A Best Buy for me, for sure!
Written: Feb 09 '07
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Pros: Very effective carpet cleaning, and bagless dirt collection
Cons: Attachement wands poorly made, and hose difficult to extend.
The Bottom Line: I am extremely pleased, with just a few nit picks. Highly recommended for an average house, with plenty of carpet.
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| dalesky's Full Review: Kenmore 36933 Bagged Upright Vacuum |
Early last year we moved into a new house, from an old one that had an in-house vacuum system. I was a bit overwhelmed with having to purchase a new vacuum, having used the Beam system for over 22 years, with no break downs, no bags to buy, and plenty of accessories.
I did a bit of research, including that famous consumer magazine that does not allow advertisements. This Kenmore had been rated a best buy and sounded pretty good. When we got to Sears the sales person rushed over to help. (commissions anyone?)
We were looking at this model, but asked him for a better price. He responded by telling us that the one we were trying out had been used once in the store, and could be sold for a very nice discount. We haggled a little, and he agreed to lower the price a bit more, and throw in the extended warranty for free. What can I say, we bought it. Full guarantee, free warranty, and big discount- nice!
The features on this model are extensive, as they should be considering the price. It comes with a standard 17 ft cord, a permanently attached coiled hose, two filters, and various attachments for the hose. All that’s nice, and I’ll return to it later.
What counts with an upright is its ability to suck dirt from the carpets and rugs, right? Are ya feelin’ me here? A canister is all about the hose, but an upright is for strong suction on carpets. Well, this one goes the extra mile in a couple of ways.
The controls for the motor (all electronic) include a setting for using a dirt sensor. When you push that control the vacuum not only sensed the amount of dirt/debris being sucked up, it adjusts the motor speed too. I found this to be amazing, and was a bit skeptical until I proved to myself that it really works.
Being in a new house there was naturally a fair bit of left over construction dirt in the form of actual dirt, as well as drywall dust. I noticed that near the windows the dirt was heavier, because of the dirt in the air outside that came in also.
We moved into the house in the Spring, and had our windows open a lot. I could always expect to find more dirt under the windows, as well as in the most walked in areas. It was easy to tell because of the sensor lights, which go from all red, to red/orange, and finally to green. Each time the lights change the motor speed changes also.
Eventually the motor is quite quiet, and will increase it’s speed as needed when dirt is encountered. Its almost fun to use, knowing that you can be sure of when a carpet is actually clean.
There is also an adjustment on the beater bar for carpet height. The beater bar makes very good contact with carpets and rugs. Setting it too low will result in difficulty trying to push or pull the machine.
There is no belt to worry about breaking, as this uses a direct drive system that has a shaft to attach to the beater bar. I have found though that you need to turn the unit over and unwind fibers that spin around the beater bar. That’s about all the maintenance needed.
It also has a built in circuit breaker, which shuts the unit off if you start sucking up a pair of pants or the like, and the motor really bogs down. With a belt system you would likely burn the belt out, or break it. No belts to replace- Hooray! And, no stink from the burning belt.
As time has gone by, I have been very pleased with this vacuum. It is fairly maintenance free, and quite versatile. I almost said I was fond if it, but that just sounds wrong, doesn’t it?
It can’t take the place of a canister type, but then those don’t clean carpets like this one does. It certainly out-performs my old in-house system, with great gobs of suction power, and the ability to adjust itself to the amount of dirt.
The dirt container is a large circular bin, that is easily removed. You simply lift up on a handle and pull the handle forward. The container stays together until you open it. Once outside, you open it with a firm twist to remove the top, and lift the top off. The filter is attached to the top, and has a lever that ‘flicks’ back and forth to vibrate and help remove debris from the filter elements themselves. I find that removing the filter completely and beating it vigorously into the inside of the garbage can works well. It’s also somehow a satisfying thing to do, unless a breeze blows dust all over you.
I haven’t needed to replace it for almost a year now. I also brush between the elements occasionally with a small whisk broom. The container it attaches to is quite large, and simply dumps out once the cover is removed. The container is clear, and allows you to quickly gauge the level of dirt and debris.
The second filter, called the HEPA filter, is attached on the side, just before the exhaust air exits the vacuum. It supposedly traps debris/dust that you have been vacuuming up. It is much like a car air cleaner, or the one in a lawn mower. It is staying fairly clean, and I am not very able to clean it well. Unlike the larger one in the dirt container I expect to replace it fairly soon.
Using the vacuum on heavy wool rugs will result in quite a bit of wool fiber being removed each time you vacuum. I have learned to not go by the dirt sensor, since it may take many months of vacuuming to remove the loose fibers. The carpet on the other hand stopped shedding in about 6 months, and now I mainly get dirt, not carpet fibers.
There is a drawback to this dirt sensor though- If you pay attention to it, and continue to vacuum until the green light comes on, and the motor slows down, you might be there a while. It is really effective, and I know that it does work. Goodbye in-house system, Hello new Kenmore!! Not going to miss the old one at all when it comes to actual deep cleaning.
There are no bags to buy, which is nice.
A headlight makes it easy to see in dark closets and the like.
Hose and attachments—
The hose is listed as having a 20 foot length I believe. It is strongly coiled, and wraps firmly around the back of the vacuum. You ‘unplug’ the open end from the vacuum, and pull it from the grooves holding it tightly to the body of the machine. Once pulled loose you can attach 3 wand sections, and 4 accessory pieces, such as a crevice tool or floor tool for hard surfaces. It is not easy to pull out fully, as the vacuum tends to come towards you when you try, or it tips over with a crash! I have learned to brace it if possible, or simply keep the vacuum closer to me, thus avoiding the pulling when I extend the hose. Having it crash over a couple of times is annoying, and can’t be good for the vacuum body.
There is a ‘powered’ upholstery brush, which is actually spun by the suction, but it is powerful. Avoid getting a finger in there. It is very difficult to bog it down enough to stop it from spinning.
The wands are a weak spot, and collapse (slide together) fairly easily. In addition the knobs that twist into the connection places are flimsy.
Do not try vacuuming steps from the top, but instead from the bottom. You do not want the vacuum flying down the steps at you.
The cord winds up on the back, manually. It has a retainer built into the plug which holds it firmly to the cord.
The machine is not one that is self-propelled. It is somewhat heavy to push. Try it out in the store on some dense carpet to judge for yourself how easy it is to use. I have gotten used to it, but it takes some effort push and pull around.
Moving it about, by picking it up, as when you encounter a threshold, or go up or down stairs, is fairly difficult. The handle is not well-suited for picking the unit up, and there is no real hand hold anywhere to grab onto and lift with.
We talked to one of our new neighbors, who is a retired flooring expert. He told us about construction of carpets, and about pilling of new carpets, as well as the need to keep the dirt out of them. Typically new carpets will pill for up to a year, and when vacuumed will shed quite a few fibers. This neighbor stated that it is much more important to remove the dirt than it is to have carpets wet cleaned. The dirt will degrade the fibers, and carpet that is allowed to stay crushed down will lose its memory, and not stand up as it did when new. A good vacuum is necessary for long life of carpets.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 170
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Epinions.com ID:
dalesky
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 - Top 1000 |
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Location: Murrells Inlet South Carolina
Reviews written: 133
Trusted by: 11 members
About Me:
Love to cook, explore the Internet, read and watch movies on DVD. Ain't technology Grand?
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