I just read through this thread. I see there's very little love for the Bissel's. That's a shame.
While I can imagine they can't compare with the real premium machines (brands I've never heard of ... but I trust they are the real deal, unlike the fragile, over-hyped Dysons) I find Bissels to be VERY cost effective and nearly impossible to kill without physically breaking components.
Over the past 4-5 years, I have pulled several vacuums out of a local dumpster. Most were Bissels and the ones that had most or all of their parts were simple fixes. Usually they just needed a thorough cleaning and they were good as new. I also fixed/cleaned one Eureka and a Hoover ... but just don't care for the way those machines were put together.
I would give most of them away to friends and family. One I brought to work (a Bissel Momentum) and used it there for about a year before I gave it to an employee to take home.
I bought a remanufactured Bissel Healthy Home a few years ago. While it seems to clean well, it is very heavy, has no useful handle for lifting and the worst aspect: emptying the large dirt-cup (which contains a complicated manifold assembly) is a disastrous mess. It is still the machine I use regularly. I will also take it outside and use the hose and plentiful tools to vacuum out my cars.
I had a Bissel Velocity Total Floors (can turn the brush off with a mechanical switch). This was a great vacuum … probably their best one. I cleaned it up and gave it to a good friend when I bought the reman Healthy Home. Afterwards, I bought a demo-model Velocity Pet (same machine with one extra tool for pet hair) for a song (it was missing parts) and then I found those parts years later. It sits, brand new and unused, in a closet.
I bought a Bissel Momentum for my Dad several years ago. This is almost as good as the Velocity but the air chamber above the dirt cup is smaller and dirt doesn’t drop out of the vortex as easily (more dirt dust makes it into the engine filter). This is still a pretty good vacuum and the one I brought to work was easily my best dumpster find.
I have a Bissel Lift-Off Revolution. Again, found it on clearance at Home Depot. Lots of interesting features, the most obvious is the ability to lift the engine off the chassis and carry it around like a lightweight canister. I’ve tested this one once, but it also sits new and unused. On the downside, the Lift-Off feature looks a bit delicate and I could see the electrical connectors becoming damaged if used without care.
Question for the group: It seems most (all?) brands have standardized on 12amp electric engines. Is that true for all residential brands, even the elite machines?
