Hoover Platinum Bagged Upright Vacuum

After days of reading reviews and driving sales people nuts I finally purchased this Hoover over the Simplicity Freedom 3600. Up front the Simplicity is at least two pounds lighter, pulls about the same or maybe better, is made in the USA, has a 3 year warranty, is more expensive, does not come with a portable canister, and, “made in the USA” or not, they have a horrible business model (try purchasing one on-line, you can’t).

My old Windtunnel dual V has dual counter rotating brushes and a 12 amp “clean air” motor (air is drawn through the filter before the motor). The new lightweight has a 5.5 amp “direct air” motor (air is drawn in through the motor and blown into the filter). Before taking the new lightweight out of the box, I cleaned the brush rollers and filter on the old dual V and thoroughly vacuumed the downstairs carpets. I immediately cleaned them again with the new lightweight. The new vacuum did pull more dirt and cat hair up but it wasn’t a shocking amount. The verdict is it’s a great vacuum that is quieter, uses less energy, cleans better, and is far easier to lug upstairs than the heavy old dual V.

I must respectfully disagree with a few earlier posts about this product though. The large plastic wheels in the back have hard rubber tires on them. The unit also has rubber rollers under the front. Since the brush roller has no “beater bar” (probably a thing of the past now) I have no reservations about using this vacuum on my hard floors. A close look at the balance weights driven into the brush roller reveals that the brush roller is painted wood not plastic. It does in fact have a cord release although poorly designed. I was reluctant to apply the required force to the upper wrung for fear it would break but it did finally rotate. I was puzzled why the powered brush roller always ran even when upright until I went to clean the stairs. For stair cleaning I found it easier to use the unit upright holding it by the stair handle and the rear lifting handle. Holding the unit this way is awkward at first but will keep your hand away from the motor vent. Moving the unit parallel with the stair will also clean closer to the back of the stair. The LED lights do cast a shadow just in front of the cleaning head but it’s in near constant motion so it didn’t bother me. If I could change the design I would place the LEDs on the front (like most competitors). They are probably less than 1 watt each so I’d run them all the time instead of only when the machine is running.

I am very happy with this purchase and it works well but my only complaint is that I would have like to have known how expensive the replacement bags would have been. That my have changed my mind about purchasing the vacuum cleaner!!

Love the vacuum. Good suction and like the handheld that comes with it. Necessary for corners. Have not used it so long but even husband remarks on lightness and quietness of this product.

I love this machine. I tried a cheaper, bagless model, but hated emptying the canister and the belt broke after the third use.

I took it back and bought this one - even though it cost almost twice as much - because of all the glowing reviews and I liked the idea of getting two vacs.

THIS IS TOTALLY WORTH EVERY PENNEY!

The upright is fabulous. It works just fine on my hardwood floors without scratching and picks up even the grass and leaves my dogs track in.

I thought the days of buying a vacuum that lasted 20 years were over, but this machine feels so solid I can actually see it lasting that long. It reminds my of my mother's old green hoover that she used forever, except that it's a whole lot lighter and the floor actually looks clean after using it.

The canister is also very lightweight with good suction. But it's really not very thoughtfully designed. There's no good way to store the tools and no place to wind up the cord, so it's pretty unwieldy to get out and put away. Luckily I don't use it all that much. It's a shame that the folks at Hoover didn't take the time to put the same thoughtfulness into the design of the canister.

who wants to spend $400.00 on a vacuum cleaner? not me! two shedding dogs later with lots of carpet made me rethink . doing research, i always saw hoover's do better on carpet than any other brand(check the consumer mags,etc.) i took the plunge and all i can say is wow!! you get two vacuums- the upright part is the best built ,smoothest, and powerful vacuum ihave ever used. it practically moves itself along the carpet and feels solid in your hand. while it is a vacuum, the noise is much quieter than any i've used. my two dogs actually follow me around while i use it! they used to run the other way. the canister part is light and easy to use: all in all hoover got this thing right, for less than some othe brands(oreck, miele,etc.) it is without question the finest appliance i have purchased in years. you'll see!!!!

This by far is the best vacuum I've ever owned! I've never owned a vacuum that left my floors as clean as this Hoover Platinum does. I would recommend it for those that have children or pets because it gets rid of the dirty traces they leave behind. Excellent product!

Bought the Hoover and Oreck for side by side comparisons for 30 days. Hoover is more bulky than the Oreck buts looks for better that the Oreck. Feels heavier to operate than Oreck. One big difference I see is the head lights. Hoovers placement of the lights casts a shadow in front of the vacuum making it harder to see in front. While plugged in, a light on the Hoover stays on, using more electricity. I don't think the construction of the Hoover is as good as the Oreck

The Hoover cord is thin compared to Oreck. Tools for the canister vac are unsubstantial but the Hoover feels more powerful.

I will post more info as I continue the test/

Hoover Platinum Lightweight Bagged Upright with Canister (UH30010COM) (3/14/09)

Overall, this is a terrific vacuum. The person who will be happiest with this combination is the person who: (1) wants a lightweight vacuum, (2) has mostly carpet in their home, (3) has carpeted stairs, and (4) uses attachments.

I liked my old vacuum, so using the LBU has been an eye-opening experience for me: I didn’t realize how much effort I was exerting with my old upright with attachments - not only heavier, but so much bending and stooping to change settings or get tools.

At 11 pounds, the LBU is 2 to 3 pounds heavier - but less expensive - than competing models. Bonuses: it has a longer cord and a stair cleaning handle.

Competing models –
Hoover LBU, 11 lbs list $400/retail $400 (includes canister), 6 yr warranty
Riccar RSL5; 8 lbs list $710/ retail $500 (without canister), 3 yr warranty
Oreck XL Gold: 9 lbs list $600/ retail $500 (includes canister), 5/10 warranty
Oreck XL Platinum: 9 lbs list $800/ retail $600 (includes canister), 10 yr warranty

All are similar to commercial models, but you don’t get the same auto carpet height adjustment, lifetime belt, HEPA filtration, and warranty on commercial models.

The supplementary canister has a strap & 25 foot cord. The canister carries the crevice and brush attachments on board, so switching is easy, and the wand is extendable. (I don’t use the floor tool, because I use a stick vac on my hardwoods.)

PROS

FINGERTIP CONTROLS – Wonderful. Many models have this type of control now, and now that I have used it I wouldn’t buy one that didn’t have it.

HEPA SYSTEM – Remarkable. My old vacuum was a HEPA model with HEPA bags, but there is no comparison to this model. The air on this vacuum comes out smelling fabulous. I bought and returned a top rated Kenmore canister that had the exact same amazingly clean exhaust (turns out I don’t like using a canister), so I think this is the new hallmark of quality vacuums.

AUTO CARPET HEIGHT ADJUSTMENT - Works beautifully. I used to have to stoop down to change the carpet height adjustment on different rugs, but the LBU self-adjustment really works – no problem pushing vacuum over even the thickest pile.

CORD PLACEMENT – Smart! It comes out the behind the top of the bag rather than the bottom. This means I have even more useable cord, because I don’t have to hold part of the cord up to avoid running over it.

CLEANING ABILITY - VERY effective carpet cleaner, my 15 year-old carpets look & feel remarkably cleaner & newer. Excellent at removing pet hair from carpet. The upright is 5.5 amps with direct air flow, like the Riccar & Oreck models listed. The canister is 7 amps. (The combined total is listed in the product description – very confusing. I suppose Hoover thought consumers want a 12 amp machine, but amps are like gas mileage; if you get more suction for less amperage it’s like getting better mileage. That’s good, not bad. Plus you won’t blow your fuses!)

EASILY MANEUVERABLE – One expects this of a lightweight model, and all the models I tried handled easily, but the Riccar & Orecks I tried had to be kicked or tipped up over the edge of an area rug placed onto another carpet. In my home I have area rugs in several rooms on top of the wall-to-wall carpeting, and the LBU moves seamlessly over the edges (even on my thickest area rug) without needing a kick or an extra hard push.

LIFETIME LED HEADLIGHT – Brilliant! (Literally!) It is brighter than any other light I have ever had on a vacuum, and is it actually aimed at the carpet! I think having the LEDs has allowed them to aim the light better than with a standard bulb. I am sure other LED equipped models are comparable, so look for this feature,

LIFETIME BELT - YES! I’ve replaced SO many belts over the years and I won’t have to do THAT anymore, thank goodness.

STAIR-CLEANING HANDLE – Finally. It is comfortably shaped & works well. To use competitors’ models on stairs, you have to hold them by the back tube, which I’ve tried, and it isn’t nearly as easy as using the handle. However, see cons below.

CORD RELEASE – Doesn’t have one. This worked out to be a pro for me, because it caused me to wind up the 35’ cord on my arm and just plop it into the top cord holder. The LBU doesn’t threaten to tip over at all when I do this, so it works just great and saves yet another bend and stoop.

CONS

STAIR-CLEANING HANDLE – Good grief! I assume it really WAS necessary to vent the motor exhaust toward the stair-cleaning handle (!), so rather than curse the engineers, hold the handle on the right-hand side. It’s big enough to do that, thank goodness. Or vacuum the stairs first, before the motor gets warm.

NO BRUSH ROLL ON/OFF – Hmmm. This is in the description (and competitors’ models are the same), so it means that the vacuum is intended ONLY for people with mostly carpet. I have about 80/20 carpet/bare floor, so it works for me. I use a stick vac on my hardwood, and the other person I talked to that has hardwood floors and this vacuum says she doesn’t care because her hardwood floors aren’t new anyway. But if you have brand-spankin’-new hardwood floors, will you really want to use a brush-roll on them?

EXPENSIVE BAGS – Really, $5 each? But they are huge, and they are the very high quality type with fabric-like paper, so we’ll see. I used to have to change my old ones ($3) fairly often, so maybe this will work out the same or even cheaper.

CORD RELEASE – Doesn’t have one. But see pros above.

CARRY-STRAP FOR CANISTER – Not padded. Anyone know where I can buy a pad for a 1 ½ inch strap?

Sorry for the length, but since there are so few reviews out there as yet, I wanted to be thorough.