Dyson vs Shark Vacuum Cleaners

[Ian]

I'm in the market for a new cordless vacuum cleaner, as my old Dyson cordless has given up the ghost. It's 8 years old now, but has been on the blink for years - so I'm tempted to look away from Dyson for my next vacuum cleaner.

Has anyone tried the Shark series of vacuums? They rate very highly on Amazon, and I'm sure there will be some good deals on them this week .

 

[nivrip]

We had a Shark a few years back and it was OK but it didn't seem to last long before it conked out. Maybe we were just unlucky.

 

[muckshifter]

Best cordless vacuum cleaners 2024: Which? Best Buys and expert buying advice - Which?

Tips and advice on choosing the best cordless vacuum cleaner for your home

www.which.co.uk

 

[floppybootstomp]

I may have mentioned this before but I once visited a local domestic appliance repair shop and it was wall to wall with Dyson vacuum cleaners waiting for repair. I asked the proprietor about this anomaly and he replied 'They are style over substance or to put it another way - they're rubbish'.

And ever since then I've avoided that brand. I've had a Mr Henry for about 15 years now, given to me by my Mum who'd used it for about ten years before giving it to me when she bought a VAX. It's still going strong and is the best vacuum cleaner I've ever owned.

It's not cordless though but that doesn't bother me.

Does this Alexa android thingie control those cordless circular vacuum cleaners I wonder?

I suspect this may make me a dinosaur.

 

[muckshifter]

I didn't mention my Henry ... it sucks, the foor.

 

[nivrip]

Dyson vacuum cleaners 'They are style over substance or to put it another way - they're rubbish'.

Interesting comment and I'm sure the repair man knew what he was talking about but I can say that my experience with Dysons has been the opposite (maybe lucky again). The Dyson DC01 first appeared in about 1993 and we did get one of the very early models. We liked it from the start and were very impressed when we took it down to my daughter's flat, which she shared, and ran it across the centre of the carpet. We were amazed to see this different coloured stripe appear and when we had finished it was like a new, totally different carpet that had never been seen before.

My mum moved into a flat in 1999 and we bought her the same model and after she passed in 2005 we took over her Dyson and still had our original. These two lasted till earlier this year and worked well until the end. We now have a newer model and find it very good. Never tried the cordless models though.

 

[Ian]

Sounds like a bit of pot luck then! I've got a robotic vacuum cleaner that does most of the day-to-day cleaning, but I need to give the house a once over with a proper clean occasionally.

What will probably end up happening is that I see which of Dyson and Shark have the best deals available on Friday .

 

[V_R]

Enjoy!

 

[Ian]

Enjoy!

Oh my... that's tonights viewing sorted. Thanks @V_R - looks pretty in depth

edit: Just had a watch of the mid-price section and it looks like Shark does do pretty well, so let's see what deals appear this week!

 

[EvanDavis]

My house is wood flooring and tiles throughout so never needed a vacum cleaner. Soft brush did the job. I splashed out and got one of those robot vacums. I ended up giving it to a neighbour. Stupid thing kept sneaking up on me and I would trip over it

 

[Taffycat]

Just to throw my two-pennyworth into the ring...

Earlier this year, we purchased a Gtech Air Ram cordless upright vacuum. (Possibly, you will have seen the guy with the cute black and white collie dog advertising these on tv?)

We already own a Miele upright, which is our main cleaner. (We owned a succession of Dysons previously, but we find the Miele to be much better in every way, for build quality and efficiency.) It is absolutely wonderful for "deep cleaning" days, with very convenient on-board tools, a nice long-reach hose, variable suction and an efficient brushing action. It is, however, pretty heavy, (I don't think uprights are available any more,) hence the Gtech purchase, which is for a quick run-around in-between times.

After much researching, we eventually went for a package deal, on the Gtech upright version, along with the hand-held vacuum, which is ideal for high places and basically, any awkward corners (or the car.) Both have led lights, which are not as gimmicky as they might sound, because they're actually very effective at illuminating shadowy areas.

Both are surprisingly efficient at picking up cat hair, as well as the normal carpet/hard floor stuff. The bins on both are very easy to empty.

Battery life is probably about "average" allowing 20 mins or so cleaning. (It is well worth buying spares, so that there is always a fully-charged back-up if needed.) Battery charging is a breeze, because the batteries are easily removable, so they can be re-charged almost anywhere that is convenient, so the appliances do not need to be stored close to an electric socket.

There are currently some Black Friday savings on their website https://www.gtech.co.uk/

Happy hunting Ian, I'm sure you will find a good bargain with whatever brand you eventually choose.

 

[Ian]

Thanks @Taffycat! I hadn't considered a Gtech until you posted this. I had a look at their website just now and they've got a black Friday deal on the Pro K9 stick, but it's bagged. Shame they don't have a deal on the normal "Pro" bagless version. I'll check back tomorrow on Black Friday and see if they have any additional deals before I pull the trigger .

Because I'll also be using the vacuum high up (I get a lot of dust in the coving), I'll need to go for a stick version I think.

, along with the hand-held vacuum, which is ideal for high places and basically, any awkward corners (or the car.)

How efficient do you find the handheld one? I've got a small handheld Ryobi vacuum for the workshop, but it's only good at getting bit bits of dust/swarf. Does this one do a good job?

 

[Taffycat]

Hellooo @Ian

Ah yes, I noticed that Gtech is now offering bagged cleaners. Reading the blurb, I think they might actually be pretty good. (I never ever thought that I would have anything good to say about vac bags! lol) However, our Miele uses them, and frankly, they are totally different from the horrible old fashioned sort - think Hoover - that used to be a messy pain to use. These days, they are quite thick and prevent any dust leakage by having clever seals, which provide a barrier to prevent the bag contents from escaping when you dump them. They are environmentally friendly too. But of course, they would mean an additional cost for a yearly supply (did it say around £12?)

Regarding the handheld Gtech (ours is the K9 Multi version, which comes with various attachments included.) Yes, we both think that it does a good job - hubby was very impressed and enjoys using it (win-win for me eh? )

Just as an example, our cat will sometimes take a siesta on our bed, so I like to use the power brush roller attachment to vacuum the bed cover afterwards. It picks up the stray hairs that he might leave behind, no trouble at all.

The reach is surprisingly good also. Floor to ceiling height here, is about 8 ft, but I can easily reach it without needing to stand on anything (I'm about 5'7" btw.) From handle to the tip of the extension tube and green nozzle, is approx 75 cm altogether. (The long extension tube is 45 cm and the green nozzle, when fitted into it, protrudes a further 16 cm.

I don't know whether you get those annoying, hair-thin-legged spiders where you live, but we are plagued by them. They weave almost invisible, very sticky webs which show up, embarrassingly, when the sun hits them, or a light catches them. They seem to appear overnight. The handheld vac seems to have no trouble dealing with them though, (unlike our previous hand-held) and it's led light also helps to find them - big relief. Thoughts of Miss Havisham come to mind!

Naturally, for floors, this would only really be useful for spot clean-ups, because you wouldn't want to crawl around on hands and knees. We have found it to be great for upholstery, dusty/hairy tasks, car interior and, if we had stairs, it would be ideal. As mentioned previously though, we bought it in combination with the upright, to give us all-round versatility.

Ooh sorry, I seem to be writing a novel here.

 

[Ian]

Thank you very much @Taffycat, that's a huge help! It sounds like there's plenty of reach on that vacuum which is great to know . I'd still probably prefer bagless, but if it's only £12 per year than that's not bad at all (especially as it'll be less than that for me, knowing how much I vacuum ).

I'm going to bite the bullet tomorrow and buy whichever one looks like the best deal - I'm really hoping that there is a further reduction on some of them.

 

[Taffycat]

Good hunting @Ian

 

[V_R]

Amazon have a fair few on special today Ian.

Black Friday 2023 | Amazon.co.uk

Black Friday is an Amazon deals event from November 17 to 27. Go to Amazon and prepare your holidays with epic deals from top brands on this seasons’ must-have items.

www.amazon.co.uk

 

[Ian]

Cheers @V_R!

As it happens, I went for a Shark cordless stick vacuum from Amazon very early this morning. It was more than I wanted to pay, but the 5 year warranty and good reviews won out in the end.

Thank you all for the advice. I'll post back on Sunday when it arrives .

 

[Ian]

Got my Shark and I've already vacuumed a few rooms. So far, so good. It's very powerful and there's no need to hold down a trigger like on the Dyson I had previously. Quality seems good and the battery capacity barely budged after doing half the house.

I'm actually really impressed with the rollers on the front of the vacuum head. I noticed that my previous vacuum would flick larger bits of debris out of the way when it hit the spinning roller - even though it would be perfectly fine to fit in the vacuum. This one has 2 rollers and prevents this from happening, really pleased with how it works .

 

[Taffycat]

Sounds like you had a jolly good buy @Ian

 

[nivrip]

Don't make too good a job of it, Ian or you'll be expected to do it all the time.