Electrolux Z3042

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I spotted an Electrolux model I rather liked whilst browsing in John Lewis, it did everything I wanted but I wasn't too impressed with the £149.00 price tag, I did however spot an Electrolux brochure which contained details of all their vacuum cleaners ( apart from any prices that is), which I took home to peruse at my leisure.

▲Spoilt For Choice▲

The brochure contained details of 10 bagless upright ...
...cleaner) Our choice was the Electrolux Z3042AZ Velocity + all surface cleaner, priced at £119.99. Himself decided to carry out further investigations using a price comparison site and rather pleased with his discovery, announced he had found the very same model for sale through the Co-Operative Electrical shop for £89.99, yes that's right £89.99 a difference of £30.00, plus delivery was free. More than satisfied with that we placed an order online ... more

My 10 year old bagged upright vacuum cleaner was not performing quite as well as it should, so we decided it was time to look at purchasing a new one. With so many to choose from I started to look round at what was available. The Dyson cleaners have appealed to me but I have not been overjoyed by the price of them. We had already decided to opt for a bagless cleaner as investigations have shown that these tend to be more powerful than the traditional bagged type models.

I spotted an Electrolux model I rather liked whilst browsing in John Lewis, it did everything I wanted but I wasn't too impressed with the £149.00 price tag, I did however spot an Electrolux brochure which contained details of all their vacuum cleaners ( apart from any prices that is), which I took home to peruse at my leisure.

▲Spoilt For Choice▲

The brochure contained details of 10 bagless upright cleaners ( as well as 4 bagged uprights), with no idea of prices (except for the one I spotted in John Lewis,) I set to work checking on line and also the Argos catalogue hoping to find some answers. The Argos catalogue listed all the cleaners shown and I discovered that prices ranged from £70.00 to £199.00. We opted for one of the mid priced ones as it had all the features we required, plus an additional 3 to 1 stretch hose( this allows you to vacuum a full flight of stairs without having to move the cleaner) Our choice was the Electrolux Z3042AZ Velocity + all surface cleaner, priced at £119.99. Himself decided to carry out further investigations using a price comparison site and rather pleased with his discovery, announced he had found the very same model for sale through the Co-Operative Electrical shop for £89.99, yes that's right £89.99 a difference of £30.00, plus delivery was free. More than satisfied with that we placed an order online and my new Vacuum cleaner arrived 3 days later.

▲What was in the box▲

The box with its contents was not as heavy as I had expected and contained the vacuum body, handle (+2 screws), turbo nozzle with Riser Visor™, dusting brush, crevice tool, extension wand, 3 to 1 hose, hard floor nozzle, additional 3 to 1 hose, user guide, spare drive belt and foam filter. The cleaner comes with the standard 1 year manufacturer's guarantee.
Assembly is achieved in a matter of minutes using the clear instructions, as it is simply a case of sliding the handle onto the vacuum body, then tightening with the two screws provided. The cord is then pushed into the cord retainer before placing the hose under the hose sleeve and over the hose hooks, then securing the hose into the hose retainer. Place the crevice tool and wand in front of the hose then place the dusting brush behind the handle and snap the Turbo Brush onto the handle at the front.

▲Ready for take off▲

Of course I was eager to try it out and wasted no time in plugging in my new toy before pressing the rocker type switch which is located on the left hand side of the cleaner. This 2000 watt cleaner is certainly powerful, I was pleasantly surprised now easily it glided across the floor, my lounge carpet looked like new having, received the once over. The downside is, it is very noisy (that's the cleaner not the carpet), it sounded like an aircraft taking off and I did wonder if I should have invested in a pair of ear defenders too, however after a couple of months use, it doesn't seem as loud as it originally did so maybe I have become accustomed to the noise.
Alas I am the only one who shares that opinion. Last week whilst vacuuming the hall I was startled to see Himself stood in the kitchen facing me wearing a pair of earmuffs, arms outstretched holding a table tennis bat in each hand guiding me towards him, it was rather funny at the time but he didn't half look a plonker. He still covers his ears when the cleaner is in use to this day.

▲Product Features▲

☼The Electrolux Z3042AZ, Velocity + All surface vacuum cleaner comes in white and cyan and has a powerful 2000 watt motor, it weighs in at 6.9kg (That's about 1511b in old money), so it's no lightweight although doesn't seem that heavy when I carry it up the stairs to do the bedrooms. This model also has a cleverly shaped ergonomic looped handle which makes pushing the cleaner easier than those with the standard straight type handles.
☼ HEPA Filter System ensures that only clean air leaves the cleaner making it ideal for allergy sufferers.
☼ Turbo Nozzle with Riser Visor™ is a fantastic attachment which flips up and down and is ideal for removing pet hair, while the Riser Visor™ allows you to easily clean vertical surfaces such as stair risers or the backs, sides and fronts of sofas and chairs. It sits neatly in the front of the cleaner so it's there when needed and makes a high pitched whistling like sound when attached to the hose and doing the business on the stairs.
☼ Quick Release Dust Cup, has the capacity to hold 2.2 litres of dust, the quick release function (just press a button) allows you to empty it quicker and easier. I have not experienced any fly back of dust either whilst emptying it. I always give this a quick rinse out before drying it and replacing in back on the cleaner.
☼ 3 to 1 Stretch hose. allows you to reach further than a normal hose as it can extend to 3 times its resting size. Letting you clean any above the floor areas of the house.
☼ Edge Cleaning, this clever cleaning system allows you to clean right up to skirting boards without having to use the crevice tool.
☼ Crevice Nozzle, when attached to the hose allows the cleaning of awkward to reach areas like behind radiators or down the sides/backs of sofas and chairs. Attaching this to the additional 3 to 1 hose is ideal for reaching up to the corners of ceilings to suck up any cobwebs that you may find lurking and so much easier than using one of those feather dusters.
☼ Hard Floor Nozzle Attachment makes light work of vacuuming hard floors when it is attached to the hose. I use this on my laminated kitchen and bathroom floors, before giving them the once over with the mop.
☼ Floor Type Selector is a knob situated on the front of the cleaner at the bottom; it enables you to adjust the setting to suit different floor types e.g., short or long pile and even hard floor. If you find the cleaner hard to push whilst vacuuming then you will probably find you have it on the wrong setting, just adjust the knob accordingly and away you go.
☼ Additional 3 to 1 Stretch Hose when attached to the usual hose allows you to clean a full flight of stairs without having to move the cleaner,
certainly better and a great deal safer than trying to balance the cleaner on the stairs like I had to with my old one.
☼ Dusting Brush lives behind the handle on the back of the cleaner so it is there when you need to dust furniture, curtains, blinds or lamp shades etc... It is simply attached to the end of the hose, wand or crevice tool, and then away you go.
☼ Standard 1 years manufacturers guarantee

▲Maintenance▲

The user guide (a 9 page booklet) gives useful information and tips on how to get the best from your cleaner as well as a handy maintenance schedule.
♦ It is recommended that the Dust Cup be emptied after each use. I was both shocked and amazed how much dust I had collected the first time I used the cleaner and I certainly follow this advice, as in the long run it does make keeping the cleaner easier and ensures it stays in tip top condition.
♦ Wash the foam filter and filter screen once a week, making sure they are both completely dry before you place them back in to the Dust Cup. I tend to do this each time I empty the dust cup as it makes life easier for me. I also give the HEPA filter a light brush with an old dry tooth brush to, to remove any lose dust. I am still amazed at the amount of dust that gathers around both filters even though I vacuum at least once every other day.
♦ Cleaning the brush Roll should be done on a monthly basis, it's simply a case of checking to make sure no threads of cotton or hair haven't managed to wind themselves round the brush roll. It is worth taking care when vacuuming rugs to ensure that any fringes' are not caught up in the brush, as this could result in the drive belt snapping which will stop the brush rotating. Both the brush and the belt should be replaced when they appear worn.
♦ HEPA filter should be replaced every 6 months, this is an easy process as it lives in the top of the dust cup, Just remove the old filter and replace it with a new one.

Obviously all the above should only be carried out when the cleaner is switched off and the power cord is unplugged.
The maintenance schedule is also printed on a label which is stuck to the back side of the dust cup for easy reference which saves you digging out the user guide should you forget what to do.

This is certainly a very powerful cleaner, especially when compared to my old one and I am amazed each and every time I use it just how much dust it picks up.

Replacement parts should be available from most outlets that stock vacuum spares, but after a quick check on the Electrolux website, I found prices for the following spares that are required to fit the Z3042AZ Velocity.

♠ Foam Filter (EF187)- £3.65
♠ HEPA Filter (EF186) - £9.98
♠ Drive Belt (ZE090) - £3.61 (pack of 2)
♣ Brush Roll (no part's number given) £11.74
Whilst in the long run this bagless type of cleaner will no doubt work out more expensive than my old bagged one, due to the fact Filters are required which are more expensive than a pack of dust bags, it is in my opinion worth it because it is more efficient at picking up all the unseen dust that lurks around on the carpet.

▲Where can you get yours▲

As previously mentioned we did a fair bit of shopping (surfing) around and can report our findings as follows.
• Co- Operative Electrical - £89.99 (free delivery)
•Tesco Direct - £119.97 (+ £4.85 Home delivery)
•Amazon - from £89.99 (free delivery)
• Argos - £119.99 (+£5.95 home delivery, free if you collect from store)

▲About Electrolux▲

The Electrolux Company sell more than 40 million products to customers in over 150 Countries every year. These include dish washers, cookers, washing machines, vacuum cleaners and refrigerators all sold under esteemed brand names such as Electrolux, AEG, Eureka, Zanussi and Frigidaire
As a Company they strive to ensure that their products, services and production contribute to sustainable development. The designs of their products aim to reduce adverse environmental impact throughout the products life cycle, whilst resource and energy consumption, waste and pollution are regularly monitored for improvement. In 2007 the company were commended by the European Commission for their continuous efforts to improve energy efficiency.

© tune57 December 2008 ( this review can also be found on Dooyoo) 

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