<p>I thought I wanted bagless (to be “green”). But I read a lot of feedback from people who prefer to keep the dir t in the bag. If you have a house where it is easy to trot to the outside trash, it may not matter. </p>
<p>I like our canister from Sears. DH does the vacuuming, and he opted for a good deal on a Kirby. It does a great job, but it is expensive and heavy. </p>
<p>The sears progressive I posted earlier has a hepa filter. You guys are all blowing off that suggestion but its a really good vacuum and only $150. </p>
<p>Seems like some of you are stuck on these high end machines. It’s a vacuum for Pete’s sake… 
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<p>I have a husband and kids with asthma. So for us, a $600 vacuum that lasts 20 years or more and has true HEPA filtration is worth every penny. I think of it on a cost-per-use basis. </p>
<p>I had a Sears Progressive and returned it after one day because it felt flimsy to me. The Miele is built like a tank, with real horsehair brushes, and yes, that quality is important to me. </p>
<p>I have friends who buy cheapie vacuums every couple of years, they break and are thrown away, lather rinse repeat… I would feel very wasteful doing that. To each his own.</p>
<p>I was researching vacuums last night. I want something very easy to use on hardwood stairs (our dog sleeps on the stairs during the day). We have a mix of laminate, cork, hardwood, oriental rugs, and berber carpet. We currently have a canister and I hate lugging it up and down stairs and maneuvering around corners. The Shark Rocket 301/302 seems to get good reviews and is $200. Anyone have experience with it?</p>
<p>Another two Miele household. First one is almost 16 years old and second was purchased when estimated repair of first one was more than I wanted to pay. In-laws had it repaired for $39 in their much lower COL area, and it has been running strong since. We keep the old one downstairs with the electric beater attachment affixed for the basement wall-to-wall carpeting and keep the newer one on the ground floor for all over: upholstery, door panels, Persian rugs and mostly bare floors. The last one cost $800 and was the equivalent of the first one. Newer model is lighter than old one, and both are canisters.</p>
<p>Anyone here use a Hoover Wind Tunnel? Consumer Ratings have it rated pretty high and it’s a price I can live with (under 200$).</p>
<p>I bought a Sebo a number of years ago when my vac bit the dust. Owner of the local Mom/Pop vacuum store was high on it–said it was better than the Miele. I like it–it has the hepa filter and is a cannister model. </p>
<p>We love our lightweight Oreck with a HEPA filter. It weighs under 8 lbs., replacing something that was close to 20 lbs. Not that I’m getting older or anything, but it really helps in a 3 story house. </p>
<p>Love my 13 yr old upright Oreck. Carpet, tile, hardwood and rugs - good on all. </p>
<p>I wonder – Is there anyplace where one can actually try out all these different machines? It seems that the only way to know if you like a vacuum or not is to live with it for awhile. Not very efficient. I’d like to “try before I buy.”</p>
<p>VH–in my area there’s a Mom/Pop vac store (also sells sewing machines and high end steam presses for clothes and Miele line of washer/dryers). You can try out all the vacuums–I tried several before I settled on the Sebo .</p>
<p>Dyson… I have three…love them!</p>