would you recommend your hand-held vac <combusts with excitement>?

[CharlotteBronteSaurus]

i think we would benefit from a hand held vac, as i am terrible about sweeping/vacuuming the floor

anyone got any recommendations?

Which? Magazine tested the Dyson hand held and the Black and Decker and said there wasn't much between them (except the B&D one is MUCH cheaper!)

cool, thanks!

We have, and love , the B&D dust buster - an absolute godsend for crumbs etc. I wouldn't use it for a whole floor though, so sweep with a broom first but use it to pick up the piles the sweeping creates.

I also have the B&D dust buster Good for pet hairs too. Whatever you do get a plug in one as the rechargable ones don;t have enough suction in my experience!

I've just googled. There's lots £35 - £95 - which model do people use?

(Charlotte I would rather unblock a drain than do the bloody floor. The only thing worse is stairs)

Marking my place as I am in need of one of these. I couldn't believe the amount of choice on Amazon either!

I've had millions of the bloody things and they were ALL crap apart from the one I have now, the excruciatingly rather expensive Dyson one. It's rechargeable and only lasts for about 6-8 mins but bloody hell does it suck!

I use it every day. It sits plugged in in the corner of the living room. I love it.

Great for stairs/toddler detritus/cat fluff/sofas/speedy clean up when you can't be arsed to lug the big hoover out. I can do a whole room on hands and knees in 3 mins. Also great for wooden floors and kitchens.

If you can justify the cost, it is AMAZING

I have been tempted by that Dyson as my main hoover is the same. My big one so darn heavy though, so one of the little ones will be perfect for daily dog hair removal that even the furminator can't do!

Another vote for the Dyson, it's great for the stairs/sofa/cat fur.

It was expensive, but definitely worth it.

I have a Dyson, it's been an absolute godsend!

It picks up everything and because so portable I also use it for the stairs and to clean out the cars. Although the battery only lasts a few minutes it can still clean a vast area as the trigger means its only on when you need it.

Another plus is my 5 year old always wants to clean the stairs with it, one less job for me!

I have had it for over a year, use it most days, charge it once/twice a week and the battery works just as well as when it was first bought.

And another vote for the Dyson. I agonised for ages about the cost but it is so worth it! I use it every day, it's great. Worth every penny!

Another vote for the baby Dyson as it's known in our house. I've had others- the B&D one etc, but they are rubbish compared to this one.

I asked DH what he thought today and he is up for us getting the Dyson! We have such exciting conversation when walking the dog!

nicole my dh has vetoed the dyson i am trying to decide whether to use Own Money to buy it, or get a dustbuster on the joint account.

We've got this one

www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Decker-Vh780-Volt-Vacuum/dp/B0002V9E90/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1298749070&sr=8-12

It's bloody brilliant! I keep the Dyson downstairs and this upstairs (two flights of stairs) which saves lugging anything too far. It plugs in at the mains which means it actually sucks stuff up rather than the pants chargable jobbies I've had in the past.

Normally I would say no. Our old one had less suck than an OAP on the end of a straw.

But ... we were trying to get rid of some Tesco vouchers and bought the Black and Decker Dust Buster 7.2 V and it is really quite good (and a third of the price of the Dyson).