If you suffer from allergies or asthma, keeping your home clean is of the utmost importance. It can also turn into a full-time job unless you choose the best vacuum for allergies. Unfortunately, these vacuums don’t fall under a special category, which makes it easy for any manufacturer to claim their machine is allergy-friendly.
While there are a number of resources and agencies that can put you on track to finding a great vacuum, there are still hundreds of options to choose from. With that in mind, our guide is designed to cover key areas that you’ll need to consider, and we’ve put together a list featuring some of the best vacuums for homeowners with allergies as well.
How to find the Best Vacuum for Allergies
The first area we want to discuss involves your cleaning habits. When you suffer from allergies, cleaning should be part of your daily routine. That means you need a vacuum cleaner they can handle heavy-duty work, not a system that will falter after a few years. It's also important to think about the layout of your home.
How many floors are in your home? Cordless vacuum cleaners are handy, but not necessarily ideal for a large multi-story home unless the vacuum has outstanding battery life. Carrying a 20-pound upright upstairs isn't going to be fun either, which means you have to find the right balance. Obviously, the type of flooring you have is key as well, considering you don't necessarily need a high powered system if you only have hardwood in your home.
Dust Bins vs. Bagged Systems
Buying a vacuum cleaner with a sealed system is critical when you suffer from allergies and need to keep dust in dirt out of your home. Unfortunately, just because a manufacturer says they have a tightly sealed system, doesn't mean that it actually is. While that's something that's impossible to test beforehand in most cases, it often comes down to the design and the receptacle that holds the dirt.
Vacuum cleaners with a dust bin or cup have become increasingly popular in recent years. Most are transparent and can be completely removed from the system or have a mechanism in place that makes them easy to dump. You will never have to worry about replacement bags with a bin-based system, although dust can get back into the air when you dump the bin.
A bagged vacuum cleaner is your best choice for allergies in most cases. They tend to hold more than a clear canister, and all the top models have self-closing bags. When full, you simply need to remove the bag and replace it with a new one. Bags can come with different levels of filtration as well, although you do need to consider the cost and availability of replacements.
Filtration
Once you decide between bins or bags, it’s time to think about filtration. In this class, most vacuums will have a multi-stage system that is comprised of several filters, which can include primary and secondary filters. Here are a few of the more common types you’re likely to encounter with vacuums built for allergies.