Recommend a good vacuum cleaner

[bedelia]

I'm looking for recommendations for a new vacuum cleaner. Ours hasn't packed up (yet!) but is very much on it;s last legs and a nightmare to use!

Ideally it needs to be

• a cylinder(?) type rather than an upright as we have 3 floors - lugging the upright up and down stairs is tiring and v. impractical!

• powerful: we have 4 cats (who are constantly shedding!) and 3 messy DCs!

• bagless, though I am open to bagged ones if the bags are cheap enough and easy to change

• comes with tools/attachments (for upholstery, nooks and crannies, stairs, etc)

• under about £150, though I am prepared to go higher for a model that WILL last a long time/has a long guarantee

I've been wondering about investing in a Dyson, but unsure as to whether they live up to the hype and impressive price tags?

Any advice is really appreciated TIA!

Miele Cat and Dog.

Dysons don't come close.

I hated my dyson and changing the stupid filter. I've been through loads of vacuums and have settled on a Henry on the recommendation of a couple of cleaners. So far so good! It has an extra boost button too for when you need extra hard cleaning

Miele cylinder will be better than any other vacuum you've ever tried.

We have a Miele which cost £130 odd from JL 5 years or so again. It's great - light and powerful. Bags come from EBay. Has survived hoovering up wallpaper paste and plaster rubble with no ill effects.

I used a Henry at a holiday cottage last week and it was rubbish - heavy, unwieldy and a bit pants at actually cleaning. It was old so may just have been knackered.

I've got a Samsung bagless cylinder which has been excellent. I did buy an extra washable filter - so I always have a clean one ready to use - which makes life easier.

The current models look a bit different from mine, and I see they now do Pet versions.

Thank you all for your replies

Those of you who have Mieles, roughly how often do the bags/filters need changing? I'm a bit tempted having seen in the description on Amazon that they're expected to last up to 20 years... Just wondering how much extra I'd have to factor in for bags and filters as the up-front price is a bit more than I'd planned for.

We can get about a month and a half from a Miele bag with 2 kids and 2 long haired cats.

If you want something with a big bag, look at the Henry Xtra (not the standard Henry!). Does everything the Miele does and is very reliable, but the bags are huge - like a pillow case! Takes months to fill up.

Both the Miele Cat & Dog and Henry Xtra come with a turbo brush for carpets and suction only tool for hard floors so you get the best clean on both floor types. The Henry is a lot bigger though so more difficult to store.

Henry Xtra is only £125 and you can also get a pack of 10 bags for £6. That will last you years!

www.henryvacs.co.uk/acatalog/2014-Model-Henry-Xtra-Vacuum-Cleaner-HVX-200A-with-Autosave-Feature-900027.html?gclid=CJuzs6X12sYCFQLMtAodRp8NSQ

Anything but a Dyson!

I have a Morphy Richards Endurance Family and Pets. It's great. Has different power settings and has survived so far even with me and my dog who moult excessively It's also doing well with the baby mess. I Hoover up everything, dust, food, paper, wet wipes and it's still going strong. It was only £80 from Studio about 3 years ago.

The bags for a cylinder Miele are £3 in Wilko as they take a big standard one.

If you want the real ones the cheapest way is to buy them on line.

You can't use non-Miele bags in a Miele vacuum, they can't take the high suction and leak dust into the motor.

Yes you can, I have been for years for both my hoovers. My mother does too with no issues.

Bog standard not big standard.

I have a Morphy Richards ( lift away type) as my downstairs vacuum and it is brilliant ,much better than any Dyson I've ever owned ,and I've had a few ! I currently have a Bosch cordless upstairs and that's also very good .

I have had a few cylinder and upright hoovers including a Dyson, but have since become the proud owner of a Henry!

It's great, but does use bags, although they hold loads so don't need changing that often and you can get them easily. I don't have cats or dogs, but wool carpets which shed a lot of fluff and kids with v long hair. As it doesn't have a beater, it doesn't get clogged with hair and you just flick a knob to use a bristled edge for hard floors. It's powerful and you actually lifts the carpet! The only slight down side is the hose length as it won't reach all the way up the stairs, but the cord length is great and it winds away inside the hoover.

Definitely recommend Henry!

The guy in our local repair shop (not where I buy bags from) always says he only ever gets a Miele in for repair when someone hasn't used the proper bags and the leaked dust has built up around the motor and killed it. The proper Miele bags don't lose suction like the cheapo ones do either and they hold more.

Just done a quick search online - even the experts say don't use cheapo bags in a Miele
www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?1233

Oh well, I've been doing it for ten years so far and it's fine and the bags are the same size so hold the same.

And apparently you also void the 5 year warranty if you don't use proper bags.

It's ok, it's been fine for ten years, actually more than ten years, so whatever I'm doing is fine.