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vaccum or potatoe?

redclfco

New member
Potato or potatoe vacuum or vaccume?

Sorry. I'm already off course here from my original "demented" post here... have patience...

So Saturday my wife tells me she can't go the Georgia O'Keefe exhibit in Minneapolis because she had arranged for the Kirby Vacuum guy to come out and shampoo a rug?/ WTF, what ever turns you on...so my son and I went on to see Georgia’s work anyway, since this is the last weekend to see this exhibit...

We came back to house full of boxes, SUPER clean rugs and a new $1200.00 vaccume:banghead I should have known, this guy was not here to shampoo a carpet, he was here to sell us a new vacuum, and he did! This is our second Kirby, and as promised in the written material this "salesman" left, it appears to do a bang up job. He put little filters where the bag should of gone, and pulled out a GROSS amount of sick:sick stuff out of our carpets (we have three cats, the gross little things) Even a rug we bought last month had fur and sand and crap in it that was evident in these white little filters! If I didn't see it with my own eyes what was left after our old vaccume went over it, I would not of believed it!

The first Kirby died a few years back after loaning it to a friend who apparently sucked up crap that should have never been put in a vacuum, and it never worked the same again! Since then we have stuck to cheaper kenmores.

The question for the MOA group is does anybody in this huge linked Brain computer called the MOA forum have an opinion on Kirby? Did we get a real screwing by buying this thing? Are there other vacuums out there that out perform this thing? The ink on the check is still wet, so I think? I could get our money back yet, maybe? (Jack C some legal advice here?)

There goes the money I was saving for my GPS:(

Red
 
Kirby is a great vaccuum just not a sexy way to spend over a grand. Is your wife happy? What is that worth to you?
 
Sorry, Red. You are clearly up against a superior mind - it appears that your wife has been taking correspondent courses from Evil Genius University. I smell premeditation.

You've been had. I'm no lawyer, but I suggest you never mention it again- now is the time to start focusing on Revenge.

My first step would be to wait for the next time she goes to the post office, then run out and get a German Shepherd.

210311832-S.jpg


That will help with the cat problem, and still leave enough animal hair around to make it worth having a $1,200 vacuum cleaner. (damn, none of my first three cars or first street bike cost me that much).

Rotsa ruck, bubba.
 
Sorry, Red. You are clearly up against a superior mind - it appears that your wife has been taking correspondent courses from Evil Genius University. I smell premeditation.

You've been had. I'm no lawyer, but I suggest you never mention it again- now is the time to start focusing on Revenge.

My first step would be to wait for the next time she goes to the post office, then run out and get a German Shepherd.

210311832-S.jpg


That will help with the cat problem, and still leave enough animal hair around to make it worth having a $1,200 vacuum cleaner. (damn, none of my first three cars or first street bike cost me that much).

Rotsa ruck, bubba.


I agree. And now is the perfect time to get that new bike you've have been wanting.

Easy :german
 
When the kirby guy first came to my house, i sat through the demonstration all worried till he mentioned the price. I thought, Ha, ain't no way she (first wife) would want to spend that kind of money on a vacuum, this will be easy. Then I turned and looked at her and realized I was screwed as soon as I saw the mezmerized look on her face. turned back to the salesman and asked if he liked sports cars. When he said yes i walked him out to the garage, showed him my '71 Triumph Spitfire project car and we made a deal. His demo vacuum for my car.

In hind sight I should have kept the car and traded him the wife. Oh well.....

These days I have a new wife (this ones a keeper), a new Kirby, and a Miata. I guess all's well that ends well.
 
I've already heard Kirby's are excellent. The thing that has kept me from them (aside from the price) is a design issue. They may have changed it, but last I knew everything that gets sucked up goes right past/through the impeller fan assembly. That's all fine and good and creates excellent suction. Of course, if you manage to suck up something fairly solid (if you have kids, Lego brick come to mind), it will break the impeller fan, and you have to replace it. It's something like $10-$13. Not too expensive and you can do it yourself. I know how I suck up anything that will fit (dog food chunks?) and I'd probably spend more time repairing it than cleaning. So as long as you are more careful than me, you have an excellent product in your house.
 
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We just had our carpets cleaned, too, but not by Kirby. We just called Coit. They did a great job, and it didn't cost anywhere near a grand.

I don't have an opinion about the brand itself. My wife used to work for Kirby when she was in high school. She was a telemarketer trying to set up appointments for salespeople.

We've had multiple vacuums over the years, since we've always had pets of the canine variety. Our latest is the top of the line Dyson, which works quite well.
 
I'm doing some work on the side for a guy that was a Kirby distributor for 15 years. he still says that they're an excellent vacuum, and he owns one himself. That says something for the machine- if the guy doesn't sell them anymore, but still speaks highly for it. Personally, I'm a HUGE fan of a built-in central vac- we installed one for about $2000, and its like having twice the power of a shop vac on hand in any room, and all the dust and nasty stuff ends up outside. (unit is in garage, and blows exhaust outside. Amazingly quiet for the amount of air that thing moves.
 
Oldhway, These days I too have a bike. Miata, no more wife and no $1000 Electrolux (not Kirby). Are you in the Nutmeg Miata club? Life gets better all the time. :nod
 
Beware of Kirby?

<a href="http://www.cockeyed.com/citizen/kirby/kirby.html">http://www.cockeyed.com/citizen/kirby/kirby.html</a>


See the above site for an interesting compilation of Kirby sales stories, and note that they are not favorable. I bought a <a href="http://www.dyson.com/homepage.asp">Dyson</a> and I'm pretty happy with it. No more bags.

kourt
 
My Ex Bro in Law was a Kirby repair/sales guy for years. Apprenticed under a shop owner during High School then bought his own shop when he was 30.

That said I had to help break down lot's of abused Kirbys...The biggest thing that gummed them up is that carpet powder made by everyone. And as Mr Metzger said, the impeller is in the way of everything you suck up.


I do own a late 1940's model that I STILL use! It has had new Stator brushes and a few new rollers since I found it in my grannies attic in '72. Have had several offers to trade a new cheapo canister for the antique...but I kept it. My grannie said she hated it and used a broom! Had a newer model in a prior life that did it all, shampoo attachments and all. That bad boy is HEAVY though isn't it?:stick
 
Replaced all carpet (but 1 room) with solid flooring (laminate/tile) and installed a central vac. Can easily see what the vac doesn't pick up, (dont need a paper whatever from a sales person) as it isn't buried under carpet pile, and the dust or dander or whatever that gets past the filter gets vented to the outside, not back into the room. Now I just need to get rid of the dog and cat, and the house will be much cleaner. Not to mention the kids, but the wife is a bit more attatched to them, so it may take longer to get them out the door..................
 
We have a multi line vacuum store and we work on all makes. IMHO the Kirby is well made but expensive, both to buy and to repair, and heavy. They do a good job on your carpet but when you put the hose on They don't preform well.
I like the Sebo (sebo-vacuums.com) , made in Germany.
I kinda like German motorcycles also.
 
I have a rainbow. I left my Kirby on the curb. I bought my Kirby (Heritage II) in an estate sale for 50 bucks. I left it on the curb and someone else got it for free.

I have a rainbow. They are the best in my opinion. I don't like any vacuum that blows crap in a bag, canister or otherwise. The rainbow pulls all your crap through a pan of water. This means no stink. No animal smell after vacuuming. And no dust. It all stays in the water. Then you can dump the pan and your done.

This is the downfall of a rainbow. You have to fill it and empty it every single time you use it. It is big and bulky but will run forever. You can pick up a Rainbow online for less than 400 bucks. They run for decades. Maintenance. Well...it is what you might expect when you buy an expensive appliance.

I had a rainbow guy out to my house after I bought my rainbow(they were giving away a free thing). I didn't tell him I had a rainbow until after he was a little discombobulated by the fact that his little white filter discs didn't have much debris in them. Then I pulled mine out and he says, "Oh...that explains it." Great vacuums. I swore I would never own one growing up cause I hated doing chores as a kid at home and having to use that thing, but in my opinion, nothing beats it.

And the newer models are even better than my old refurbished one. My folks still have the one I grew up using as a kid. Still runs great.

My .02

YMMV.

Like I said...you can get a $1000+ vacuum on ebay for way less. I have had my rainbow now for 2 years.

I have a golden retriever and a cat. Lots of hair and pet dander. I wouldn't have anything else.

Brian
 
The question for the MOA group is does anybody in this huge linked Brain computer called the MOA forum have an opinion on Kirby? Did we get a real screwing by buying this thing? Are there other vacuums out there that out perform this thing? The ink on the check is still wet, so I think? I could get our money back yet, maybe? (Jack C some legal advice here?)

There goes the money I was saving for my GPS:(

Red

Wait a second. You're complaining about paying for an expensive vacuum/shampoo machine which is used to take care of your house (your hard earned investment i which you live) and you ride a BMW when you could have bought a KLR or an SV650 for half as much?

The you want to add a GPS to your bike when a paper map works perfectly fine for most riders?

Your should be ashamed. There are people in the world that actually use their bikes for something...not just bopping around the countryside looking cool.:stick :bolt
motorcycle_chickens.jpg
 
FWIW, I think that the prices of just about all vacuum-cleaners are a bit high.

My stepdad had a 1966 Kirby that served until around 1990. It still ran when it was put out to pasture, but emptying it was a nasty job (they didn't have anything but a cloth bag to cath stuff in back then).

A girl I dated worked for two days selling Kirbys. I had a really bad feeling about that and she wisened up after those two days.

Years ago my mom got a long-hired dog and the consensus among aficionados of long-haired dogs at the time (mid-'90s) was that Panasonic delivered the most suck for the buck. Upon buying a Panasonic (with which she is still happy) she gave me her Eureka Bravo Boss which I have used for over ten years with absolutely no complaint and it has been as reliable as our beloved bikes.

Recently a neighbour who moved out put on the curb a Bissell Cleanview Powertrak Deluxe, a modern bagless-type unit with all sorts of bells and whistles like a little rotory-brush atachment for the hose and a HEPA filter and filter-status indicator lights. I cleaned it up and have been using it off and on a bit and I'm undecided whether or not I like it better than the old Eureka. It's heavier and louder, but the performance of the hose is AMAZING. I use the hose a lot getting into tight places and removing cobwebs. I'm not all that sold on bagless either, as 1) my apartment is huge enough that I fill a bag very fast and 2) at least the bag contains the dirt, preventing a big nasty cloud of carpet-dust (or mite-poo, if you believe the Kirby people) from swirling up in your face when you empty the bin.

I think though that if I ever buy my housing I'll go carpetless.
 
Vacuums and shoes!

Currently there are a Keen shoe and sandal (got a pair) and Kirby vacuum cleaners (got one of those too) threads active on the forum....:dunno



Just seems a little odd.
 
Currently there are a Keen shoe and sandal (got a pair) and Kirby vacuum cleaners (got one of those too) threads active on the forum....:dunno

Just seems a little odd.

weathered in and darn bored maybe???? I need a new can opener...any thoughts?:laugh :laugh :laugh
 
Step 1: Ditch wall to wall carpeting.
Step 2: Area rugs.
Step 3: Enjoy.

Honestly, though, both Tina and I are allergy sufferers. We removed all the carpeting from our home about 5 years ago and installed a few area rugs, the largest of which is in the living room and is about 5 x 8.

We've had a noticeably decrease in our allergy symptoms because we can finally get all the crud out of our house.

FWIW, we're using a Dyson.
 
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