I lived in THAT much grot?!?!? (Dyson DC04)

Member Name: Highwayman

Product:	Dyson DC04
Date:	15/05/03 (527 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: effective

Disadvantages: the wand, noisy

I decided it was time for a new sucker - as you do. The old vacuum cleaner made noise and dust, but NOT a clean house.

Having browsed for a while (about 3 months - dont wanna rush these things) I decoided on a Dyson DC04i.

There were two reason for doing so:
1 It was the cheapest of the Dysons at £139
2 It has a HEPA filter.

I need a vacuum cleaner with plenty of suck as I live in an old house. Panelled walls do not for easy living make! Having heard the Dyson's reputation and spoken to various family members who own Dysons I took the plunge. Being a cheapskate I went cheap!

Hepa filters are approved by the British Allergy Foundation as a way to reduce dust mites. Basically it means that the gunk you suck out of your carpet/bed/walls stays in the vacuum cleaner rather than getting ejected up your nostrils.

Setting up

The cleaner arrived encased in cardboard which was made quick work of. Assembly is straight forward if you like pretty pictures of vacuum cleaners. Personally I thought it could do with better documentation, but things are OK as they stand. 10 minutes after arrival the cleaner was set up.

In Use

Turning the cleaner on is easy - it's a button.

Once you realise that you have to tread on the cleaner before you can do floors it's all plain sailing. The cleaner locks in an upright position, which means you clean your wrist before you suss this one out!!
Yup - it sucks ok. I filled the canister within 10 minutes, necessitating my first emtying (more on that later!) It seemed to take a hell of a lot of grey stuff out of the carpets and rugs, and cleaned the cobwebs and panelling nicely.
Rugs are difficult - especially if they are lightweight indian things!! Glue those suckers down before attempting to clean them, or you will be continually turning the cleaner off to retrieve them!
This isnt a silent whoosh of air either - I guess tornados are noi
sy things

Im not a huge fan of the "wand" however. You pull the handle out of the base unit, and the nozzles go on the TOP end of the handle, which you use in reverse (I'm not explaining this terribly well!!) When the cleaner is locked in the upright position, the air comes out the handle. I found the wand bulky in tight corners and on the stairs (also tight corners!). The system works, but it's clunky.

Emptying the cleaner is interesting. After my first attempt, I read the instructions. Where it says to wipe the bin with a damp cloth BEFORE emptying, they arent joking. I had gained a fair collection of dust (due to static) on the outside of the canister, and this got everywhere as I emtied the bin. Second go worked well!

Talking of static - don't brush the cleaner against your partner's legs as you clean, unless you want to hear language. I actually heard the static above the noise of the cleaner.

All in all?? a good buy - cant wait to get the matress on the floor to see what I can suck out of that. On second thought - maybe I dont wanna know!!

Summary: