Hoovering the stairs

[irrepressibleRedhead]

I'm after some advice from the hive mind! I've lived in a house with stairs for about 10m now, and I'm not happy with how I vacuum the stair carpet. I have a Dyson Animal (DC23 maybe?) and while I generally like it, I can't seem to do a good job on the stairs. Either I try to use the main head and it's too big, or I try a nozzle and it's much too small and leaves annoying lines across each tread.

Am I just doing it wrong? Or am I right in thinking what I really need is a little hand held something or other? If so, what do people recommend? Budget isn't limitless, I could probably run to a reconditioned Dyson one but if there's a cheaper good option I'd be happy to hear about it! Thanks all.

You can get a small turbo head, about 200mm wide. It It need not be the same brand as the vac, the hose fittings come in a small number of standard sizes.

I'm guessing your vacuum is an upright? This is why I hate them. Cylinder all the way ftw.

If its not it then confirms my thought that all Dyson are overpriced crap. Miele ftw!

I've had them all over the years, from cheap to v v wtf was I thinking expensive.
The best one by far is my Henry.
Only if you are strong and able bodied though as he will give you a workout as well as clean floors.

i find an actual hard brush works best

I have the turbo head.

NoahVale do you mean a manual stiff bristled brush? Ie not a vacuum cleaner at all?

I use a dustpan and brush my hoover isn't good for stairs. Start at the top work my way down. My arms get a bit of a workout out too!!

I'm excited to try it, I only ever get a chance to do housework while my baby is asleep so the hoovering is sadly neglected!

yes Alice,
good old fashioned elbow grease

My gran used to brush the stairs. I don't like doing it because it doesn't shift the deep down dust, grit and pet fur. Your stair carpets get a lot of wear so they do need vacuuming.

We've got the mini turbo brush for ours, it does a great job

Rubber pet grooming mitts of silicon oven gloves are great if you want to have a go manually.

this is an example of a cheap replacement mini-turbo, might be worth a try. Quite likely your vac manufacturer offers their own version.

When you buy vac tools, you need to measure the end of the pipe, and observe if it fits into, or round the outside of, the spigot on the tool, as there are a few different sizes.

My Dyson came with a stair cleaner attachment. I never realised what it was until I saw my MIL vacuum her stairs. It's much easier to use than the nozzle and pulls up everything without those annoying lines.

Thanks everyone. I love my Dyson for everything else but am obviously lacking a turbo head, will get one immediately! I'm grateful for everyone's advice.

Yes I also use dustpan and brush. And as you say you get a good workout as well!

I have a Henry and couldn't be more grateful for it! But I used to clean people's homes and many had dysons and for effective stair cleaning I would also highly recommend you buy a turbo head - it will make all the difference!