As ours has just gone pop. Our fault for using it to clean up building/plaster dust. It’s the bottom of the range job (S211) but still costs £120, any cheaper alternatives of similar quality? We’d be happy to have another Miele but the kitchen has skint us for the moment. Needs to be another compact bagged as that is what the missus wants. Or has anyone got an idea of replacement motor cost before I start ringing around tomorrow? If you can stay awake long enough to reply to this enthralling thread that would be smashing, ta.

And don’t say “Dyson”

Sebo upright

Uses bags but it compresses the filth and rarely needs changing.

what he said…Sebo

Cheers but she wants a compact, not an upright. Wouldn’t have said they’re cheaper either!

Only downsides are: it does fall over a bit too easily, and the tubes are a bit tight-fitting. Cheap at Makro.co.uk

+1 Henry.

Even cheaper if you’ve nicked it like matey boy there. Put it to the missus and she said “you must be joking” which I took as a no. German see? Very specific cleaning requirements. Anyway, it’s a compact cylinder, same style as the Miele that she wants. Actually she just wants another Miele but I’m looking to save a few quid. I’m as good as £120 down, aren’t I?

We had a Henry and to be honest found it was pretty poor. Just wasn’t very good at getting stuff up.

Replaced with a Vax Mach 8 which is excellent. £180 down to £65 at Argos a few weeks ago.

It’s funny how often this comes up on STW 🙂

Sebo K1 compact but they are 120+

We have a small miele, but I don’t think it is all that.

Slightly better than the pretty much dead Dyson that it replaced, and quieter, but I’m not convinced it was better than a brand new Dyson or any other new hoover for that matter. They are German and fashionable, but it seems rather like they just design a massive very sucky motor, and don’t put much thought into the sucky end bit. Maybe the £300 ones are good, but the <£200 pound ones, I don’t see what the fuss is about, I think it’s mainly a fashion thing.

Henry got fed up with a Dyson fixing it all the time and bits popping off. I think I paid £70 for Henry and its briliant, the OH hasn’t asked me to fix it once.

My head f department worked for Electrolux for a few years. He points out that it’s not the motor’s power – it’s about the airflow. A well designed 700W motor should be enough – though that figure was for uprights will less hose length I guess from motor to nozzle.

oreck – singlespeed of vacuums.

Needs to be another compact bagged as that is what the missus wants.

Why bagged?

And tbh any cleaner needs a good clean-out every so often to help with the ‘flow’ – I just use the airgun on my compressor.

I have a vac king it’s stainless and has the combined suction of 12000 elephants in reverse

It sucks up scrap metal small bolts the Swarf out of the lathe…anything that isn’t bolted down in the CNC it is basically aawesome

It could be useful in the home for pinning down escaping children and would laugh in the face of plaster

77quid iirc from b and q

Our Henry is the only vac we haven’t wrecked by sucking up plaster dust and all kinds of building debris.

Gone back to bagged(Sounds like a Amy winehouse song) after years of bagless jobbies failing on me including Dyson,Miele and Philips ,
in fact the only Vacuum cleaner I havent killed was a very old upright Bagged Hoover.

I have a Numantic James similar to the Henry but in Yellow.
Cannot fault it and if and when it breaks down you can buy pretty much any part plus its British.

I picked up the big brother of this Karcher for about £38 delivered a few months back. http://www.karcheroutlet.co.uk/products/product.asp?id=5072

They are a bit plasticy but they are great an no-nonsense. The filters are waterproof and they take bags or no bags. The bigger one I have is like the £99 one in screwfix but I have more parts with it (never seen so many) and it has the blow function which is fantastic for cleaning out the filter.

I’ve been using it on my flat while I refurb it so it’s been sucking up concrete, plaster, wood shavings, screws, wet filler etc etc. Only hiccup has been when I sucked up some large bits of wood that blocked the pipe but putting the hose on the back to blow it out fixed that.

But after all that I wouldn’t have one as my main home one as it’s not got a Hepa filter. For £20 that ^ would make a great garage/workshop vacuum and save you from ruining a decent one.

Take a look at Vax upright. We have a Vax one here for the pet hairs and while it has got a bit battered (clumsy housemate) it still works very well and keeps on sucking with minimal maintenance.

My old Electolux has been demoted to car cleaning and building cleanup duties after an unfortunate incident with the floor sweeper height adjust, but performance wise it absolutely trounces my Dyson