Oreck XL Lives Up to the Hype!

I purchased the Oreck XL vacuum because my wife and I grew tired of lugging our 30 pound Kirby up and down the stairs. This little 8 pound vacuum packs a punch!

When I received the vacuum, the only thing to do was attach the handle. Just the turn of a screw and I was ready to vacuum. It does a great job on the carpets. We have a fairly thick pile in half the house and a burber in the other half. The Oreck does well on both. It also sucks up everything off our 10 inch tile. Another bonus is the vac leaves the greatest lines in the carpet so you can really tell when we've run the vac. Oh, did I mention we have a dog and two cats? It lifts all the pet hair in a single pass. Nice.

It's also really light. I didn't weigh it but it is definitely less than ten pounds. If you have stairs, this vacuum rules - it is so light and easy to move around the house.

The only downside to the vacuum is the movement. It's easy to pull back but a little more difficult to push forward. Ours seems to drift a little to the left instead of moving strait back. Of course, we are comparing to the Kirby which has a little transmission and pretty much moves on it's own.

Overall, it's a great vac. It's definitely better than the cheap models you can buy in Target. Bags are HEPA and seem to suck up everything. I paid $499 and it also included the canister vac (great for the car or cleaning the bathroom) and a "cord-free" iron (see review of Oreck Iron).