The Vacuum That Made Me WANT To Vacuum Every Day
I've moved! It was both easy and dramatic, and there will be SO MANY moving and housing related recommendations to come in the next few months. The most surprising thing about my transition from one end of the west coast to the other is that my utterly useful tool, the one thing that's allowed me to maintain my sanity during this time, the thing I absolutely cannot live without and INSISTED traveled with me in my car and was not packed away in the moving pod is... my Dyson vacuum.
Replace this all-beige ensemble with leopard print and it's basically me.
This ol' gal is the love of my life and I would have had at least four emotional meltdowns in the past month if it weren't for her. Not only did I have to tidy up my apartment lickety split before I left LA, but I was moving into a house in Seattle that is being completely remodeled. Over the past few years this house has been torn down to the studs and rebuilt, and despite it being ready for me to live in, there are still some ongoing projects. That means dust, detritus, and little bits of who knows what that would drive me, a persnickety soul, truly insane were it not for the miracle that is the Dyson Stick Vacuum.
I own the Dyson V6 Animal, which I bought during a Black Friday sale after months of research. I knew exactly when the best time to buy my vacuum was, and what the best price was, and when that time/price came, I was ready. (For this model, that price was $250.) The bananas thing about the cordless Dyson is that you don't just decide, "Yes, the cordless one." because there are like, 10 types of cordless Dyson vacuums. You have to choose the model, and then which version of that model you want. At the time I bought my vacuum, the V6 was The Wirecutter's top pick, although now their recommendation has changed, and the V6 Animal isn't even for sale on the Dyson website anymore. Life comes at you fast, etc etc.
I went with the Animal because, well, I live with an animal. Also, because the Animal comes with multiple attachments, while the other models don't, although you can add them on later for an additional cost. If you do your research, you will realize that this means you are paying significantly more in the long run, when you could just buy a different model that comes with all the attachments essentially for free. (I love doing research, and would do it anyway, but it's especially fulfilling when it saves you hundreds of dollars.) I mainly use three attachments: The direct drive cleaner head (basically the big wide roller on the stick), the crevice tool, and the mini motorized head. The mini motorized head is great for if you plan to use your vacuum as a hand held to clean your couch, bed, curtains, or car, and it only comes with Animal Dyson models.
I was a little worried about the on switch for the Dyson Cordless vacuum. It's a trigger handle, so you have to hold it down the whole time you're using the vacuum, and I have some mobility and pain issues in my hands. I read some reviews of people with arthritis who said they used theirs fine, and some who said they were concerned, but no one said they couldn't use the vacuum. I've had my vacuum for months and it's not an issue at all. Honestly, I've never had a vacuum emergency (and I can't really think of what one would be) but if my hands are in horrible pain, I just... won't vacuum. Pretty simple fix.
On the topic of disability and cleaning, the Dyson cordless vacuum is the perfect tool for someone like me who has mobility issues but still likes a tidy house. My joints just aren't up for lugging around a big old vacuum and whipping a cord out of the way, then unplugging and replugging it in in every room. The V6 weighs about 5lbs. I am NOT strong and I literally have diseased joints and I can maneuver that thing around my house like nobody's business. I used to dread vacuuming, and would never do it because it was quite literally a pain in every part of my body. Now? Now I vacuum virtually every day. It's so easy to whip out the Dyson and pick up any little messes, or take the vacuum for a spin around the whole house. And if I need to change the attachments, that takes all of two seconds and is super easy - and remember: this is with hands that don't even work right.
On a finale note, I've already had to take my vacuum apart to clean it (wiping down the inside of the cleaner head... window? and cutting out hairs that got wrapped around it) and this is when I was truly blown away by how Dyson thought of every little detail. You can take this thing apart super easily and get to all the little nooks and crannies to fix whatever issue you have and then pop it back together in a flash. Sometimes it feels silly that you have to clean your cleaning tools, but such is life, and Dyson planned for that. There are a few little dust bunnies at the tippy top of my canister that I can't get to, but this has been fixed in the newer cordless models and the emptying mechanism now works differently.
Overall, I think every person should have a Dyson cordless stick vacuum in their home. They're not cheap, but after only a few weeks of owning mine I was absolutely in love. Now that I've moved into a house that's continually filled with sawdust and sand and various grit I am so grateful to have such a useful tool in my life.
