Electrolux Vitesse Pet Lover 1800W 2.5L Upright Vacuum Cleaner

I'm not quite sure what it is about hoovers in our house, but we seem to be buying a new one every couple of years, having done away with the previous one in some explosive fashion. I'm not exaggerating here, my husband actually did manage to explode one of our vacuum cleaners! One day you are happily hoovering away and then there is a bang and a horrible smell like rubber burning...Another one bites the dust!

So a few months ago,in March, we decided to pop to Currys for our next victim... Seriously, I would love a vacuum cleaner that would last longer than 2 years! We were lucky because as we arrived instore, the staff had just received a delivery of new vacuum cleaners, so we had the pick of the lot. My hubby wanted a "Henry", but I wasn't keen on a bagged hoover. I wanted a bagless upright, because we are pretty "heavy duty" when it comes to mess. I have 3 kids who love eating crumby foods on the carpet, as well as a cat that is moulting at the moment. I have long blonde hair, which gets everywhere (am I going bald?), and tends to clog up normal vacuum cleaners.

Buying a new cleaner

After much deliberation, we decided our best option was the Electrolux Pet Lover vacuum cleaner. Firstly, it was relatively cheap, around £79. This was ideal because I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a cleaner considering our poor track record with them. I liked the shape of the cleaner, which was similar to my last cleaner, which was a Morphy Richards. This meant could get straight to work with the cleaning, because there was nothing unfamiliar or fiddly about the machine. It was a nice simple design. Also, because it was designed for pet owners, I knew it would make short work of all the hairs and bits in the carpet.

Once we got the box home, we found that the cleaner came in several parts, with instructions how to put it together. This was really easy. Even I could do it, and I have no clue when it comes to DIY! Putting it together also helps you appreciate how it all works.

The manual that comes with the cleaner is great, because it tells you everything you need to know about day to day use, such as emptying the bag, cleaning the filter and repairing the belt.

Initial experiences

At first, I found the cleaner a dream to use, with variable settings for different depths of carpet. As you clean, the machine seems to pull itself (and you) accross the floor, so you can feel the suction power as it gets the carpet really clean and bit-free. There is a window on the base of the cleaner which enables you to see that the belt is turning properly, and for me, this is really useful and saves turning the whole cleaner over to check the belt.

The extension hose is easy to use and has different brush fittings for cleaning different surfaces. It also comes with a Turbo Nozzle with a "Riser Visor". This is a special cleaning brush nozzle which enables you to clean vertically or horizontally, but personally, I find it awkward to work with, and ironically, the brush does not spin when clogged up with hair! This seems silly for a cleaner that is supposed to be designed to hoover up hair.

Emptying the cleaner is easy, with a one touch system that empties the bin with the touch of a button. the cleaner is so effective that the bin fills up very quickly, and I usually need to empty it every 10 days or so. More fiddly is the filter. It is a concertina type reuseable filter, which is, firstly, really trick to get at due to a stiff release mechanism, and secondly, tricky to clean, as there is no brush supplied to get between the gaps. you really need to clean the filter after each use to keep it working at optimum efficiency, but that is not really practical. I tend to only clean mine when it is impeding the performance of the cleaner. This is a rather messy job, as once I have magaged to unlock the filter, it is a messy job of knocking all the clogged up dust into the bin, usually with the aid of a fork or spoon (making sure I wash it afterwards!). The filter is washable, but as you can imagine, this is an even messier task, and one I am putting off doing!

The cleaner comes with a generous 7.3m cord. This is enough for me to clean all the bedrooms in my house without unplugging the hoover and changing plugs. The only bugbear about this is having to spend ages winding it round and round after each use.

8 months in.....

I have now owned this vacumm cleaner for 8 months, and my initial enthusiasm about its performance has waned. The cord has become twisted and awkward to wrap around the hooks after use, but the worst problem is the horrible burning rubber smell every time I use this cleaner! It is so bad that I have to spray air freshener in the room every time I use it! Despite my constant efforts to keep the filter clean and unclogged, I feel like I am fighting a battle I will never win. The rollers underneath the cleaner get very clogged and I am seriously thinking of shaving my head! My hubby says that the burning smell is the smell of my hair burning the motor. He's just jealous, because he has none! Seriously, As this is a hoover designed to clean up animal hair, it should perform a lot better than this. When I do want to use the extension for cleaning up cat fur off the chair, it performs poorly and i would be better off using a manual brush.

Summary

In summary, this started life as a great little cleaner with a lot of power, but has slowly deteriorated over the year. Cleaning is good, although the cleaner doesn't go right to the edge of the carpet, but you can use the nozzle for that. Bin emptying is a breeze, the filter is a bit of a pain, and the Riser Visor is a waste of time. I honestly think that this product will not last the year, and plan to give hubby his wish and buy a Henry next.

Features: Bagless cyclonic, 2.5l dust capacity, washable filter, 7.3m cord, Hose reach 2.1m, 1800 Watt.