Hoovers? what do you use?

P.A.C

I need to get a better hoover.
I have ALOT of dust and pet hair (king charles cav).
It has to be compact and light.
Not to expensive!
I have asthma, and we have had Daisy for over a year im now
suffering very bad with my breathing.
Cant see how id be having breathing problems after a year.
Thanks

lubie76

Miele cat and dog is great. Has a special revolving head attachment for carpets.

RubyGirl

I use henry, find it really good. They do one now with steam cleaner and hoover in one. Saw it on argos web page.

Tip: put a flea collar into the bag of your hoover. (just in case?)

sentient_6

Lad know has a border collie that loves getting hoovered.

daingeanrob

a dyson is the only job. expensive at first but long lasting with a five year warranty and the best Hoover around.

verywell

+1 for the miele. I have had the same one for about 5 years and it still has not given me a days trouble. I have a very hairy doggie so my floor can get extremely bad and this hoover has never let me down. There is also 4 adults in this house so it has gotten a lot of use over the years.

stimpson

+1 for the Dyson. I got the DC05 animal when we had doggies. Has a spinning brush head that takes the hair off the carpet. The head needs to be taken apart occasionally to clean it out. I would recommend wooden floors if you have allergies though.

portgirl123

same here for the dyson animal have mine over 6 yrs now, not a bit of trouble and still going strong

padi89

Wouldn't get another Dyson if it were free. The plastic on them cracks so easily so parts got broken constantly and believe me i was careful with it. Numatic Henrys are OK, suction is so so, not great for pet hair but they are fairly durable. Having said the mine gave up the ghost last month after 3 years. So went to Currys to get another Henry but they were sold out. The sales guy whom i know from walking the dog recommended one from samsung. I was a bit dubious but after talking he said it's the best he has used and he has a couple of dogs. Got it home and gave it a run downstairs and it was like the carpets got a wash, it's that good. The Dyson and Henry still left hairs behind despite taking time but the samsung devours hair and dust. Brilliant machine, early days yet of course but so far so good. I wouldn't usually buy extended warranties but for 22 euro extra its fully covered for 4 years.
http://www.currys.ie/Product/SAMSUNG-VCC8442V-Bagless-Cylinder-Vacuum-Cleaner/298909/327

tazwaz

a dyson 19 animal for def...its the biz for getting dog hairs off the carpet...have it with years and never had a prob with it

tim_holsters

It's gotta be the dyson.

As the hoovering experience goes there is no better.

P.A.C

Thanks for the replies, im off now to do a bit of internet shopping and see which one of the ones recomended i can afford.
God there are so many of each make to chose from, me heads melted!!
thanks again

P.A.C

I dont have any carpets at all, and just the basic small few soft furnishings.
I see the dyson has mixed reveiws.
Im off to do some more googling. I think i probably need some sort of air purifier aswell!!
Thanks to all who have replied already.
Please keep the reveiws coming.
Thanks so much.

TooManyDogs

I have no carpets downstairs but carpets upstairs. We use the dyson animal too, highly recommend it, ours is an older model but the newer ones come with a HEPA filter too I think. We have a hardwood brush head for downstairs and the revolving head for upstairs. Never had a moments problem

lorebringer

We also have a Dyson Animal (purple) - wouldn't be without it with all the hair that is produced in the house. Has loads of attachments, has an amazing filter, can be used on carpet and solid floors and it really is a very well put together piece of kit. My turbo head broke a little while ago and Dyson replaced it very quickly with no charge or annoyance on my part, they are a very nice company to deal with. I use it everyday, and have done since the day it was brought into the house, and it's still in perfect condition (apart from the head, which is now new). They can be a bit pricey but are worth every penny. I have a neighbour with 3 cats that are in the house a good bit who uses the standard Dyson (yellow and grey) and she finds it very good so a cheaper model may be all you need. Also, there may be some going cheapish in the sales so worth a look.

My parents have the Meile Cat and Dog (red) and they find it very good. They only have one dog (long coat) so don't have as much hair as I would in the house but they still get good use out of it. I think it feels heavier than my machine but that really is up for debate, could just be me!

LB6

I just upgraded last week-end. The Springers moulting like no man's business.
If you're considering looking at dysons - have a look at the VAX Zen. That's what I got, €145 down to €125 with a 6 year guarantee. Don't know where I'd be without it. I discovered I've got carpet in the car again and that it's grey not white!

P.A.C

Thanks so much to you all for taking time to reply.
So its between 3 makes, dyson if i can afford one
mieli (sp), and maybe vax!
Im going to mainly look at the filter system in them and see
which one suites. Also someone said to ring the asthmas ass, for
recomendations.
Anyway thanks again at least now i know what im looking for.

Heroditas

We have three indoor cats and use the Miele Cat and Dog.
Our old Vax died a horrible death due to the pet hairs but the Miele is fantastic.
The carpets look brand new every week after they're hoovered.

Zapperzy

If your considering a dyson keep an eye on the argos website they sometimes have offers on them, they had quite a bit of money off them before christmas and then again just after christmas.

The Sweeper

P.A.C wrote: »

I dont have any carpets at all, and just the basic small few soft furnishings.
I see the dyson has mixed reveiws.
Im off to do some more googling. I think i probably need some sort of air purifier aswell!!
Thanks to all who have replied already.
Please keep the reveiws coming.
Thanks so much.

If you have all hard floors in your house, you don't need to pay extra for expensive carpet cleaning rotating brushes. You also don't need to pay for super duper suction. You just need something to clean the floor and keep the dust to a minimum.

More and more of the cheaper makes and models now have hepa filters and other asthma-friendly mechanisms to appropriate safety standards. The problem with bagless vacuums if you have allergies and asthma is that emptying them can be a dusty pastime. I can't empty my ducted vacuum cannister, in spite of the fact that ducted vacuum works wonders for my allergies (because the ducting goes through the house and there's no need for filters because the vacuum cylinder is wall mounted in my garage). If I empty the bagless cannister I commit to a day's sneezing and wheezing, unless I wear goggles, gloves and a dust mask.

I think you'd be better off finding a model with the appropriate filters that's within your price range.

Also see your doctor - if you're hanging out of your blue inhaler more than three times a week you need to look at preventative inhaler or a stronger preventative inhaler. Badly controlled asthma around pets is not a joke - you can end up with permanent airway remodelling because the inflammation never goes down.

Investigate why your house is so dusty - you may get benefit from a plug-in air purifier along with a new vacuum.

P.A.C

Thanks You Soooo much sweeper for that brilliant advice.
yep im using way way to much, its just strange that after almost a year
that this is happining, gp is investigating at the mo, next step is xray.
I was thinking the same thing re air purifier and am looking at this hoover http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/4064169/Trail/searchtext%3EVACUUM+CLEANERS.htm.
Do you think that would be good enough?
I have 3 men that i can banish outdoors to empty it!!
Or would i need a better one? If that not suitable could you possibly recomend one for under 100e.
Thanks so much appreciate your advice

Shannon2011

Stay away from Dyson, I currently have a VAX and had a Miele previously. Recommend them both for a pet owner.

The Sweeper

HEPA filtration - stands for 'High Efficiency Particulate Air' - but it needs to be a properly tested HEPA filter that does trap 99.97% of particles of 0.3 microns (or virtually all of the very very small bits, in layman's terms.)

As far as I know, whether a HEPA filter is a 'real' tested filter should be stamped all over the outside of the box, and there will be a serial number on the filter itself.

Have a read of this Wiki doc on HEPA filtration:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HEPA

According to this article you want a vacuum with 'true HEPA' or 'sealed HEPA' systems, not just HEPA, and certainly not 'HEPA-like' filtration.

I can't recommend you a vacuum cleaner unfortunately because I don't live in Ireland, but if I were you, I'd head to a vacuum cleaner shop, declare that you're not buying today because it's payday next week, but you're doing your research, then get the sales person to explain the HEPA filtration systems and what's what in each cleaner. (I find that leading with 'I'm not buying today' tends to take the pressure off and lets you work through a comfortable fact-finding mission.)

If I were buying an air purifier I'd spend more money on the filter in that than on the vacuum. Air purifiers usually come with information on how many square metres of space they can deal with in your house, so the make and model will have information to guide you on what you need for your own home.

Vax do appear to be a good brand though - but buying from Argos, you can't really read up the details on the box. Perhaps call Vax directly and ask them about that model and what sort of HEPA filter it contains?

Because I have ducted vacuum in my house, as I said, I don't need to worry about HEPA filters. However for my hard floors, I did buy a family VAX wet/dry cleaner, which allows me to simultaneously wash and vacuum my hard floors. It basically throws a bunch of water over the floor (wetting the dust and dirt and pet hair) and then sucks it back up again (water and dirt together), so it dries as it goes. It's noisy as all hell, and a little cumbersome, but easier than vacuuming the hard floors and then washing them down with a mop and bucket.

What else could be setting off your asthma? Could it be the colder weather, dampness, pollen, other things that are making your house dusty? Is it a relatively new build where you still have builders dust over everything? If you don't dust does the place look like a mausoleum with the dust on the shelves and the telly within a week?

The last option you have is to spend no money at all until your GP identifies the cause behind your asthma. If you haven't already been allergy tested, I'd request an allergy test because the two things tie in closely, and there's no point in you investing in pet hair vacuums if your dog isn't triggering your asthma. If your cav IS triggering your asthma, you may have to approach it differently.

If your dog is your main trigger, you may have to take different steps - banish her from the bedroom if she sleeps there, wash your face and hands if you pet her or if she licks you, change her bedding regularly, so on.

It's just a thought but it may be the case that you can just do some research in the meantime but stall spending any money, have your xrays and an allergy test, discuss asthma management with preventative drugs with your GP and see what the allergy test brings back as triggers, then work from there for a solution?

SupaDupaFly

http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/4064169/Trail/searchtext%3EVAX.htm

Bought this last week, its brilliant, does a great job and with two JRTs in the house it needs to be brilliant. Would recommend it for dust and allergies too. Air quality is so much better since we started using it.

Discodog

I use a Henry & I am so impressed that parts are easy to get on ebay & it's easy to repair.

luvdogs

Def reccommend the Miele cat/dog hoover over the Dyson any day....its fab

Caxton

My wife alway used a Dyson when I was away on business (regulary) when our Rottweiler thought he should take my place in our bed, until he was sent cowering by the Dyson. It's got to be the Dyson everytime if you've got a Rottweiler

newmammy2011

I purchased this nilfisk one a couple of weeks ago and so far am finding it brilliant!
http://www.powercity.ie/?par=40-50-X10000

I also purchased a furminator 2 weeks ago to try and get rid of the hair before it fell off the dog and am finding it fantastic!

P.A.C

Thank you all, looks like a very mixed bag lol, il keep researching!!!
Sweeper, thanks you so much for you invaluable advice.
The dust is mad here, to close to very busy road, live in an apartment complex on the bottom right in the corner and everything seems to blow into my door. Supose thats the price of iner city living!! Of to as for more tests, thank everyone.

tk123

We use a cheapo Electrolux one I got in Argos a few years ago for around €35. I picked it at the time because it was the lightest branded one they had - it's less than 4kgs. We had a bagless Morphey Richards one and cleaning the filters was a major pain in the a$$ also it was very messy to empty and gross to see all the dust etc lol . It was very very heavy so a pain to cart up and down the stairs. The Electolux one is bagged but also comes with a fabric reusable bag if you don't want to buy the paper ones - i got a ton of the bags on ebay for next to nothing. We have wooden floors but have long runners down all over the place since our guys op in case he slips and it makes them look brand new in no time. Also it's nice and light for cleaning the car when he wrecks it
This is a newer version of ours : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Electrolux-Z4471-Powerplus-Cylinder-Cleaner/dp/tech-data/B003H04P9C/ref=de_a_smtd

Discodog

newmammy2011 wrote: »

I also purchased a furminator 2 weeks ago to try and get rid of the hair before it fell off the dog and am finding it fantastic!

I bought a stiffish brush to fit my Henry & I hoover the dogs with it. Gets out lots of hair !

Heroditas

This works for me:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4vBtgZXD28

Zapperzy

Heroditas wrote: »

This works for me:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4vBtgZXD28

One word: HOW? :eek:
My cat can't even be in the same room as a hoover nevermind within a few feet of one, and for one to touch her Id imagine she'd need to be anaesthetised! :eek:

By the way, lovely cat!

Daniel S

I've a dyson and a Henry hoover (the red and black one). I'd recommend the Henry by a country mile. The dyson is too weak in my opinion, the Henry is a workhorse. The dyson isn't a cheap one either, its a "decent one".

Heroditas

Zapperzy wrote: »

One word: HOW? :eek:
My cat can't even be in the same room as a hoover nevermind within a few feet of one, and for one to touch her Id imagine she'd need to be anaesthetised! :eek:

By the way, lovely cat!

He's no ordinary cat!

He follows me around the house when I'm hoovering and headbutts me to hoover him. He also has no issue when my wife uses her "jet engine" to dry her hair.

The other two run for the hills when the hoover is produced, but not Rocky.

davehey79

Got one of these LINKY 2 weeks ago now i think. We have a Chocolate Lab and a Jack Russell and it eats through the 2 of their hairs that are all over the place. Brilliant on the couch and the little fellas short wiry hairs all over the place. Has a specail pet attatchment and the suction is brilliant.