I have a live giveaway running for one of these Bissell Powerglide Cordless Vacuum Cleaners. It ends on the 30th November 2015, so get your skates on if you want to enter.
It’s a new vacuum for Bissell, and they’re really excited by the new launch. Bissell sent me one to review and it’s been put to the test on my floors regularly. We badly needed a new one, as for the last wee while, we’ve been sharing my mother’s one, as I’d never got round to actually finding one for us.
The cordless ability is what drew me to this, and why I agreed to carry it and also run a giveaway.
Here’s what I think of it.
Putting It Together
The man was home, so he put it together, but if he hadn’t been, I’d have had no problem getting this ready for use. Compared to some other vacuums I’ve slotted together, the assembly was relatively simply. It literally was just slot the handle into the extension piece, then slot it into the base unit. After that, just pop the hose into the connector and click it into place.
Attaching the lift off portion to the base is quick and easy. The battery is even easier. It’s just a slot into place until it clicks. It does need a firm push, but feels sturdy and secure.
Charging
The battery comes out of the vacuum for charging, and slots into it’s own charger, which can take up to 2 hours for a full charge. The run time is 45 minutes per change, which seems to last us a fair time.
Vacuuming Floors
On the left side, the on and off button is on it’s own. On the other side, the brush bar has its own button, which is on and off. In front of the brush bar button, there’s another, which determines the power used, ie high or low.
For hard floors, it’s recommended to turn off the brush bar. I mostly used my vacuum on the high power setting at all times, which worked out great for us, but on our laminate floors, I only needed the low power for it to work perfectly well.
On our carpets, it did the job I needed it to do. The swivel head means that it’s easy to move around furniture and get under the radiators without having an aching hand by trying to manoeuvre it. I did find the suction quite powerful on carpets, which was a surprise for a cordless vacuum.
Stairs/ Lift Off
The lift off is easy to do. Press the bottom half of the release button at the back and the top portion separates from the brush bar. Flick the dial at the side from vacuum to lift off and pull the hose from the top, then just vacuum away. On wooden stairs, it’s perfect. I’d have liked a bit more oompf when using the lift off for carpeted stairs, but it did the job with a little extra time. I’m not complaining. 
Where it did a grand job was overhead cleaning. The carry piece is light enough for me to lift the wand high enough to zap cobwebs from the ceiling in our garage. There isn’t a close enough socket for regular cleaners, and that has a tendency to get overlooked.
Emptying
It’s a one button release from the vacuum, then, although it isn’t totally handsfree, it’s close enough. A little catch releases the dirt container lid, and the dirt falls into a bin below. I did open the top to see how easy it would be to clean, and it scored plenty of points with me here. The filter is wash and re-useable but since our machine is new, I’ve not tried this to see how long it takes to dry.
Best Feature
It’s a bit of a no brainer isn’t it? Being cordless, there is no tangling, no picking up and moving of cords wrapped round fingers, or behind a shoulder, or unplugging and replugging to do another room. The carpet in our extension is getting done more often because it’s simply walk through with the vacuum and get it done.
Likewise with the stairs. I really dislike juggling cords and having to change plugs several times, and it doesn’t help that the socket at the top of our stairs no longer works, so I have to use an extension lead from a bedroom.
I’ve used the vacuum for a few days now, and I’ve found it much more helpful than I ever imagined. Instead of always bending down with a brush and shovel, it’s simply a case of grabbing the Bissell and clearing crumbs and mess from the floors, especially the kitchen, where breadcrumbs seem to find their way into everything.
Ou cordless vacuum cleaner has already had lots of use, and I can’t see that changing any time soon.
Bissell provided the Powerglide Cordless Vacuum Cleaner for review. Opinions are my own.