After having used the Miele Polaris Galaxy canister vacuum for years (I was originally drawn to the Miele brand because of the quietness and quality of their vacuums), I was thrilled to try the Miele Blizzard Bagless Canister Vacuum especially because the Blizzard did not require the periodic purchase of expensive replacement vacuum bags.
In the box comes the vacuum itself, a suction hose, a telescoping wand, a motorized electrobrush, and an instruction manual for the electrobrush as well as an instruction manual for the overall vacuum. Brush accessories also included are a floorbrush with swiveling head (for hard floor surfaces), a crevice nozzle, an upholstery nozzle, and a dusting brush with natural bristles.
The motorized head (meaning it spins a rotating brush) is heavy but manageable, so it provides the weighted suction benefits of an upright vacuum but with the maneuverability and flexibility of a canister vacuum and hose system.
The head has one foot switch to release the wand when it is stored in the upright position, and a second foot switch to change the height of the brushes. There are five height positions to select through. Much like you can change the cutting height of a mower, this allows you to change the height of the brushes, depending on the surface being vacuumed–
The suction hose has a built-in handle with an on/off switch for the electrobrush. The handle provides grip support and the switch is convenient for when you need to quickly turn on/off the brush–say for example if the brush sucks up something it shouldn’t, like a dog toy or scarf.
The canister itself is very maneuverable due to its 360 degree wheels. In fact, my old vacuum easily toppled over, but I’ve yet to have this canister turn over, say when maneuvering around a corner or over cords. The canister has a foot switch for electric cord retraction and a switch for power. There is also a button to initiate filter cleaning mode (more on that in a moment) and a 4-setting rotating knob to change between desired suction power levels.
The dirt filter container is easily removed by lifting up on the built-in handle, and pressing a button on the filter opens a door whereby the dirt can be removed. The filter itself is a clear plastic so that you can visually see how much dirt has been accumulated, so that you can know when to empty the container.
The fine dust filter (a maintenance-free HEPA Lifetime Filter collects up to 99.98%* of dust and allergens) is self-cleaning–when it senses a specified amount of dust accumulation, it enters self-cleaning mode, whereby the vacuum switches off for about 20 seconds while the filter cleans itself. There is also a button on the main canister so that you can manually initiate this filter cleaning mode–the vacuum will click and whir while cleaning, then resume normal vacuum operations when complete. If you need to, you can also clean the filter under water, which means you shouldn’t need to buy an expensive replacement.
In use, I found the vacuum to be very effective. My old canister vacuum does not have a weighted head, and after vacuuming a rug with the old vacuum, I still was able to collect more dirt using the Blizzard, which has a 1200W motor generating airflows (according to the manufacturer) of 62+ mph. The canister is heavier though (the canister itself with the hose not attached weighs just under 12 pounds), so if you have to carry it up and down stairs it could feel bulky, though it does have a comfortable carrying handle.
With the motorized head engaged, the vacuum is about as noisy as my old canister vacuum (72 dB from about three feet away), though the noise level drops to about 68 dB with the motorized head off.
The various cleaning nozzles are easily and quickly replaced. There are built-in holders on the canister base for the crevice nozzle and upholstery nozzle, but no built-in holders for the dusting nozzle and floorbrush nozzle, which I found makes keeping track of those nozzles a little more difficult.
All in all the Miele Blizzard Bagless Canister Vacuum is a definite improvement over my old canister vacuum. Because it is bagless, I won’t have to keep purchasing expensive bags. The motorized head also seems to do a better job at extracting as much dirt as possible, especially from carpets. And, though bagless, with the included HEPA filter and easy dirt disposal container, the vacuum actually does a better job overall of allowing me to remove as much dirt, dust, and allergens from my house as possible. In other words, it does what a vacuum is supposed to do, and it does it very well.
Pricing and Availability on Amazon: Miele Blizzard Bagless Canister Vacuum (aff)