Vacuum cleaners

[studpuppet]

Miele, Miele, Miele. Got one of these:



Great if you're hoovering up cat or dog hair.

My mum had Dysons. POS every one of them - she ended up buying a little Panasonic one that outperformed every Dyson she ever owned. She kept the last one though, just so as people would think she could afford one.

[touchingcloth]

There's a really helpful video showing you how to change a Henry's filter here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9bX2zg1F0s

Cleaning them isn't difficult, but they need a wash every now and then so the DO NOT WASH label makes me wonder what kind of danger I am flirting with when I do wash it.

[Flatulent Fox]

Yup, get a henry.

Parents got one and I hate the sight of the little git.
And it uses bags which is a step back to the 80's.

Get one of these and the binmen can empty it for you.Sure this was on robot wars.

[Hat FM]

Got this bad boy on the advice of a vacuum cleaner repairman on Reddit and it has served me well so far (about a year into this exciting journey).

https://www.miele.co.uk/e/cylinder-vacuum-cleaner-complete-c3-powerline-sgdf4-10660810-p

i've got this one too. still working like a boss after three and a half years. discovered that you're supposed to change the filter last time i changed the bag. that is very uninteresting but i'm not deleting it. thanks.

[greencalx]

My current cleaner is a Vax. As said upthread, it's okay. A bit heavy and the flexible hose isn't quite long enough. But it does manage to deal with the unfeasible quantities of hair that our cat manages to shed. I think I'll be looking seriously at Mieles when the time comes to replace - on the whole, the Germans know what they are doing when it comes to household appliances.

[shiftwork2]

As a rule of thumb a Miele is twice the price of its nearest competitor when it comes to dishwashers and washing machines (not sure about vacuum cleaners).  What is so good about them to justify that?

[Shit Good Nose]

Echo the stuff about Dysons being fucking shit for cunts - my mum was suckered in early on and wouldn't buy anything else from the mid to late 90s.  Every single one of them completely lost suction after a year or two of use, so she'd just buy whatever model was new at the time.  This went on right up until she went into residential care last year.  Working it out, I reckon she probably spent (/wasted) £4000-5000 just on Dysons.

I used to swear by Bissell - reasonably inexpensive and quite light - but the components seem to be really low quality now and on the last two the hose has ripped and the head has come away from the plastic tube, and those individual spares are almost as expensive as buying a new cleaner.  So this time I bought a refurbed Vax from a store on eBay.  Very solidly built and, whilst its filters require very regular cleaning, it's very quick and easy to clear and empty out.  Very happy with it and can see myself buying another one IF this one ever gives up the ghost (although it would be another refurb as the Real Rip-off Price new is £220 - I got the refurb for £70 with an 18 month warranty), but two years in and no issues yet.

EDIT - we also have a Henry, which must be getting on for 20 years old now.  Still working and a great unit, but not really practical for stairs or moving around the house.  Henry stays upstairs whilst the Vax lives downstairs.

[JaDanketies]

If you're dropping a bunch of cash on a hoover, get a Roomba.

[greencalx]

As a rule of thumb a Miele is twice the price of its nearest competitor when it comes to dishwashers and washing machines (not sure about vacuum cleaners).  What is so good about them to justify that?

Just German over-engineering I think. Built to last etc. That said, our washing machine (which I think is a rebadged Zanussi) has been going strong for well over ten years, so maybe there's not a lot to gain from the extra outlay.

[Buelligan]

As a rule of thumb a Miele is twice the price of its nearest competitor when it comes to dishwashers and washing machines (not sure about vacuum cleaners).  What is so good about them to justify that?

The first washing machine I ever owned was a Miele, it was 25 years old when it was given to me.  Had it for three or four years, without any problems and gave it to the new person moving in.  Not only did it serve me without issue over the time I had it, it washed and spun stuff, cleaner, dryer, than any machine I'd used before.  Since then, I've endeavoured to always buy Miele, even if it's second hand, because they work and they last.

They may be expensive but over the time you'll own one, given their reliability, I'm guessing they end up costing a lot less.

If you're dropping a bunch of cash on a hoover, get a Roomba.

Unless you have stairs, a pet or child or anything on the floor.

https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/08/15/pooptastrophe-man-details-night-his-roomba-ran-over-dog-poop/88667704/

Not an uncommon story.

[imitationleather]

Just German over-engineering I think. Built to last etc. That said, our washing machine (which I think is a rebadged Zanussi) has been going strong for well over ten years, so maybe there's not a lot to gain from the extra outlay.

I found the manual for the washing machine in our flat and it was installed the month before Italia '90 started.

No wonder it's so shit.

[Sebastian Cobb]

My folks had zanussi washing machine and dishwasher that both lasted well over 20 years. I think they only got rid of the dishwasher because they were getting the kitchen redone and decided to get a fitted unit in the kitchen and as they were getting on, that was preferable to lugging everything to/from the utility room at the other end of the house. Said replacement packed up after about 8 years.

I think there's a general consensus older machines wash better as economisation both of design and pressure to use less energy and therefore water meant newer machines do worse jobs especially with bigger loads, I'm sure more expensive, better manufacturers counteract this through better design though.

[Buelligan]

Dunno, my current high performance Miele washing machine rolled off the production line in ~2002.

[Brian Freeze]

We used to buy repaired Dysons for £20 from the vacuum man on the market and  use/abuse them until they were beyond repair and then just go look for another one. The bangernomics of hoovering. Gave up on that after they started heading to £40/£50 each and needed a Henry to clean up after a roofing job. Lovely yellow fella.

This was nearly one for the things that give you pleasure thread. Ended up needing new drills so went for decent quality batteries and have since got hedge trimmer, random orbital sander and now hoover that runs off the same power source. Magic.

The hoover isnt much more than a cheap dust buster with a small spaff capacity but its dead handy and so easy that the whole family can use it.

[Sebastian Cobb]

I replaced the nicd's in my drill's battery pack and the amount of time it lasts without discharging by itself is quite pleasing.

[steve98]

This is new to me: Leeroy, the brown-skinned vacuum. Whatever next.

[Better Midlands]

Another vote for Miele, we had a washing machine and a tumble dryer running daily (large household) for seven years with no problems at all - still working now probably (we left them in the house when moving)

Would highly recommend.

[Cuellar]

I just do not want to deal with hoover bags and power cables and all that shit in this day and age. There must be a good cordless one.

[steve98]

Yep, here it is - No cables, no bags, no silly smiley faces, no training required, no fuss; air does the work.

[touchingcloth]

My friends' flat has some mad central vacuum system, where each room has a sucker mounted in the skirting boards that you can sweep things into, or alternatively attach a vacuum hose to to give the carpets a seeing to.

[paruses]

My friends' flat has some mad central vacuum system, where each room has a sucker mounted in the skirting boards that you can sweep things into, or alternatively attach a vacuum hose to to give the carpets a seeing to.

Have you posted about that before? It sounds really familiar and now I am not sure if I knew someone who had similar.

[Sherringford Hovis]

If you're after a cheap but good quality wet/dry model, US company Shop Vac went bust recently and then got taken over by some Chinese behemoth, so a lot of their remaindered units are on clearance at places like B&Q. The consumables are generic, so new filters etc. will be available for years to come.

I bought one for my house after using them a lot to clear up after floods etc. at work, and they're great. The Pro suck/blow model I spent c. £170 can now be had for around £80. Gah.

[Sebastian Cobb]

Holy shit this one's only £25.
https://www.diy.com/departments/shop-vac-corded-wet-dry-vacuum-p14-sq18s/818167_BQ.prd

[Brian Freeze]

Very nice. Sadly unavailable in any stores or for home delivery or click and collect. Im gonna miss the extractor I never had.

Ive bodged Henry up to my sander with sugru but I still have to start the sander and the hoover in two seperate operations. Bit like getting up to change channel on the telly after seeing how the other half live.

Interested in the battery fettling you did Mr Cobb. Beyond my capabilities but still interesting.

[Pinball]

It's Miele time.

[touchingcloth]

Have you posted about that before? It sounds really familiar and now I am not sure if I knew someone who had similar.

I haven't posted about it before - they recently moved into the flat so I only found out about the sucker today. Of course, it's possible that different friends had a similar sucker and I have dementia and have forgotten it.

[shiftwork2]

Central vac is common and I know it sounds like standard insane North American arseholery, but newer houses have central air conditioning and just use the same / adjacent ductwork.

[Blue Jam]

If you're dropping a bunch of cash on a hoover, get a Roomba.

Unless you have a puppy who is not yet toilet trained. You don't want a foul pentagram on your floor.

[Blue Jam]

Yep, here it is - No cables, no bags, no silly smiley faces, no training required, no fuss; air does the work.

One of my local pubs is still closed after the lifting of lockdown because the owner of the property is looking for a new landlord. It has been largely free of humans and doggos for a year and a half and yet a look through the windows reveals the tables are all still thick with dust. Isn't dust made of skin cells? Where does it come from if not from humans and doggos?

I once had a hairy male flatmate who shed an astonishing amount of bodily hair onto the tiled bathroom floor. Not experienced that since. Why is that not more common? In my home the only offender is me, moulting my long heid hairs into the shower drain.

[chveik]

just buy the most fuckable