Electrolux Hi Lite from Tesco, best i've ever had (with long haired shepherds). Dyson was useless, and didn't realise just how useless til I got the Electrolux. Will never buy a Dyson again (had 3). The price is amazing too, £69 from Tesco online. My view is even if it only lasts a couple of years, I can afford to keep replacing it.

K

Well, as I have said on here before....we have a Kirby which cost me an arm and a leg about 10 years ago ...but...it STILL cleans as well as it did the day I bought it and it manages to clean up 3 Malamutes fur everyday ;)

For those of you who go through a Dyson a year, remember they have a two year guarantee with them AND you can get a whole refurbishment done at home by the service engineer for just £55 which includes a new motor.

I had an original DC01 that's been refurbished once after burning out the motor and it's lasted me 12 years!

I got my first Dyson DC01 11 yrs ago and it's still going strong today, I've only had to put a new brush in it in all that time, to be fair it looks a little knackered now, but hey.........that's life....especially in my house :rolleyes:

It got to the stage where I wanted new one with a little extra oomph, so I stupidly went out and bought the Dyson Animal last Christmas.

Suction? great if you wash the filters and empty the bucket daily.....if not hourly!.

Manoeuvrability? Great cumbersome purple beast that gives you regular bicep and back workouts!

If you're happy only being able to hoover one room before the brush gets so clogged up with 12 inch long hairs (from my beloved hairmonsters) that you spend an hour on the floor with the underneath unscrewed dehairing the brushbar and teaching all young ears in the immediate vicinity "new words to try on their friends" :D Buy a Dyson...............or not, as the case maybe :P

Value for money? I should have stuck with the DC01 and a good broom and spent what I spent on the Animal in a nice restaurant, at least I would have enjoyed the experience

I think that there are definitely two sorts of vacuum cleaner people - those who can and those who can't (keep them going for ages :D :D :D ) I've only had four in 25 years (I've still got both my Dysons, both working fine). Neither of my other two ever packed up - the hoses just split eventually and I just decided to get a new one :) Now my M-I-L was terrible with vacuums and seemed to have a new one every year (there was only the people at home and not pets) - goodness what she did to them but they never lasted long :D :D :D My mother only had two vacuums between 1951 and 2000 :D

Daisy

I blame the short life of my vacuum cleaners on OH ... he has had the operating of them over the last 20 years or so - and I've lost count of the no of cleaners that he has kn**ckered up - I've come home to find them in pieces all over the floor (whilst they are still under guarantee, of course!) AND all the bits that are "manufacturer open only" all over the floor as well..... he has failed to grasp the concept of vacuuming over a DRY floor - with the consequence that MUD blocks all the tubes.......

As he has failed utterly in this task he has been demoted to a broom - and guess what - he managed to break that too :D :D :D   So, now that I have retired, I have invested in an Animal Dyson, and have TAKEN OVER the cleaning.....

Today - Madness Manor - Tomorrow - THE WORLD!!!!

Margot

LOLOLOL, Everytime My hubbie says "I'll have it fixed in half an hour" I take my son and go down to the town - no one should be put in the line of the sort of language he coms out with! And normally when we get home, we have a trip down to Comet to replace the "fixed" item, because, low and behold, he can't fix it because pieces are missing! :rolleyes: :P

Exactly why this annoys me, the product should be built to last - why the heck should the owner fork out another wad of cash when the damn thing should be working without fault in the first place.

JMO....warranties are such a con :(

we have had two hoovers in 16years  they have both been panasonic super lightweights, great for carrying upstairs.  They have seen me through two very messy kids, a dog, and a three bedroom extension- which is a lot of muck, I have never had to replace any parts on either of them apart from the brush attachment which the dog thinks is his toy.  I dont think they cost more than £80 from Argos, they are not for animals but i would definately have another one.  My mum has a dyson for upstairs and a panasonic lightweight for downstairs and she thinks the panasonic picks up the dogs hair better.

We have a vax 6 in 1 it's a wet n dry hoover and its amazing. Cost about £75 from ASDA and it picks up harir and water and washes the carpet and hard/wood floors. It's lightweight aswell. My dyson was useless on dog hair in my thick carpet.

We have an Edward ( Henry's big brother). He's been in constant daily user for over 17 years and still manages to pick up after 6 hairy Belgians - would only replace him with another :D :D

Yvonne

Buy a Henry.  We had one in the shop I worked in, it sucked up allsorts, was bashed around the shop and never let us down.  A friend was recommended to buy a Henry when her vacumn cleaner gave up by a independant electrical shop, she has 4 dogs and says her Henry is the best yet.   The bags are huge and easy to get at Argos.

I bought my Mum a very cheap bagless upright (LG brand) because I was sick of getting on my hands and knees scraping up her dog's hair with a nail brush after going over the carpets with her cylinder whatever- it-was (Goblin?).  Wow! One sweep and it was like mowing a lawn - green stripes on a carpet I had come to believe was grey.   Our household - lifelong devotees to the Vax - then purchased a posh Sony bagless upright for our house (two dogs) and it was absolutely useless.  I have now inherited the little LG and it is still going strong.  While the Vax is okay for the hard flooring it is only so-so on rugs. A fact I proved to my  doubting OH by going over his previously Vaxed carpet with the upright - and the clear container full of hair and mank literally illustrated my point for me.

I have a henry and think they are excellent.  Alot of schools and hospitals use henry hoovers.  I have had the DC04 model of the dyson and it wasnt a patch on henry and it cost 2 and a half times more.  I would never have anything but henry.

Michelle

Miele cat and dog. Our Dyson kept breaking and finally we gave up on it. The Miele cat and dog is great - we've had it for a year and it's still going strong.

I've had two Dysons that kept dying.. Now have a bagless panasonic that is on it's way out...

is the Miele Cat and Dog really worth it??  I've heard mixed reviews on it.(I've only got one golden but he sheds SO much...)

How about a Pet Vax, they have great suction as a hoover and can be used to wash carpets when needed aswell.  You can pick up a refurbished one off ebay for under £85 with a one year warranty. I brought one of these a few months ago to replace my dyson and haven't looked back since, and it was less than half the price of the dyson. 

i had the very first dyson for aaages and it was fine, but then died....I've got a dyson dc08 cylinder, and i love it. I have one one those attachments thats specificlly designed for pet hair, but its crap. I prefer the bog standard on boards stair tool. I've used a dyson animal, and i wouldn't say it was any better to be honest. Saying that, theres only the stairs, landing and living room rug thats carpet, everywhere else is laminate or tiles, which probably explains why ine copes so well!

I cant understand why everyones dysons are dying so quickly i have had my animal since jan 03 and it still does me proud