For those who haven't seen it, an article in a recent Consumer Reports dealt with their tests for determining which vacuum cleaner is best at picking up pet hair. Based on their tests, their first choice was the Kenmore Progressive - model #35922.
It currently sells at $350 at Sears and other locations. Their choice for 2nd place was the Eureka Boss Smart Vac Ultra (such a long name!) - model #4870. Sells for around $150. The Dyson DC 14, which is supposed to be the best at removing pet hair, failed their test. Still, at many websites around the internet, many heap praise on the Dyson. You be the judge.
I was in a Sears store last week, and walked by the vacuum cleaner section. Decided to see if they had the Kenmore Progressive in stock. Not only did they have it in stock, but it was on sale for $250, instead of the $350 list price. So I bought one.
I've since used it several times, including twice in heavy pet hair situations. It lived up to its Consumer Reports test results, where as reported earlier it came in first in the pet hair removal bake-off. It's also quieter than the vac I was previously using, which is nice. I very much like the feature on the panel of red, orange, and green lights that are located just below the on-off switches. As long as the red and/or orange lights are on, a little sensor in the tubing is sensing that material is still being sucked up off the carpet. When the light turns to green, it means that there is nothing left to vacuum. This feature has saved me time, as in when I start to vacuum a room before cleaning, JUST IN CASE it might need vacuuming. These lights quickly tell me if I am wasting my time vacuuming, and that I can begin the cleaning part of the job immediately.
They probably are, but since they are mostly intended for use in commercial settings, they are not designed to have any particular ability in the area of pet hair removal. Pet hair is infrequently found in business sites, but very often in private homes.
