Does Exactly What I Need It To Do
I bought this basic model a few days ago primarily for flat floors and my car. I don’t intend to use it for carpets as I have a cheapy little cylinder corded hoover for that which does an excellent job. I also have the additional tools from a previous Vax – these tools are a game changer; Vax are offering them free with this model in their summer sale.
As ALL rechargeable hoovers loose substantial amounts of run-time if the boost or turbo options are employed I decided to test my Blade 4 on normal power alone using the soft brush and crevice tool provided with this model. This is what happened:
It has 4 bars to indicate how much charge it has in it – it had 2 bars showing on arrival so, as per the instructions, I charged it up to full power. There’s only one carpet downstairs in my house; the rest is all flat flooring which seems to generate dust practically by the hour. On normal power, fully charged, I hoovered thoroughly the following: kitchen (vinyl floor), dining room (vinyl), little downstairs loo (vinyl), large hallway (quarry tiles), large downstairs family bathroom (ceramic tiles). Still on 4 bars. So with the soft dusting brush I hoovered all the downstairs windowsills (11 in all), the tables, the piano, a few intricate wooden ornaments, the curtains and the lounge furniture. Still 4 bars. (I’m beginning to run out of things to hoover now!) So I hoovered the large stone fireplace and hearth in the lounge, the grate, the fire utensils and then the stairs using an attachment from a previous Vax. Finally! – it’s just changed to 3 bars. So I then used it to clean the interior of my car (using the tools I already have) and I still apparently have 2 bars left.
I emptied the dust bucket twice during the experiment (I didn’t let it get full) and kept it on normal power throughout. I’m impressed – that’s a lot of hoovering on a lot of different surfaces – there’s not a speck of dust left anywhere. I don’t know how accurate the bars on the charge indicator is, but time will tell. On doing a bit of research, the clue to prolonging the overall life of these batteries is to keep the filters clean and the vacuum free of blockages.
As other customers have mentioned, engaging and disengaging the various components (except the battery) does need a bit of muscle power, and the unit is a bit top heavy, but for me that’s not a problem. Some people have had problems with hair and thread wrapping round the brush head – this model, without the pet tool attachment, does not claim to be anti hair wrap, so scissors would almost certainly be needed if it’s used on carpets.
I’ll update this review in a few weeks time, but for now I’m happy to give it 5 stars.