Looking for Vacuum Suggestions

We have a Fuller, which I like, but I have heard great things about both the Dyson and the Riccar (sp?). They are both spendy. Good luck.

I've researched this for a while and am looking forward to the day when I have enough money to get the Dyson Animal. Don't pay $3k for a vacuum, most of that money goes toward commission and a Dyson will do just as well or better. It really freaks me out to buy something that I can't get at a store. It makes me wonder about the quality if even Wal-Mart doesn't carry it.

Hi L.! I have a Dyson and it's GARBAGE! My mom has a new Rainbow and I borrow it whenever I can. It's the best vaccum I have used and it also cleans the air. your mattress, your pillows etc. I don't know what the old ones are like but the new ones are worth the 2000 bucks. Now if only I had the money...
I have vaccumed with my Dyson and then with mom's Rainbow and you would have thought I hadn't ever cleaned my floor. Yuck!

Two years ago I fell into the hype of the Dyson vacuum. I purchased the purple "animal" one on E-bay (not refurbished). I am disappointed with it and wish that I wouldn't have spent that much money. It is heavy and the handle makes it odd to carry - I hate taking it from one Floor to another. The extension hose started out very stiff and still is after 2 yrs. of use. It also has a rigid tube approx. 4ft. long at the end (where you put your attachment). I like to have a bit more control over my attachments and with a 4ft. extension I am just too far away. (Great for getting dust webs out of corners of the ceiling though.) When I empty the canister, I have to do it in our dumpster outside because the dust looks like a bomb went off and goes everywhere. The "head" is very large and definately won't get under furniture - I can only get 4 in. under my sons crib. You have to vacuum very slowly for it to get all of the imbedded dirt. Kuddos to them though because when you do go slow I have noticed carpet fibers in my canister. One last thing, I have had Eureka's before and this Dyson is way louder than they were. I'm not suggesting you purchase a Eureka, however my mother owns a successful cleaning business and all of her "teams" use 2 Eureka's - the stand up one and the small one for the attachments.

Hi L.,
DO NOT BUY A DYSON. I can't believe that so many people like the Dyson. I have had mine for a year and I would NEVER RECOMMEND to anyone to buy one. It does not clean edges, along the walls, under furniture, stairs, rugs bare floors. Basically the only thing it is good for is big areas of carpet with no furniture in the way. I had a Hoover windtunnel before it, with 2 dogs and 2 cats, and I loved it. It just got old and was time for a new one. I have now spent so much on the Dyson that I will keep it for a long time but I would never have bought it if I knew then what I know now.
B.

Hands down you need the Dyson. It's the best vacuum ever. Get the one with the ball for easy turning. It works great on any carpet and any floor surface, and the attachments for your couches are amazing. I have the one specifically for pets and I love it. I paid $700 online, but I have seen them cheaper at Maceys. Good Luck.

I have a Dyson DC 17. It is the purple animal one. I bought mine on Ebay. I have had it for almost a year now. It was cheaper an Ebay, plus I got 5 attachments that I wouldn't have recieved if I bought it in the store. Including the low one that allows me to vaccuum under my furniture. I did buy a refurbished one, but I have not had any problems with it. My husband used to make me us the cheapest vaccuums we could get our hands on. I bought this while he was gone, and he loves. There is also a mini turbine head that is great for getting animal hair off furniture, out of cars, basically anywhere the vaccuum is too big to go. The first time I used the Dyson, it picked up spots on the floor that I thought were stains, because they never came up. I also vaccuum the linoleum with it. I never use a broom anymore because this vaccuum can be used in the whole house, and it hsn't damaged my floors. I love it.

I think at one point in every couples relationship, we have this problem. My husband and I wanted the best vacuum we could get several years ago because we had 2 long haired cats. My husband can't stand how everything now seems to be made of plastic! So, we got a really good Kirby made of metal like the old ones, but this one was self propelled so you didn't sweat to death trying to vacuum your living room. You can go online and research all the different models. We swore by the Kirby, until it just didn't seem like we were getting all the dust out of our house, so we started looking again. We got a really good deal on a Dyson at Costco. We tried it for a day, it seemed like it did well in sucking, but we didn't like that it didn't go under our coffee table all the way. Dyson makes their money by selling specific models for specific things. We needed the one with the rolling ball to reach under the coffee table. So, we took it back. My father-in-law loves his Dyson! He has a yellow lab too, but when we visit him, we still come back with dog hair on our butts and backs from the furniture. That could be just my father-in-law's lack of cleaning the furniture. Well, in the end, my husband stepped into his hero role and got us(me) a central vac system. This one, I absolutely love! I don't think any vacuum can compare to the suction you get from this thing. The first time we used it, we cleaned out the canister to see what we got, and I was sooooo grossed out by how much fine dirty dust my other vacuums did not pick up. You can get all different packages for whatever you need for your home. We got a hard floor attachment, carpet head, car care package, and my husband picked up an extra carpet head for really cheap on ebay so I don't have to lug one up and down the stairs. You can get them for under $1000 installed. If I could go back and do it again though, I would just have the central vac company install it and I would shop online for all the accessories/attachments. That's where the company makes their money. In my opinion, nothing beats a central vac. It is at least worth checking into. The best part about it is, I never have to go shopping for another vacuum again! Woooo Hoooo!!!

Hi L.,
I know what you are going through, I had a lab and a golden retriever that loved to leave me hair. I have a kirby it's the ultimate G series. Today it is 5 years old and I still love it the same way I did when we bouht it.
So I would say try a good kirby...

Good Luck

Hi, We bought a "Kirby" over 12 years ago. It is fabulous. Have only had it tuned up one time. It really does a great job on pet hair. It was pricey, but worth it because of its dependability and solid construction. Comes with lots of fun attachments as well.
You can purchased a used one on eBay. My daughter who is 24 bought an old Kirby from a Goodwill Store, and it was in perfect condition.

Vaccums really suck! Pun intended! My husband does the vaccuming and loves his Kirby but everytime I try to vaccum they just don't work for me. We have a Lab mix that sheds hair all over and brings mud in the house all the time. It drives me crazy and my allergies are going nuts too.
Good Luck,
C. B

We have the Dyson Animal. We have had it for about 4 months now and LOVE it. It picks up dog hair really well. The only draw back it that it won't vacuum under low furniture.

I'm glad y'all with the Dysons have liked them.

We had an Electrolux canister but it was heavy going upstairs so we got they Electrolux Oxygen Canister from QVC. It rocks! Had it for about 9 months and then had to have the carpets cleaned. We have two dogs and the cleaner was suprised that he wasn't pulling more dog hair out of the carpet. He said usually he pulls tons of hair out, especially from the homes of people with the Dyson Animal. One thing, we didn't get the attachments and such for the Oxygen so if you're looking to do curtains and furniture, try one of the other vacs that has the powered handheld unit.

I did a lot of research when I bought one a few years ago, including looking on Consumer Reports I have a yellow lab and dark green carpeting (bad combination!!) but this machine has been wonderful. It's a Sears Kenmore Progressive Direct Drive (or something like that--your Sears store will know). I use it almost every day, and I have it serviced annually (if you buy the warranty, the annual service is free--I suggest buying the warranty in case something breaks). As I recall it was about $300 and worth every penny. I got the one with the bag, because the bagless varieties allow dust and hair back into the air. The bags are HEPA filters or not, depending on how much you want to spend. Hope this helps--I've been very happy with this machine and wish I had one on every floor of my house!

I have a Dyson and I love it. I have really long carpet so I needed a vacuum where you can turn the brush off so it wouldn't ruin the carpet. It has great suction and I'm amazed at how much it can pull out with just the suction. I saw someone mentioned the Dyson Animal which is made specifically for pet hair.

Hope you find something you like.

We have two cockapoohs (not suppose to shed) that shed a little in the spring, but not enough to complain about.

A few months ago we bought a Bissel Grab 'n Go (not the bottom of the line vaccum, but not a Dyson either), you can take off the canister and carry it for a small job or stairs. It has a special Lift Off Pet version, which means that it has an attachment that is made to brush up any pet hair. I mostly use the attachment on the stairs, since it is handheld. I love the whole system.

With a yellow lab and a greyhound, we too have a very hairy house! I could vacuum everyday! I love my purple Dyson Animal. It has lots of great attachments. I had a older used yellow Dyson and the pull out hose eventually broke. One piece of advice is to take care of it! Keep it clean, empty frequently, rinse the bag-less container every so often, and clean the brushes often. One thing about Dyson and wall to wall carpet is that it can sometimes pull the carpet up where it meets the wall, so be careful! They really suck!! Kirby's are great and can last for decades, but they are so heavy. Good luck in your search!