Bissell 5770 Healthy Home Bagless Upright Vacuum Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)UPDATE : 2/11/09 See Note Below if you own this unit...
I purchased this as a replacement for a Dyson DC-15 Animal. The Dyson had a high pitched noise that gave both my wife and I a headache. I found I could vacuum with an IPOD on loud, and she could manage it with earplugs. After giving 2 DC-15's a try I started my vacuum search again bought the 5770.
The Good:
1). This vacuum is a great value when compared to the Dyson.
2). The suction is just as good or better than most Dyson's (a sales guy told me the DC-17 has slightly more, but both are great). When vacuuming after the DC-15 the Bissell picked up more stuff. I noticed that the first vacuum with the DC-15 got a bunch of junk out my carpet, but after that it was just a little... This picked up as much dirt as the DC-15 did originally, so I was impressed.
3). It comes standard with the turbo brush, and all the small tools you need. The standard brush attachment is really pretty cool as it is a standard long bristle brush, but then can pull apart and become a short bristle brush in case you need to really scrub something.
4). The hose is great. It's flexible and actually reaches to the top of the stairs (unlike the Dyson).
5). The front end is low to get into short spaces below furniture etc. and it does have a headlight. I thought the headlight was no big deal, but when the extra long cord allowed me to vacuum into a dark room the headlight actually helped out.
6). You can turn the beater brush on and off with a touch of a button. When you stand the unit up it automatically shuts off. The brush also has a separate motor. The Brush is very stiff, like a Dyson, but the bristles are shorter, I believe this makes it easier on your carpet. The Dyson started pulling up lose carpet fibers from the edges of my carpet, I think, because of the longer bristle brush. The Bissell seems to be gentler on my carpet but at the same time it makes the carpet fibers stand right up and look like new. It also has a height adjustment, which, depending on your point of view, is a good thing.
7). It's Quiet! You can actually talk to someone while vacuuming. Don't get me wrong it's still a vacuum, there is still noise, but it's a lower muffled sound that is easy to listen to.
The Bad:
1). It's Heavy! In fact, we almost returned this unit and started looking for something else that would work for us. We ended up keeping the unit, but we took a good couple of days vacuuming the house and thinking it over. Half jokingly I said let's think of this as an exercise machine that just happens to clean the house!
I would recommend taking some time to test this in the store, pushing it around on some carpet (with a pad) like you have at home to get a true feeling for it. Initially (after the wonderfully easy to maneuver DC-15 Ball) it seemed really heavy. After a few days we're used to it and it doesn't seem bad at all.
2). Bissell got the dirt canister wrong, Dyson wins this battle. The canister is in a slight "V" shape so lots of dirt on the top of the pile must somehow compact a bit to fit through a smaller area on the bottom, kind of like going through a funnel. Water flows nicely through a funnel... Dirt does not. The release button is not right on top, like the dyson, so it's a two handed deal to hold the canister and then press the button to release the dirt. Next, the trap door at the bottom is not spring loaded, like the dyson, so it may or may not open, so you might need to flick it open with your finger. The trick with your finger may or may not get you dusty, because the dirt may not just dump out because the nice "V" shape of the unit keeps it in place, maybe this is a good feature? Joking aside, this really could be improved and I hope Bissell does this on future models because it really is a great vacuum.
I justified this dirt canister problem by comparing it to the Dyson... Fluffy stuff (hair, carpet fibers etc.) would get stuck in their dust bin as well, not as much, but it happened. Also, after a few uses the little holes in the inside bottom part of the cyclone clog up so it's a messy job to clean that up. The bottom line here is I think you empty the canister a little more often and your fine, but the nature of either beast is that you're going to have some dirty work ahead of you at some point. It's just the price you pay for superior suction.
Hope this helps!
Update 2/11/09:
Just under the two year mark the brush started to get noisey and smell. Unlike a vacuum from the old days you can't just throw in a new brush and belt. I called Bissell and they had me send the unit back and sent me a refurbished unit.
The Bad: Being a 'Mr. Fixit' kind of guy, I took this apart prior to calling Bissell. (I didn't remember there was a 2 year warranty). The brush bearing cap on one end was worn and the plastic started to melt. There is are mounting/stabilization points near the belt and these were badly worn/melted as well. You cannot fix these mounting points as they are part of the top and bottom of the unit. I have no idea what this would cost to replace, but I'd guess a lot. This seems to be a bad design. Maybe I just had a bad brush, but I don't think so...
The Key is to find the problem prior to the mounting points being destroyed. They do have a bushing that looks like it can be replaced so this should save big $$ on a repair.
What you should do: If you own this unit, or are thinking about buying one, about once a month do the following:
1. Flip the unit over to expose the brush.
2. Remove the junk that gets stuck in the brush.
3. Grab the brush on one end and try to move it up and down or side to side. The brush should be solid and only move round and round.
4. Repeat step 3 on the other side.
Note: If you can move the brush it's starting to go bad. Call Bissell to find the nearest repair facility if your out of warranty. If you're in warranty they'll replace it for you.
I got my refurbed unit today, it works great!

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