We have 1 cat, 1 german shepherd dog, 2 kids and of course me and dh. New home (brand new home spec built). Lived here 2 weeks.

We had a kirby sales man come by a few days ago and want to sell us the new sentria (?) vac. worked great obviously. last price he quoted was $1300 if we called within a week and gave us the speil that "no one benefited from that price". i really don't believe it but whatever.

Was originally wanting to get a dyson animal whenever i find a good sale on one ($400 or so).

Been looking at reviews and info on the bissell healthy home vac and it seems to be the same vac and does the same stuff as the dyson.

I am looking for CREDIBLE information! I don't know that I want to own the same vac. for the rest of my life but i do like the shampoo on the kirby...although i was told by the builder here to use a truck mounted carpet cleaner to get the carpets really clean not the handheld rentals etc. So seems to me that i would still need to do a deep clean and the kirby's shampooer is just like a "spot cleaner" for the whole floor.

We got a Dyson a few months ago...totally worth it! (and we have multiple cats!) :)

we bought a Kirby generation 3 about 16 years ago, in the military, put it on allotment, I still use that vacuum everyday. Paid around 1200.00 for it then and was pissed! Hubby purchased it when I thought it was not a good idea to owe someone money for a year, was reluctant to make the decision. Now I am glasd I have it. Love my Kirby.

dyson has great advertising but not all of them hold up for heavy duty stuff...hearing mixed reviews, had a hoover, electrolux, eureka, bissel, and kirby
the kirby's last forever and do a great job...if you don't want to spend that kind of money up front try to get a used one
heard alot of good things about the rainbow also..another pricey one

a friend of mine has 2 cats and 2 dogs (hairy dogs) and she swears by the dc17 animal.

Have you heard of the Hoover Mach X series?

This is taken from a fatwallet discussion of Hoover vacs vs other vacs. Based on this discussion, I bought the Mach 4 and I'm happy with the value compared to Dy$on. Posted by cycloneman:

I bought both the Hoover Fusion as well as the Fusion 2 (which is a Mach 5 but available at Hoover Factory Service Centers). There seems to be much confusion on this forum about the way these machines operate (especially as compared to the way Dyson cleaners operate).

It's true that Hoover is using older Dyson technology. That technology is called "dual cyclone". It refers to the fact that there are two completely different cyclone systems at work at the same time within the machine.

The first cyclone is the tangent where the air enters the clear bin. This is called the 'low efficiency' cyclone, as the air (and dirt) are spinning at approx. 25 MPH. All the air that enters the bin, plus any dirt smaller than the holes in the shroud, go through the shroud and are spun by the second cyclone system. The second cyclone is called the 'high efficiency' cyclone, as it is tapered. That taper is very, very important. The air and the fine dust (remember, only the dust smaller than the holes in the shroud) are spun at extremely high speeds (928 MPH), and exit the point in the cone. This is why there is dirt that is very fine in the middle of the Fusion when you empty it, and large debris in the outer portion of the bin.

A big problem with the Hoover design is the point of that cone. Remove the Hoover Fusion cyclone assembly from the clear bin. Turn it upside down and look at the point of the cone. It's covered with a plastic 'cover' and the dust spins through the slit around the side of the cone's point. That's the first problem. Hair and lint will collect at the tip of the cone, preventing the cone from doing it's job of removing the fine dust. Dyson cleaners do not have this 'cover', just an open point of the cone.

That brings us to the second problem with the Hoover Fusion design. The pre-motor filter is made of foam. It should be made of washable electrostatic filter material (like the Dyson's pre-motor filter). That way, the fine dust collecting on the pre-motor filter will stay there, and not simply go through the open mesh of the foam, going with the air steam through the motor's fans, and then triumphantly escaping through the foam exhaust filter (which should be a Hepa filter for best filtration). The point of cyclonic filtration is to prevent dust from reaching the pre-motor filter.

There is a limit to the amount of air that can be pulled by the motor through the high efficiency cyclone. On the current Dyson versions, they use 'root cyclone' technology, which is nothing more than dividing the one large high efficiency cyclone into smaller tapered cones, allowing for more airflow and better filtration than using a single tapered cyclone.

So what does this all mean to the user of the Hoover Fusion? One, it means that the motor life will be very much shorter than if Hoover had used a good pre-motor filter. The idea is that we want to keep the dust from entering the motor in the first place. Dust in the wind going through the motor's fan leaves that dust in the curves (turbines) of the fan, throwing it off balance and destroying the ball bearing by excessive vibration.

Hoover learned their lesson. On the Mach 3 (the 'new' Fusion), they use an cloth-like electrostatic pre-motor filter after the foam filter. Every owner of the older Fusion should contact Hoover and get one of these electrostatic pre-motor filters. It will fit and work on the older Fusion models perfectly. Hoover also uses an electrostatic filter (instead of the old Foam filter) for the exhaust filter on the Mach 3. Again, Fusion owners can make their Fusion much, much more friendly for allergy sufferers if they would simply buy these two Mach 3 filters from Hoover and use them in their Fusions.

One thing I noticed about the Fusion. The front wheels do not recline far enough into the nozzle housing to allow the nozzle to sit flush on a rug or floor. Even at the lowest height adjustment setting, it cannot clean bare floors well. However, it's very easy to remove the front wheel assembly from the nozzle housing, making the Fusion clean sculptured rugs, bare floors, and low pile 'indoor/outdoor' carpet much, much better. Turn the Fusion over, press the lever on the front of the wheel assembly (near the brush opening), then pivot the wheel assembly up and remove it from the bottom of the machine. While the cleaner is thus modified, it is best to not try and use the attachments, as there will be nothing to raise the nozzle up from the floor (and the brush might abrade the rug) while using the tools.

A Fusion owner who wishes to clean bare floors will find that the machine does not do a good job. However, the attachments (wands) are called 'standard fit' (or 1 1/4 inch), so any vac shop should be able to sell you a bare floor brush attachment for less than $10 that will fit the Hoover's wands, making the Fusion a very good bare floor machine. Just be sure and keep your hand on the cleaner's handle while using it with the hose, as previously noted, these machine fall over. One Dyson feature they could have copied (not under patent) is the position where the hose attaches to the machine. On a Dyson, it attaches low so the machine can actually be pulled along by the hose without the cleaner tipping over.

If the owner of a Fusion will modifiy their pre-motor and post-motor filters (as the Mach 3 did), a Fusion is quite acceptable as a vacuum cleaner and will not spew dust from the exhaust. But please, don't forget, remove the cyclone chamber from the clear bin, turn it upside down, and remove the fluff and hair at the tip of the tapered cone. Once this fluff and hair build up for more than one or two cleanings, it prevents the high efficiency cyclones from working 'properly' (as James Dyson likes to say).

Oh, if anyone wants to know why the Hoover collects this fluff and hair (and a Dyson does not) at the tip of the tapered cyclone, the answer is simple. The shroud (the part inside the bin with all the little holes in it) was still under patent when Hoover designed the Fusion almost four years ago. They had no choice but to make the holes go 'up'. Dyson shroud holes are horizontal. This makes a tremendous difference in the amount of hair and fluff that goes through the holes. In an ideal world, none of the hair or fluff would go through the holes (as it does not on a Dyson). But then again, James Dyson designed 5,127 prototypes before finally getting his cyclonic filtration system 'right'. All Hoover could do was to copy another man's work, working within the limitations of the original patents. When Dyson first patented the 'dual cyclone' design, he had not invented the shroud. And had problems with hair and fluff getting into the high efficiency cyclone (where it does not belong). The shroud was the answer, but like everything else about a cyclone, has to be designed 'correctly'. The original patents on the shroud are now up, as you can tell from the exact copy by Bissell on the Healthy-Home.

I know this is not one that you mentioned, but I have the Bissell Lift-off and I love it. I have 1 cat and 1 dog who both shed like crazy. The turbo brush attachment is great at getting it off the couch, etc. I also like that the vacuum does bare floors. They are a lot cheaper than the kirby or dyson.

The original patents on the shroud are now up, as you can tell from the exact copy by Bissell on the Healthy-Home. [/I]

no i hadn't looked at hoover but most of that info seems to be the downfalls of hoover fusion etc. the mach seems to be said to be built a little better but doesn't this last line pretty much say that the bissell is the same thing as the dyson and that hoover WANTED to do what bissell just did? did that make sense??

i didn't look at the bissell lift off....i saw it but it was less expensive and i wasn't sure if it was the same power as the healthy home.

We own the Bissell Healthy Home. I believe it is the best bag for the buck at $150 with a deal. It uses the same Dyson technology but for 1/3 of the price. We have a german sheperd with a few big rugs and hardwood floors. The healthy home is excellent on both carpet and hardwood. I will tell you it is heavy and because of the outstanding suction it can be a bit of a workout on carpet and rugs....a good thing if you ask me. It does so well at picking up dog hair and the excellent filter means no more bad smells. I can't recommend it highly enough!

we bought a Kirby generation 3 about 16 years ago, in the military, put it on allotment, I still use that vacuum everyday. Paid around 1200.00 for it then and was pissed! Hubby purchased it when I thought it was not a good idea to owe someone money for a year, was reluctant to make the decision. Now I am glasd I have it. Love my Kirby.
I have owned three Kirby's. First vacum was Eureka before my first Kirby, made a huge difference in how well my carpets would get cleaned. I made the choice to trade in my first Kirby for a second after about 10 years, got a good price for the trade in and talked the salesman down a couple hundred dollars. My third, I bought a a yard sale for $10.!

I would suggest finding a Kirby store, they sell used Kirby's at good prices, they repair them and resell them. Or, I would try to negotiate a better price with the salesman, he's not the only one in town, really...

I agree with the truckloaded steam cleaners for a once a year deep clean for your carpets, if they need it, but more than that is not good for them. The Kirby's shampooer is great for a monthly, or so, surface cleaning, it really makes a difference. You don't get the water down past the fibers to soak the pad, which is better all around for your carpet.

My vote, the Kirby + an inexpensive lightweight for quick pick ups...

I sold kirby earlier in life. You can botttom dollar them at around $900. They will act reluctant to do it but their boss will tell them to.

Wanted to update that we had another kirby salesman here today and ended up buying. Of course being an sder i kept thinking i shoulda haggled more but i didn't and reading Mikel's post i think i should have.

Ended up getting the "demo" he had for $1300 w/all attachements, 2 bags, and a large bottle of shampoo but paid w/our credit card instead of financing. I would have liked no interest financing and now i am guessing that he just really wanted the sale and the demo version is what they usually give out??

I am happy about it but maybe not the best deal ever. It wasn't MORE than I wanted to spend on a kirby but definatly not something i was exspecting. Make sense?

So basically just wanted to let anyone know who is searching this and finds this thread that I know we'll be happy with the kirby and buying 2 new vacummes for $600 in the next 10 years pretty much equals this price....although even us SDers could get the dysons TWO for $700. Just happy that now i have a good shampooer as we just had a BAD poop accident w/our dog and i had WISHED i had a kirby at that time! Our carpet definatly needed a good cleaning and theres LOTS of dust and sand around here so hopefully we won't have to replace the carpet when we want to sell. If that happens its DEFINATLY worth the investment!

I guess this is to late but I posted in the other thread (http://forums.slickdeals.net/showpost.php?p=9814228&postcount=10) but we have had nothing but good luck with the Dyson.

We had a kirby salesperson come to our house a couple dats ago. They pitched it to us around $1300, but kept dropping the price when we said we coulding afford it. They stopped at $850, and 18 month same as cash, but we really didn't need a vacuum since we already have a 3 year old Dyson.

I know this is not one that you mentioned, but I have the Bissell Lift-off and I love it. I have 1 cat and 1 dog who both shed like crazy. The turbo brush attachment is great at getting it off the couch, etc. I also like that the vacuum does bare floors. They are a lot cheaper than the kirby or dyson.

I had this before getting a Dyson. I don't feel like the dyson picks up much more dirt. The only real advantage of the dyson is the washable filter, and the filter is sealed better. In the Bissel the filter is loose and dust can get put back out.

I would go with a good Central Vac system before spending $1300 on a Kirby.

I had one come to my house this sunday and pitch it at $900 bottom wiht a $100 tip for him