Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

We bought the Dyson DC07 in Dec. of 2002, and it gets used for approximately 1 hour x twice a week on carpet. Our unit is out of warranty. In the vacuum cleaner market that, in our opinion, is dominated by poor product design, plastic parts that break easily, motors that burn out, belts that stretch and break, expensive bags that fill up virtually instantly, and a very short useful life, our Dyson has acquitted itself rather well. Many of the other favorable comments about this Dyson apply and will not be repeated here. We would add that Dyson has good telephone customer service as well as an on-line diagnostic guide. We note the following negatives: - The "off the floor" hose suction is not as strong and is much more awkward than with a "tank type - non upright" cleaner. If you are doing mostly off the floor cleaning, probably no upright is recommended. -While it is NOT in the instructions, customer service will tell you that vacuuming up powder (plaster, carpet cleaner, carpet deodorant) will clog the hepa filter and eventually destroy the machine. If you plan to do this kind of work, get something that uses disposable bags. -It is also not in the instructions, but DON'T run water thru the fully assembled canister to remove dust and dirt. The air flow will eventually gunk up and make the vacuum unusable. Use a compressed air can to blow out the dust or occasionally remove and clean the lower section (see below). While the parts that you can access are easy to remove for cleaning and unblocking, there are some critical non user serviceable parts on the Dyson. Even the drive belt and hepa filters are supposed to be changed by a service center. So keep the box in case you have to ship the machine back to the company and hope you never need to use it The problem, however, is really not with this Dyson DC07 (and probably other models as well) when it is under warranty. It is after the two year warranty expires and you are dependent on their expensive and sparsely located dealer network. I would guess that with parts and labor, a major repair could easily be between a quarter and half the price of a new machine. We believe that Dyson should do a much better job in providing owner repair instructions, especially for machines that out of warranty. In that light, we are providing information on two common repairs that the owner can perform. We would hope that at some point, Dyson would provide information on other repairs: The hepa filter, which is supposed to last the lifetime of the machine, doesn't. But it can be removed using a screwdriver to release the cover catches on both sides and replaced by the user (special replacement filter must be purchased from the company or from a dealer). We found it necessary to replace the filter (ourselves) when the machine constantly cut off due to overheating. However, you may also come to the point, as we did, where the cylinder gets sufficiently clogged that there is suction to the intake (which means the motor is working) but there is no suction to the hose or floor and the vortex dirt isn't spinning. Customer service will first tell you that you have to bring or ship your Dyson to a dealer who will charge for parts and labor. Alternatively, a new canister will be $86.00 including shipping from them. Forget it. You can clean the unit following these instructions (note; this probably will make little sense UNTIL you have the canister in front of you when it will become more obvious). Be aware that you may well void any warranty if you do the following and, in any event, you do so at your risk but if it works, it can save you from an expensive dealer repair or part replacment. -Remove the canister and clear plastic bin. Remove the bin and set it aside. -The "cage" (part with the little holes) and the part with the vanes are held on with the black rubber ring at the bottom of the canister. The vane piece has to be removed before the cage by first easing out the rubber piece. Note the orientation of the rubber piece for reassembly. Removing the ring, vanes and cage is NOT dependent upon removing the handle (see next step below). -Using a torx (star) #15 screwdriver, remove the 3 screws on top of the canister handle. -Reach through the bottom of the unit and note how the long rod that opens the base flap fits through a guide slot. -Pull out the handle assembly that includes the long rod. Do not remove the rod completely. Also, do not damage the large O-Ring and note, for reassembly, that there is a "flat" side to the handle assembly. Ignore the 3 screws inside the canister; they don't seem to do anything. Also, the upper and lower plastic parts of the canister cannot be separated. -Wash the canister unit using a high pressure hose or faucet and a bottle brush. Wash thru all the vortex openings at the top, the cage, the vane part and everywhere else. Run water through the unit until no more fibers, dirt, etc. come out and then a little longer. You will be amazed at how much stuff can accumulate in this canister. -Allow everything to dry. When reassembling, make sure that, by reaching though the bottom of the unit, you guide the rod through the rod slot. If you cleaned out all the accumulation, the air flow should work almost like new after the vacuum is reassembled. Notwithstanding the above, the Dyson DC07 is probably a better and more reliable machine than anything else available (which, as noted, says something about vacuum cleaners in general), so with reservations and the hope that Dyson starts treating its customers like adults by providing information about user service, we recommend it.