DC14
by Wyatt
(Toronto)
I was sucked in by the commercial and the guy selling it - very convincing.
The only prize this vacuum cleaner deserves is a science fiction award. The Dyson products looks really cool but at the end of the day it's just another vacuum cleaner.
It's heavy and cumbersome. It will clean your carpets since that?'s what it's supposed to do, but don't try it on the steps. The hose is almost 15 feet long but if you walk 5 feet away from the machine it will fall over and put a dent in your floor or break some precious heirloom sitting on a table nearby.
So with the vacuum lying sideways on the floor, the very stiff hose will not reach the top of a normal staircase. Even then the wand section is very large and awkward to manipulate making it difficult to get close to your work area.
Staircases in this case are a two man/women job - one to hold the main unit from thrashing all over the place and the other to do the vacuuming.
Be careful when you put the wand back in the machines holster. I began to walk down the steps with this heavy monster and the wand/handle came out and the vacuum holster & fell all the way down the stairs.
Did I say this machine is dangerous? It will break and dent things around your house. Make sure the handle snaps in. Practice a few curl repetitions on this heavy beast before moving down a stair case. The handle may sound like it snapped in but don't trust it.
Moving on, it doesn't have a bag. So what? So you'll never lose suction and all the dirt goes into a clear canister for everyone to see how filthy your house is. Have you ever had to empty the canister? What a mess. Make sure you're wearing a mask and gloves when you clean this sucker or take it outside (during good weather) because all those dust mites come floating out all over the place when you try and empty it.
That's only the first part. Now you have to clean the whole contraption, using up about a half an hour of your precious time. Make sure you have the manual close by so you can figure out how to put it back together again.
You don't just clean the canister; you also have to disassemble the turbo cyclonic unit and the sponge filter. After all this, just let all the pieces drip-dry near a drain in your basement. The next day when everything is dry, just mop up the leftover water stains on your floor, get your manual out - put it all back together again and you're ready to go!
What could be simpler?
Remember this is not a shop-vac so don't try sucking up large pieces it will just get stuck. The air tubes are very narrow.
Conclusion:
Pros: Looks technically interesting. Nice piece of art
Cons: Expensive. No better then any other vacuum cleaner. It's heavy and a bag would have been better. Strictly for upright cleaning only. Hose and attachments are poorly designed.