shafman1's Full Review: Dyson DC17 Animal Bagless Upright Cyclonic Vacuum
One would almost have to laugh to see someone pay $500 for a vacuum, but when all the facts are weighed, $500 is actually a great price for a great product.
First, let me say I used to be a big Consumer Reports advocate. I bought my last Hoover Wind Tunnel of 10 years on their recommendation. It was rated number three at the time along with the Kirby.
At the time, I thought the Hoover was great. It was self-propelled and even had a fancy dirt indicator light. The Hoover also had a HEPA filter and special filter bags to minimize the dust and filter the air. I had to laugh at my mother's Kirby. My Mom still uses it. She has to. She paid a small fortune for it, $1800. My sister also has one although she got hers for a bargain of $800. Now anyone who has ever used a Kirby knows they are built tough, but they also know what a pain it is to use the attachments. One practically has to dismantle the machine.
I have three dogs and have owned numerous other pets in the past. The big disadvantage to having a bag is the fact that it fills up so fast with dog hair. The bag needs to be changed about every time the house is vacuumed. Also, I have read the argument about the bag-less vacuums making a mess and throwing all the dirt back in the air when the canister needs to be emptied. This simply isn't the case. I got more dirt on me when I changed my Hoover's bag than when I press the button to empty our DC 17's canister. I simply lower the canister in the garbage can, press the button, give it a light tap, and shut the lid on the canister and the can. Hardly no mess. Also, whenever I changed the bag on the Hoover there was always dirt left in vacuum that needed to be cleaned out. There is no dirt left behind on the DC 17. Just have to make sure the lid is all the way closed on the canister before it's removed from the trash can.
We just purchased our DC 17 after taking back a DC 14 animal we tried for two weeks. The DC 14 worked phenomenally compared to our old Hoover. I have used quite a few different vacuums during my life including Eurekas and even a Oreck. I have never used a vacuum that got dirt and hair out of the carpet as well as the DC 14.
The first night we tried the DC 14, we emptied the canister several times. That would have been 4 bags on our old Hoover although there is no way it would have gotten the dirt and hair out of the carpet that the Dyson did. Also, the extension wand and hose on the Dyson are a dream to use compared to our Hoover. The hose on the Hoover was worthless because it was too short and the vacuum kept falling over. Now after being very impressed with the DC 14, we returned it when we learned it wasn't the latest model. We bought the DC 17 at another store for the same price.
Here are the improvements on the DC 17 compared to the DC 14 which worked phenomenally. The DC 17 has a separate motor for the brush bar which allows the main motor to work more efficiently and the brush bar to do a better job on the carpet. I personally was amazed at how much better the DC 17 worked than the DC 14 because I didn't think it was possible. The DC 17 brought our old carpet back to life.
The DC 17 is also easier to push and works better on low carpet compared to the DC 14. The DC 17 has a bigger canister which divides the dirt into three different sizes. This feature allows the DC 17 to get more dirt out of the carpet. The DC 17 has a separate switch next to the power switch for turning the brush bar on and off. This saves bending down to turn it off. I did see online that the DC 14's brush bar was supposed to be able to be turned on and off by foot. The DC 17 has a clear cover so one can tell when the brush bar needs to be cleaned without turning the vacuum over to look.
The wand on the DC 17 comes out without pressing a button. The wand on the DC 14 hung up a little and a button had to be pressed to release it. The attachments are stored in a better place on the DC 17. The DC 14 had two attachments stored on top of the canister which made them subject to being dropped in the trash can.
The HEPA filter on the DC 17 is on the vacuum instead of the top of the canister. Both the DC 14 and the DC 17 have a washable HEPA filter. The filter needs to be washed with cold water every six months and dried for 24 hours. The HEPA filters are about $18 if you want a spare. The HEPA filter on my Hoover was not washable and it clogged very quickly. It cost us over $25 a piece. It also gave off a horrid smell if we didn't change it right a way.
The Dyson works the same whether or not the canister is full or empty unlike the Hoover. This makes a big difference because if you are vacuuming with a full bag, you will not get as much dirt out of the carpet so it's left behind. The belt on our Hoover had to be changed about twice a year. If something was caught in the brush bar, the Hoover simply burned the belt up. The Dyson has a lifetime belt. It is very much like the belts that are on garage door openers with belt drives. The Dyson will ratchet and slip if something gets caught in the brush bar rather than burn up the belt. The belt is also very well protected to keep dirt and hair out of it on the Dyson.
The low reach floor tool works great. I used it to vacuum all the dirt and dog hair under our bed without having to move any furniture. The turbine tool works great in small places and on furniture. I haven't tried the Zorb carpet cleaner yet, but I suspect it will work great also. The Dyson vacuum is smartly designed to last and work efficiently. It is also very user friendly. The vacuum can be dismantled to clean a clog or clean the brush bar with a coin.
Another nice feature on the DC 17 is that the brush bar automatically resets to on when powering on and putting the vacuum in position to vacuum the carpet. I forgot to turn the brush bar back on the DC 14 and found I had vacuumed with the brush bar off. The five year warranty on parts and labor is also a great feature of the Dyson vacuums.
I was at Wal-mart last night and I saw quite a few brands of vacuums trying to copy Dyson's patented design. I even saw a Eureka that said it worked better than the Dyson. After reading the small print I saw it was being compared to the original Dyson 07. Of course that was also with a new filter. The vacuums should be tested with the bags and canisters full in my opinion. To anyone who is skeptical on whether or not the Dyson is worth the price, I say try one. If you don't like it take it back. You will truly be amazed on how well it works!
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