Vacuum Cleaners Discussions

Hello all!

As you can tell I am new to the forum.. I came across the site while doing a search for an Oreck XL to a Simplicity freedom comparison (oddly it took me to the Oreck/Dyson flame posts from January). I have worked in the hotel industry for a while, and have been around the Orecks and other light-weight hoovers/sanitaires. I have always been a gadget guy, and vacuums are gadgets for the home. Right now, I have a Simplicity 6 series, a Filter Queen princess with power head and a Kirby G3. I plan on getting another Simplicity or Riccar for my self, and am trying to figure out something for my mother.

The other day she told me that she was having a hard time lifting the Simplicty. She has been having back problems for a while now, but this year they managed to get worse. She also uses the Kirby, but after I brought her the Simplicity, she doesn't haul it up a flight of stairs any more. The simplicity was the upstairs vacuum and the Kirby remains the high traffic cleaner for the lower level. I got to thinking, and I realized that the hotel I am at was wanting to get rid of their Oreck XL2000RHB. The housekeepers don't like it because it is loud, and I agree, it is a very noisy machine. I disassembled it, and found that someone decided to clean up the plaster/paint when the lobby was remodeled... I cleaned everything out and brought it home to my mom. I got to looking, and was hoping I can get some pointers to steer her in the right direction. As of right now, We are going to get an Oreck, either the commercial one from the hotel or a _NEW_ one from a home center if I can indeed find one for 150 bucks.

What I am wanting to know is are the non commercial ones quieter? Also, do they make a stiffer brush roll for the Oreck? I called one of the Oreck Showrooms and they said they have a basic XL2000 stick handle for 199... I am wondering if that would be a better choice than my commercial one. The only issue is the 'D' or helping hand handle is something I am _not_ willing to compromise on. Does anyone have any idea how Oreck deadens the sound? I am wondering if I could stick a sheet of dynomat in the housing to quite this thing down. My 6 series sounds like a whisper compared to this Red Monster.

Now, down the road (before the end of the year) I am going to buy a Simplicity freedom. I am thinking the 3500, non commercial version. I have always liked commercial vacs because of the longer cords, but I take a hit in the warranty. I also know that the commercial has more aluminum and the consumer has more steel.. Is the commercial really that much lighter? What do you guys think? I know the Simplicity has a stronger motor and stiffer bristles, but does it do any better on carpets, and how does it handle throw rugs? The simplicity will be mom's house warming gift when she moves again. The Oreck will stay with me, I have a few places I can use it...

Oh, and the other simplicity that I am thinking of buying my self is the Synergy. I fell in love with it when I first saw it on the internet, and the dealer I dealt with ordered one just for me to demo in the store, but I decided to go with the cheaper 6 series at that time. He said he was glad he ordered it because he hadn't had any and wanted to play with it. He sold that one and had three ordered for a few other customers before we left the store that day.

Hi,

The new top-of-the-line is the Platinum which is being advertised in my area for the last few weeks. 

http://www.tryoreck.com/

http://www.oreck.com/oreck-xl-upright/index.cfm

Venson

Hello Venson:

I suspect the Platinum has the same motor as the Titanium did.  But I will verify.  I noticed the price has increased to $799 for the MSRP.  On a comforting note, with the ORECK warranty now set at 10 years [still the highest in the industry for vacuums] I won't need to come back here in 20 years to report on the result of the Titanium's motor longevity!  

Carmine D.

HARDSELL wrote:

I have to disagree.  While I would not recommend the ORECK Titanium and now Platinum to everyone, with the 21 year warranty, the vacuum averages out to be a $35 per year vacuum cleaner.  With 10 years for a warranty, it comes to $79.  Both IMHO are better financial investments for a vacuum cleaner than any of the toxic bank assets and NYSE deflated stocks right now! 

I suspect with all the asset values of the USA buinesses tanking over the last week, it's only natural for ORECK to reevaluate its position too and adjust to the changing times.  Reducing the warranty period [asset] from 21 to 10 years is on par for the current economic course!   As Albert S. Einstein would say:  It's the theory of relativity at work in the market place.  DIB for your benefit, so you don't need to ask, that's science not hyperbole.

Carmine D.

CarmineD wrote:

Thanks Carmine.  From the gist of the video, plus the addition of the two-speed switch, I assumed a step up in power had made.   By the way, ten years may not tell the whole story.  Stick around and check out Oreck in another twenty years -- just ot be sure.

Best,

Venson

CarmineD wrote:

Other than the housing what elwe is covered for 10 years.  Seems as if the warranty is no better than any other.  Try to convince a warranty center that a motor fails after 19 years due to a defect. 

Only 1 year on roller brush.  That is fummy, unless they screw you after 1 year.

CarmineD wrote:

Stocks bounce back.  The value of a used Oreck will always decline.

HARDSELL wrote:

HS:

With a 30 day free home no obligation trial, ORECK is not a rip off. 

Sure, retailers take back vacuums with their credit/refund policies.  Have you tried lately?  Customers have to go through hoops and loops to meet the stores' refund and return policies, especially on vacuums.  Some won't and don't.  That is the real rip off and impugns buyers' confidence.  Dealing directly with ORECK, the maker and manufacturer of the USA made product, with no questions asked for returns and credits, builds buyers' confidence in its products. 

Stocks bounce back?  Really?  The stock value declines of the Great Depression from 1929 until 1932 [in reality until 1939 when FDR declared war on Germany and the 10 million hardcore unemployed men were conscripted into the military services] didn't return to their pre-depression values until the mid to late 1950's.  Over 25 years in most cases.  Yes, in the long run stocks bounce back.  But in the long run, everyone dies. 

Stocks don't come with a 10 year warranty.  ORECK-s do!   

Carmine D.

HARDSELL wrote:

My ORECK-s brush roll is over one year old [seventeen months exactly] and still looks and works like brand new.  I vacuum every day with the ORECK: all my rugs and floors.  Weekly, I even ORECK my backyard concrete patio, cement garage floor, and the cement walkway leading up to the front door of my home.  Even the apron leading to the garage door!  Leaves, pebbles, sand, dead insects. ORECK vacuums it up. 

Why?  The ORECK brush roll meets and exceeds industry standards.  One high priced vacuum maker that has been trying for over 26 years still hasn't gotten it right.  Is that funny, sad, or a rip off for a $400 plus vacuum?  Hope you're not waiting for the company to bounce back.  It has been a long time coming.

Carmine D.

Venson wrote:

Hello Venson:

That's an offer I can't and won't refuse!  20 years I'll be back to report.

Carmine D.

HARDSELL wrote:

HS:

That's a big deal for ORECK and and all vacuums because it builds product confidence among buyers.  Why?  Plastic built vacuums are the Achilles' heel of the USA vacuum industry and the reason for disposable vacuums.  Not many vacuum brands, save ORECK, warranty their housings for 10 years.  Even vacuums costing as much if not more than ORECK-s Classic XL for $299.  Here's the reason!  ORECK-s always bounce back despite their misuse and abuse.  For over 45 years now both in US households and the US hotel industry.  So, the ORECK housings have to be covered by the warranty!

Here's the ORECK warranty excerpt that applies:

"The Oreck XL^® Classic Vacuum comes with a 3-year, worry-free motor warranty and a full 10-year housing warranty. Oreck will repair or replace, free of charge, to the original purchaser, any part which is found to be defective in material or workmanship within three years of the date of purchase; ten years on housing. This limited warranty applies to normal domestic use. Oreck's limited warranty is valid only if you retain proof of purchase from Oreck or an Oreck Authorized Retail Dealer for this product. "

Carmine D.