Do You Save or Splurge When Picking a Vacuum?

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Dyson or Shark?

In this post I will be sharing my thoughts on the Dyson V8 Origin Plus and the Shark Rocket Pet Pro – there are newer and fancier versions of both of these vacuums, but these are the models that I have personally owned!

I think it is fair to say that you are *officially* an adult when you realize it is so worth it to invest in quality items and appliances for the home. Sometimes it is so hard to do that though – if you listened to Episode 18 of the podcast then you know that there are so many unexpected costs when having a baby. Sometimes it is worth it to splurge and invest in quality and sometimes it is great to find a dupe.

So speaking of quality… Is a Dyson vacuum worth the pretty penny? In my opinion… It can be!

I have owned both a Dyson V8 Origin Plus and a Shark Rocket Pet Pro and loved them both – however, they are very different and I like different elements of them. When selecting a vacuum you need to consider your environment (flooring type, layout, square footage etc), the members of your household (young children, babies, pets, clumsy husbands), and most importantly your budget.

A little backstory …

I have two cats and learned I was allergic to cats AFTER adopting them. That was quite the surprise (I also learned I was quite allergic to dust during my allergy testing). We were living in a basement quite with full carpet flooring at the time, and my allergies were SO bad. I had to take prescription allergy medication every single day or I would try to claw my eyes out. I noticed my eyes were no longer itchy for a few months after getting the vacuum. A few months after getting the Dyson vacuum I realized that my eyes hadn’t been itchy and my nose wasn’t as congested. I then started to taper off of my allergy meds, because I didn’t feel like I needed them as much. Time went on and one day I realized I hadn’t taken my allergy pills in MONTHS. The only thing that changed in my environment was getting the Dyson vacuum, so I have to say, it is a pretty strong correlation that it made a huge difference. (Also, when I went to other people’s home with cats and/or lots of dust I would still have allergy symptoms, so I know that they didn’t go away!)

It was a love story with the Dyson until we moved into a new townhouse – the house is all hardwood and three floors high. We plug the vacuum in on the main floor, since that is our main living space and where we seem to use the vacuum the most, but we keep our cat litter upstairs and they are extremely messy. I quickly grew frustrated that I had to lug the vacuum up the stairs to clean up the mess. I think the universe was listening, because after 2 years of daily use our Dyson vacuum bit the dust. The battery was no longer working well and would only hold charge for a few minutes. We needed to get a new vacuum, and since we moved into a three story house I knew it was a priority to get a second one for upstairs.

(I have recently learned that you can buy replacement batteries for the Dyson on their website or even knockoffs on Amazon!)

I went back and forth on getting another Dyson vacuum or switching to a different brand that was more affordable. I settled on the Shark Rocket Pet Pro because it was half of the price, had great reviews and had similar specs as the Dyson. I also convinced myself that since it was half the price then I could justify buying two of them! I have to say that the change in our house environment played a huge role in my decision. As I mentioned, our new house had no carpet (except for the stairs), is three stories, and much bigger than the basement suite we were in. I was hopeful that not having carpet would mean my allergies would be less bothersome, so even if the vacuum was less powerful that I would still be happy.

I have to say that I am SO pleased to have two vacuums now and am happy with my decision to ‘downgrade’ to the Shark Rocket Pet Pro… I am not even sure I would consider it a downgrade since there are definitely pros to this vacuum in comparison to the Dyson!

My thoughts on the Dyson V8 Origin Plus…

I loved how smooth this vacuum was – I never thought I would compliment a vacuum on its ease of handling, but hey this is adulting right? I loved the versatile accessories and the docking station was super handy. I often used it on the higher power setting and had the battery die on me mid-clean. I rarely finished my whole living space before it died, which was really frustrating. On the days I did a longer vacuum with the lower power setting, I often found my finger got really sore from holding the trigger. One time I even had a small blister after power cleaning my car 😛

My thoughts on the Shark Rocket Pet Pro …

I love that there is an on/off switch instead of just the ‘trigger’ function for power. There is an additional trigger button, but it is for the extra high power! With the Dyson I found that I had to use the highest power setting for a good clean, but with this one I don’t often use the extra boost. I am not sure about the long term battery life, as I have had it for 1 year, but so far there has been no change in the battery life. I think it has only died on me maybe once or twice, so the day to day battery life is far better than the Dyson. One of my favorite functions is the light on the main vacuum head. I love vacuuming in a dimly lit room, so I can see all of the stuff I am vacuuming up… Now that I type that I realize how embarrassing that is, BUT IT IS SO SATISFYING!

In summary, here is my comparison:

	Dyson V8 Origin Plus	Shark Rocket Pet Pro	Winner
Suction	Powerful suction	Medium to strong	Dyson
Battery Life	20-40 minutes *depending on the power setting	50 minutes	Shark
Maneuverability	Great	A bit clunky and heavier	Dyson
Price	$$$	$$	Shark
Accessories	Two additional heads that are more versatile plus docking station	Two additional vacuum attachments but they are not as versatile	Dyson
Light	No light	Light on main vacuum head	Shark
Power switch	Trigger style	Switch to turn on and off plus trigger switch for high power mode	Shark

Overall my winner for my current living (and financial) situation is the Shark Rocket Pet Pro. They are pretty even in pros/cons, so it comes down to your living space, your household and your budget. There are days I miss Dyson V8’s swiftness and maneuverability, but at this stage in my life that is not a top priority. If I were living in a small space, on one floor with mostly carpet I 100% would invest in a Dyson V8 Origin Plus, but since I am living in a multilevel townhouse with no carpet I much prefer the Shark Rocket Pet Pro.

Let me know your thoughts… Comment below if you have you tried either of these vacuums!

Love,

The Friendly Moms – Jen + Karlee ♥

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