Good Suction for a Stick Vac

The day after Thanksgiving we made the early trek to WalMart (with half the town), and I was pleasantly surprised to see that even though we didn't get there until 8 am, there were plenty of the Bissell 3106 Series Vacuums left on the center display. I couldn't believe that they were selling this for only $17.00! What a deal.

Description

This is a 3-in-1 stick vacuum, that is very lightweight and portable. Once I got it out of the box, it was put together in mere seconds. It took me longer to get it out of the box than it did to put it together! The handle slides into the top of the main section, and the floor nozzle fits into the other end. There are two hooks for wrapping the cord for storage, and the molded plug attaches to the cord in a clip like manner. I really like the versatility of this vacuum. The on/off switch is near the middle of the unit.

The Bissell vac can be used as an upright vacuum for cleaning hard wood, ceramic, or vinyl floors, and it quickly and easily converts to a hand held vacuum that is great for vacuuming the keys on my laptop and other small areas. It gets into corners of rooms wonderfully.

The third attachment is a crevice tool, which easily snaps on and off. I don't generally find a need to use this tool, and there is no place to store it on the vacuum.

The vacuum is bagless, and this empties much like all other small vacuums I have owned and used (we have a similar one in our motorhome as well). You must hold the vacuum vertically and depress a latch button on the top of the vacuum to release the dirt container. Pull it out and empty it into a waste basket. If the dirt bin gets clogged or excessively dirty, it can be rinsed out with water. It must be completely dried before using again.

There is a filter, and Bissell recommends that this filter be cleaned after each use. Replacement filters can also be purchased. The filter can be washed and dried, but if it gets torn it must be replaced.

My Thoughts On Usage

The main reason I purchased this vacuum was to use as a replacement for my broom in our entry way. We have eight cubbies there for my daycare children to use, and as you can imagine, they get pretty messy and dusty. This vacuum works great as a hand held cleaner! It did a great job of cleaning each cubby, and I was very impressed with the suction power. (It had much more suction that I expected it to have.) I guess for $17, I was a bit skeptical. However, I am very pleased. It also did a good job of cleaning the vinyl floor in our entry way. It's light enough that I just may put the kids to work cleaning that area - especially if they are being disruptive and need some busy work to keep them out of trouble! ;)

The noise level wasn't too bad, certainly a lot less noisy than my full size vacuums, and I really didn't expect it to be quiet. No complaints there at all.

After I cleaned my wood floors and laundry room/entry way, I wanted to try this Bissell on my carpets. I first vacuumed a small area rug, and it actually did quite well in picking up surface dust and fluff. I brought it into the livingroom and ran it across the surface of our wall to wall carpeting, and didn't have such positive results there. I could certainly tell a huge difference between my expensive upright vacuum and this stick vacuum. And well there should be a big difference between a $400 vacuum and a $17 vacuum! I believe this Bissell is mainly to be used on hard floor surfaces, and to clean other areas that you would buy a hand vacuum for. It did a good job of getting dust and crumbs out from under my laptop key board. (Don't tell my hubby I eat while I am at my laptop, I know I shouldn't!!).

Final Thoughts

For $17.00, I am thrilled with this stick vacuum. It seems quite sturdy, it has great suction, and it is very lightweight. After getting rid of my worthless cordless hand vac this summer, I am very happy that this vacuum uses electricity. The cord could be a bit longer, but it works just fine for how I use it. I can see myself using this for those quick clean ups - it certainly would be much more efficient than the broom and dust pan that I have been using! All in all, it is a nice product, and it even comes with a one year warranty. For the price, you can't beat it!