Review: Dyson DC17 Animal Vacuum Cleaner
After about 3 years of spotty service, our old Bissell finally bit the dust. Actually it bit the dust about a year ago, I just got tired of trying to fix the thing every two weeks.
I think for most people buying a vacuum is not a big deal, but we are cat owners so pet hair is a big problem for us. On top of that I didn’t want to buy a cheap vacuum that would fall apart after a few years like our bissell did. Thanks to a clever marketing campaign, the Dyson DC17 Animal was at the top of our list.
I didn’t worry about less than positive reviews at Consumer Reports since our last vacuum was rated highly and yet still turned out to be junk. What I did look at were the many positive reviews at Amazon, which in the end persuaded me to go ahead an make the purchase. So far I am glad I did.
The first impression of this vacuum is good. I was surprised by the weight. It’s quite heavy for plastic, but it feels sturdy, which is a good thing. When I first vacuumed I was not really surprised with the amount of hair and dirt it pulled up. For the price I expected it to clean really well, especially since our old vacuum didn’t work that well anymore.
What I was surprised at was how well it cleaned our apartments every single week since the first cleaning. Our cats track liter out of the cat box and shed like crazy. So seeing mounds of dirt and clutter in the dust bin makes me believe this thing is really working.
A few of the things I really like about the Dyson DC17:
The low reach floor tool is great for getting under tables and couches without having to move them. It’s also great for cleaning under our bed, which is near impossible to move easily thanks to its size and weight. And since the cats hide under there, we were finally able to clean up a big source of dust and hair.
The rotating bar is easy to turn off, simply push the button next to the power switch. The kitty litter box is in the bathroom, and normally trying to vacuum the litter off the tile floor caused litter to spray everywhere, which meant getting a broom and dust pan out to clean up. Not so with the Dyson. We simply hit the button to turn the spinning bottom off and then vacuum. It works great. I can imagine this would be great for someone with hardwood floors too.
I also feel like the air coming out of the vacuum is cleaner than normal. I think this is the HEPA filter at work sucking the small particles out the carpet. Maybe it’s my imagination, but I still like it.
A few of the things I don’t like about the Dyson DC17:
The reason we bought this model over a standard model was the name “animal.” We figured since we have pets we should get the vacuum made for pets. As far as I can tell though, the only difference between this model and the non-animal models is the worthless mini-turbine brush. The brush seems to be suction driven, and has proven to be no match for the cat hair lodged in our couch. A better method has been to use either the brush tool or the stair tool, both of which are standard I think, to clean the couches.
I am also not fond of the telescoping reach wand. The solid section is pretty long, which makes vacuuming in close up areas like in a window sill slightly awkward. It’s not a deal breaker, but it is a minor gripe.
Recommendation:
If you are in need of a good vacuum, and I think everyone is, and you have the money to spend, I think the Dyson DC17 is a great buy. I don’t know if the other versions of the DC17 are cheaper than the animal, but if they are it might be smart to consider one of those over this one. Like I said, I have found the mini-turbine head attachment to be close to useless.
Other than that, this vacuum is great. And when looking at the price, don’t forget that there are no filters to replace ever. Our Bissell vacuum had 4 different filters that would have cost about $50 total to replace, and we were supposed to replace them every 6 months to keep it cleaning well. So over the course of a few years this vacuum could actually save you money if you normally stick to the filter replacement schedule.
