Thread Number: 30634  /  Tag: Brand New Vacuum Cleaners
Looking at Tri-Star Replacement 		[Down to Last]

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Post# 339119   12/12/2015 at 18:23 (3,051 days old) by Qualin ()        

Hello everyone. First of all, I'm going to apologize about this long post. I'm also sure there are a million posts about this topic, but I'd like some really strong opinions about what to do here. As this is my first post, I'm posting here because I figure if anyone knows a thing or two about things that clean, it would be all of you. :-)

You see, we've had a Tristar Vacuum cleaner for the last 10 years, I can't tell what kind of model it is, but I suspect it is at least 20 years old. We bought it used in 2004 from a vacuum rebuilder place. I paid about $500 for it used, that included all of the accessories and a powerhead.

We bought it because it was light, easy to carry around, tough, wasn't made of cheap plasticrap and didn't have any strange or wierd gimmicks, it "just worked".

It's a tough little bugger. It's fallen down the stairs more times than I can count, it's sucked up pounds of birdseed that our cockatiel loves to throw on the floor and it does a great job.

During the times where the powerhead completely clogged, all it took to take it apart were two big fat phillips screws. I'm impressed by the all-metal construction, it's really taken a beating these last ten years.

Even still, we're experiencing a few problems with it and last time I vacuumed the floors with it, I was about ready to toss it out the window. (Although, I'm sure it would take a chunk out of the sidewalk if I did.)

The problems we're having with it:
- The hose keeps coming out of the body of the vacuum. The "L" shaped slot part of the hose end is metal fatigued and bends too easily.
- The power connectors never want to stay attached and keep falling out.
- The power cord is developing "hot spots". When I finish using the vacuum, the power cord is very noticably hot in spots, I'm worried it might burn up.
- The accessories never seemed to fit the hose properly, like they're too small.
- As we vacuum, the hose keeps getting detached from the extender (?) hose, resulting in having to twist it back and forth until it snaps back into place. This makes the job of vacuuming a lot more tedious and longer than it should be.
- The power cord has become detached from the powerhead, it's hanging on by two thin wires. I'm worried they'll eventually break and cause a short.
- My wife hates the long power cord as it is constantly getting tangled. She'd like something retractable that she doesn't have to wind it by hand.

So, we have a few options available to us:
1. Bring our old Tristar to a refurbishment place, get all new attachments, get the powerhead repaired, get a new hose and a new power cord. (The motor seems to be fine and the bags aren't that expensive.) I'm wondering if it is worth it.
2. Buy a new or slightly used Tristar either through a distributor or take our chances and buy one through EBay. (We live about 5 minutes away from a place that can repair them.) The Ebay ones seem like they're nearly 50 percent cheaper than what new ones sell for.
3. Consider buying something else. If so, what would be recommended as a suitable replacement? I'm very leery about buying something made from plasticrap, as I really like the all metal body of our Tristar.

As I was walking through the Best Buy today, I thought, "Wait, Samsung makes vacuum cleaners?!" .. Of course, they're all made from plasticrap and don't look like they'll hold up to more than a few years worth of use.

I'm wondering (Since I come from the Automaticwasher forums) if we have the "Maytag" of vacuum cleaners and it would be foolish to consider replacing it with something new when it could just simply be repaired.

Are there better, more durable vacuum cleaners on the market I should be considering? Maybe ones with better, more modern technology?

Anyway, I'm going to apologize in advance if I accidentally cause a flamewar here.

I'm not sure what my maximum budget needs to be, but we've had visits from both a Filter Queen salesperson and a "Vortex" salesperson. (I don't know the exact name, but that's what it sounded like.) Both of them came in around the $3200 mark. So, I figure that if we had an Electrolux salesperson over at our house, we'd probably look at the same amount. (We haven't yet, but I'm wondering if we should?) What I have an issue with is that I don't want to get ripped off when I could buy a refurbished unit that is exactly the same that could clean just as well, but sells for half the price.

I'd like to buy something that will last me at least two decades (If not longer) and has a decent warranty. I once bought a refurbished Sharp Microwave for 1/3rd off the price and it's still humming along in our kitchen nearly two decades later.

Just a FYI, When we had the rep from Filter Queen visit our house, they showed up at 9 PM about a year ago and we had to cut the demo short because we just wanted to go to bed. We both liked the cleaning power, but my wife didn't like how heavy the canister was. I also didn't like the price..

I know some of you may be cringing, but I want to buy the best vacuum money can buy and if anyone would know what that is, it would be on this forum. "It costs what it costs" is something I can accept.

One small thing, after re-reading my post I thought I should clarify something.. When we bought our used Tristar, I wasn't expecting any warranty on it. A $500 used vacuum as opposed to a $3200 new vacuum seemed like a great deal. I figure that for 11 years worth of use for something that cost me that much, we got our money's worth out of it.

Post# 339129 , Reply# 1   12/12/2015 at 21:59 (3,050 days old) by CompactC9guy (Bathurst NB)        
I would say keep i t and fix it up seems you like it .

 compactc9guy's profile picture
First of all ,I would recommend getting a new hose , new cord , new power head cord WICH all can be purchased on ebay for a relatively low price .seems it just needs a bit of tlc and your tristar compact will have many years o f services left in her .Could you possibly give me a picture of the vacuum ? New cord , new hose , new power head i would recommend a eureka roto-matic type of power head cleans well durable as well .A new crush proof hose would run for about 120 $ but its worth it new bags and you would have brand new tristar vacuum cleaner cleaning system in the hosue .Now this is my opinion only .I would fix it up and keep it for the years to come i own a Compact C9 Electra it has a new hose , power head motor and brush roll and belt and power head cord total cost : 150 worth it ?absolutely !! Cleans like a dream now and a new cloth bag really woke it up also i use , home care bags great air flow for a paper liner in the cloth bag and a new motor filter , for better protection and of course better filtration . Or you could by a used one on ebay spend a lil bit of money on it and get it working like new .Al-tho it seems you have a good foundation here so motor filter , hose , power head rebuilt , cord and voila many years of services to come . my opinion only PS here is a link to my Compact Electra Interstate after i fix it all up .

CLICK HERE TO GO TO CompactC9guy's LINK
Post# 339131 , Reply# 2   12/12/2015 at 22:10 (3,050 days old) by cam2s (Nebraska)        

All of those issues could easily be repaired on your current Tri-Star, they are durable machines and the main components will last for a long time. That being said you might look at a Miracle Mate vacuum. It is basically a Tri-Star copy, except that is has a retractable cord. I bought mine on eBay, for under 100 dollars... if you buy a new one from a dealer I'm sure you will be looking at several thousands of dollars though and of course buying used you never know what you are getting into.

Now this is purely my opinion and I also don't want to start a flamewar...but I'm not a huge fan of the newer Filter Queens. I have a Majestic 360 (M360) and an older D31X. The 360 I got from the thrift store because the direct connect wands had burnt out. I believe they have remedied that problem but the build quality isn't as good as my old one. The bucket for example is a lot flimsier in the new one. The 360 uses a single stage motor that runs at high RPM and sounds like a jet engine versus the dual stage motor in the D31X that just purrs right along. However if your wife did not like the weight of the newer canister that you seen demoed, I she won't like the older machines as they are much heavier.

Again these are just my experiences...
Happy Vacuuming!
Cameron

Post# 339139 , Reply# 3   12/13/2015 at 01:22 (3,050 days old) by dlb764 (Central Florida)        

If you are looking for a strong and dependable vacuum cleaner that will last for around 30 years then you may want to take a look at the Aerus (formerly Electrolux) Legacy canister. My grandmother bought one in 1996 and I still have it. It has shown no signs of weakening. It is plastic but very durable. There are no dings or dents to be found. It is also very easy to remove scuff marks. They have also recently made the power nozzle quieter and the main unit is quiet as well. Another nice feature is that the vacuum will shut itself off and the bag door will pop open when it is time to change the bag. The only problem you may run into is wearing out the wiring in the swivel neck in the power nozzle if you are really rough with it.

Post# 339535 , Reply# 4   12/17/2015 at 18:16 (3,046 days old) by stricklybojack (Southern California)        

stricklybojack's profile picture
.
Consider a lightly used Riccar/Simplicity canister on Ebay/Craigslist for about the same price as fixing the ol' gal.

I got a very nice Moxie w/extras for a very nice price.


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