Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Firstly, let me say that I’ve been cleaning houses since 2010 to supplement my income. I firmly believe in these three concepts: Good tools, good techniques, and good products. Additionally, I have all laminate floors in my house and two dogs and one cat that live rent-free. The black lab is like Pig Pen from Peanuts and she sheds like a beast. I bought the Dyson DC24 Multi-Floor vacuum AND the DC28 animal vacuum in 2010. What I dislike about Dyson is that they have yet to change the design of the Dyson so that the vacuum extension extends completely from the vacuum for easy maneuverability. The extension wand is short and attached to the bottom base of the Dyson. When I pull the extension wand too far, the vacuum topples over. The DC 28 cleans very, very well, but it’s HEAVY, 28 lbs to be exact. I tire quickly after pushing and lugging it around. It’s also terrible for vacuuming stairs, because of the front of the vacuum is too bulky to fit on one stair and the extension cord is too short to use up a flight of stairs. I have to prop up the vacuum on a stair and keep moving it up to use the wand, and sometimes, it falls off the stair because it’s too big of a vacuum. Lastly, both Dyson vacuums floor mode would not hug floor to get kitty litter and cat hair, so instead it would be kicked back or left on the floor. When I used the DC28, it seemed to discriminate against cats, because although it was a beast on dog hair, but the kitty litter it did pick up would overheat the motor, which left me with out a vacuum in mid-cleaning. In 2014, I was sucked into an info-mercial about the Shark Rocket HV300W. It sounded great—lightweight, easy maneuverability, and they threw in a steam mop. The hook-line-and-sinker was the lifetime warranty. After reading the reviews on the Rocket, I ordered it. It shipped fast, and the lightweight of the vacuum and the ability to rotate and maneuver around furniture was a breeze. My Dyson vacuums began collecting dust. I splurged and got the Under Appliance Want that cleans under stoves, but I don’t really use it. I do, however, use all of the other attachments that come with it and I like the Motorized Hand Tool, which was an extra cost for me, but worth it because it deeps cleans my couch very well. With all of that being said, there were design flaws. Since it’s an upright “stick” vacuum, when I propped it up against the wall to unplug it and move to another area of the house, it would slide and fall. This caused the plastic casing that housed the metal pin on the dust cover to break, and the metal pin slid out. So, I had to bungee cord the dust cover together. I contacted the company, and they sent me a free shipping label via email, and my replacement vacuum came to me before I shipped them the broken unit. They sent me the blue Rocket HV300. Same design, so after a few months, the same thing happened. It slipped from the wall and the plastic casing broke again. The pin stayed in, so I duct taped it until I was able to call the company. Also, the belt broke, which was odd, since I only had it a few months, but then again, I live in the desert (dry, dry, dry) and I use it to clean houses regularly. Again, the company sent me a newer version and I returned the broken unit to them. Now, what’s different from Dyson and Shark is Shark saw the design flaw and CHANGED the unit. The dust cover is protected with thick plastic and they’ve added rubber padding to the back of the unit so it can stay propped up against a wall without slipping. I was pleased to see this change! Also, they created a separate attachment for floor cleaning, which is an attachment that hugs the floor like no other vacuum, and has a back microfiber pad to pick up any hair or debris it misses. I vacuumed my laminate floors and then swept to see what was left, and I only swept up two strands dog hairs. The floor was spotless of dirt and debris. This means no more sweeping, bending over to scoop it into the dust pan, dump it, and come back to another area to sweep. That gets tiring fast, and I’m losing the energy and speed at my age to do that. Plus, you can’t beat a vacuum as light at 8 lbs! I can carry it in one hand and my caddy of supplies and mop in the other. I failed to mention that you can detach the long extension that connects the motor to the bottom vacuum brush detachment and attach short attachments to the upper motor end. This makes it easy-breezy-lemon-squeezy for me to vacuum my couches or stairs. Hooray! The only con, and it’s very minor, is when I open the dust canister, it’s a little messy. It doesn’t open all the way like the other two models. The fix for that is to ensure it’s completely over the garbage can before you open it, so no debris falls on the floor, countering your cleaning efforts. So, Dyson makes great vacuums, no doubt, and DC28 really, really pulls dirt out of my bedroom carpet, but I don’t use it regularly. I use the Shark Rocket due to its portability and maneuverability, and the Dyson gets used for a spring cleaning. I would highly recommend the Shark Rocket Deluxe Pro if you have hard floors, carpet, pets, if you clean houses, if you are thinking of a wedding gift idea, or if want to give an elderly person a light, easy cleaning tool. I really just recommend it over all. And how can you possibly go wrong with the lifetime warranty?