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Recommendations for vacuum cleaner


Tom Richmond

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Hi there,

Looking for recommendations for a decent vacuum cleaner. Needs to be small, ideally handheld. Needs to be powerful, living on a boat with a toddler! Cordless an advantage but not necessary. 240v whether corded or for charging is fine. Efficient, compact storage of accessories a definite plus.

I know that Dyson do one for about £150. I am hoping someone will say there is an alternative make producing something as good for less money... 

Thanks in advance

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6 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

Any 240Vac corded vac will be WAY more powerful (and way cheaper) than anything rechargeable. 

 

On the other hand, if you are not on a shore line, then a rechargeable is a lot less hard on your inverter and batteries. A 1300W mains vac is drawing a lot of charge very quickly. A battery one is recharged over a long period. Depends on your situation. The cost in cordless is in the battery. A cheap battery will give a weedy and useless cleaner. If on a tight budget and on a shore line, then mains is the way to go. If you can afford the higher end and are off grid a lot, then battery is worth looking at. I've always found vacuum leads rather annoying to deal with and may well go cordless at some point.

Jen

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We have a VAX corded cylinder vacuum which seems robustly made , works well , bagless and the filter is washable.

It is more powerful than the cordless Hoover we have. But the cordless is handy for when we are out on our travels.

B&M often have reasonably priced vacuum cleaners, and possibly a bigger range in store compared to their website  - but perhaps avoid budget brands.

 

 

 

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I had a carpet and upholstery cleaning business for ten years and I would never advise anyone to buy a Dyson. 

On a budget any of the Numatic range would be more than adequate for a narrowboat, but for really cheap just get a decent carpet sweeper - no electricity required, and something like one of those old "dirt devil" handheld jobs off ebay https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dirt-Devil-Handy-Handheld-Brush-Vacuum-Cleaner-Hoover-Retro-Bagless-Model-/192519343194   they are only about 250 watt IIRC so a little inverter will run one.

 

 

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45 minutes ago, Neil2 said:

I had a carpet and upholstery cleaning business for ten years and I would never advise anyone to buy a Dyson. 

On a budget any of the Numatic range would be more than adequate for a narrowboat, but for really cheap just get a decent carpet sweeper - no electricity required, and something like one of those old "dirt devil" handheld jobs off ebay https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dirt-Devil-Handy-Handheld-Brush-Vacuum-Cleaner-Hoover-Retro-Bagless-Model-/192519343194   they are only about 250 watt IIRC so a little inverter will run one.

 

 

Completely agree. Dyson are rubbish and abysmal build quality having run many pubs we found the worst that we got two of for free where Dyson. The best was nilfisk but for everyday quite cheap and take the knocks and do a good job we and just about everyone else in the game bought good old Numatic ie Henry and his pals.

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4 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Completely agree. Dyson are rubbish and abysmal build quality having run many pubs we found the worst that we got two of for free where Dyson. The best was nilfisk but for everyday quite cheap and take the knocks and do a good job we and just about everyone else in the game bought good old Numatic ie Henry and his pals.

Thanks. This is really useful. 

However Henry much too big. Small handheld unit like Dyson v6 is what I'd like...

Will look into numeric range.

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We have one of these. Power consumption is 900W, which is fine on most inverters. It's post the EU energy rules, so has an efficient motor and the power actually goes to move air, rather than being a fan-heater with a hose. Small and easy to store. Efficient and works well. Well built. Hoses and stuff have lasted well.

http://www.bosch-home.co.uk/product-list/BGL3ALLGB

 

MP.

 

Edited by MoominPapa
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We have had an old DirtDevil 1000w vacuum for about 20 years now. The bags are still available, the cord rewinder still works, and for the price of one Dyson you can buy about 6 DirtDevils. Bought originally for the boat, where it was perfect and cleaned 3 different boats for 15 years and now it is great for the house.

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29 minutes ago, mrsmelly said:

Completely agree. Dyson are rubbish and abysmal build quality having run many pubs we found the worst that we got two of for free where Dyson. The best was nilfisk but for everyday quite cheap and take the knocks and do a good job we and just about everyone else in the game bought good old Numatic ie Henry and his pals.

Used to have a Henry on the boat. Brilliant and bomb proof, but took a lot of space. Through a chain of swapsies I ended up with a Dyson. Big mistake as it is falling to bits. If Numatic made a battery hand held vac I woud buy it. Numatic still make their stuff in the UK to.

Jen

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9 hours ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

Any 240Vac corded vac will be WAY more powerful (and way cheaper) than anything rechargeable. 

 

We bought a Dyson V8 re-chargeable a few months ago to replace our Miele 2000w which we were unable to use when away from the landline electricity due to the power it needed even with the boat's engine running.

The Dyson copes just as well as the Miele with the hairs on the carpet from our continuously moulting dog, and the beauty is that we can trickle charge it up as we are travelling along. Add to that the fact that the Dyson is so light and compact, it was one of the best decisions we've ever made. It's brilliant! Re-chargeable vacuums have come a long way in recent years in terms of their ability to do a decent job.

Yes it's a bit pricey and I can see what people mean about the build quality as it does appear a little 'plasticky' but so far so good and we've been very pleased with it.

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I don't like Dyson, I don't like the styling, and its all made with "bendy plastic engineering", so its hard to admit that the Dyson rechargeable handheld is an essential item on the boat, we've had ours for almost ten years now and it gets used and abused every day, including sucking up ash. Seriously expensive but worth it. Strips down quickly and easily for giving the insides a clean and cleaning the filter (which is needed quite often cus I use it to suck ash). The bendy plastic engineering holds up surprisingly well but when you do eventually break it then a full range of spares are available (at a price). I suggest two batteries, one in the machine and one on charge.

...........Dave

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The link I posted gets you a refurbished Dyson for £100 with a 1 year warranty. I have the battery version the the boat, I also have one at home. I hardly ever get the 240v vacuum out now, which, by the way, is also a Dyson. 

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2 hours ago, Neil2 said:

I had a carpet and upholstery cleaning business for ten years and I would never advise anyone to buy a Dyson. 

On a budget any of the Numatic range would be more than adequate for a narrowboat, but for really cheap just get a decent carpet sweeper - no electricity required, and something like one of those old "dirt devil" handheld jobs off ebay https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Dirt-Devil-Handy-Handheld-Brush-Vacuum-Cleaner-Hoover-Retro-Bagless-Model-/192519343194   they are only about 250 watt IIRC so a little inverter will run one.

 

 

I also was in the Cleaning industry for over twenty years. Funnily, I agree with all your comments. We have a sweeper onboard.

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We got a Gtech K9 handheld which has been fantastic. It is cordless, takes up very little space & has dealt with cat fur, crisp crumbs & coal dust no problem. It is probably a similar price to the Dyson, but I'd definitely recommend it. If you buy online the delivery is super fast from them directly too.

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We are a dyson family but I have read good reviews of Shark and G Tech.  Dyson are no longer manufacturing chorded uprights as they say their cordless are now as powerful and efficient.  We do have one of their older cordlesssticks as well but we won’t be buying one of their new models anytime soon.  They are truly eye wateringly expensive

 

 

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18 minutes ago, bettybrew said:

We got a Gtech K9 handheld which has been fantastic. It is cordless, takes up very little space & has dealt with cat fur, crisp crumbs & coal dust no problem. It is probably a similar price to the Dyson, but I'd definitely recommend it. If you buy online the delivery is super fast from them directly too.

We have the two G-tech offerings (floor and handheld) and they’re the best vacs we’ve ever had. 

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2 hours ago, dmr said:

I don't like Dyson, I don't like the styling, and its all made with "bendy plastic engineering", so its hard to admit that the Dyson rechargeable handheld is an essential item on the boat, we've had ours for almost ten years now and it gets used and abused every day, including sucking up ash. Seriously expensive but worth it. Strips down quickly and easily for giving the insides a clean and cleaning the filter (which is needed quite often cus I use it to suck ash). The bendy plastic engineering holds up surprisingly well but when you do eventually break it then a full range of spares are available (at a price). I suggest two batteries, one in the machine and one on charge.

...........Dave

 

I have to say as owner of several Dyson hand-helds, a distinction MUST be drawn between the old format machines (D31 etc) with a filter gently curved and on the side of the dirt chamber, and the current models (V6 etc) with a cone-shaped filter inserted into the centre of the dirt chamber. 

The former are great for boats. Not particularly powerful but plenty good enough, and the flat(ish) filter is easily cleaned when it clogs if ash is vacuumed up. 

The latter V6 type are viciously powerful initially, but the cone filter blocks stupidly quickly and even the tiniest bit of stove ash sucked up will stop the thing stone dead. Cleaning the cone filter is a pig of a job too. Has to be done wet as you just can't shake all the dust out, then it takes a day to dry before you can use it again. Don't put the filter back in wet or the cleaner will run for about 2 seconds finely spraying water everywhere then the motor will die. DAMHIKT. If you call Dyson and tell them it has failed, but miss out the bit about putting the filter back in wet, they will send a new motor FOC. DAMHIKT either ;)

Edited by Mike the Boilerman
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11 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

I have to say as owner of several Dyson hand-helds, a distinction MUST be drawn between the old format machines (D31 etc) with a filter gently curved and on the side of the dirt chamber, and the current models (V6 etc) with a cone-shaped filter inserted into the centre of the dirt chamber. 

The former are great for boats. Not particularly powerful but plenty good enough, and the filter is easily cleaned when it clogs if ash is vacuumed up. 

The latter are viciously powerful initially, but the cone filter blocks stupidly quickly and even the tiniest bit of stove ash sUcked up will stop the thing dead. Cleaning the cone filter is a pig of a job too. Has to be done wet as you just can't shake all the dust out, then it takes a day to dry before you can use it again. Don't put the filter back in wet or the cleaner will run for about 2 seconds finely spraying water everywhere then the motor will die. DAMHIKT. If you call Dyson and explain, but miss out the bit about putting the filter back in wet, they will send a new motor FOC. DAMHIKT EITHER ;)

Thanks Mike

As ours is getting on we had thought about getting a new one, especially as they are reputed to suck better, sounds like its better to keep the old DC31. Maybe there's a little business venture here, buying up the old ones , rebranding them as the Boaters Vac, and selling them to boaters. Maybe there's mileage in this rebranding stuff after all  ?

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5 minutes ago, Tom Richmond said:

Thanks everyone. Useful stuff.

For reference, gtech seem to be about twice as much as dyson.

In view of mikes comments, I note that second hand DC31's are available on eBay for £50 max, some without batteries. I would check that original Dyson batteries are still available before going this route. Batteries are not always interchangeable between models (even if they look similar) and my experience with replica batteries is not a positive one.

.............Dave 

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14 minutes ago, Tom Richmond said:

Thanks everyone. Useful stuff.

For reference, gtech seem to be about twice as much as dyson.

 

I think I paid about £200+ for my V6 about three years go. Quite a disappointing buy as it turns out. I suspect the price has tumbled because it just isn't that good a piece of kit due to the filter=cleaning problem. 

I also seem to remember a Gtech being about £100 at the time. Now the basic handheld Gtech is £150. Anyone here got one? How is it with stove ash? This is the killer question for a boater's vacuum cleaner. 

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Another possibility is the Makita, its only about £50 and Makita stuff is usually dead good. Has anybody here used one???? The £50 is without batteries or charger so this would be most attractive for those who already have Makita drills/angle grinders/multi tools etc and a collection of batteries.

...........Dave

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