A canister vacuum cleaner is one of the two most common types of vacuums, the other being the upright. Canisters have a unique design in that the motor and filters reside in a small, compact housing that has the suction hose attached to it. There are wheels underneath the main body, allowing you to easily pull and maneuver it around furniture in your home.
They generally come with a variety of attachments for cleaning just about anything you need and they really shine on hard floors. A canister can focus a lot of suction ability into the attached brush without having the excess weight of the machine pushing it down into the floor. This makes it a great choice for those delicate hard floors that you don’t want to damage with spinning brushes. The hose is typically flexible enough to extend out many feet so you can reach curtains, stairs, and high corners.
They Can Handle Carpets
While the lightweight machines of years past were really only good on smooth floors like tile and linoleum, the full sized canisters today can clean carpeting just as good as comparable uprights. A company like Miele USA has their Complete PowerLine™ lineup with their powered Electrobrush that attaches to the hose. It is almost like attaching a separate upright vacuum right with its’ own powered, spinning brushes. This gives it the flexibility of vacuuming up dirt from just about any surface.
HEPA Filtration Is Still A Necessity
The filters that come on vacuum cleaners have drastically improved over the years. A HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filter is designed to push the airflow through a tiny mesh screen that can trap microscopic organisms like dust mites, mold spores, tobacco smoke, and pet dander. Removing these allergens is key to improving the quality of the indoor air in your home. This is especially important if you are using it on any carpets as these tiny irritants can hide deep down into the fibers. Once they are sucked up into the machine you need to have the right sealed filtration system to trap them. Most of the best cansiter vacuums are rated to remove allergens as small as 0.3 microns in size.
The Right Attachments Are Crucial
A canister cleaner is known for versatility and the onboard attachment selection is a big key to this. At a minimum you would want to have one or more crevice tools, at least one dusting brush, and an extension wand for reaching difficult spaces. You will also need to have a larger floor tool to provide enough coverage when using it on the floor. For carpeting you will want to have one with a spinning brushroll, preferably with its’ own power supply and hand controls. This will make it easy to adjust power and turn the brushes off with the simple push of a button. This is a great time saver when transitioning between rooms. Foot controls also help as you won’t have to bend down to adjust the suction or floor settings.
Lightweight And Maneuverable
The design of the machine is such that you are pulling it behind you as you clean various rooms around your house. You definitely want a lighter weight vacuum with smooth rolling wheels, designed to easily roll over thicker carpets just as easily as hardwood floors. Ultimately your desire is to spend time vacuuming and cleaning the surfaces around your home without even thinking about how heavy the machine is or how difficult it is to move around. The better brands do just that by keeping their models light without losing suction power.
Highest Quality That Matches Your Budget
The best brands will have a solid warranty that lasts for more than a year, covering parts and labor, in the rare case that something goes wrong with it. And a good way to judge the overall quality of a vacuum you are considering is to look over some online consumer reviews. While it is true that most people will only post a review when they have a bad experience, you will find some positive ones as well. By reading the pros and cons you will get the big picture view of how it will hold up to many years of use. When you are investing in a high quality cleaner you want one that will give you a lot of trouble free use.
Our Top Rated Bagged Canisters
The Miele C3 Complete is our top rated canister vacuum cleaner, providing tremendous cleaning ability for the cost of purchase. It all starts with 1200 watts of suction power supplied by their Vortex motor with fully sealed flow of air. This very tight seal of Miele vacuums keeps the airflow constant with no internal disturbance so the dirt has virtually no place to settle inside. It just ends up going straight into the collection bag. Other highlights of this lineup includes:
- HyClean™ dustbag, motor protection filter, and exhaust filter combine to remove more than 99.9% of fine dust particles from the air
- Hand controls let you dial suction up or down with the touch of a finger
- Three useful attachments: upholstery nozzle, crevice nozzle, and dusting brush with soft bristles
- Telescoping wand has a unique locking system that keeps it firmly attached during use
- Low noise motor design, combined with ample insulation keep the sound down during peak operation
There is much more to this high-end machine. To read more and check current pricing, click here to visit our recommended online supplier.
The SEBO AIRBELT D series is our other top rated model, or actually models as the lineup consists of 3 very similar vacuums. The standard D is built for mainly hard floors and rugs as it doesn’t come with their electric powered head but instead has their Kombi attachment with soft bristles. The D4 and D4 Premium are the ones you would want should you have mainly carpets as they come standard with their ET head, ET-1 (12 inches wide) or ET-2 (15 inches wide). Other features include:
- Foam AIRBELT bumper provides protection to the machine and your home from any damage during use
- Large capacity 1.5 gallon dust bag holds a lot of dirt which saves time and money as you won’t need as many replacement bags
- Full sized attachments include a parquet floor tool and the other usual tools for any ‘above the floor’ items you encounter
- Amazing 52 foot radius with a 40 foot retractable electric cord lets you reach multiple rooms without changing outlets
- 5 or 7 year warranty keeps you covered should anything break
This canister lineup is certainly one of the highest quality you will find. Click here to learn more about them and check current online specials.
The Best Bagless Model
Even though Dyson is known for building one of the best upright vacuum lineups they also have one of the top canister offerings. Their Cinetic Big Ball is another highly rated unit that has quite a few innovative features. The biggest difference between this Dyson and canisters from other brands is their Cinetic technology which produces a tremendous amount of suction, with the added benefit of never having to wash or replace the filters…for the life of the machine! 36 specially designed tips work together inside to oscillate at up to 5000 Hz, keeping the dust and other debris from settling on anything inside. Other highlights include:
- Body rides on the large Ball without the use of wheels, providing unmatched maneuverability around furniture items in your house
- Hygienic one touch empty system means your hands won’t be touching the dirt when it is emptied into the garbage
- Turbine floor tool spins the brushes to pull embedded filth out of your carpets
- Carbon fiber filaments on the brush bar attract fine dust from hard floors before it is blown away
- Rotating handle on the extension wand makes it simple to reach any place at or above floor level
- 2 to 5 year warranty covers you should something go wrong with this Dyson
For more information including current prices and consumer reviews, click here to go to our favorite ecommerce store.
A Great Choice For Mostly Smooth Floors
The Electrolux Silent Performer is one of the best choices for no frills multi surface cleaning at a very affordable price. While it does a decent job on carpets, it really shines on area rugs and hard floors like tile and laminate. The Silence Pro system comprises the motor and sound-softening cleaning nozzle, both working together to keep noise very low. So low in fact that you will hardly know when you are using it. Here are some of the other main features:
- Control switch lets you dial the suction down for bare flooring and back up for carpeting
- HEPA filter traps 99.97% of all airborne pollutants 0.3 micron or larger to keep the environment in your home healthier
- Onboard attachments include a 3-in-1 crevice tool, dusting brush, and furniture nozzle
- Lightweight at just under 11 pounds makes it easy to carry up and down stairs
Click here to read more about it at our recommended internet supplier.