What sets vacuums apart?

[clifto]

Bagless vacs fill your house with dust . I know some of you dont believe
this .. go ahead & dont .

Hm. One of the things I like best about our bagless vacuum is that it
doesn't fill the air with dust. It, and the Rainbow we bought used but
which doesn't seem to have much suction any more, are the best ones
we've ever had.

 

[Bill Jeffrey]

Thanks. I was considering Electrolux, which is in the same price range.

But why does it take that kind of money to make contact with the floor? I'm
trying to understand why the best value is the best value, considering the
wide disparity.

Easy answer - go to the Library and look through the appropriate issue
of Consumer Reports. It will answer all these questions.

Bill Jeffrey

 

[William R. Walsh]

Hi!

Because people will pay for the name. Electrolux is like a Rolls Royce
or Harley Davidson, it's a status symbol, and while not necessarily a
bad product, it's certainly not the best value if you just want
something to do the job.

Depends on...I've found a number of their 1980s or so canister vacuums on
the curb and found most of them to have no problem at all. Sometimes I even
got the accessories. (That said, I do need a set of bearings that would be
suitable for use with one of their canister vacuums. I have one that the
front motor bearing is blown on. It runs but shrieks like the dickens and
makes everyone want to hide! I haven't been able to find replacements, not
even from Electrolux.)

Some years ago I picked up a positively ancient Electrolux canister from a
church sale. It couldn't be any newer than the 1950s. For $2 it wasn't a bad
deal at all. The broken latch on the lid was easily fixed. It is still
running along today. Getting the bags is no problem, as the container they
come in says "for all Electrolux canisters 1953 and newer"...pretty amazing.

I also have an Electrolux Epic upright (!!!) that is the only Electrolux
upright I have ever seen. It was tossed into the trash at work because of a
burned out power switch that made the handle get very hot in operation.
Somehow I think it will be going long after the vacuum that replaced it has
been retired. It seemed silly to let them toss it for what took me about
fifteen minutes to fix.

I don't know if their current products still last this long or not.

William

 

[James Sweet]

Depends on...I've found a number of their 1980s or so canister vacuums on
the curb and found most of them to have no problem at all. Sometimes I even
got the accessories. (That said, I do need a set of bearings that would be
suitable for use with one of their canister vacuums. I have one that the
front motor bearing is blown on. It runs but shrieks like the dickens and
makes everyone want to hide! I haven't been able to find replacements, not
even from Electrolux.)

Well when you can find them used for next to nothing then anything can
be a bargain, again they're not bad products, just vastly overpriced new.

Have you tried McMaster Carr? I got a bearing from them for the air pump
in my hot tub, it had sat full of water for months and the bearing was
shot but McMaster had something that fit perfectly.

 

[David Brodbeck]

Some years ago I picked up a positively ancient Electrolux canister from a
church sale. It couldn't be any newer than the 1950s. For $2 it wasn't a bad
deal at all. The broken latch on the lid was easily fixed. It is still
running along today. Getting the bags is no problem, as the container they
come in says "for all Electrolux canisters 1953 and newer"...pretty amazing.

Is that the art-deco one with the sleigh-style skis on the bottom? My
parents used to have one of those. They're pretty cool looking, a
genuine piece of industrial art. Looks like something The Rocketeer
would strap to his back.

 

[Tom Del Rosso]

Well when you can find them used for next to nothing then anything can
be a bargain, again they're not bad products, just vastly overpriced
new.

Do you mean the $800+ models, or the $300-$350 models as well? The cheapest
available today is around $110, but the cheapest of anything is usually
worthless.

 

[James Sweet]

Do you mean the $800+ models, or the $300-$350 models as well? The cheapest
available today is around $110, but the cheapest of anything is usually
worthless.

Well I guess it depends on what other vacuums cost these days. I've
never in my life paid more than $50 for one and that was the Kirby I
quit using because it was too heavy and clumsy, the one I've had since
then was free. All is relative I suppose. It's a vacuum, I just need to
to clean, I don't need a status symbol.