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Thread Number: 37192
/ Tag: Recent Vacuum Cleaners from past 20 years
What is the worst vacuum from the past 20-ish years? |
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| Post# 397111 8/22/2018 at 12:19 (1,672 days old) by Hoover300 (Kentucky) | ||
I bought a Bissell Cleanview Rewind 4 years ago, and it was pretty bad. the rewind weakened drastically after about 3 months, and it blew dust no matter how much I cleaned it, and the power brush broke after about 5 months.
I know pretty much everybody hates Eureka Lightspeeds, but I got an early one for free that had been sitting out, completely exposed in the elements for more than a year, and it still worked! What are your worst vacuums? ~K | ||
| Post# 397116 , Reply# 1 8/22/2018 at 14:30 (1,672 days old) by Turbo500 (West Yorkshire, UK) | ||
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| Post# 397194 , Reply# 2 8/24/2018 at 01:48 (1,670 days old) by huskyvacs (Gnaw Bone, Indiana) | ||
Eureka The Boss Superlite. A truly wretched vacuum.
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| Post# 397198 , Reply# 3 8/24/2018 at 08:43 (1,670 days old) by dysonman1 (the county) | ||
The Hoover Z was REALLY bad. I bought one for $50 on closeout at Home Depot years ago and detested it. Nothing good about it. They had this stupid idea to use a 'self cleaning' filter that couldn't clean itself. Just worthless.
The other machine that's totally worthless as a vacuum cleaner is The Pigg. It cannot be used as a vacuum cleaner successfully. It's actually worse than the first Big Power vacuums. | ||
| Post# 397240 , Reply# 5 8/25/2018 at 08:52 (1,669 days old) by fan-of-fans (USA) | ||
I have one of those Eureka Boss Superlites. They are very cute vacuums and I like the two motor design, but I hate how loud they are and the filtration is poor. I guess some of their other similar machines like the Optima would be a slightly better choice.
Hoover Z - never used one but did try pushing one that came into Habitat. Was way too heavy, would not have wanted to carry that thing down the stairs! Others commented on the weight as well. I do kind of like the looks of the silver ones though with the LED headlights. For me, it's hard to say which is the worst exactly. I just generally don't like the bagless vacuums we've had with their poor filter designs, especially those with paper filter that instantly clog. Bagless systems have gotten a lot better since they've gone with dual cyclones instead of the single cyclones they used to use which made the filters clog worse. | ||
| Post# 397402 , Reply# 7 8/27/2018 at 10:00 (1,667 days old) by bryan1980 (Texas) | ||
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Tough to name just one There have been so many terrible vacuums made recently! Dyson may be the worst, on a price-per-performance basis. Sharks aren't great, either, but they're better than most Dysons, for about half the price. | ||
| Post# 397404 , Reply# 8 8/27/2018 at 11:01 (1,667 days old) by human (Pines of Carolina) | ||
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Post# 397605 , Reply# 10 9/1/2018 at 01:48 (1,662 days old) by tolivac  (Greenville,NC) |
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According to CU tests the Wildcat vacuum was a GREAT dust blower-it would blow the dust you picked up to be filtered in your lungs or back on the surfaces you just tried to clean!I have seen these in stores long ago they did not make me go head-over-heals to buy one. | ||
| Post# 397705 , Reply# 11 9/3/2018 at 18:16 (1,660 days old) by Josh1998 (Colorado ) | ||
Shark lift away
Shark vacuums are really popular right now but they aren't great. I have the shark rotator lift away. My mom gave it to me for Christmas last year. They are cheaply made for one thing. They are heavy considering they are all plastic and the vacuum body is so clunky it won't even go under a standard height coffee table. The carpet nozzle is really small and it takes longer to vacuum large spaces than it does with a standard size upright vacuum. It's also hard to push on thick carpeting. It's bagless and it doesn't filter well. And the design of the dirt container lets dirt get stuck in the sides. When I would empty it I always had to pull wads of dirt out from around the edges with my hand. Eww. It has a decent turbo brush for pet hair but the other attachments are pathetic. The dusting brush is like a tiny dusting brush with bristles about 1/4 an inch long. Pitiful trying to dust with that thing. It has a stretch hose but that's not a plus. The hose shrinks up if you obstruct the suction by using the turbo nozzle or the crevice tool. If you dont have the canister part detached when the hose shrinks it pulls the entire vacuum over and it goes crashing to the ground. If you dont have the optional roller cart for the canister, which I don't, you have to carry the canister part around with you when it's lifted off. You totally can't move it. If you try to pull the canister it just falls on it's side and drags. The canister is heavy and it gets tedious carrying it around if you're vacuuming baseboards or something. The 2 pluses with the shark are that it's very quiet and it's cool looking. I found a Kirby g4 on CL for $45 and I love it. It's ten times better than my shark! The shark has been retired to the guest bedroom closet.
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Post# 397728 , Reply# 12 9/3/2018 at 22:21 (1,659 days old) by Rivstg1 (colorado springs) |
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josh1988 | ||
| Post# 397734 , Reply# 13 9/4/2018 at 05:38 (1,659 days old) by Josh1998 (Colorado ) | ||
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Rivstg1
Thanks. But I realized I didn't mention anything about the sharks cleaning ability. It does have strong suction and it does a pretty good job on carpeting. The first time I vacuumed my house with it I had to empty the dirt canister 4 times before I got the whole house done. But the main reason for that was because I had been using a straight suction canister for several months before I got the shark and Im sure there was a lot of built up dog hair and grit the canister couldn't pick up. Then every time I vacuumed with it the canister was full by the time I did the whole house so I thought it was doing a good job. When I used my Kirby the first time I could actually hear it picking up all kinds of grit and sand. It had a new bag in it and when I finished vacuuming the bag wasn't nearly full or anything but it had a little weight to it which is a sure sign with a vacuum bag that you've picked up a butt load of grit and sand. My mom has a shark too and I vacuumed her house with my kirby. I started with a new bag and it picked up even more grit than it had in my house.
So the shark does a great job cleaning surface dirt and pet hair but despite it's powerful suction it doesn't do a good job deep cleaning carpets. I think maybe it's because of the carpet nozzle. It's pretty much like a tiny powernozzle you would find on a canister. It does have a cogged belt and the brushroll revolves strongly. But for whatever reason it doesn't deep clean carpets. And to be fair I did vacuum my house again with the shark after I had used the Kirby and there was nothing in the canister but a tiny bit of fuzz. On the plus side for the shark is the fact it did a great job on bare floors. The brushroll turns off and it picked up all the hair and crumbs off the kitchen floor with no problem. It has an air driven turbo brush for upholstery and it did an awesome job cleaning dog hair off the sofa. The shark is clunky and awkward to use with the hose attachments and it doesn't deep clean carpets well. But from a collecting perspective they are cool to own because they are unique and in my opinion very cool looking. | ||
| Post# 397822 , Reply# 14 9/6/2018 at 14:06 (1,657 days old) by dirtmaster37 (Ypsilanti, Michigan USA) | ||
Worst.. and HEAVIEST. POFS....of ALL!!!!!!!!!
This. DAMN. THING!! HEAVY. BULKY. LOUD. WEIRD CORD. did I say HEAVY!!!!
As a Royal dealer, we sold WAY too many of them surprisingly. Within abt. 3 yrs 90% of them that were sold, were replaced by a regular Royal All Metal Upright, usually an 8200 etc. I cant tell you how many of these ship anchors we had in our warehouse. Let's just say that there was ALOT of scrap aluminum and plastic to send to the local recyclers after we parted them. We hired college kids to do it. Took a whole summer... Let's say that Royal lost ALOT of customers because of this Titanic. And so did we. I speak not of this machine, as it still causes some of our older employees to swear (such as F*** that thing), or at least give angry looks, or red faces.... I use a smooth combination of the choices, when I think of them...(that STUPID fu***ng P.O.S. for example).... To further a point, or the WRETCHEDNESS of this GDT...A chain of dealers, over by Detroit had a lady who really was pissed off by hers. From what I've been told, she actually strapped hers somehow to the back of her Cadillac, and drove around her area of town with signs taped to it saying she got screwed by... one of the very first to fail in our district. Thankfully, she was the only CooCooCahcChoo I heard of. And we had many of our OWN to choose from, of the angry individuals. This GOD DAMNED THING...... Id rather use a Regina Housekeeper. Anywho.. Chad
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| Post# 397835 , Reply# 15 9/6/2018 at 18:51 (1,657 days old) by Josh1998 (Colorado ) | ||
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| Post# 397838 , Reply# 16 9/6/2018 at 19:25 (1,657 days old) by completenutt (West Hollywood, California) | ||
I agree with Josh... | ||
| Post# 397842 , Reply# 17 9/6/2018 at 21:11 (1,657 days old) by Kirbysthebest (Midwest) | ||
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I bought my brother and sister in law a Powercast as a housewarming gift when they bought their house. They absolutely hate it. In fourteen years, I would be safe to say it still has the original bag in it. I thought it was pretty cool. They don't. | ||
| Post# 397903 , Reply# 18 9/7/2018 at 20:37 (1,656 days old) by fan-of-fans (USA) | ||
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Shark
Have tried the Shark at work. Mostly just used the hose to clean around the computer. I thought the attachments were pretty good compared to most newer uprights. Pretty good size dusting brush with decent bristles and crevice tool. No upholstery tool, had a turbo tool but didn't use it.
There were actually two, the first was the silver and purple model, and the one that seems to have replaced it is white and red. I liked the hose design of the first one better, just pull it out to use it. The new one requires a button to be pressed and then the handle comes off with the hose and a wand attached, a little trickier to use. As far as floor cleaning, I found the cleaning path to be too narrow. It seemed to have decent agitation, liked the brushroll indicator and shutoff, but I could just tell it wasn't a deep cleaner by how it felt. Too light and the brush didn't seem to propel it as well as other uprights I have and have used. The new one also has a floor brush with a microfiber cloth on it, haven't seen it used yet. | ||
| Post# 397938 , Reply# 20 9/8/2018 at 11:09 (1,655 days old) by dirtmaster37 (Ypsilanti, Michigan USA) | ||
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Killing, and good looks..Oh My!!
I wont disagree at all that they are cool looking. In fact that helped sell them. To me, it kinda resembles what would happen if you crossed your eyes and other things, you mated Air-Way DirtMasteR from the 30's; with it's sister an Air-Way Twin motor of the same vintage ( hey this happens in ArrrKansas).... Then that offspring later on mated with a Royal Dirt Devil, and had a lovechild which ended up being he Powercast.
There were three models that I clearly remember. The Blue trim was the base model, IIRC didn't come with tools (but had a cheap set like the next one as an option); the Rose/Reddish color was the middle of the road, had a few more features, and IIRC came with a cheap plastic tool-set. And finally the Grey one, that had all the bells, and whistles, and a deluxe tool-set that had metal wands etc... It's been a LONG time since I thought about them, but that seems to be what was offered. Good/Better/Best... So, to many at that point in time, the weight was actually an asset. To many a heavy machine feels solid, and therefore a good buy. Ask anyone who buys a Kirby, a Miele U1 upright range, or a dual motor anything from Tacony. It shocked me, being that this was nearly 30 lbs; as to how many felt that way (that it was solid and therefore worthy of purchase). These same persons were also still buying competitor vacuums that weighed about or near the same. Or had an equally heavy machine prior too... And how quickly the enthusiasm failed, the production lines fell silent, replacements with regular models mounted, or a rebate of sorts. Kinda how Ford Motor felt in 1959 when the discontinued the Edsel. Hence why many that I knew from our area, called it Royal's Edsel. It probably had alot to do with why Royal became less itself, and more a corporate conglomerate. I'ms sure that they lost money on the whole fiasco. Certainly someone was taken to the factory courtyard, and strapped prostrate, and spanked before the crowd. Or just got fired. Or maybe im a pervert. Hmmn. Ahh memories. Another that was similar in my mind was the Hoover Z for (Zilch sales). As heavy, looked like someone gutted Johnny5 and put in vacuum motors and called it the evolution of Hoover. Nope that was another nail in the coffin of the big H itself.. And more anon... Chad | ||
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Post# 399848 , Reply# 22 10/21/2018 at 01:05 (1,612 days old) by Durango159 (State College, PA) |
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Awwww Chad!!!
I actually really love the Royal PowerCast!! It's one of my favorite vacs to use whenever I visit a collector who has one. I agree with you Josh, as a collector it looks SUPER COOL!!!
That being said my pick for the worst vacuum over the past 20 years would be the god awful Eureka Maxima/ Powerline lineup. These uprights came in both bagged and bagless form and both absolutely atrocious!! If you want a dust spewer for all of your attempted cleaning and the dirt to remain on the floor while attempting to clean then these god awful things are for you!! The sounded absolutely awful and were clogged in seconds whether you got the punishment of using the bagged or bagless one!! YUCK!! | ||
| Post# 399894 , Reply# 23 10/22/2018 at 11:17 (1,611 days old) by gregvacs28 (U.S.) | ||
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Anything bagless. It doesn't matter if's upright, canister, central Vacuum, a shop vac, or even a cheap 12 volt car vacuum that plugs into your dash. | ||
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Post# 399896 , Reply# 24 10/22/2018 at 13:11 (1,611 days old) by Kloveland (Tulsa) |
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Regina Housskeeper
Me too Chad. I'm being sarcastic and serious at the same time lol!
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| Post# 399909 , Reply# 25 10/22/2018 at 19:14 (1,611 days old) by vacuumdevil (Vacuum Hell ) | ||
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| Post# 399916 , Reply# 26 10/22/2018 at 20:41 (1,611 days old) by mark40511 (Lexington, KY) | ||
I wish I could remember
what upright vacuum I bought brand new on some website. It was a commercial "sealed" Eureka I think, but I could be wrong. I'm thinking it was between 225 and 300 dollars. It was bagged. Maybe it was a hoover or sanitaire. I honestly can't remember. I remember it was a hard-bodied vac. The thing I hated about it was the suction was horrible. I literally couldn't believe how horrible it was.....I ended up giving it to someone. I wish I could remember the model but I can't. This was probably around 2007 (ish).
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| Post# 400029 , Reply# 28 10/25/2018 at 11:44 (1,608 days old) by mariotron (Texas ) | ||
Dirt Devil Breeze bagless 
The exhaust was in the front so it blew stuff everywhere and the curtains would go flying and occasionally the dust cup would fall off spill. Plus it was a PAIN to clean the filter.
BTW the that Power Cast... how is the hose connected? I've seen one in person.
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| Post# 401830 , Reply# 29 12/3/2018 at 10:23 (1,569 days old) by S_Brisowitz (Omaha, NE) | ||
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Kirby Sentria | ||
| Post# 401831 , Reply# 30 12/3/2018 at 10:33 (1,569 days old) by royalfan (Chicago) | ||
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| Post# 401838 , Reply# 31 12/3/2018 at 11:31 (1,569 days old) by S_Brisowitz (Omaha, NE) | ||
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Royalfan I sold them new and it was no match for one customer's Bissell Featherweight. It was such a fantastic little vacuum. I challenge anyone to tell me to the contrary! -Aunt Sylvia | ||
| Post# 401859 , Reply# 32 12/3/2018 at 16:18 (1,569 days old) by mark40511 (Lexington, KY) | ||
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Hmmm, the last 20 years
Keep in mind that I haven't used or owned a HUGE amount of vacuums, but a decent amount over the years.....and the worst (for me) by far was the Fantom bagless that came out in the late 90s. The specific model I had was the FURY and I hated that vacuum with a red-hot passion. The reason? It leaked dust like crazy - vacuuming was useless......as I would vacuum the outside of the vacuum itself would literally collect dust. I had to take it outside to empty it and clean the vacuum itself off when done cleaning and I never really felt like the house was clean because it leaked dust so bad. It had a HEPA, but I don't think it did anything. I know there are a couple of Fantom fans and that's fine, but me personally, I hated it.
There may be even worse vacuums than that - but in my case, that's MY worst vacuum cleaner experience. | ||
| Post# 401975 , Reply# 34 12/4/2018 at 23:52 (1,567 days old) by ridgidwd0670 (se wood co ohio) | ||
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| Post# 402110 , Reply# 35 12/7/2018 at 10:23 (1,565 days old) by Ultralux88 (Denver, Colorado) | ||
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| Post# 402112 , Reply# 36 12/7/2018 at 10:25 (1,565 days old) by gregvacs28 (U.S.) | ||
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Anything Kirby. Can't believe they still make that metal beast as of this date. | ||
| Post# 402117 , Reply# 37 12/7/2018 at 11:46 (1,565 days old) by Kirbysthebest (Midwest) | ||
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This post has been removed by the member who posted it. | ||
| Post# 403910 , Reply# 39 1/10/2019 at 23:28 (1,530 days old) by completenutt (West Hollywood, California) | ||
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What type of medal are you offering? It is a precious metal medal?
Yep, I've got a new in box Z700 that is just waiting for the right offer. Someone someday, or maybe no one ever, will want to unbox this relic. But at least there is still an opportunity out there for that person!
I agree that they are woefully overengineered and underperforming for the most part, and clearly the self-flogging filter turns out to be it's largest flaw. I can testify that the filter becomes stinky after a few months of use and that musty smell permeates the room every time you use it going forward.. an untold horror by those of us who still occasionally try to get some use out of it. The pre hepa filter screen is way too small and clogs almost immediately, therefore cutting down the already inadequate suction to almost nothing. It's ridiculous. A common house fly could probably escape it's air flow at that point.
It was supposed to compete with the newly introduced Dyson "never loses suction" branding, but ended up being the complete opposite in user friendliness and should have been subtitled "always loses suction"!
The parts I think were well done are the electronic height adjustment and two speed motor, the excellent quality brushroll, the extremely long hose, and it's self diagnosing capability to indicate the location of a clog by illuminating a light on a graphic of the machine on the control panel. Those things were all wasted on this machine. Such a missed opportunity to deliver a revolutionary product. Idiots!
It's uniqueness endures and offers great subject matter for my photography, makes a great heavy doorstop, or can be used simply as a object to take space up in a room!
So, call me crazy, but I'll keep mine unless someone offers me a decent amount for it.. just to be the one who has the world's best "worst" vacuum!
I'm humbled and honored.
Would you mind bringing the medal here to me in Los Angeles? You're only an hour away, and I make great coffee!
Bill CLICK HERE TO GO TO completenutt's LINK This post was last edited 01/11/2019 at 00:00 | ||
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Post# 403940 , Reply# 40 1/11/2019 at 13:48 (1,530 days old) by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640) |
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I have a HOOVER "Z" | ||
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Post# 403943 , Reply# 41 1/11/2019 at 15:34 (1,530 days old) by rivstg1 (colorado springs) |
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John, | ||
| Post# 458473 , Reply# 44 12/8/2022 at 19:59 by wstonehockertv (North Carolina) | ||
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The DD Ultra Handvac because it was a loud machine. Went through two of those cursed machines. Makes me appreciate the 103/120 models even more. | ||
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Post# 458553 , Reply# 46 12/13/2022 at 17:27 by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640) |
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well, just be careful | ||
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Post# 458554 , Reply# 47 12/13/2022 at 17:28 by gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640) |
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And, I have a Windtunnel 2 | ||
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Post# 458765 , Reply# 48 12/23/2022 at 16:20 by Gottahaveahoove (Pittston, Pennsylvania, 18640) |
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And that Hoover Z | ||
| Post# 458953 , Reply# 49 12/29/2022 at 16:48 by huskyvacs (Gnaw Bone, Indiana) | ||
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The Garry Vac fits the bill because it was just a cheap generic plastic vacuum made as an Oreck-parts-bin-special veiled in a ponzi scheme. They broke down like no tomorrow and then the lifetime bag scam that nobody actually got sealed their fate.
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| Post# 459047 , Reply# 50 1/1/2023 at 00:09 by panasonicvac (Northern Utah) | ||
Shark Rotator Lift-Away XL NV755
I use this vacuum at work, I've had more complaints about it than any other machine I've ever used in my lifetime by far. It's bagless, that's a start. It filters terrible, the separator gets clogged alot and lots of dust would go into the pre filters including the motor no matter how many times I'd clean it out everytime I'd use it. Oh and lets not forget the post filter, it doesn't seal the machine despite it claims that it does. The motor smells horrible like there's a fault in there, probably from all the dust that made it past through the pre filters. Also the motor would have a wave running low and high by itself which is not a good thing to have since the vacuum isn't supposed to do that. It is bulky and awkward to use, especially as a canister. It is very loud, my co-workers would shut their doors because of it. And it is very cheaply made, I almost sadly broke the vacuum by accident when I was carrying it from up the stairs once time because I was hopping it'd shatter where I could get the office a new and better vacuum. But it survived and I have to keep using it until it dies, I'm actually surprised it still works as of today.
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| Post# 459052 , Reply# 51 1/1/2023 at 09:08 by huskyvacs (Gnaw Bone, Indiana) | ||
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Wow you know what, I only seen the handle of it but now that I see the whole vacuum, I seen one of those in the dumpster of a window-glass making factory. It was one of those 9 foot tall construction dumpsters so I couldn't get to it, but found it interesting an industrial facility would have a Shark in there.
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| Post# 459064 , Reply# 52 1/1/2023 at 14:40 by Eureka1998 (New York ) | ||
Huskyvacs  | ||
| Post# 459070 , Reply# 54 1/1/2023 at 15:32 by Eureka1998 (New York ) | ||
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Jo | ||
| Post# 459198 , Reply# 55 1/5/2023 at 19:36 by panasonicvac (Northern Utah) | ||
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Correction | ||
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