months, the last one I got has lasted me one month. I will NEVER buy another Bissell product again. There customer service stunk and when I took it to an authorized dealer he told me thats what happens when it picks up hair.... uh, duh it's a vacuum, what is it supposed to be picking up... fairy dust? Don't waste your time or money on this hunk of junk! I just went out and bought a Hoover, I hope I have better luck.

I have been using a Bissell for three years and it still works fine. Since it is three years old, I don't know which model number it corresponds to now but it was $89 from Wal-mart so probably was the low end of the Bissell line. Even though I have regular pile carpeting, the vacuum needs to be set to the highest height level to keep the brush spinning freely. I think the people that are having trouble with the brush are setting the height too low. I wouldn't recommend it for shag carpeting. I clean the hair off of the brush every time I use it and have done this for all vacuums I've owned. The filters do have to be cleaned but they are reusable rather than disposable therefore saving $. Buy a second set of filters so you have one to use while the other is drying out. If you don't want to maintain the filters look for a vacuum that uses bags. If you are vacuuming large particles like sand use the brush attachment. Suction can be lost if the hose is clogged so check it first (especially if you are picking up paper, leaves, or mulch). It is loud and heavy but it works well and won't break the bank.

Loses power quickly.

Very messy to clean, a job that required a trip outside each time.

Power settings are functionless, I mean who is going to vacuum on any setting other than the highest.

I bought this vacuum after reading so many confusing reviews that I thought I should write one myself.
I paid 99 bucks for it at Sears and for that much I have to say it is a great machine. It collected so much dust off my carpet that I was disgusted.
I have only used it 3 times so my review might change in the future but for now I give it 5 stars.
Yes it has minor problems, like the power cord being in the way of the hose and little things like that. But for me what really matters is how well it cleans my carpet, how long it lasts and how easy it is to clean.
BTW it is very easy to clean. I heard a lot of people complaining about cleaning this vacuum and I cannot comprehend why.
Bottom line it works great but if you are really picky buy a Dyson for 599.00

I am very impressed with this Vacuum. I've never had a Vacuum cleaner that picked up so much dust and debris. I was surprised when I used it the first time around. I could not believe, my living-room was so dirty. It does a great job and gets to the bottom of the carpet and pulls out fine dust and small hair! I think this also has the wall-hugging technology/feature, as I have noticed it picking up small stuff from the corners...unlike my old vacuum. This is a much stronger and better machine than my old Bissell. I have always preferred Hoover over Bissell. And I could not wait to get the new EmPower as soon as my Bissell died on me.

EmPower is great but it needs cleaning after each use!!! Which for me, is not a big deal; I just take it outside, empty the dust container in the trash bin and wash it ... takes only a minute to do that. Also the HEPA filter requires a little bit of cleaning. I slowly tap the filter from the rim and clean it with a paper towel and put it back together. I agree, it's a little messy, but I can deal with my hands being dusty for a few minutes, rather than dusty rooms!!

The Hush Button is USELESS, it does not make much of a difference in the noise level. The power surge feature could come handy, I guess - no comments, as I have not used it! The Vaccum is very well built, but I am not very happy with the accessories, they are made of cheap plastic, you would think, a brand like Hoover would be have given good quality accessories too ?? !! hmmm ... not really !

Overall this is a very good product. I think it's an imitation of Dyson for much less. And I give it a FIVE-STAR rating. Go for it, if you can spare a few minutes of cleaning after each use... if cleaning is not an option for you - then NO Bagless Vacuum would serve the purpose as all Bagless Vacuums require some amount of cleaning.

I hate cleaning the dust cup filter but have been unsuccessful in finding the replacement. Closing the dust cup lid is also trickly. It took me a while to realize that you can close the lid from further to the right side of the sitck, which would not allow the locking of the cup.

Not really big enought for an entire house.

Pros
- Strong suction for a lightweight upright, 12 amps.
- Small form, great for a closet or a room corner.
- Inexpensive.
- Easily assembled.
- Brush roll for enhanced carpet cleaning, which other lightweight uprights lack.

Cons
- The air that gets sucked in gets blown out in the front of the vacuum - a bit disconcerting at first.

- Dustcup removeal took some getting used to
- Does such a good job that you may want to clean the filter after each time or two (I use a plastic fork).

This little vac has superb suction - really terrific for pet fur and small enough to get around everything in my RV. It is hard to push - wouldn't want to use it for a full-size house but terrific for small spaces.

I was disappointed with the cleaning ability of this product. It had no suction. Sure it looked nice and had a cool design but it could not pick up the most basic dirt on my floors.

Pros:
- Good design (swivel head, size, buttons, charger), lightweight

Cons:
- Does not pickup dirt (underpowered motor?)
- Rotating beater is not good for hardwood or vinyl floors.

I don't know if the motor was bad or what but I agree with a previous reviewer that the Pronto is nothing more than a glorified dust-buster. Amazon however allowed me to return the item without any problems.

Great color, easy to "dock", picks stuff up on hard surfaces really well. However:

-- when they say "crevice tool" re the hand held piece, they aren't kidding. It's a tiny little head.

-- the rotating brushes not good for my new hardwood floors.

-- doesn't pick up stuff on rugs well.

Bought this at Sam's BEFORE reading any reviews - something I never do. At $65, I couldn't pass it up since I needed a stick vac. I've got a small house and all hardwood or vinyl floors. So far, I'm loving this little vacuum. I HATE to vacuum and, though I have a Rainbow, it's a pain to drag out. Last year, I bought a big Hoover but it's just too big for my tiny house. This new Electrolux fits the bill. I sweep, then pull out the hand vac for the baseboards and under the cabinets. Quick. Easy. Exactly what I wanted. It won't pick up big leaves but then it doesn't really have a big enough reservoir to do that. It DOES pick up my cat hair, dog hair, 2 year old detritus and more. So far, I'm thrilled and no longer feel threatened by the lurking fur balls waiting to morph into real cats.

This filter is a panel-type filter. Hoover part number 43611042 is a cylindrical filter. Don't buy this filter if you need part number 43611042; go to google and check there (for instance http://www.google.com/search?q=43611042+hepa&start=0&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official).

I purchased one of these vacuums less than 3 months ago and now see the hose is disintegrating. It has a series of tears in the folds all along the hose. I contacted the company about the problem and was told that we could buy a piece to fix it or buy a new vacuum. You purchase a major product like this you would expect the company to stand behind it, not want you to buy the pieces to fix what is their manufacturing problem.

Beware this vacuum. It does not live up to its hype.

I have had mine for about 9 or 10 months and no problems. I do notice that if you don't change the bag when it's getting full it makes a funky smell, kind of smells like old doritos. I thought the air filter would stop the smells but hey it gets the job done you just have to change the bag when you start to smell the funk.

I owned a bagless vacuum before and just recently bought the Aptitude. I will NEVER own a bagless vacuum again as they are very messy and dirty. I love my new Aptitude though. It has much more power than the bagless(Bissell)I owned before. I own a rottweiler and he is constantly shedding but the Aptitude picks up his hair no problem; unlike the bagless, I spent about 10 min. vacuuming to get the hair out in just one little bedroom! Also, it is very smoothe and easy to operate. NOt hard to push around like my clunky old vacuum. Anyway, I'm very happy with it and while its not a "true" Electrolux, it works for me just fine!

Their claim is that the Dyson doesn't lose suction with use. If kept in top condition, clean and emptied then it might not lose suction. But if you allow the canister to fill up or the filter to get dirty then it definitely looses suction.

The beater brushes were never really effective. I have thick plush carpet, all one length, and I never got vacuum tracks with this vacuum. So I knew it wasn't really beating the carpet very effectively. They claim the height is auto adjusting but it doesn't seem to adjust at all and therefore is only effective on certain carpet heights.

The wand wore out early due to design errors. The hard part of the wand tube rubs against the flexible hose causing it to wear early and break. Each of the attachments broke early too.

I got about a years use out of this vacuum and threw it away. I bought a Bissell lift off upright to replace and it is already 100% better than the Dyson. In the first vacuuming with the Bissell I filled the dirt canister with dust and dog hair from my first floor alone, which shows the Dyson had been missing it all along. I now get vacuum tracks with the Bissell and my carpet looks 100% better

We bought the Dyson in Dec. of 2002, and it gets used for approximately 1 hour x twice a week on carpet.

In the vacuum cleaner market which, in our opinion, is dominated by poor product design, plastic parts that break easily, motors that burn out, belts that stretch and break, expensive bags that fill up virtually instantly, and a very short useful life, our Dyson has acquitted itself rather well.

Many of the other favorable comments apply and will not be repeated here.

We would add that Dyson has good telephone customer service as well as an on-line diagnostic guide.

We note the following negatives:

- The "off the floor" hose suction is not as strong and is much more awkward than with a "tank type - non upright" cleaner. If you are doing mostly off the floor cleaning, probably no upright is recommended.

- While the parts that you can access are easy to remove for cleaning and "unclogging", there are some critical non user serviceable parts on the Dyson. Even the drive belt and hepa filters are supposed to be changed by a service center.

- There are very few designated service centers capable of fixing the Dyson. So keep the box in case you have to ship the machine back to the company and hope you never need to use it. I would guess that with parts and labor, a major repair could easily be between a quarter and half the price of a new machine.

- The hepa filter, which is supposed to last the lifetime of the machine, doesn't. But notwithstanding instructions, it can be removed and replaced by the user (special replacement filter must be purchased from the company or from a dealer). We found it necessary to replace the filter (ourselves) when the machine constantly cut off due to overheating.

- While it is NOT in the instructions, customer service will tell you that vacuuming up powder (plaster, carpet cleaner, carpet deodorant) will clog the hepa filter and eventually destroy the machine. If you plan to do this kind of work, get something with a disposable bag.

- Periodically, the regular filter and basket need to be washed. Not a big deal but it needs to be done.

- Periodically, the tank needs to be thoroughly washed by running water through it and letting it dry.

Notwithstanding the above, this is probably a better and more reliable machine than anything else available (which, as noted, says something about vacuum cleaners in general), so with reservations, we recommend it.

Product designed to meet user needs and convinience.Does outstanding job on the carpet and hardwood floors, but can't reach under limited hight spaces without taking the house out.Best product i ever have to vacuum hardwood stairs.Looks and works like new.