A Vacuum Should do More Than Suck
Written: Jul 17 '04
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Pros: It's paid for.
Cons: Too many to list here.
The Bottom Line: Avoid this vacuum, it isn't worth the price, and the features are so thoughtless, it will have you cursing a blue streak in no time.
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| writer's Full Review: Kenmore 30912 Progressive Vacuum |
This vacuum sucks, and not it a good way. In fact, it's the worst vacuum I've ever used in my life. Don't get me wrong, this vacuum has good suction and lifts up your carpet nicely, but there are so many thoughtless and just plain bad features, it really is a terrible piece of machinery, especially for the money.
Our old vacuum was a Fantom, and while I loved it, it didn't hold up to wear and tear. My husband hated it, and wanted something better, hence our shopping trip to Sears. I read up on vacuums, looked at many different models, and finally settled on this, as I don't like canisters, and decided I no longer wanted the bagless feature (too messy).
We were sold on the suction and cleaning power of this model, and it seemed to do everything I wanted, and had all the attachments I wanted, including a rotating upholstery brush. I brought it home, used it, and decided that I hated it. Why? Read on.
First, the cord is extra long (30 feet I believe). I thought this was a plus, and it would be, EXCEPT, the cord is not flexible like most electrical cords. It is stiff and unmanagable, and always gets in the way. I'm constantly picking it up and twining it in my hand to keep from rolling over it and out of my way. Simply put, it's a pain.
The hose has an attachment to make it extra long. Only thing is, there's no where to store it on the vacuum, and since you always have your hands full with the cord, it's not practical to carry it around with you. So, we leave ours permanently attached, and loop it around the handle when we don't use it. It's impractacle and silly. Also, the hose attaches to the vacuum at the very bottom of the vacuum, so whenever you want to use the hose and wand, you have to bend all the way over to the floor, unhook the hose, and attach the wand or brush. Again, it's quite impractacle, and if you have a bad back, well, don't buy this vacuum.
The upholstery brush seemed like a good idea, and since we have a cat, I wanted it to vacuum up pet hair. Attached to the hose, it has a brush that rotates. EXCEPT, when you actually touch a piece of furniture with the brush, it STOPS rotating! Go figure! Why make a brush with a feature that stops when you need it most? My only answer, they engineers that designed this vacuum clearly had never vacuumed anything in their lives.
In addition to the hose woes, the wand that attaches to the hose doesn't have real "locks" to keep it in place, and since you tend to hold the wand where it joins the hose, your hand constantly knocks the little "U" joints that hold it, and it loosens or falls off. The valve you can adjust suction with to the hose is also right in the same area, and you guessed it, your hand tends to open it, diluting the suction when you need it most.
Oh, and the "edge" feature? It's a joke. The edge feature consists of a couple of tiny brushes that are supposed to pull junk at the edge of your carpet or floor into the path of the main vacuum. They don't. They either push it closer to the edge, or it takes 5 or 6 passes with the vacuum to get the thing out far enough from the wall so the main brush will pick it up. It's easier just to attach the damned wand and vacuum the edges.
One more observation. The direct drive is a nice feature, and it does feel like the vacuum is self-propelled. It's also nice not to have to worry about belts. However, the vacuum is consistently sucking up items like throw rugs, shoelaces, and all sorts of things, which throw the "little red switch" on the side of the vacuum. In other words, it sucks so well that it sucks up things you don't want, and then jams. Getting a shoelace out of the brush is a real treat.
Is there anything good about this vacuum? Very little. It does have excellent suction, and I have an older carpet, so it keeps it looking better. That is the only reason I kept this monster of a machine. Otherwise, it would have gone right back to the salesman. As I said above, the suction is so great it will suck up small things like throw rugs, etc., and then will have to be reset.
I wanted a bag model, because I found my previous bagless was too messy to empty, and clogged up all the time. The bags for this are really expensive, especially if you get the cloth, filtering kind. (One comes with the vacuum.) In addition, the opening where you open and close the vacuum to put in the bag doesn't shut tightly all the time, so the bag also gets loose, and the vacuum won't pick anything up when the bag is loose. This often happens after you replace the bag, which is hard to get seated correctly in the first place.
Frankly, this vacuum is engineered so poorly it's hard for me to believe anyone actually used it before they put it on the market. I kept it because of the suction, and because I didn't see anything else out there on the market that I liked better. I'd never buy it again, and I keep hoping it will break, and force me to find a better alternative. If you're considering buying this model, run, don't walk away from the salesman as fast as you can.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 300
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Member: Sherril Steele-Carlin
Location: Reno, NV
Reviews written: 315
Trusted by: 78 members
About Me:
I'm a full-time writer and researcher, who loves to work on the web!
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