They are ok , nice light vac, my wife had one when we met, now she has me bring home riccar lightweight, super power, I see a ton in my store now since the old Oreck stores went bankrupt
In my opinion, a bagged vacuum is necessary if you’re taking it to different houses. I really like the Riccar Supralite for carpets. For hard floors, edges and upholstery I use the Hoover portapower.
I find the sharks difficult to work with, they fall over when using the attachments, they’re impossible to get clean between houses and harbor odors.
Sounds like most of your surfaces are hardwood vs carpet. If the carpet is low pile, you might be able to get a suction-only machine with a turbo floor tool. I recommend limiting your search to bagged models, none of the bagless models will provide the HEPA filtration you need. Are you in or near a city that has a vacuum dealer? If yes, they will assess your needs and work with you (discounts, demonstrations, etc.), its possible to get an entry level upright or canister in your budget and HEPA needs (Riccar Superlite, Miele C1). Most dealers have used models they refurbished at deep discounts from new/MSRP and have HEPA technology. Riccar, Filter Queen, Rainbow, Kirby, Sebo, Miele U1 and many others will meet your budget as a refurbished option.
My Shark Navigator has been running without any issues since 2013. I do have a Riccar Supralite that is fantastic for the rugs but since it has no attachments the Shark has stuck around to help me get the nooks and crannies. Only complaint about the Shark is that it’s top heavy so you have to be mindful when using the tools or it’ll tip over.
The only vacuum I’ve owned that was a disappointment was an LG cord zero. It worked ok for what it was until it didn’t, no replacement parts meant I had to junk the whole thing. Did anyone step up their game in the cordless stick vac department? I see Riccar offers one I am interested in.
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