The Dyson DC04

Ten year on and still going strong
Believe it or not I got to the grand old age of 39 before I bought a house, or a vacuum cleaner. Before buying my first house, I lived in rented flats and they all had vacuum cleaners in them, and although they were never very good, I never had the ready money to buy one.
Then when I got my first house I needed to get a vacuum cleaner. The Dyson DC04 was on sale, and I was so impressed by the demonstration that I fell for it straight away. Now its tens year later, and I've never regretted it.

It gets the job done
Dyson's are expensive there is no getting away from that. However, they get the job done. Whether they are really worth the extra expense is a hard question for me to answer. First, because the various vacuum cleaners I've used previously in my rental accommodation were all very old, very worn and had been subjected to all sorts of abuse by previous tenants. Second, it all depends on what premium you put on getting every tiny speck of dirt sucked away.

It lasts and lasts and lasts
What I can say about the Dyson is that it really has passed the test of time. I have two active teenagers, two long haired dogs and a cat. The teenagers track dirt in, the dogs do too and the shed like crazy. The cat is a little more sedate than the teenagers and shed a lot less fur than the dogs. So the Dyson has seen a lot of use over the last 10 years. The DC04 has one removable filter that is supposed to be washed once every 6 months, but I've been very lax about doing that. Even so it was 5 years before I noticed any problems with the DC04. At that point I replaced the belt for a few pounds and the Dyson bounced back to its previous high level of performance. Since then I've replaced the belt again, just a few weeks again after I noticed the Dyson wasn't doing its usual good job and once again its back up to peek performance.

What I like about the Dyson DC04
Apart from the fact that it deals well with any vacuuming job I throw at it, from normal carpet vacuuming, to getting the cat hairs off the sofa, to getting dog hairs off clothes. I love the overall user friendly nature of the Dyson DC04. Dysons are typically very colourful. Any parts of the DC04 that the user can deal with are clearly marked in green, making it easy to see where I should check if any blockages arise.

The Turbo Head
The last time I replaced the belt I also got the Turbo Head attachment. It was a bit pricy at £20, but I have to say well worth it. It really work in those awkward places for picking up dog hair.

Using the attachments on the stairs
Unlike other users I don't find the attachment hard to use. They fit easily onto the end of the handle/wand and work well for me on the stairs.

Emptying the Dyson
I've heard people complain that emptying the Dyson is a messy job, but I haven't found it so. I do take it out to the wheelie bin and empty it directly into that, so maybe if I was emptying it in the house I'd feel differently

Overall Impression After 10 Years
After 10 years of consistent use my Dyson DC04 is still going strong. I would definitely recommend it to anyone getting a new vacuum cleaner. It works well and lasts a long time. If my Dyson ever broke beyond repair I'd definitely get another one.