Vacuum Cleaners Tips

Miele S514 Solaris Bagged Canister Vacuum Product MPNMPN:S514 Solaris Key FeatureDesign:CanisterDirt Capture:BagTank / Bag Capacity:1.13 Gallons M...

Miele S514 Solaris Bagged Canister Vacuum Review Even with the cons, still a great buy! I just got the solaris a week ago and I'm pretty impressed with it so far. I have had a chance to use some top of the line vacuums before t...

I purchased the Miele Solaris at the beginning of August 2006. I am a real estate agent, and I was first introduced to the miracle of Miele vacuums by some clients of mine whose Miele I got to test drive. Compared to the substantial upright Hoover vacuum that I had previously used, the Miele felt so lightweight and quiet as to make me think the thing was a toy. And then I discovered that a lighter, quieter vacuum could be superior—vastly superior—to any other vacuum I had previously used.

I purchased my Miele with the upgraded extra-large powerhead with onboard headlight, which brought my total purchase price up to about $750, I believe. We live in a large house, and the larger powerhead seemed like a necessity to get the job done efficiently.

My wife knew that I was looking at purchasing a new vacuum cleaner and that I had visited a vacuum specialty store in town. But when I came home with the Miele, which I had briefly mentioned to her before deciding to purchase it, she nearly killed me. Fortunately, before she could arm herself and set about arranging for me to meet my maker, I got her to try the Miele for a moment. She used it for about a minute, then turned the vacuum off, looked at me and then said with utter disgust, “Okay, I like it!” She was furious that she had managed to be seduced by a $750 vacuum in mere seconds. Fortunately, she no longer thought I needed to cease drawing breath!

I chose this particular model because it offered practical, tangible benefits over lesser Miele models, and I decided that anything more expensive did not offer any critical benefits. Lesser models did not have the integrated electrical connectivity built into the wand, so changing from powerhead to floor brush required plugging and unplugging a cord. This model’s integrated power delivery lets you push the foot pedal, pull off the floor brush, and plug it into the powerhead in one simple movement. Snapping the wand into the powerhead is all that is needed to deliver the electric current to the powerhead. This model also offers selectable motor speed and is compatible with the optional HEPA filter, which I purchased. More expensive models offer electronic controls and automatic motor speed adjustment based on the degree of resistance encountered by the motor. For the difference in price, I decided electronic controls were not important, and I did not really want the vacuum attempting to override my judgment on motor speed.

Top speed on the motor is 1200 watts, which I find that I use rarely. The powerhead makes sufficiently good contact with carpeted floors that top speed creates quite a lot of resistance on the motor, so I usually use the 1,000 watt setting—one notch down from top speed, which makes for quieter operation and excellent cleaning results. Low speeds are ideal for cleaning drapes or for using the crevice tool. High speed with the crevice tool sucks air through the tiny crevice tool opening with a ferocity that makes me fear that house pets could be consumed by the Miele.

The motor, even at top speed, runs smoothly and quietly, as does the motor in the powerhead carpet attachment. This does not mean one can easily chat on the phone while vacuuming (although I have had occasional phone conversations while vacuuming on less that top speed), but it does mean that you will be able to hear the phone and not damage your hearing while vacuuming.

The machine is plenty maneuverable; however, its light weight means that if I tug the hose very hard, the whole machine can flip over. As is always the case on canister vacuums, the spring-driven cord rewind mechanism limits the length of the power cord. I would have preferred another ten feet on the power cord, but this is unfortunately not feasible. Other minor annoyances include a fluorescent headlight that flickers and takes a few seconds to turn on and that does not operate when the beater brush is turned off. It would have been nice if the headlight would still operate when one shuts off the beater brush to clean an area rug or an area of bare floor. Finally, the pedal that releases the handle from its upright position doesn’t seem to work very well on my powerhead. Even with the pedal pressed hard, the handle feels like it must be forced from its upright position.

Overall, I think anyone who can tolerate the idea of spending $700 to $800 on a vacuum cleaner will be pleased with the results from this lightweight, quiet powerhouse.

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