phungus's Full Review: Black & Decker CHV1688 Bagless Handheld Cyclonic V...
I am pretty happy with my Black & Decker CHV1688 Bagless Handheld Cyclonic Vacuum, better known as a Dustbuster. This model has great power, holds a charge well, and is easy to use. However, it has one major design flaw that takes away some of its utility. It retails for @ $50.
I bought this Dustbuster mainly to clean out our vehicles. Yes, I am one of those people who likes to keep a clean car. I do sometimes eat in my truck, so crumbs often wind up under the seat or in tight spaces that are nearly impossible to reach. I've found whole french fries in my wife's car before. Not only does it help cut out weird smells, but keeping food out of a car can also help keep bugs away.
When it comes to general duty jobs like cleaning around floor mats, this vacuum is superb. It has enough power to suck up everything from dirt to small rocks, and the battery holds enough power for me to thoroughly clean two different vehicles. It is kind of loud when being operated, but that is not such a big deal so long as it works well. It only weighs a couple of pounds, so it won't wear you out too much while using it. To clean, you just unsnap the front part and dump out the garbage.
Regarding the design flaw, this Dustbuster does not come with any attachments. If you look at the photo, you will see a gray piece right on the tip. This is a retractable nozzle that lets you extend the reach of the Dustbuster by about three inches. The design flaw is that it is really easy to push back in. If you are trying to reach a tight spot with this thing, it's very easy to push in the retractable piece back in and not be able to reach anything. Running it across a floor, even gently, with the thing slid out will make it go back in. Black & Decker should have included some kind of locking mechanism to make it stay in place, otherwise it is nearly useless. I have to fight with it a lot while cleaning under the car seats.
Part of what sold me on this vacuum, other than the Black & Decker brand name, was that it didn't have a bunch of attachments that I would have to keep up with. I liked the idea of a retractable nozzle. Too bad there wasn't a demo model on the shelf for me to see how well it did not work. Despite all the power that this thing has, I kind of miss not having the detachable pieces that make it extra useful. I use a whisk broom to help move stuff within reach if this vacuum can't get to certain areas under my car seats.
This Dustbuster also includes a mounting base and power recharger, so I mounted mine on the wall in my laundry room. It hangs on the base using a large plastic tab, so you just lift it off when ready to use. As long as it stays plugged in, it will recharge, and there is a light to indicate as much. You only have to put two holes in the wall to hang it, or you could prop it up if you didn't want to do any drilling. I can't say how long it takes to do a full recharge, because I have never been able to completely run the battery down despite doing all kinds of cleaning.
In the end, I still like my Black & Decker CHV1688 Bagless Handheld Cyclonic Vacuum. It is good for quick jobs where you don't want to break out the full size vacuum cleaner, and is great for cleaning out vehicles. Black & Decker really should rethink that retractable nozzle design, though.
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