Ok I’ll admit that I’m a bit of a clean freak – there is something satisfying to me about a freshly vacuumed carpet. Cleaning is a way I decompress sometimes and I’ve always had a weird fascination with it. Being in a clean space really helps me clear my head and impacts my mental health. I sleep better, I am happier, and I feel like my brain fog goes away (unfortunately mom brain does not get cured from cleaning lol). Over the years of living on my own and now living with my husband, I have accumulated quite a number of vacuums. Is it an obsession? Potentially.
Currently in my home I have 7 vacuums (8 if you count the carpet cleaner). I feel that they serve different purposes throughout our home and I don’t know why but I have a really hard time parting with them. I did extensive research on them to pick out what I needed/wanted to make my life easier. Here are the types of vacuums I currently have:
- 2 cordless stick vacuums (the Bissell Air Ram and the Dyson V15 Stick Vacuum)
- 1 ‘dust buster’ type vacuum (I don’t know what brand)
- 1 shop vac (wet/dry) (Bissel wet/dry multi clean)
- 2 corded standard vacuums (Shark Navigator and Shark Rotator)
- 1 robot vacuum (roomba j7)
I’ve listed the brands I have researched and decided to buy below along with the pros/cons of each:
- Bissel Air Ram:
- Pros: Lightweight, stands on its own, great bright lights on the front, easy to empty
- Cons: Small dirt container, doesn’t work great on carpet or pet hair
- How I use it: I love this vacuum for our kitchen, easy quick cleans but doesn’t “deep clean.” It’s also great because it stands on its own I can just tuck it in a closet when not in use
- Dyson V15:
- Pros: The Laser attachment is amazing, tells you how much dirt you collect, a substantial dirt chamber for a stick vacuum, looks cool, holds a charge well, good for quick cleans and does well with pet hair.
- Cons: Does not stand on its own (if you stop halfway, you have to prop it up somewhere – this is a huge con!), it is heavy on your hand when you’re pushing it around, needs a spot to store where you can attach it to the wall
- How I use it: I like this vacuum for a quick cleaning of our first floor. It does great on hardwood or other hard surfaces and really shows where there is dust and captures it well. It also does a nice job on pet hair.
- Handheld Black & Decker dustbuster:
- Pros: Easy to hold, great for small spaces, great for small cleaning jobs (like a car!)
- Cons: Not a huge dirt chamber, cheaply made
- How I use it: I love a Dustbuster for little cleans like a quick clean of the car console or a quick clean of the stairs. I don’t use it that much anymore since the Dyson stick vacuum also can compact down to the Dustbuster size
- Bissell Multiclean wet/dry vac
- Pros: Cleans up wet and dry spills, rolls around on wheels (don’t have to carry it around), has a ‘blower’ attachment in addition to suction, has a very large dirt basin.
- Cons: Even though I find it to be a more compact shop vac, it is still hard to store, it has a lot of attachments to keep track of
- How I use it: This is a great vacuum for the garage. Good for deep cleans in the car, in the garage, or other more ‘grungy’ scenarios. I love this for getting spiderwebs in the garage or attic.
- Shark Navigator
- Pros: Great dirt canister and easy to empty, powerful suction, great with pet fur, has a removable filter that can be cleaned.
- Cons: The suction hose is a little short so sometimes it is hard to reach into corners, there is a roller bar that needs to be cleaned out occasionally from hair
- How I use it: I keep this vacuum on our second floor that is carpeted. It does a great job cleaning up pet hair!
- Shark Rotator
- Pros: Great big dirt canister, easy to empty (easier than the navigator), powerful suction, great with pet fur, has removable filter that can be cleaned, has a long suction hose for hard to reach corners and spots
- Cons: a little heavy to lift
- How I use it: This is my go-to vacuum. I love most everything about it and would buy it 100x over. It is great on all surfaces and does a great job with pet hair
- Roomba j7
- Pros: You can schedule this to run a vacuum ‘job’, it maps your home so it knows which room to go to, it automatically goes back to its charging base and empties itself
- Cons: Not great with pet hair on carpet, you have to occasionally clean out the hair from the sides of the rollers, you have to buy new bags for the auto-empty when they get full
- How I use it: As a busy new mom, I schedule this vacuum to run every day at the same time (especially in high traffic areas). It’s amazing how a clean floor can make a new mom feel better. Even though it isn’t great with pet hair, it is refreshing to know that it’s getting dust and dirt up on a daily basis and it’s great I don’t have to do anything except press a button in the app.
I think a great vacuum is a must-have in any home. When I reflect on what vacuums I really need, I would always end up recommending the shark upright vacuum (either the navigator or the rotator). It’s really all you need and the brand is very reliable (I prefer the shark brand to the Dyson brand – lower cost but similar or even higher quality).
Am I a complete lunatic or are there other clean freaks out there who love talking about vacuums? Let me know in the comments!
xoxo, LL
Little Libbie 
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