# Tell me about hand-held vacuums **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 21, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036 "2010-06-21T20:35:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/1 "2010-06-21T20:35:39Z")
Dopers, I’m in the market to buy a hand-held vacuum (Dustbuster, etc.) but haven’t bought one in _years._ The last two I’ve had pooped out on me fairly quickly, but I don’t know how much of that was cheapness on my part, how much was due to the product itself being defective, and how much was due to my general filth levels at the time. I suspect I just wore them out and sent them to an early grave, what with the long-haired cats and ferrets and all… 😛 So, Dopers - please, tell me what to look for, what brands you love, what to avoid, etc. etc. Also, are there any options or features I should look out for? I need something for dust/loose fur/tracked kitty litter around the house, and also to clean out the car. So, I’m thinking I need something that is fairly powerful and brawny while not being wildly expensive. Little help? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/2 "2010-06-21T21:08:27Z")
I got a Black and Decker one that Consumer Reports liked. It SUCKS. It doesn’t pick anything up! Don’t get that one. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/3 "2010-06-21T21:37:13Z")
We recently got a [Euro-Pro® Shark Pet Perfect II Cordless Hand Vac](http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=17127438&RN=911&), and really like it. The motorized brush thing works great on cat hair (we have one long-haired and one medium-haired cat). Mostly, we use it on the couches and stuff to get cat hair off, and around the litter box so we don’t have to drag out the regular vacuum just for a few square feet. ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/4 "2010-06-21T22:05:26Z")
I have a [Dirt Devil Kone](http://www.amazon.com/M0212-Illuminated-Cordless-Handheld-Cleaner/dp/B000GPMCZK) and love it. It picks up the kittly litter that gets tracked in, which most handhelds don’t. It is always charged up and it looks cool! (Mine is bronze and cooler than the white one.) ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/5 "2010-06-21T22:22:46Z")
[This Eureka](http://evacuumstore.com/c-1512-eureka-hand-vacs.aspx) gets [excellent consumer reviews](http://www.amazon.com/Eureka-71B-Hand-Held-Vacuum/dp/B0006HUYGM/ref=cm_lmf_tit_3_rsrssi0) (scroll down)and for good reason. I bought one for my RV and it works great. It has a powered brush to get the dirt up, a pivoting shroud so you can vac in odd places, and it’s bagless. 642/712 (90%) of Amazon reviewers rated it either 4 or 5 stars. I researched portable vacs extensively before I bought this one. Basically, cordless vacs are a waste of money. Bigger names like B&D and Dirt Devil are consistently rated poor. It’s hard to find one that doesn’t have serious flaws, and is as frustrating as trying to find a decent toaster or coffee maker without paying an exhorbitant amount of money. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2010, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/6 "2010-06-21T22:43:53Z")
I have a Shark that claims to pick up pet hair. It didn’t work very well–the hair kind of clumped in the part before the filter–and then it stopped working right all together. I could probably fix it. In fact, maybe I will get it out and see what I can do. It turns on, but makes a noise and has not suction. And what, I ask you, is a vacuum without suction? ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/7 "2010-06-22T00:38:05Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > I have a Shark that claims to pick up pet hair. It didn’t work very well–the hair kind of clumped in the part before the filter–and then it stopped working right all together. I could probably fix it. In fact, maybe I will get it out and see what I can do. It turns on, but makes a noise and has not suction. And what, I ask you, is a vacuum without suction? We used to have a Dirt Devil portable, which worked okay right up until the brush axle broke. When that happens, no dirt is going to be picked up, only bits of paper. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/8 "2010-06-22T02:27:53Z")
Imho, portables are useless. Get a good attachment on a grownup vacuum. ---
**Author:** ![cherry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cherry)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/9 "2010-06-22T07:40:13Z")
I have a Dyson and it works really well. Just like their upright. But the battery only goes for about 5 minutes of vacuuming then needs to be recharged. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/10 "2010-06-22T13:33:31Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > I got a Black and Decker one that Consumer Reports liked. It SUCKS. It doesn’t pick anything up! Don’t get that one. 🙂 Am I the only one who finds “It SUCKS.” to be a confusing way to describe a vacuum which (apparently) doesn’t work very well? To answer the OP: I don’t have any rel recent experience, but I’ve never had a cordless handheld which was worth a damn. Another vote for using a real vac with a hose & attachment. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/11 "2010-06-22T14:16:37Z")
I have a Dirt Devil similar to [this one](http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=dirt+devil&hl=en&cid=12036795524113585689&ei=-sQgTIypO5XMNdiL2foK&sa=title&ved=0CB8Q8wIwBDgA#p). I’d give it about an 8 out of 10. For pet hair you’re going to need something with a revolving brush, which this has, but the hose and crevice tool are nice to have on it too. It’s corded, so that might be a minus if you’re looking for something cordless, but it has plenty of power. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/12 "2010-06-22T15:37:33Z")
> [@kayT](#): > > I have a [Dirt Devil Kone](http://www.amazon.com/M0212-Illuminated-Cordless-Handheld-Cleaner/dp/B000GPMCZK) and love it. It picks up the kittly litter that gets tracked in, which most handhelds don’t. It is always charged up and it looks cool! (Mine is bronze and cooler than the white one.) I have a Kone and it works pretty well for small jobs. It also is really great for keeping “on display” so you don’t have to go fishing for it when you need it. But, I would never try to use it on pet hair in the car. Maybe to get crumbs out of the cupholders, but that’s about it. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2010, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/13 "2010-06-22T21:07:29Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > Imho, portables are useless. Get a good attachment on a grownup vacuum. Well, one of the main reasons we need one is to clean out the car. We have no garage (heck, we barely have a _driveway_) and there’s no outlet on the outside of our house. Option 1: hook up our grownup vacuum cleaner to one of those heavy-duty 50 foot orange extension cords and lug the whole heavy-ass thing waaaay out to where the car is parked. Option 2: pick up a lightweight, portable object, walk outside, and start hoovering away. Look, I’ll be honest and say I don’t clean out my car very often. If I have to go with Option # 1, then it’s _really_ not gonna happen. Also, we have hardwood floors, so we rarely vacuum anyway: mostly, sweep and mop. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2010, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/14 "2010-06-23T01:00:47Z")
Yes, I use my regular vacuum to clean my car, it’s regular cord (no extension needed) is long enough to reach the car, although I do have an extension cord for my buffer than I could use. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2010, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/15 "2010-06-23T14:20:15Z")
If that’s the case, I’d say screw the hand-vac all together and just take the car to a service station that has the big vacs you can pay to use. I think it only takes me a couple bucks to get the whole car done when I’ve used them. ---
**Author:** ![amaguri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/49beb7/32.png) [@amaguri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amaguri)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2010, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/16 "2010-06-23T15:42:11Z")
I have the Dirt Devil M0105 “Purpose for Pets” and it’s great. Long cord so you don’t have to keep plugging and unplugging the damn thing, with motorized brush that excels at scooping pet hair off of fabric. The cord is non-retractable, tho. This is the only hand-held vac I’ve ever used that I truly thought worked well (and it’s $50 or less, not too shabby) ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2010, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/17 "2010-06-24T22:03:59Z")
I used to have three dogs and a cat (down to one dog now; divorce is the reason), and found that no vacuum was good at getting pet hair off my area rugs. Then I discovered that if I rubbed a damp cloth on the rugs, the cloth picked up most of the hair, or at least formed it into a ball that I could pick up and throw away. I don’t have carpet in most of my rooms, though, and I realize it would be really tedious to do that to an entire room. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2010, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/18 "2010-06-24T22:14:20Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > I used to have three dogs and a cat (down to one dog now; divorce is the reason), and found that no vacuum was good at getting pet hair off my area rugs. Then I discovered that if I rubbed a damp cloth on the rugs, the cloth picked up most of the hair, or at least formed it into a ball that I could pick up and throw away. I don’t have carpet in most of my rooms, though, and I realize it would be really tedious to do that to an entire room. Wearing rubber gloves work even better. Make sure the outside is damp. We wear them when cleaning the nooks and crannies on the stair carpet, and getting pet hair off of soft furniture. Works great. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2010, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/19 "2010-06-24T22:40:54Z")
> [@SmellMyWort](#): > > If that’s the case, I’d say screw the hand-vac all together and just take the car to a service station that has the big vacs you can pay to use. I think it only takes me a couple bucks to get the whole car done when I’ve used them. Over time, the cost adds up. The way I calc’d it, one trip to the coin operated vacuum equals a load of laundry, so I use the regular vac. > [@Duckster](#): > > Wearing rubber gloves work even better. Make sure the outside is damp. We wear them when cleaning the nooks and crannies on the stair carpet, and getting pet hair off of soft furniture. > > Works great. For pet hair on carpet, I use a bamboo leaf rake that cost like $3 at the hardware store. I put carpet powder, then rake up the pet hair. The rake helps distribute the powder so you get a better smelling room after you vacuum, and I’d say the rake gets about 80% of the pet hair. ---
**Author:** ![yawuntz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/a5b964/32.png) [@yawuntz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yawuntz)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2010, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-hand-held-vacuums/544036/20 "2010-06-24T22:57:32Z")
Quote: _I got a Black and Decker one that Consumer Reports liked. It SUCKS. It doesn’t pick anything up! Don’t get that one. 🙂_ > [@LSLGuy](#): > > Am I the only one who finds “It SUCKS.” to be a confusing way to describe a vacuum which (apparently) doesn’t work very well? > To answer the OP: I don’t have any rel recent experience, but I’ve never had a cordless handheld which was worth a damn. Another vote for using a real vac with a hose & attachment. I’ve got a B&D and it BLOWS.