The BISSELL Pet Hair Eraser Turbo doesn’t have any automation features. There are a lot of pieces you need to remove to access different parts of the vacuum. There are a few variants of the BISSELL Pet Hair Eraser Turbo, though they differ bissell vacuum cleaner mainly in terms of included attachments. Given the price, I do believe the vacuum should perform a bit better in certain areas. Bear in mind, these costs are based on Bissell’s recommendation of replacing the filter every three months.
Additionally, it comes with a 27-foot cord that offers plenty of reach. Even better, it automatically rewinds, so you don’t have to spend time doing it manually. My primary complaint about using this machine lies with the brushwell. Unlike the Dyson models, which enable you to access the rollerbrush easily, the Bissell’s rollerbrush is hard to get to.
However, you may be sacrificing some measure of cleaning performance, build quality, or quality-of-life features in exchange for that affordability. Though they’re similarly affordable, they tend to perform worse on all surface types than Shark vacuums and struggle more with clearing large debris than most Eureka vacuums. For decades, the Good Housekeeping Institute has been providing expert reviews and advice on a wide variety of cleaning products, from self-emptying robot vacuums to stain removers. When it comes to vacuums, we’ve tested everything in almost every category, including many Bissell vacuums.
I wasn’t surprised about the pet hair as, with that debris type, the brush seems to be integral to most vacuums’ success. I was, however, surprised by the fact that it picked up so many Cheerios. It collected more than the Eureka, Shark, and the DC40, all of which boast higher prices. On low-pile carpet, the Bissell collected 98 percent of the Fruity Cheerios, 79 percent of the sand/sawdust mix, and 100 percent of the pet hair. This made it the second-best performer with both Cheerios and sand/sawdust mixture, outperforming more expensive models.
Check out more upright vacuum reviews and the best Bissell upright we have tested to-date, the MultiClean Allergen Lift-Off Pet Slim. Indicates how much embedded sand a vacuum lifted from a medium-pile carpet. All left debris behind and many experienced jams in brushwells or pipes. This test, however, wasn’t designed to determine how much large, heavy debris a vacuum could collect. We wanted to determine whether a vacuum would break if you accidentally ran over a penny or bobby pins. The Bissell did not break and picked up a couple of bobby pins and the smallest nuts, but everything else was left behind or jammed in the brushwell.
For full access, you’ll need a screwdriver so you can remove the bottom plate entirely, which you’ll need to do for full brush cleaning or to detangle hair. Like other bagless vacuums, the Bissell collects debris into a dustbin, which empties easily via a gray latch near the bin’s bottom. At times I found the bin difficult to close and often pressed it down onto the countertop to ensure that the latch caught. It was certainly more of a hassle to empty than the bin on the DC40 Origin, which empties seamlessly, and closing the bin required me to come in contact with some of the collected debris. I wish it had a mechanism like the Oreck’s bin, which opens and closes via the same lever, requiring no contact with dirt or dust. Without attachments, the Bissell Pet Hair Eraser is still a dependable vacuum.
Originally, I expected the Dyson vacuums to outperform the pack by large swaths. I have since come to see Dyson vacuums as status symbols more than anything. They perform well, certainly, but they cost an arm and a leg and with the exception of pet hair on hard floors, the only Dyson to outperform the Bissell was the $649.99 DC41 Animal Complete. For far less, this Bissell vacuum consistently tested as one of the best.
Adjustments are automatic on some models, but we prefer the more precise manual control afforded by some models. Predicted brand reliability is based on estimated problem rates for newly purchased upright vacuums, not covered by an extended warranty or service contract, within the first five years of ownership. Unless your pet of choice happens to be a snake, naked mole-rat, or a hairless cat or dog, you are probably quite familiar with one of the most common challenges that plague pet parents – pet hair. You probably are very aware that pets like to shed their hair far more frequently than you like to clean it up.