Price:
Manufacturer: Hoover
WindTunnel™ Dual V™ Technology Twin Chamber™ Bagless System Dual Agitators Automatic agitator shut-off Dual Air Paths No belt-direct drive Powerful tool suction with automatic conversion 15-inch cleaning width Tool set includes: attached hose, 2 extension wands, dusting brush, furniture nozzle, and crevice tool 31-ft. cord Full One Year Warranty
Information
- Amazon Sales Rank: #178391 in Kitchen & Housewares
- Brand: Hoover
- Model: U8130-900
- Released on: 2002-09-01
- Dimensions: 11.00" h x 18.00" w x 21.00" l, 25.40 pounds
- Delivers powerful, edge-to-edge cleaning on carpet and bare floors
- Bagless dirt collection; beltless construction
- Measures 15 by 14-1/2 by 43-1/2 inches
- Soft, non-marring wheels
- Includes 1-year limited warranty
Product Reviews Amazon.com Review
A high-powered vacuum for high traffic areas, this 12 amp Hoover WindTunnel V2 upright delivers efficient design and versatile performance. The machine features a special duct system to prevent dirt from returning to the floor, and its dual air path suction and side groomers deliver optimum edge cleaning. Adjustable for bare floors and three levels of carpet, the floor nozzle has a 15-inch cleaning path and double brush rolls to get at the dirt between carpet fibers. The vacuum is conveniently bagless and collects debris in a generously sized double-sided dirt cup. A screen between the chambers keeps large particles on one side, sending small debris and dust into the second chamber where it's trapped in the HEPA filter. When the dirt cup is full, sliding it out and emptying it is simple, thanks to the sturdy handle and secure lid. The cup's HEPA filter can be tapped clean to extend its life, while the machine's prefilter and exhaust filter can be hand washed for repeated use.
For above-floor and spot cleaning, the vacuum comes with a ready-to-go hose and onboard attachments, including an extension wand, two crevice wands in different lengths, a dusting brush, and an upholstery tool. These are stored in side clips and a tidy front hatch. Beltless for easy maintenance, the vacuum also includes helpful extras, including quick-release cord hooks, a carrying handle, a 31-foot power cord, nonmarring wheels, a furniture guard, and a headlight. The power switch is in the handle, and the three handle positions are controlled with a foot pedal. Hoover backs up this unit with a full one-year warranty. --Emily Bedard
From the Manufacturer
- Wind Tunnel Dual V technology
- Twin Chamber bagless system
- Dual agitators
- Automatic agitators shut-off
- Dual air paths
- No belt-direct drive
- Powerful tool suction with automatic conversion
- 15-inch cleaning width
- Tool set includes: attached hose, two extension wands, dusting brush, furniture nozzle, and crevice tool
- 31-foot cord
- Full one-year warranty
Good Vacuum, but disappointed overall
After spending (money) for a vacuum, I expected all my past vacuum woes to be history. I was disappointed after bringing this vacuum home. The hoover replaces my '96 Eureka 7 amp bagged vacuum that did fine for my apartment and smaller house, but I wanted something that was more powerful & trapped more dirt/pollen, etc. I started looking at the windtunnels, but decided not to go with them when I read review after review about the belts breaking too often. In comes the beltless V2 to the rescue. Add the fact that it has 2 brushes & 2 intakes, and I was sold. After 2 months of owning this vacuum, here is my verdict:
The good:
* Good job overall. The nap on my carpet is a lot better after vacuuming with the v2 than after vacuuming with my old vacuum. But that's to be expected.
* Headlight helps find dirt you might have missed.
* Stretch hose saves space on the unit & is convenient to use.
* Longer power cord than most vacuums.
* Switch to turn off the beater brush. I have alot of hard floors, and this a big help. All vacuums should do this.
* Soft wheels. I don't have to worry about it scratching my wood floors.
* Dust cup is easy to empty, and the HEPA filter is easy to clean by giving it a few twists while still in the cup.
The bad:
* Will not pick up my cat's hair. White cat hair + dark blue carpet = lots of noticable cat hair on the floor. The v2 pushes most of the hair instead of picking it up, even at the highest height! I need to "pop a wheelie" over the hair & pull the vacuum towards me to pick up most of the hair. Very frustrating. Luckily my cat stays in one room, or else I would have returned the vacuum the first day.
* Won't pick up cat litter. I use Arm & Hammer clumping cat litter. When I push the vacuum over the carpet with any cat litter on the floor, the brushes shoot the litter in different directions before the suction can pick it up. What I don't go through for my cat.
* It marks the walls! A cardinal sin in the vacuum industry. Hoover should know better than to make a vacuum that's edges mark the moulding around the floor. Why, hoover, why?
* Hair gets tangled in brushes more easily than other vacuums. Maybe because it has two brushes, maybe because it's more powerful, or maybe because my wife is losing a lot more hair lately, but I've had to pull tangled hair off the brushes at least 6 times in the two months since I've had the vacuum. And if I don't pull it off soon enough while it's running, the room becomes rich with the aroma of burnt hair.
* Dust cup could be bigger.
* Had to replace the headlight bulb after 2 weeks. Maybe I bumped it too hard. I'll give them the benefit of the doubt on that one :)
Overall, I enjoy using the vacuum. I don't think it's worth the price Hoover is charging, and I suspect it may drop soon. If I hadn't already had to take a Dirt Devil back to the store I may have taken this one back to. Sometimes I just wind up settling for things. I think this is one of those times.
No more cheap vacuums--worth the price!
We have gone through one cheap vacuum after another. Our latest vacuum (a Bissel Cleanview Bagless 12 amp) clogged repeatedly. We have three dogs, one cat, a woman with very long hair, and three children. My husband gave me the Windtunnel V2 for Christmas.
The first time that I used the V2, I was amazed at not only how much dog hair and debris it picked up but the large amount of fine dust trapped in the HEPA filter. The old vacuum had been missing the dust. My carpet lightened immediately. The vacuum *is* slightly hard to push, but I need the workout anyway. It was nothing I couldn't handle. My 11-year-old is able to use the vacuum without too much difficulty; my six-year-old (who really wanted to because he thought it looked cool) cannot. Upstairs, we keep our old Bissel. One day we misplaced the cup and carried the Hoover upstairs. It picked up tons of dirt the Bissel had been missing.
Some positives:
*Noticeable difference in carpet after one use.
*The crevice tool does a great job along the moulding; powerful suction.
*Has never clogged despite vacuuming up copious amounts of pet hair.
*Love being able to turn the brushes off to do my tile/wood floors.
*Front edge is very 'flat' and the handle leans back far enough to allow me to get under furniture better (like China hutch).
*Attractive. Love the fluorescent green bristles.
*Collection cup is easy to remove, empty and put back.
*The hose stays put when not using attachments. The attachment end of the hose on my Bissel popped off all the time.
*The holders for the tools are well-designed so everything stays put.
A few negatives:
*The hose is way too short (but you can buy a longer one).
*On/off switch seems 'cheap' for such a nice vacuum. The fit between the handle and top part of the vacuum is not as tightly sealed as one expects in a well-made product.
*While emptying the HEPA filter is easy, lots of dust ends up back in the air, resulting in a few sneezes from this allergic vacuumer.
*A bit loud with the brushes on; quiet when they are off.
*Dog hair doesn't just dump out of the cup. I have to scoop it out.
Those are all fairly minor things I can live with. It's not a $500 vacuum cleaner. I did a lot of research before selecting which V2 model to buy, and this seemed like the best value. Instead of getting the $30 'power' brush, I recommend picking up a nice handheld Dirt Devil. It's portability is convenient. That was the only noted difference I could find between the red one and the green one. The black one has a few extras, such as a longer hose, powered hand brush, and a year longer warranty, but that didn't seem worth the extra price.
Amazon had the best price on this, as long as the shipping remains free.
The best hoover windtunnel yet
I'm in the relatively unique position of having tried three brand-new Hoover wind-tunnels at home in the last 3 months, trying to find the "perfect" one. The previous two were the windtunnel U5750-900, a red bagless design (the "V1" of this cleaner), and the U5456-900, which is a blue design w/bag, similar to the earliest windtunnel cleaners.
This one is my favorite of the three. It does away with several annoyances I had with the previous models (the oldest style being the most annoying), while introducing several new features. In comparison to those two older models, there are these improvements in my experience:
- No belt (direct drive), so no burning smell when belts get old or damaged.
- Dual agitators (deep cleaning quickly)
- Dirt bin allows you to rotate the HEPA filter to shake dust off it inside the enclosed compartment (less dust flying around when cleaning the filter than in the last bagless).
- It has a better cord and tools storage arrangement and one less filter to clean (no separate filter on the motor cooling vent) than the previous bagless model.
- It has an agitator off/on button (good for cleaning hard floors) and turns the agitator off automatically when the cleaner is in the upright position.
- The screen before the HEPA filter seems to catch much more of the carpet-fuzz and pet hair than in the last bagless, so the HEPA doesn't end up quickly fuzz-coated.
A few small negatives: it is harder to push (no front wheels) than the previous two models and some people may want the self-propelled version instead. A powered hand-tool is not included (it was included in the previous two). And it's slightly louder than the previous bagless.
But those shortcomings are pretty minor. I'm going to be keeping this one...
