best vacuum cleaner for an apartment
A friend of mine recently confided in me a secret she shares with millions of other millennials: She doesn’t own a real vacuum cleaner. Despite being 30 years old, having her own place, and living with a cat, she’s cleaning her apartment with a $50 stick vac she picked up at Target. Although stereotypes say that 18-34 year olds have no problem opening their wallets for smartphones, craft beer, and pricey urban apartments, data shows that many young adults overlook a crucial weapon in the arsenal of adulthood: A vacuum cleaner tougher than a dustbuster. When millennials buy a vacuum, they tend to spend less than $150—22 percent less than older adults spend. That leaves them with inexpensive uprights, cheap cordless vacuums, and plug-in stick vacs. Those are great for cleaning up debris tracked in from outside or crumbs spilled in the kitchen, but they’re virtually useless for getting allergens out of carpets—let alone cleaning upholstery or chasing dust bunnies from under furniture.
For that, you need a vacuum with a motorized brush and enough suction to get that dirt into a bag you can throw away. It should come with attachments that can clean between couch cushions and under bureaus. Preferably, that vacuum will be a canister, with a hose that gives you the option of reaching tight spaces. Prepare to spend more than $150 on it, and get ready to use it every week. Credit: Flickr user "bmhkim" Don’t like the sound of the vacuum-owning life? Like paying taxes, going to bed early, and getting your cholesterol checked, having a real vacuum in your closet is just part of being a grown-up. See, we’ve tested stick vacuums and regular vacuums, and have conclusively determined that stick vacs—while okay for touch-up work—are totally inadequate for the task of cleaning the home of an adult human. Not only do their batteries not last long enough for a whole-house clean, but they also leave behind up to 80 percent of the dirt, dust, and allergens that are buried in the pile of your carpet.
Our testers found that it wasn’t fancy, but it has every tool necessary to get the job done.
carpet cleaning companies brightonEven though it has a long reach and weighs a decent amount, it’s designed to balance well in use and store neatly in even the smallest closets. I can already anticipate the counterarguments from the Peter Pans of the housecleaning set: “But I don’t make that much of a mess,” they’ll protest. “I use a Swiffer,” or, “My place is so small, I don’t need a vacuum!” Fine, you can live like a teenager. Just be prepared to watch your peers quite literally leaving you in the dust. While you marinate in squalor, they’ll be grabbing promotions, buying houses, and building families—all because they had the maturity to invest a few hundred dollars in a miraculous machine that should be in the home of every man or woman old enough to rent a car.
Instead of choosing to live with dust mites, pet dander, and lingering odors as your only companions, you could suck it up and buy a real vacuum. Whether you’re using it to clean a 300-sq.-ft. studio, the apartment you share with six roommates, or your mom’s basement, ownership of a full-size vacuum cleaner isn’t just a way to keep your house clean—it’s also an important step on the road to adulthood. It’s a step that my friend took. After much convincing, she finally decided that a shiny, new canister vacuum would make a perfect 30th birthday gift to herself. So, she swallowed her pride and welcomed one into her home. I can only predict that a life filled with cleanliness, happiness, and financial success will follow. Our editors review and recommend products to help you buy the stuff you need. If you make a purchase by clicking one of our links, we may earn a small share of the revenue. Our picks and opinions are independent from any business incentives. Be in the know!
news and reviews straight to your inbox. Thanks for signing up!Nobody enjoys doing household chores, which is why there’s been a proliferation of smart home devices that make it possible to avoid doing them completely. You can now even get “smart valves”, which automatically water your plants 5 Smart Devices To Help Manage Your Garden Turns out, a smart garden is completely possible, thanks to the devices we are going to take a look at today. It doesn’t stop there. Vacuuming, for example, is a job increasingly being borne by robotic vacuum cleaners. These traverse your home by their own accord, sucking up all the dust and debris in their path. You’re probably familiar with (and have lusted over) the iconic iRobot Roomba iRobot Roomba 760 Review and Giveaway Who doesn't like a clean house? Actually, let me rephrase that - who doesn't like a self-cleaning house? Imagine a world where you needn't lift a finger to sweep or mop your floor. , which has been on the market for almost 15 years now.
The appeal of these devices is undeniable. But they’re not for everyone. You should think long and hard before buying one. 15 years of development, and they can’t climb stairs. That’s not for lack of trying; getting robots to climb stairs is a pretty big challenge, and save for a couple of pre-production prototypes, nobody has been able to pull it off without making serious compromises with maneuverability and form-factor. This means that unless you own an apartment, you’re going to have a vacuum cleaner on hand for the stairs which, it could be argued, fundamentally defeats the purpose of owning a robotic vacuum cleaner. As a side note, it’s worth adding that while no Roombas have the ability to climb stairs, many of the newer models ship with sensors that allow them to clean the upper flights of houses without cascading down a flight of stairs. This is probably for the best, especially when you consider that the cheapest ones cost around $300. If you read a review of a Roomba in the technology press or an Amazon comments section, you’ll see one common complaint – robotic vacuum cleaners aren’t terribly powerful at sucking up dirt.
This is a no-brainer. They’re much smaller than normal vacuum cleaners, and rather than depending on a mains power source, they have to use (and conserve) a battery pack. Advocates of robotic vacuum cleaners argue that this isn’t a problem, since robotic vacuum cleaners are designed to run more frequently than you would ordinarily vacuum a home. While you might drag out your Dyson every three days or so, you could potentially schedule your Roomba to run multiple times a day. But I’m not terribly convinced by this. I own both a dog, and a top-of-the-line Dyson DC40 vacuum cleaner, which cost £200 (around $400 in the US) brand new. When my dog sheds fur, my vacuum struggles to capture every last strand. I have to go over the same spot again and again with a measure of forcefulness. I struggle to see how a much weaker robotic vacuum cleaner would cope. Let’s clear up one myth about robotic vacuums. They only suck up dust and debris. They won’t pick up your dirty laundry, or move that stack of books on your floor.
For them to be truly effective, you need to proactively ensure that your floor is clear. While this won’t be a barrier for some people, it certainly will for some college students I know. Robot vacuum cleaners aren’t totally hands-off. You still need to perform regular maintenance in order to keep them working properly and to prevent them from breaking. Take the Roomba, for example. In a 2013 article, CNET recommended users remove and clean the brushes and the bearings once a week, and to remove the chassis and remove any internal debris once a month. That’s a lot of work. I imagine it could be quite scary too, especially if the user isn’t mechanically inclined. It goes without saying that the average vacuum cleaner doesn’t require the same level of maintenance. Finally, let’s cut to the chase. Robotic vacuum cleaners are still extremely expensive, and are out of the price range for many people. This is strange, given that they are a mature technology that has existed on the market for over 15 years.
Doubly so when you consider that there are a plethora of Shenzhen-made knockoffs that have flooded eBay, the Amazon marketplaces, and Ali Express AliExpress Is Cheap, But Is It Safe to Shop There? Is it safe to shop with Aliexpress? Are there any security vulnerabilities you should know about? And are you more likely to be the victim of fraud or counterfeiting on Aliexpress? At the top of the market is the iRobot Roomba 980, which costs just shy of $900. In terms of cleaning performance, this generally matches other Roombas, but this has increased mobile connectivity, and drastically improved navigation. iRobot Roomba 980 Robotic Vacuum Cleaner Buy Now At Amazon The cheapest Roomba you’ll get is the 620, which costs around $300. This offers essentially the same functionality, but with some minor omissions. There’s no scheduling function, for example, and it won’t tell you when the dust bin is full and requires emptying. You have to check manually. Irobot Roomba 620 Vacuum
British household name Dyson has also entered the robotic vacuum cleaner fray with the Dyson 360 Eye. Their offering is a high-end affair, and costs more than $1,200. It also seemingly has solved the performance issues inherent with many rival robotic vacuums, but at a cost of size. It’s so big and heavy, it has to propel itself through tank tracks. This significantly enlarged size means that it struggles to get underneath furniture. Then there are the non-name brand robotic vacuum cleaners 6 Top Robot Vacuums You May Be Able To Afford These days, you can find robot vacuums for less than $200, making them great for yourself or a good gift for a techie friend.The Performance Brands MARK-8 is a great example of a device that has an enticing price, but disappointing user reviews. Performance Brands MARK-8 Vacuum Cleaning Robot for Pets and Allergies When you scrape the bottom of the barrel, you come across things like $23 O-Cedar O-Duster Robotic Floor Cleaner.