Gone are the days of lugging around a massive vacuum when a small cordless vac can do the job for you, cue the Black and Decker 2-in-1 cordless multipower pet vacuum cleaner.
Like their tools, Black and Decker has delivered a high degree of functionality with their new cordless multipower pet vacuum from styling to battery life and to performance.
Founded in 1911, Black and Decker began with power tools and then slowly grew into different facets such as gardening and eventually in 1979 released its first iconic Dustbuster.
In 2010, the company launched the Dustbuster Flexi handheld vacuum cleaner and since then has branched out into cordless stick vacs and cordless hand vacuums.
The 2-in-1 cordless multipower pet vacuum cleaner is for those with pets and for ‘whatever life throws at you’, so if it is on the floor and smaller than the Black and Decker Vacuum – it can be cleaned up.
The 2-in-1 feature refers to the pull out mini vac that can be used to clean up places the vacuum head can’t or high and hard to reach places.
I live in a 3-bedroom townhouse which is easy to clean and takes about 20 mins to vacuum the lounge, study and my bedroom.
I normally use a heavy-duty cord vacuum which I keep in a downstairs cupboard but for this review I put the Black and Decker device in the living room for easy access.
Performance
Setting up is simple; pull the vacuum out of the box and assemble it. The charging stand will also need to be put together. There is also a 2-in-1 brush, crevice and wide tool accessory included in the box which can be stored on the unit for easy access.
On the spec side the suction power is 44.68 air watts with an 18V power rating. Its total battery energy is 45Wh with a lithium-ion battery.
The whole vacuum is weighed at 3.85kg.
The Black and Decker vacuum has four different power settings, most of the time I used ‘max’ just because I’m a clean freak and owning dark carpets shows many ‘mess-demeanours’.
The maximum power is not as strong as I thought, I had to go over leaves and sand a couple of times before it was sucked up.
However, hair on the ground was picked up quickly without having to go over it a couple of times. The vacuum head has a removable ‘pet beater bar’ users can attach making it easier for it to pick up hair.
The beater bar can be activated on the control panel which according to Black and Decker ‘ensures that even embedded dust and dirt are whisked away quickly’. When I activated it mess on the floor was rapidly sucked up. For the majority of my time vacuuming on my carpets I kept the beater bar on so the job was done in a shorter amount of time.
When in use, the multipower pet vacuum makes a noise but it isn’t deafening, I could talk to someone nearby and hear them easily without yelling ‘WHAT?’.
The vacuum has smart floor sensor technology meaning the device realises what surface is on and changes the amount of suction, for example on carpet you get more power than when the vacuum is on tiles.
I loved the way this vacuum worked on tiles, I had a bit of hesitation as my big vacuum loves to create scuff marks in my bathroom but the Black and Decker realised it was on tiles and worked effortlessly with no scuff in sight.
The vacuum head has a LED light above it lighting the area surrounding the head. This was very useful in dark corners and poorly lit areas. Because of the dark carpet all through the house I would miss a few bits and pieces, but the light made sure nothing was left behind.
The vacuum has an ORA 12-Air Cyclone Technology separating debris from clean air to prevent clogs appearing in the first place.
This vacuum was great to just grab and go especially when I needed a quick and easy clean before visitors came to my house.
Design
The vacuum comes in one set design and colouring of purple and silver. The vacuum is not the prettiest thing I’ve seen on the market, but no one really buys a vacuum for its looks.
The vacuum has a floorhead with integrated wheels making it easy to move around a room giving it a lightweight feel.
The main thing Black and Decker want to highlight is the fact that there are no cords to be seen on this vacuum, so you don’t need to run around the house looking for outlets while cleaning.
You can pull the main section out and use it as a mini vac with its 1.2m ‘flexi hose’ for hard to reach corners, benchtops and awkward of areas around the home that a normal vacuum head can’t get.
It has a control centre above the dust bowl where it you control the suction power, see how much battery is left, turn the beater bar on and a light showing the status of the filter.
The vacuum has a built-in cotton scented filter keeping the house smell fresh removing pet smells or any other unpleasant odours. I live with three men between the ages of 26-29 so I might not have a pet smell, but I do have a ‘boy’ smell.
The dust bowl is one litre which comes with a ‘special handle’ to compress the dust volume inside adding more room inside and removing debris from the filter keeping the inside clean.
The vacuum comes with smart filter technology that alerts a user when build-up is detected with a warning light turning on notifying a user that the filter needs to be cleaned.
Since I’ve been using the vacuum, I’ve only had to empty the dust bowl once in three weeks and that is after using the compactor handle a couple of times.
When emptying the dust bowl there is a ‘convenient quick-release mechanism’ aka a button to remove dust bowl and then another button to open the container and empty it out.
Battery
Black and Decker says the battery on the device lasts for 60 minutes. To fully charge the vacuum it takes roughly six hours.
Once I charged the vacuum up I took the charging stand off power to see how long it would take the battery to drain between uses and being stationary.
After leaving it for five days to use it still had three out of four bars left. I continued to use in for three 5-minute periods over the next three days. It wasn’t until two days later when my housemate gave it a go and the battery finally conked out.
The battery life seems more tailored to quick jobs than large spring cleans.
Value
The multipower pet vacuum is priced at $269, an affordable price for a vacuum compared to other cordless devices which can cost upwards of $1500.
It is available now at The Good Guys.
Overall
This is a nifty cleaner built to clean whatever. It suits my small townhouse and being cordless added ease to my housework.
This vacuum seems to be perfect for those who want to do a quick clean up before friends come over or who need to get rid of chip crumbs ASAP.
I did not think this is the strongest vacuum around, but it did its job quickly and quietly.
The price is towards the bottom end but that in no way reflects on the vacuum’s performance.
A cordless vacuum is handy and should be in everyone’s home as it makes vacuuming less of a chore.
PERFORMANCE 7
DESIGN 7
VALUE 7
