Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I bought this Dec '09 after about two weeks of research on lightweight vacs. I needed one that could handle: LOTS of dog hair (retriever/spitz mix!), four kids, the usual kitchen crumbs, area rugs, hardwood floors, tile and very low nap carpeting (whew!). We also have a woodstove and frequently have small leaves and wood debris from the logs being brought in the house. In the past, I have tried Bissel Turbo Sweep (kept breaking) and the Shark (new version with one side brush; battery died after one year and brush roll got so full of hair that it was a pain to try to keep it clean). Tired of batteries dying or the vac dying!
A big problem with cordless vacs is that the battery will inevitably die out on you within a year because of "overcharging" it. I really liked that this vac has a "smart charger" that only charges the vac what it needs and then reduces the charge to a trickle so that the battery does not get overcharged. The charger base is about the size of a dustpan and holds the vac in place well, so you'll need a place on the floor that you can park it. Handle does fold down if that makes a difference in your storage options.
First, the "cons": plastic body feels a little flimsy; it is awkward (but doable) on steps; whole body of vac swivels and not just the nozzle when you pivot it and takes a little getting used to; handle is NOT ergonomic and vac starts to feel hand "heavy" after a while (I can still use the vac with just my forefinger wrapped around the end of the handle and that helps). Also, if you are vacuuming a very dirty rug, the dirt cup will fill quickly and will lose suction.
Now the "pros": this vac REALLY picks stuff up! I am AMAZED at the amount of dog hair, crumbs, etc this thing will pull in! (Good-bye, doggie tumbleweeds!) Great for kitchen; scatter rugs get clean without being sucked up into the vac; great on tile, hardwood and low nap carpets. I also like the brushroll on/off feature so I can go from hardwood to carpet easily. Gets the edges clean too. The head of the vac is smaller than I thought, so if you can't get the edges clean going alongside it, I can get it clean coming straight at the edge. Now things like dog food and air soft pellets (two boys) will rattle around if you vac them up, so I usually end up emptying the dirt cup if that happens. Noise is moderate; it is, after all, a vacuum. Noise increases a bit if dirt cup gets full. Fully charged initially in under six hours, and again, place it back in its charger base and it will charge only what it needs (charging light goes out when vac is fully charged again). Have not used it enough to wear out the battery charge as I try to keep it's continual use under 10 minutes. It has a two year warranty on it, which I think is above average. After I vac my den carpet, and after about every other use on regular floors, I use my big vac to really clean the filter and filter screen as that is a key to getting good suction with these type of vacs. This thing picks up so much dog hair and dirt that I usally have to empty the dirt cup out at least once when I use it on my den rug, but not having to lug my 21- pound sears vac around is worth it. If the dirt cup was larger, it would be near perfect! I currently use Swiffer sweeper pole for my hardwoods and it looks like this vac will pay for itself within six months of not having to buy those refills all the time! So, I guess the only thing left to find out now is how long this will last!
PS: The dirt cup release button looks like you depress it downward, but actually you have to press upwards on it or you might break it! Also, on deeply patterned area rugs, it does not do a good job; but again for scatter rugs and everything else I mentioned, it does. Hope this helps!
Click Here to see more reviews about: Dirt Devil Accucharge 15.6 Volt Cordless Bagless Stick Vac with ENERGY STAR Battery Charger, BD20035RED
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