Review of Dyson, Kirby, Hoover and Oreck Vacuum Cleaners

Buying a vacuum cleaner can be a daunting task because there are so many to choose from. Since I have all four of these vacuum cleaners, I thought it might be a good idea to let people know exactly which vacuum cleaner, of the ones that I actually know about, are best for which tasks. Each of my vacuum cleaners were purchased for a specific reason, and it ended up I need a different one for different jobs, or I just got tired of the one I was using not performing as I thought it should. Since my husband and I have 15 children, 8 of them are still at home now. My older children who are grown and gone, just all left this last December. I still have one of my oldest ones at home now and the rest of my children are between 4 and 14 (there are 7 of these younger ones), so our vacuum cleaners really get a workout and are tested to the maximum. I realize that most people will never be as hard as we are on our vacuum cleaners, but at least I can say which ones are up to the task of a large family.

The first vacuum cleaner I will review will be the Hoover Wind Tunnel vacuum cleaner . This vacuum was the least expensive vacuum cleaner I own. The price is good about $115.00 is what I paid for it. This vacuum cleaner has attachments that are fairly easy to use. The attachments are connected on the top of the vacuum head. Most of the tools and the hose are stored on the vacuum cleaner. The tools do not stay attached to where they are supposed to be stored and are small and easily lost. The tools become easily knocked off of the vacuum. The suction on this vacuum is fairly good. It is not one I would buy if you have pets though, because the vacuum becomes easily clogged by hair. The beater brush also becomes tangled very easily. The hose for the attachments could be a bit longer as well, it does not reach very far. This vacuum cleaner would be great if money is a major issue in the purchase of the vacuum you need. It would be great for a couple who live in an apartment. This vacuum is also advantageous from another standpoint, it is light weight and can be carried up and down the stairs easily. This vacuum also has a canister to empty and is bagless, however, it does require you to buy filters for the heppa filtration system in the vacuum, and you will need to change these often, since if they are full of dust the suction of the vacuum does not work well.

The next vacuum cleaner I will discuss will be the Kirby. Kirby vacuum cleaners are very heavy duty. The Kirby is also a very Heavy vacuum cleaner as far as weight goes. This is not the vacuum cleaner for you if you need to go up and down stairs a lot. This vacuum takes paper bags. As the bag gets more full, the suction doesn't work as well as when it is empty. I would recommend only using the bags until they are about one half full in order to get the full amount of the possible suction on the Kirby. The Kirby vacuum cleaner also has attachments, but they are stored in a box, and must completely remove the belt and head of the vacuum to use them. The suction on the Kirby is better than most and will hold up pretty well. The cost of the Kirby is also prohibitive for most people. A new Kirby costs approximately $2000. Truthfully this vacuum is good, but in my opinion, not worth the price.

Third for comparison is the Oreck vacuum cleaner . The Oreck is a lightweight vacuum cleaner which has NO attachments at all. This vacuum is for floor cleaning only. To get into the corners, a broom or other vacuum cleaner with attachments must be used because edges are not easily cleaned. One advantage to the Oreck vacuum cleaner is that it is extremely lightweight. It is great for being carried up and down the stairs, but vacuuming those stairs is almost impossible. Since it has no attachments, it is very one tasked, and you would probably want to own another vacuum with a hose and attachments. Another good thing about Oreck vacuums is that they do have some good suction. They do not work well on bare floors however, so you will need a broom as well. There is also no way to shut off the beater bar, so if you need to pick something up like a small rug or a toy that was missed before beginning to vacuum the carpet, you will need to completely shut off the vacuum cleaner, and then restart it after picking the item up. The price of the Oreck vacuum cleaner is mid range as far as these four vacuum cleaners are concerned. It is not the cheapest but it is not as expensive as the Kirby. An Oreck vacuum cleaner runs approximately $300-$500, depending on which model you choose. Oreck vacuums use the bag as the filter. So, there is only one thing to replace on a regular basis, the bags. The Oreck vacuum cleaner fills from the top, so it does maintain the amount of suction for a longer period of time than the Kirby and the Hoover. The Oreck vacuum does get clogged very easily and the beater brush also gets stuck more easily than some other vacuums.

The last vacuum cleaner I will cover will be the Dyson Absolute Animal (DC17) vacuum cleaner . Some of my most favorite things about the Dyson Absolute Animal (DC17) model vacuum cleaner are the fact that it is very much lighter than the Kirby. The way the attachments go onto the vacuum are so much better than that of the Kirby and the Hoover as well. Since the handle comes out of the top and turns the handle into the 'wand' end of the attachments, it makes it so there is no need to go and find the attachments. To use the attachments on the Kirby, take the vacuum head and the belt off to put on the hose and attachments. The heavy vacuum cleaner (Kirby) must be dragged up and down the stairs or from room to room. Almost all of the attachments are right there on the Dyson Absolute Animal (DC17) vacuum cleaner and stay where they are supposed to, so the tools and attachments do not get lost easily. The attachments also were all included with the Dyson Absolute Animal vacuum that we purchased. Only a few of the attachments are not stored right on the vacuum as are the Hoover, but they stay where they are supposed to be stored and are not knocked off and lost easily as the Hoover's tools are. Those large parts are the alternate 'wand' type 'heads' for the vacuum and are too large to be lost easily.

There is an extra long hose right on the 'wand' handle, so I can vacuum our two long, and turning staircases without having the vacuum vicariously balanced on the stairs which is dangerous. The Hoover has a hose, but it is not long enough to do the stairs. The need to have two people to do the stairs, one vacuuming and the other holding the vacuum on the stairs, is the other option for doing the stairs with the Kirby. The smaller 'wand' head for stairs, along baseboards and in tight areas, also has a beater brush, that works as well as the regular head. This is just like a mini large head, the beater brush can be turned on and off just like the regular head's beater brush. It also has a 'wand' head that is for bare floors, so the need for a broom is eliminated all together! The bare floor head for the wand is very well made and will not scratch Pergo or that type of wood or laminate floors. This head also picks up just as well as the regular vacuum head does on carpets, but will not damage any floors. There is also a 'carpet cleaning wand head' as well. The Dyson Absolute Animal (DC17) model I purchased also came with some carpet cleaner that works extremely well. It is a dry type of carpet cleaner. In addition the Dyson Absolute Animal vacuum also came with some spot cleaner- for tougher spots to clean, and this also deodorizes the spot so the pet does not continue to mark the carpet in the same place.

Another feature that the Dyson has which makes it such a wonderful vacuum is the button that gives the ability to turn off the beater brush on the main vacuum cleaner. This makes it possible to leave the vacuum running in order to move a small rug or pick up an object on the floor, without having to turn the vacuum off. With a push of the same button the Dyson Absolute Animal turns back on quickly to go back to vacuuming after moving the object which needed to be moved or picked up. This feature is also made for the ability to use the hose without the beater bar running (and ruining your carpet) in one place. All of the buttons can be pushed and attachments can pretty much be used without having to bend over. This is great for those of us who have medical problems with their backs or dizziness. I have honestly not taken out my old vacuum since I bought my Dyson Absolute Animal vacuum cleaner.

Since there is no impeller to become clogged or broken, there are less parts to worry about repairing or replacing. Another feature that is likable is when the canister gets filled, the Dyson Animal vacuum cleaner does not lose any suction. The suction is the same when the canister is full as when it is empty.The air filter on the Dyson Absolute Animal is reusable. (It is a 'life time' filter.)The Hoover's filter is not washable, and must be purchased and replaced. The filter is washable and needs to be washed with plain, clear, running water in the sink. The filter is then air dried for about 24 hours and replaced in the vacuum cleaner. The reusable filter is great because the need to buy disposable filters eliminated. This saves money on filters and on bags. It is also better for the environment, since there are no bags or filters to dispose of and sit in a landfill for years to disintegrate.

The Dyson Absolute Animal vacuum cleaner is also much cleaner from the point that the canister empties from the bottom. The Hoover must be removed and then dumped upside down to empty. The Dyson Absolute Animal vacuum has a button which opens the bottom once it is down into a trash can, so there is not much dust from emptying the canister. There is a handle on the canister, which again is positioned in such a way that no bending is necessary to empty it. The button to release the canister is on the front of the vacuum and positioned in an easily accessible spot that will not be accidentally bumped. The canister is toward the top of the vacuum and just pops out. The release button to empty the dirt into the trash is on the handle of the canister. Emptying this canister into the waste basket with one hand is possible. This canister on the Dyson Absolute Animal could also be carried outside and emptied directly into a dumpster or into an outdoor trash can as well. If needed for some reason, the dirt and dust from the canister could be emptied into a gallon size (or larger, depending on how much dirt there is) zipper bag to keep the dirt contained. (Fleas, ants or other insect pests is what I was thinking of here.) Hands never touch the dirt from the canister when emptying the canister from the Dyson Absolute Animal vacuum cleaner.

The Dyson Animal vacuum cleaner is a wonderful vacuum cleaner that makes many cleaning tasks much easier than any vacuum cleaner we have ever owned. The cost of this vacuum is worth the price that we paid for it. It was a bit more than some of the cheaper vacuums that we have priced, but not as expensive as a Kirby $2000+ (approximate price new) with only some of the same attachments and options as the Dyson Animal has. The Kirby is also much heavier and is much harder to use, and not as convenient at all. The Dyson Absolute Animal (DC17) cost us $549.00 at a Military Exchange. While I realize that not everyone has access to a military exchange, but I did go and find out how much I could find this same vacuum cleaner for on line. I actually found the same Dyson, Absolute Animal (DC17) vacuum cleaner for a cheaper price than what we paid! The price I found was only $437.00, this includes free same day shipping, no sales taxes, a lowest price guarantee, with a 5 year warranty (same as all Dyson vacuum cleaners). For the money, I think that this vacuum cleaner is an extremely good value!