Kirby - Avalir 2

Kirby Avalir 2, great vaccum, well built and performance very well.

100% find a used Kirby or bagged vacuum with push-pull assist. Always test used. You're gonna save yourself a huge chunk of money buying used. Contrary too what people say on this reddit, bagged uprights that let you pull the brushroll out, for hard floors are the best thing ever. I've never been a canister vacuum fan. I love my used Kirby avalir 2. Whole kit, used with 20 extra bags for 50 US dollars. Two dogs here. A corgi and a great Dane. Their hair length, fineness, and density are polar opposites. The Kirby gets every single hair fiber in one push and pull, per path. Disclaimer I am not biased. I've been fixing, wiring and rebuilding vacuums of all kinds since I was 6 years old. Just knew how to do it all since birth I guess. Used and tested every vacuum on the market starting in 2015, when I started my appliance business and cleaning business. Too this day I can NOT find any model that compares too Kirbys. 

Kirby vacuums are very durable and they last forever. Kirbys are good at cleaning carpets but not as good at cleaning hard floors. But they're very heavy and switching between tools is extra steps. If you really want a Kirby vacuum you can buy a great condition used Kirby Avalir 2 with all the tools for $200-300. And you can buy good condition older Kirby Legend II to Avalir models with all the tools for $50-100. People usually get tired of how heavy they are and the extra steps required to use the regular hose and tools. Kirby does not have a lifetime replacement or lifetime warranty that covers defects. Kirby has a 3 Year Warranty on new vacuums and Lifetime Rebuild Program which only means that no matter the age of the Kirby you can send it back and PAY Kirby to rebuild your vacuum. I think you should look for a used Kirby Avalir or Avalir 2 for $100-200 and see if you like Kirbys. If you want a modern vacuum that is lighter and quieter but very durable I would look at the Sebo Felix $799. Sebos come with 10 yr motor/10 yr parts/7 yr labor warranty from authorized dealers. If you have all or mostly hard floors a canister vacuum would be much better.

Love Kirbys, I just bought another one, but they are outclassed by modern vacuums. Kirbys are still good for carpets and they are a strong value when you buy a used one under $100, but they are heavy, inconvenient to use the hose and tools. And the brand new prices are insane. It's not that Kirbys aren't as good as they once were, the problem is they're almost the same as they've been for the past 40 years and modern bagged vacuums have gotten better and they're lighter. I still recommend used Kirbys if you have lots of carpet and a budget under $100.

I don't recommend any of the vacuums listed. The bagless Bissell vacuums filter poorly and don't last very long. The Eureka 3670M does not have a powerhead for carpets and the Intercleaner vacuums are cheap and don't deep clean carpets. I do recommend the Bissell PowerForce Bagged 1739 $58. It's a good vacuum for carpets, and you can get use Style 7 Hepa bags from Clean Obsessed and other brands to make the filtration good. Downsides are a short cord and short hose but that's par for vacuums under $100. I do recommend the Vacmaster UB0302E, this is a cheaper version of the Kenmore Intuition and it sells for $99-125. So you check it's current price. It's a better all-around vacuum because it has brushroll shutoff for hard floors. I know you didn't ask for that but it makes it more flexible if your flooring changes. If you've ever wanted a Kirby vacuum you can usually find good condition used Kirbys for $50-100. They are heavy but they last forever and they're great at cleaning carpets. Thoughts?

You're not doing anything wrong with your Sebo it's an old sales trick. The vacuum that goes last will always pick up some additional dirt. If the Kirby went first and you put those demonstration pads on your Sebo it would be picking up dirt left behind by the Kirby. Kirby and Rainbow and other door-to-door salesmen always use this trick. Kirbys do have high agitation and high airflow but very low suction power. Most people vacuum too fast to pick up everything. If you want to get the best clean vacuum much slower, do a couple passes, then change direction in the room and do it again. I don't like to vacuum super duper slow so I'd rather do more passes and different directions. But if I'm vacuuming before carpet shampooing I'll vacuum very slowly and thoroughly. Lastly if you want a Kirby you can buy a good condition used Kirby for $100 or less. They last forever but they're heavy and people sell them in a few years.

Kirbys have a direct fan design where the air passes through the fan before reaching the bag. This design moves a lot of air volume cfm but it doesn’t lift heavy particles because it has low suction in inches of water lift. So it’s really good at cleaning carpets but if you use the hose to pick up heavy debris like sand it isn’t as strong as a clean air fan design. Kirby’s are still very good for cleaning carpets but not as good at cleaning bare floors.

What specific vacuum model did you buy? Shag carpets are harder to clean because the long shags(?) or tassels can jam up the brushroll. You need a vacuum with a high range of carpet height adjustment. The recommendation of a used Kirby is actually quite a good one. Good condition used Kirbys can be easily found from $50-100. They're heavy but they last forever. They have a huge range of height adjustment and they were vacuuming shag carpets when shag was invented. Other old school direct air or dirty air vacuums with carpet height adjustment will also work like the Eureka F&G uprights, Hoover Convertible, and Sanitaire Tradition to name a few. If you like used vintage vacuums this is a good excuse to check them out. The Kirby and Sanitaire are still sold brand new. Of these vacuums Kirbys have the longest lasting belts, each belt should last 4-6 months each and they're really cheap to replace like $2 a piece. The Eureka, Hoover, and Sanitaire belts need to be replaced more often but they're even cheaper around $1 each.

The Soniclean Soft Carpet Upright is an interesting vacuum. It's like a light weight Oreck specifically made for plush soft carpets. But it has no hose or tools so keep that in mind. If you want a single purpose easy to use vacuum for plush carpets it's a good choice. It doesn't have carpet height adjustment because it's already made for taller plush carpets. Downsides are it's mostly just sold online and warranty coverage is spotty. I like vintage stuff so I would get a used Kirby for $100. Kirbys have a huge range of height adjustment and an optional delicate carpet brushroll. Kirbys are heavy but they last forever. At first it can be fun to use all the different attachments but after a while it will get tedious to take the powerhead off everytime you want to use the hose. It's heavy so carrying up/down stairs is a pain but the actual self-propelled drive system makes it easy to push and pull on carpets. If you want one vacuum to clean everything in your house and last for 15-20 years check out the Sebo K3 and Sebo Felix. They're sold at local vacuum stores so you can try it before you buy it. Ask your carpet installers to leave you all the carpet remnants. You can use the pieces for spot repairs if you ever need it. Then you can take a piece of your actual carpet to a vacuum store and try their vacuums on your specific carpet.

Depends on the needs. I’ve owned many premium vacs. Kirby, Rainbow, Hyla, Riccar, Sebo, Miele, and several cheaper vacs like Dyson, Shark, Kenmore, etc. This includes Riccar Tandem Air upright, Kirby Avalir, Rainbow E2 & SRX, Hyla N and EST Defender, Miele C3, Miele CX1 Blizzard, Sebo E3 and D4 Premium canisters. Canister - Miele Complete C3 Brilliant - easiest canister to use - best-filtering - most suction and airflow out of all canisters I’ve used - best-cleaning power nozzles - comes with my favorite hard floor tool - don’t have to bend over to do things with it Upright - Kirby Avalir - best-cleaning vac for carpet that I have used/ owned - highest airflow available (higher airflow = better carpet cleaning) - most aggressive power nozzle with firm brush roll - this is my heavy-hitter for maximum dirt removal from carpet - can do a ton of other things but carpet is where they shine - I do feel it does a better job cleaning than my Riccar Tandem Air did on our carpet. Water-based Filtration Vac - Rainbow E2 - when paired with the SRX PN3 v1 power nozzle, it cleans carpet very well. - like the Miele C3, it is H13-rated HEPA - parts availability is awesome - super easy to service - The Hyla is a little easier to use and pull around but it doesn’t have as much suction as the Rainbow E2.

I have “favorite” vacuums in each category of vac and for different applications. However, my absolute favorite is my Miele C3 Brilliant, and I use it in tandem with my super high capacity air purifiers to stay ahead of the dust, germs, fur, pollen, etc. Very bad allergies over here. FOR DEEP-CLEANING WALL-WALL CARPET: Kirby Avalir w/ firm brush roll, new belt and bag. It’s a beast. This is my pic for cleaning carpet before extracting. BAGGED UPRIGHT: Sebo X4 Boost BAGLESS UPRIGHT: Dyson Slim Ball Animal BAGGED CANISTER: Miele C3 Brilliant w/ SEB228 power nozzle BAGLESS CANISTER: Rainbow E2 Black w/ PN3 v1 power nozzle CORDLESS STICK: Dyson V15 Detect AREA RUGS: Miele C3 with SEB236 power nozzle HARD FLOORS: Miele C3 with premium parquet twister floor head AUTO DETAILING / ATTACHMENT USE: Miele C3; or the Rainbow E2 Black & RainbowMate EXTRACTOR: Bissell BigGreen Commercial BG10 EXTRACTOR HIGH pH SOLUTION: Hoover Professional 7X Concentrate (amazing!) SHAMPOOER - ENCAPSULATION “DRY” FOAM: Kirby with Kirby shampoo and high traffic pre-spray STAIN REMOVER: Kirby Spot Remover Plus Oxy - but the Unbelievable Stain Remover is identical and is the same solution but without the Kirby label - and without the Kirby price. I scrub stains with a drill and drill brush attachment. ENCAPSULATION POWDER: Sebo DUO-P with the Sebo DUO-P CRB machine. It really does a fabulous job on high traffic areas and for absorbing foot traffic greases and oily soils. LOW pH RINSE FOR EXTRACTION CARPET CLEANING: ProChem All-Fiber Rinse HOT WATER EXTRACTOR + STEAMER + VACUUM (all-in-one unit): Desiderio All-in-One (the big one) MOP: O-Cedar Flat Rinse Mop with 2 bucket system; Kirby mop system; Hyla mop-squeegee system; Swiffer PowerMop with washable microfiber pad. MOP SOLUTION: Odoban LVP + ZEP No-Rinse Floor Disinfectant. We have LVP flooring so we’re pretty limited with what we can use. I love to mop with Clorox, though, when able. CLEANING SPRAYS: Clorox Germicidal Bleach - Healthcare Pro Line Clorox Cleanup + Bleach SprayWay Foam Glass Cleaner Pledge Orange Furniture Polish MicroBan Cleaner & Disinfectant Trigger Spray Bottle AIR PURIFIER(S): BlueAir HealthProtect 7700 series BlueAir Pure Max MedifyAir MA-112 Pro (among the highest capacity air cleaners available)

For carpet, it’s hands down the best. It has the most of everything a vac needs to super clean carpet. Airflow, agitation, etc. 132 - 150 CFM is monstrously high, and that is measured where the carpet intake is. On other vacs, the airflow is about 1/4 - 1/3 of that at the carpet intake, and they don’t agitate as well. I keep a Kirby around for deep-cleaning carpet but daily a Miele C3. The Miele C3 with the SEB 228 nozzle is impressive on carpet, but it still isn’t like monstrously powerful.

I see the appeal of a stick. I have a V15. It’s about 3 yrs old. It’s primary role is for in-between cleans, small messes. Touch-ups. But, if I am going to vac our main living areas or the entire house, I can get the job done a lot faster with my Miele. If I am going to deep clean the carpet, I don’t pre-vac with my V15. I use my Kirby. If I am going to detail a vehicle, Miele. If I am going to use attachments for deep cleaning, Miele.

Kenmore canisters for carpet are very good. For hard floors, they’re awful. Obsolete. Deal breakers. Etc. Why not buy a refurbished Miele or Sebo, or if you have wall to wall carpet in most of your home and rarely use attachments, definitely go for a Kirby, or a Rainbow if you have a mix. Goodvac dot com for Kirby parts, Rainvac dot com for Rainbow parts. Miele parts and Sebo parts are easily accessible. Hyla parts are not, in contrast, but they too last a long time. I think they’re easier to use than the Rainbow but they don’t clean carpet very well at all. Kirby is about the best you can get for carpet.

My first choice is Kirby. I don't understand others' posts implying they aren't reliable. Mine is 40 years old and probably has another 60 years left. Plastic crap, Dyson and Shark, is just that. Crap. Panasonic commercial vacuums have been a standard for many years.

As well, a Kirby is probably the best carpet cleaning Vacuum made. It’s just antiquated.

I love kirby vacuums. You can get a used one for a steal.

Used Kirby

Bought my Kirby in 1987....still use it today. Well, not today.

used kirby for pet hair