Customer Reviews

Oreck XL2000RHB 8LB Comm Up Vacuum

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I used to be a believer in these vacuums. Not any more. We've had them for more than 10 years, and have had to replace them every 3 years or so, and have them repaired every 3 months. Something always breaks. For the record. We have 2 units in our house, and have purchased probably 6 in the past 10 years. So my views are based on substantial experience, not the first 3 weeks of a honeymoon.

Initially, we were attracted to the fact that they are supposedly "commercial", and you do occasionally see them in hotels. However, they are identical to the retail units, with the exception of the power cord and the warranty. The reason the retail units are 3 times as much money, is that they have a multi year warranty, which these vacuums need, because they break CONSTANTLY.

The Oreck people blame everyone... its the way you use it, its the cleaning people, its the kids, its bigfoot and the martians.... its everything but the lousy construction. We do have an active household and a large family, but that is no excuse for the thing constantly breaking.

They do vacuum ok, and they are light. But they are junky and built poorly. I finally had it last year when our main one died yet again, 2 months after its last $75 trip to the Oreck store. I bought a cheap hoover from Amazon, and lo and behold, it works better, cost 1/3 as much, and hasn't broken yet in almost a year.

Don't believe the hype. Too bad, as most vacuums are lousy anyway, but these Orecks are just junk. Its amazing how much we fall for fancy marketing. But these vacuums are simply not worth the money or hassle.

If you use a vacuum once a month, live a quiet life, and make little dirt, then these will do ok for a while. But if you expect to get $200 worth of value, look somewhere else.

I had an old Oreck vac and it finally needed a new motor after 25 years. I was looking at light economy vacs and they all cost more and were heavier, so I decided to get another Oreck like I had before. It works great. I like the switch on the handle so you don't have be bend down.

I purchased the Oreck five years ago and wish I had not. I suppose that it can suck up a bowling ball. I have a dog and a cat, and the vacuum clogs rapidly. It is not easy to unclog. I have brought the vacuum in for unclogging several times. I am now looking for another vacuum and will be disposing of the Oreck XL very shortly. For the amount that a new Oreck sells for, it is vastly over priced. For its quality of performance, the price should not be more than $100 to $120.

Our first model lasted for ten years, and did a good job in a house with lots of carpet but no pets. I believe we took it in for service twice in that time, with minor parts being replaced. Eventually, it "bit the dust" or it is more appropriate to say that it stopped biting the dust? It just didn't suck the way it used to, and we bought a new Oreck vacuum.

Our second Oreck is about two years old and it has had to deal with two cats plus giant dust bunnies in teenage boy's bedrooms, which don't get cleaned all that often. It has performed admirably. The Oreck is light and easy to move around the house- upstairs to downstairs, and from room to room. For those people who complain that their model isn't sucking well, it may be that they don't change the bag often enough. The bags are designed to fill to a certain point- which is far below the top of the bag. We find that when our vacuum slows down, we usually need to change the bag, and then it picks up just fine. I appreciate that the bags are very sturdy and don't rip... they are also quite easy to replace.

OK here is the deal It has no attachments, sure it don't. That is what makes them light and easy to use. The basic model has not changed in years, so that may make it ugly to some people. I like to see things with a simple design. The upside to that one is you can replace any part on one. The basic design makes them easy to repair also. Anyone with a screw driver can repair one. I have never had a vacuum that works as good 5 years later than it did when I bought it. But this is the only one that you can get parts for and make them like new in just a few minutes. It's like a car, you need to replace a few things to keep them running at top performance. If you have one that don't perform like new, open the thing up and see if the fan blade needs to be replaced. Maybe the brush is worn, replace it. Or, toss the outside bag part in the washing machine every now and then. I bought mine without the hand vac for 199.00. If you have problems with the plastic fan blade in it you can replace them with a metal one. I have sucked up a few nails and stuff that can chip the fan blade. Most problems you might have are the fan blade breaking.

Overall.... nice simple design and easy to repair and maintain.

Pros:
-Very light. It has been borrowed several times due to its portability.
-It can go really low under the bed and furnitures
-Our house is half carpet and half hardwood floors. It works on both.
-We have been using this for years and so far it hasn't stopped working. Besides being used regularly for general cleaning. This vacuum is constantly on duty several times a week if not everyday in short bursts. 3 kids will make you do that whether it is cereals, chips, popcorns, etc. Belt has been replaced only once. I am reading a lot of negatives on customer service but since we have no actual experience I can not comment on that. The most common whine is the frequent removal of hair that wraps around the roller.

Cons:
-Not too strong suction.
-Sometimes it is hard to push forward.
-No attachments. The attachments are mainly for the handheld vacuum that came with it.
-Shocked to find out how much it cost for the bags when I went to a dealer.
-One ugly vac.

It also came with a cordless flat iron which we think is a so so. We used it only a few times.

Main 2 reasons for rating this 4 stars is its lightness and durability.

I love the Oreck. It is light weight and perfect for my row house with 4 floors. And it has remarkable power for being so light. It uses bags, but I've concluded that a bagged vacuum is actually less bother that bagless (much more maintenance required).

I have had my Oreck for 10 years and it has been great. I have had Kirby, Electrolux, Royal, Rainbow, and I like the Oreck the best.

do not reccomend if you need a machine with attachmentsUpright Vacuum, 6500 RPM, 35' Cord, Fire-resistant, Red (ORK2000RHB).

I own an Oreck and it caught fire while vacuuming, the handle is wired to motor and the handle caught fire, plastic handle melted and wire completely melted, Oreck customer won't help you, after mine caught fire I read up on Oreck and this is a common problem