My Favorite Vacuum
January is often a month people clean out the clutter in their house. I’m currently doing a declutter challenge after I deep cleaned half of my house over winter break. However, cleaning your house requires multiple cleaning supplies. A staple in most households is a vacuum. However, they can be the most expensive item in your house. If you follow me on Instagram, you know I’m all about following a budget. Money is a major stressor, and it is well known that teachers don’t get paid enough. I will always remember what it was like to be a first-year teacher, and I will try to recommend products that fit into those teacher’s budgets. I believe in buying quality products, but I don’t want to spend an arm and a leg. In September I bought a new home and the only major purchase I wanted was a vacuum. My old vacuum smelled like dog hair, (both my dogs you see on my homepage shed like crazy) and the attachments were a hassle. I began doing my research and everyone told me to invest in an expensive vacuum. I’m happy to tell you I found a teacher budget vacuum I recommend after using it for three months. I hope I can answer any questions future buyers have.
Why not just spend the money on the highly acclaimed vacuums? I needed a vacuum that works on multiple surfaces and has a detachable part for vacuuming my couches. Yes, Roomba is highly rated, but I didn’t want my 75-pound dog to possibly break it or it to bother my elder dogs sleep when I was not at home. I had a cheap $20 small handheld vacuum, and it was a hassle. The battery stopped working, and it would not pick up the dog hair on the couches towards the end of its life. I need a vacuum that didn’t make it a hassle to switch from the floor to the couches. Another feature I wanted is bagless. I’m in no way a zero-waste person. However, I try to be conscious of what trash I am creating. A bag of dog hair going into a trash can just seem wasteful and unnecessary. Eureka RapidClean Pro Lightweight is the vacuum you need that no one is talking about. I bought it on sale for $135, and it is currently $150 on amazon. I don’t need to spend any more money to be completed satisfied with a vacuum.
How easy is it to setup? It was quite easy. The total time from opening the bag to attaching it to the wall was under an hour. The vacuum comes in three main pieces that are easily attached and detached. However, it does have to be plugged into a wall outlet so you can’t just put it anywhere. My cleaning closet doesn’t have an outlet on the inside, so I decided to put it in the laundry room. My husband did use his electric drill to ensure the vacuum holder was sturdy. and we have had no problems with it staying on the stand. We waited to use it the next day to ensure the battery was fully charged. The manual says 4 hours, but it was delivered at night, and I was too worried about having to return the vacuum back because of a user error. The battery is meant to last up to 40 minutes, but I have never had to use it for that long. Overall I believe the easy setup makes it top of the list for many people shopping for a vacuum.
It takes up little space in my laundry room.
Is it actually lightweight? Yes! One of the reviewers on Amazon mentioned that their small child was able to use it, and I believe it. 5 pounds is a perfect size for a cordless vacuum. One of the reasons I absolutely love this vacuum is it’s not a hassle vacuuming different heights. I can go from my floors to stairs and not hurt my wrist. I can go from hardwood floors to my dog’s bed and not have to change settings or worry about hurting myself. The small width doesn’t impact vacuum time, so I feel no need to go with a larger vacuum. The lightweight of the vacuum ensures easy usage every time.
What type of vacuuming are you doing? It is mainly used in the downstairs of my house which has wood and laminate floors. Almost every day for the last three months the vacuum has been used with absolutely no problems. The upstairs of my house has a high pile carpet and wood floors. However, an older vacuum is used on that part of the house. It does not work well on stairs. I’m hoping to replace all the carpet one day, so I did not invest in a vacuum specifically for high pile carpet. One of my favorite pleasures in this vacuum is it makes cleaning baseboards a breeze. I use the same attachment to vacuum the couches as the baseboards and have eliminated using a microfiber cloth to clean baseboards for dust. Cleaning baseboards and blinds are quarterly activities for me, and I have a duster and blind cleaner that works fine. Hardwood and laminate floor people don’t need to consider another vacuum.
The attachment on the left is the one I use for couches and baseboards.
What about dog hair? Many pet cordless vacuums are over $200 and did not have attachments, so I wasn’t willing to buy them. s. On Saturdays, I wash the blankets on the couches, vacuum the couches, and spray the couches down with a lavender spray. This ensures my house doesn’t smell like a dog. I used a lint roller before, and I felt guilty about all the waste. Eureka is faster than a lint roller and has not torn up my dry clean only chair. (I used a popular dog hair collector on amazon, and it did not work well on my furniture. It tore the dry clean only chair and took more than hair up on my other two couches). After cleaning my dog’s bed, I vacuum the fireplace, and I’m done with my weekly dog hair cleaning. Since the vacuum is not specifically made for dog hair, I do throw my trash away immediately even when the canister isn’t full. I have yet to check the bristles on the bottom of the machine. I do plan on cleaning it during the summer when I do a deep cleaning of all my cleaning products. After three months, I see no difference in the quality of this vacuum and my other vacuum specifically made for pets.
Are there any unique features? The LED lights and the lay down flat feature were not taken into consideration when I bought the vacuum. However, these features have been a bonus to my cleaning schedule. Most of the furniture I vacuum under is black, and I can’t always see the dust underneath it without all the lights on. The LED lights ensure I see the dust underneath and don’t have to go back and turn on the lights in a dimly lit room. My old vacuum never went fully underneath my bed, and I had to use a broom to get the dog hair when I did my weekly floor cleaning. Eureka RapidClean Pro Lightweight isn’t fancy but is created for people who want to vacuum 100% of their floors without moving their furniture.
This is from vacuuming the couches, fireplace, and floor by the back door of the house.
How loud is it? If you need an absolutely silent vacuum, then it is not for you. However, the sound is low enough that the dogs don’t leave the room when I vacuum. My mother can watch tv upstairs without being bothered. My toddler aged nephews, who usually don’t like weird loud noises, weren’t bothered when it was used. This vacuum has been the quietest vacuum I have ever owned, and I think most people will not be bothered by its noise level.
What is it missing? There is no setting for pet stains on the carpet or a setting to wash my floors. However, my dogs are house trained and that’s unnecessary. Yes, I did clean up dog pee when we moved into our house, but they haven’t done it since. I have a carpet cleaner on hand, and it doesn’t make sense to spend money on that type of vacuum feature. I don’t wash my floors on the same day as I vacuum except for Saturdays. Due to the constant rain where I live, it doesn’t even make sense to wash floors more than once a week constantly. If you wash floors constantly or have a puppy with wall-to-wall carpet, this vacuum is not for you.
Are there any major negatives? As of right now, there are only two I can see. One is the fact that the battery can’t be separated from the unit to charge. I currently have a stackable washer and dryer, and it was not a big deal finding room to charge the vacuum. However, my preference would have been able to put it in my cleaning closet. Secondly, there is no place for the attachments to rest on the vacuum. I do have to go back to the laundry room once I’m done with the floors to start the couches. The battery only lasts about 40 minutes can be an issue for those with a big house, but I don’t see that being an issue for most teachers. The price point of the vacuum definitely outweighs the negatives.
Don’t overpay for a vacuum. Save your money and buy a Eureka RapidClean Pro Lightweight vacuum. You won’t be disappointed with your purchase. If you want a cordless vacuum that has useful attachments you must have, then you can’t go wrong with Eureka.
*I’m in no way affiliated with Eureka. I believe in highlighting products that are useful and friendly to a teacher budget.
