How To Clean Hoover Windtunnel T Series

And a discussion of Bagless vs. Bagged

I don't typically do reviews but felt this was worth discussing, especially for those who suffer from dust mite allergies or know someone who suffers from dust mite allergies. Dust mite allergies can be a tricky thing. You are required to keep your home clean and free of dust, yet just the act of cleaning your home can stir up allergens for you or a loved one in your home. I want to supply you with some of the knowledge I gained from researching vacuum cleaners after finding out my daughter had a dust mite allergy.

Please note that some of the links on this page are affiliate links. I only link to products I trust and recommend. Thank you for your support.

The Problem

When we discovered our daughter had dust mite allergies we went all out trying to make our home comfortable for her. We started dusting and vacuuming more frequently. We purchased dust mite covers for mattresses and pillows. We had our ducts cleaned. We also considered purchasing a dehumidifier (those little buggers prefer a humid environment). We decided not to after a cheaper hygrometer purchase showed us our home was actually a pretty dry place. My skin could have told us that!

If you're wondering if your home needs a dehumidifier, I highly recommend purchasing a hygrometer first. They're much cheaper than a dehumidifier and will tell you the humidity levels in your home. Find the one we used here.

The vacuum cleaner we had at the time was a Hoover Windtunnel T-series bagless bought in 2009. It was about nine years old but still had good suction and I hadn't intended on replacing it anytime soon. In addition, the vacuum cleaner had a HEPA filter to clean the air coming from the vacuum cleaner back into our home, so I figured we were in pretty good shape dust-mite-wise.

I then realized that every time I emptied the canister I was throwing a cloud of dust into the air! And I emptied the canister A LOT. I have two large long-haired dogs (one of them is a Newfoundland) and their fur fills up a vacuum cleaner canister very quickly! So, I began emptying the canister outside (probably what I should have been doing all along) but I felt like I was running outside every 30 seconds every time I vacuumed. Not fun. Especially in winter.

Then the hose tore right at the base where the hose connects to the vacuum cleaner. I don't know how other vacuum cleaners work, but with a Windtunnel T-Series, the dirt and dog fur pass through the hose on the way to the canister even when you are just vacuuming your floors. My spouse duct-taped it, but I started feeling like maybe it was time for a new vacuum cleaner.

Bagless vs. Bagged Vacuum Cleaners

When I started looking at new vacuum cleaners and comparing specs, I was trying to find the largest canister possible. I didn't want to run outside every 30 seconds anymore. But none of the canister sizes were satisfactory for me. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that maybe a bagless vacuum cleaner wasn't the right choice for us. I began looking into vacuum cleaners that used bags and found a limited amount of information about dust mite allergies and bagless vs. bagged vacuum cleaners.

Some of the information I read said it didn't matter if it was bagged or bagless as long as the vacuum cleaner had a HEPA filter. Others reported that a bagged vacuum cleaner does a better job of keeping dust out of the air and is therefore better for people with dust mite allergies (and for people who don't like to dust). The latter began to make a lot of sense to me after I thought about how much dust seemed to be in the air every time I vacuumed. I think after nine years of use, my canister was not sealing as well as it once did, allowing dust into the air even if I took the canister outside to empty it, and despite the HEPA filter.

I read all kinds of stories and reviews of bagless vs. bagged vacuum cleaners, but one story stood out to me in particular. A woman mentioned that she cleaned peoples' homes for a living and used the vacuum cleaners in the homes, meaning she had the opportunity to try out all kinds of vacuum cleaners. She reported that the homes with bagless vacuum cleaners were always much dustier than homes with bagged vacuum cleaners. I was sold. My family was getting a new, bagged, vacuum cleaner.

Shopping for Bagged Vacuum Cleaners

Bagless vacuum cleaners are very popular right now so finding a bagged vacuum cleaner you like may be a little tricky, depending on what you're looking for. Most bagged vacuum cleaners available right now are fairly simple. You're probably not going to get a lot of fancy bells and whistles like you might get with a bagless vacuum cleaner, but you will get power and suction and the basic tools, and this was all I needed.

Then, I found the Hoover Windtunnel T-series bagged upright vacuum cleaner. I was excited! Other than the canister issue, I loved my old Hoover Windtunnel. Now I could have all the things I liked about my Hoover Windtunnel (good suction, good attachments, easy to use) without the one thing I didn't like (the bagless canister). In addition, the Hoover Windtunnel bagged vacuum cleaner comes with HEPA bags, meaning the air coming out of the bag after depositing the dirt and dust, is clean and healthy. You can also buy carbon HEPA bags so the air smells fresh too! No more dog stink! These are the ones I buy.

Hoover T-Series Upright Bagged Vacuum Cleaner

I ordered my new vacuum cleaner from Amazon and it arrived in a couple of days. It was easy to put together and I tried it out right away (of course!). Not only was it picking up dirt and hair like a maniac but it was sucking out dust from deep down in my dark rug. I wish I would have taken pictures! You could see the dust come to the surface of the rug. I kept going over it again and again until I could see no more dust on the surface. This was dust my old vacuum was missing!

I've now owned the vacuum for 3 months and still love the power and suction it offers. I've also found the air in my home seems cleaner, with less dust floating around and gathering on surfaces. The other features I love and use are:

Loss of suction indicator: This tells you when the bag is getting full or something has clogged the hose.
Carbon HEPA refill bags: They make the air clean and healthy, and makes it smell good too!
Easy bag empty/refill: All I have to do is take the front panel off the vacuum cleaner, walk it out to the outside trash, and hit the release lever, and the bag falls into the garbage. No dust gets into the clean air in my house!
Long hose with attachments: The hose has multiple attachments, including: extension tool, crevice tool (my fave), upholstery tool, and pet turbo tool.
LED Light: Allows me to see better in dark corners
Long cord: 12 feet of cord allows me to vacuum a good portion of house before switching outlets

I was going to write a cons list for you as well, but I couldn't really think of any cons. For some, the fact that it doesn't swivel may be a con, although I find it's still easy to maneuver. It doesn't have cord rewind, and some people may not like that either. Also, having to purchase bags may be a con for some, but I find it's well worth it for the clean air and the longer lasting vacuuming time (without having to empty a canister over and over).

My Recommendation

I had my Hoover Windtunnel T-Series bagless vacuum cleaner for 9 years before I felt it was time to replace it. My parents have the same vacuum cleaner (the Hoover Windtunnel T-series bagless) and they've had theirs for more than ten years and are still happy with it. These vacuum cleaners seem to last a long time and I'm hoping this new Windtunnel will as well. I would recommend either style of Windtunnel, bagged or bagless, but if you have dust mite allergies or long-haired pets, I highly recommend you choose the bagged vacuum.

Checkout the different styles of Hoover Windtunnel T-Series Upright Vacuum Cleaners and choose the style that works best for you:

Hoover WindTunnel T-Series Pet Bagged Upright Vacuum Cleaner, UH30310 (This is the one I have a love and highly recommend!)

Hoover WindTunnel T-Series Rewind Plus Bagless Upright Vacuum Cleaner, UH70120 (This is my old one, which I also really liked and recommend if you prefer bagless)

There is also a bagless pet version: Hoover Windtunnel T-Series Pet Rewind Upright Vacuum Cleaner UH70210

Let me know in the comments below how you deal with dust mite allergies in your home!

Please follow and like us: