Miele S 712 > Reviews (2)

After having a Dyson for nearly eight years, we bought this vacuum cleaner.

The reason for this?

The Dyson proved to be rather fragile and unreliable and had many repairs over it's life, after the bottom part began to crack we decided it was time for a new vacuumcleaner. The actual cleaning performance of the Dyson was not at all that bad, it was just that it was too fragile, unreliable and rather messy to empty.

Purchase

We went to our local Currys store and had a look at a few machines, the initial plan was to get the cheapest Miele cylinder (Miele S380) and use it exclusively for upstairs and then we would get the new Miele upright for downstairs. We were very close to buying the Miele S380 when the Miele S712 caught my eye; it was not so expensive and it had a turbobrush which is always a bonus. The Miele S380 was 96 pounds and the S712 was 117, not too much of a difference. We got the Miele S712; it seemed to have a slightly better build quality compared to the cheaper model and it also had a turbobrush. We only use this machine for the upstairs as there is a lot of carpeting downstairs which will take quite long to clean with this machine.

First impressions

The first thing that impressed me was how the box was designed; there is a little flap cut out in the box- the handle of the vacuum cleaner protrudes from this flap, so you use the handle to carry the box, it is placed in a very convenient place so the whole load is well balanced.

The box has a picture of a few Miele vacuum cleaners in various colours all in a round circle, it has no detail about the product itself, instead it has more useful information on how to properly unpack the cleaner.
The colour of the vacuum is Cobalt.

The vacuum is not as big as the other Miele ones, I’ll post a picture.

Unpacking

To unpack the cleaner you place the box on it's side (so the flaps at the top become like a door of a cupboard). You open the flaps at the top and then there are two polystyrene blocks which sandwich the vacuum cleaner itself, you pull this out like a drawer. Then there is a box with the floor heads and hose and a seperate packet with the manual and guarantee slips etc. This info might not be extremely accurate becuase I got this vacuum cleaner quite some time ago and I don't have the best memory!

There is no assembly required of the vacuum cleaner which in my opinion is great if you want to get cleaning straight away.

The bag is already in place, all you have to do is clip the hose into place which is very easy and then click the floorhead you require onto the telescopic tube.
The hose is grey and feels very strong it is also crush proof so if you stand on it you won’t do much harm at all.

There are two floorheads:

1. Standard floor head: Use to vacuum hard floors and carpeting, has a rocker switch to lower the brushes. This tool has velour strips at the bottom, if these wear out they can be replaced instead of replacing the whole tool.

2. Turbo brush: An air driven rotating brush bar agitates the carpet and loosens pet hair.

This nozzle is slightly noisy when not in contact with the carpeting.

Both of these heads are very durable.

Using the machine

Now that I had put everything toghether it was time to test the machine, I unwound the cord which is about 6M and feels very durable and I plugged the machine in. In my opinion the cord is a little on the short side.

The machine has a large black plastic switch on the top right hand corner, you can operate this switch by hand or by foot, I think this makes the machine so much more conveniant to use as you don’t have to bend down to turn it on.

There is also a power setting dial; this adjusts the power from 300W to 2000W, there are helpful symbols for each setting: Curtains, upholstery, carpets, rugs and runners, energy saving daily vacuuming, lightly soiled rugs and fitted carpets and finally heavily soiled hard flooring and for intensive cleaning of carpets. We tend to use the energy saving daily vacuuming setting; the suction is perfectly adequate and the machine works exceptionally quietly.

I had already attached the turbo brush and had adjusted the power for daily vacuuming, I turned the machine on and the first thing that struck me was how quiet the machine was; I could talk easily to someone while vacuuming! The suction power was awesome, it took just one swipe to clean up general crumbs,dust and human hair. I moved the nozzle towards the edge of the carpeting and much to my surprise all the dirt from between the carpet and skirting boards simply rushed into the nozzle- now that’s what I call edge cleaning! In my opinion the edge cleaning combined with the exceptionally powerful suction makes vacuuming so much quicker.

Now it’s time to move on to the hard floor (laminate and marble), I removed the turbo brush and attached the standard floor head, to do hard floors with the standard floor head you have to lower the brushes by pressing the pedal on the head. The machine performed very well on hard floors as it did on carpets, my laminate flooring didn’t get scratched like it used to with the Dyson.

Tools

The machine comes with al the usual tools: An upholstery tool, a crevice tool and a dusting brush, as the names suggest one is for upholstery, one is for crevices and the other for dusting. Although most machines come with the above mentioned tools the quality isn’t often very good, however the tools on this machine are very well made and well thought out. I have found that on other machines the tools can easily get lost, on this machine all tools store neatly in the compartment on the top of the vacuum cleaner.

First I tested the upholstery tool, the tools simply push into place, I used the tool on the stairs because I don’t really have any fabric upholstery, I find it easier to use the upholstery tool on stairs anyway. The tool has a slot kind of vent at the back so it doesn’t stick too much onto the upholstery you are cleaning, this makes it easier to manouver. The tool worked well and I was impressed once again. I find this tool very good to use in the car on the mats and seats.

This tool has velour strips at the bottom, if these wear out they can be replaced instead of replacing the whole tool.

Next I tried out the crevice tool, I pushed it into place and turned the machine on, due to the shape of the tool you hear a loud hissing noise, although I may seem stupid I actually don’t mind this noise becuase I feel like the machine is actually doing something to get my house clean! This tool effectively removed all the dirt from the skirting boards.

To be quite honest with you I don’t think I would use the dusting brush to dust my furniture, I have used it on the odd occasion to clear up crumbs from the table and it worked well, other than that I haven’t really had to use it. I find it more conveniant to use a micro-fibre cloth.

All the tools can be attached to the plastic elbow, or the metal telescopic tube which makes them very versatile.

I will post pictures so you get a better idea of the tools.

Stairs

Doing stairs with this machine is very easy; the machine balances very well on every stair. All I do is put the machine on one stair and the hose can reach up to approximately 4 stairs, as I clean I move the machine up with me. It is also easy to hold the machine from the handle all the time you are cleaning however you may get tired.

Carrying and storage

The machine has a handle at the top,when you carry the machine from this handle the whole load is well balanced and I doubt it will slip out of your hands. There are two slots for the tube to slot into place; one on the side and the other at the back, the reason for this is that the machine can be stored both horizontally or vertically.
When you have finished vacuuming and you have unplugged the machine, the cord can be stored back in to the machine, to store the cord back in to the machine you have to press the cord rewind button which is at the top of the machine, while pressing the cord rewind button I have found it is easier to guide the cord back into the machine. The cord rewind is very easy to use and I find it looks tidier than an externally stored cord. Once you have rewinded the cord you can slot the telescopic tube into one of the slots on the machine. All of this makes the machine easier to store.

Dustbags and maintenance

This machine uses Miele FJM type dustbags, the bags are not the usual paper bags that majority of bagged vacuum cleaners use, the bags are actually made from a type of cloth called cheese cloth. Unlike other bagged vacuum cleaners that have a bag the machine does not loose suction as the bag get’s full, I believe this is due to the cloth used to make the bag. The bags for this machine have a capacity of 3.5 litres, the bags also feature a self closing flap on the opening which prevents any dust escaping when you need to change/inspect the bag however I have found this to be a bit of a snag because if something get’s sucked in you’ll have to try to fish it out with the flap closing on your fingers. The bag took one month to get full- we vacuum 3-4 times a week, this in my opinion is great value for money, yes the bags may be expensive (5-6 pounds for 4 bags and filters) but the bags are of excellent quality and take a while to get full.

In every box of bags you get a super air clean filter and an exhaust filter, you have to replace these every time you finish a box of bags, however if you have a HEPA filter or an Active air clean filter you do not have to replace this (these types of filters are replaced every year and are only included on certain models). In my honest opinion I think bag’s are so much better for hygeine and conveniance; absolutely no dust escapes and the bag can simply be removed and thrown in the bin- no more shaking out filters and messy dust cups. To check if the bag is full you have to fit the stndard floor head,turn the vacuum cleaner on, turn the power up to maximum and raise the floor-head above the floor then check if the indicator at the top of the vacuum turns orange; if it turns completely orange you have to replace the bag. If the bag is full of carpet fluff or fine dust the indicator will not be accurate as it is set for a mixture of hair, dust, carpet fluff and grit. Fitting a new bag couldn’t be simpler, all you have to do is slide a new bag in place, there is no tucking in or unfolding involved whatsoever. So to summarise the only maintenance required is to replace the bag when it’s full and to replace the filter (the time will vary accoring to the filter type you have). This machine comes fitted with a Super air clean filter (replaced every time you finish a box of bags)

Filtration

This machine has the best filtration system I have ever come across, an important part of the filtration system is how well the machine is actually sealed; by that I mean that no air should be escaping from any joints in the plastic housing, cord rewind and other places. The only place air should be coming out is the actual exhaust of the machine becuase there is a filterto filter out allergy causing particles. I have been round the machine with a piece of fluff to check if any air escapes and I have found that no air escapes from any point on the housing- a common problem on practically all other vacuum cleaners, this is probably why the machine hardly ever get’s dust on it. The bags have to work if you want good filtration- I am so sure that the bags work; if you were to remove the bag and check the actual compartment where the bag is there will be no dust, even the bag itself has no dust on it. The filter also has to be effective- I know that it is effective becuase I have never had any problems with my asthma with this vacuum cleaner, I start wheezing with nearly every other vacuum cleaner.

Build quality

The machine is well-built and well designed, although a lot of the machine is plastic, the plastic is a solid type and will not break in a hurry. I am so confident that the machine will survive a tumble down the stairs.
The hose is also crush proof, so it will not crush if you step on it.
The cord is also durable and you can hold the machine from the cord and it will not break!

Weight and handling

The machine weighs 7.9 kg, this should be suitable for most people. The handle is well placed , when you carry the machine the weight is properly balanced and it is highly unlikely to slip out of your hands.

A few notes

When buying a vacuum cleaner a lot of people look at the wattage and go for models with a higher wattage becuase they think it will be more powerful, this is not the case, a vacuum cleaner with a motor working at 800w can work better than another vacuum with a 1800w motor. This is because it depends on how well the vaccum is sealed and where the motor is placed, this particular vacuum cleaner has a 2000w motor and it is also properly air tight which is why it is more powerful than many other vacuum cleaners.

This vacuum cleaner will not be practical for the whole house, it will be suitable for a small house or apartment but any house that has 3 bedrooms will not be suited to this vacuum cleaner; this is one of Miele’s compact model and it has the smaller dustbag and shorter cord. We use this vacuum cleaner for the upstairs only as we found it is more conveniant than an upright when working around beds etc.

Normally uprights are best suited for carpeted homes, however I find that this vacuum does and excellent job on the carpets; they don’t turn flat and they look brilliant after vacuuming.

There is only one problem with this vacuum; it is not widely available and soon it may be discontinued.
I will upload pictures once I’ve managed to take them, I hope you have enjoyed reading my review and I hope you found it useful.