We have never owned a vacuum cleaner like the Dyson Cyclone V10 that needs to be cleaned as often as you use it.
It’s like a delicate flower that only wants to hoover up breadcrumbs and pet hair. As soon as you add dust or powdered dirt to the equation, you have major dramas.
We’ve had this Dyson model for a while now (well over a year) and its whining is starting to wear thin. The V10 ‘pulses’ and chokes telling you a filter needs cleaning. This is endless.
Quite honestly, you’d expect this level of inconvenience from a cheapo brand, not a vacuum that sells for £500. We’ve owned cheap hoovers from Kenwood, LG and Vax in the past, and none of them choked up like this.
Despite Dyson’s innovation claims and pretentious ads on TV, maybe they should go back to the drawing board and invent a premium vacuum that is capable of sucking up some dust and not choking; like a vacuum should.
Today, my patience with it came to an end. We had some dusty work done in our bathroom, and the dust settled into the bedroom carpet. The carpet attachment that comes with Dyson Cyclone V10 is excellent, but after a few minutes, the filter clogged up. Standard practice. When this happens you can’t use it until the filter is washed and has dried naturally.
We put the filter back in a few hours later, and the other alert started flashing, causing the Dyson to pulse again. I dismantled the V10 completely and there are NO obstructions or issues. The filters are clean. Yet it refuses to turn on. It’s beyond annoying and frustrating.
The next step is for us to call their support team and try and figure out what’s wrong.
Dyson Cyclone V10 versus Karcher SE 4001
At the opposite end of the spectrum we have the Karcher SE 4001. Corded. Yellow. Bulky. Collection bag. Not flashy.
But it is unflinching in performance. This vacuum just wants to get rid of dirt and it is supremely good at it. The only fault is the attachments are not good at extracting dirt or dust from carpet fibres. That’s why we bought the Dyson.
Despite its reputation, this Karcher is not an industrial vacuum, and it’s become our go-to vacuum at home – dust, sand, ash, wood shavings, dried mud, dirt. Nothing stands in its way. It’s just what you’d expect from a hoover.
The collection bag gets emptied every 4-5 months, unlike the tiny Dyson container that needs to get emptied every five minutes.
We’re losing faith in Dyson, and very quickly at that. Other than looking flashy and having a great carpet attachment, this is actually a mediocre vacuum with an overinflated price tag. I don’t think we’d buy another one again.
It’ll be interesting if we can resuscitate the V10.
Feedback from Dyson support
Update: 15 February 2020: We contacted Dyson customer support via Twitter. Their response time was excellent. They said that we had not given the washable filter sufficient time to dry – we left it overnight in the airing cupboard.
According to Dyson it needs 48 hours to dry. I raised the obvious issue with them – we can’t use the V10 without the filter as it simply won’t start so what were we supposed to do for two days while it dried. Their solution was to send us a spare filter that we can interchange while it dries.
It begs the question why it doesn’t ship with two to start with, because this filter gets choked up very, very quickly and regularly.
We’ve left the filter to dry for 48 hours, and I’ve given the Dyson Cyclone V10 a good clean inside, and there are no obvious places where it can be blocked. I’m skeptical that the filer drying time is the issue. But we’ll wait and see. Update to follow in 48 hours.
So the update after 48 hours is that the Dyson is working again. But it’s ridiculous isn’t it? It clogs up very, very quickly, and it need two days to dry so you can use it again. Not very innovative in my opinion, and certainly not worth the extortionate price tag.
I immediately bought another filter when I bought my V11. You’re right though, they should give you a spare.
They definitely should given that Dyson’s support team states you must let the filter dry for 48 hours. That means you’re without a vacuum cleaner for two days. Crazy. Doubly crazy given the price tag.
hello
i found we can vacuum the filter with another vacuum and use immediately (no water)
what’s that word? oh yea ironic
That certainly is ironic – but a great idea too ????
My v11 animal is the worst purchase I have ever made, £500 for something not fit for purpose.
Everytime I use it, I can only use on the lower setting. On the highest setting, it just blocks and has to be cleared every two or three minutes. It goes longer on the lowest setting but will not pick-up my cats hair.
I have one long haired cat and her hair is on the blinds, and on the carpet. I have to clean them with a hand brush. The agent who sold me the cleaner, said he has a v11 and it is wonderful.
I was so impressed with my Dyson ball cleaner I thought I will buy a cordless Dyson V11.
I will never buy a Dyson cleaner ever again.
We had a ball hoover it was excellent my V10 is rubbish too
Not only THAT! My battery on the Cyclone V10 died and Dyson would not send a replacement – I was perfectly willing to pay for one. They will not ship Lithium batteries to Hawaii. They said they would give me 10% off a new cordless and that I would need to purchase the entire vacuum. I asked them why they would think anyone would buy another cordless vacuum if one could not get a replacement battery. Wound up with a mainland vendor who did ship me a knock off Chinese battery for $100.00 that works. Now, the filter clogged, and drip drying. Never again.
I have owned a a Dyson V11 animal for a while now, it is total rubbish. I have recently purchased a Karcher WD5 and for £128.99 it is far superior to the V11. It has a really large dust bag, it is a wet and dry cleaner, I wish I hadn’t wasted £500.00 on a useless v11 ornament.
Having filter problem with my Dyson V10, done 5 mins hovering and light flashes again, very frustrating after I’ve washed the filter 4 days ago and used my standard hoover instead while waiting to dry out.
Will give it one more go and then if no good will stick it in the shed. Not worth the money.
Thanks for the feedback Jean. It really is a great vacuum, but it’s hampered by the filter and it’s incredibly frustrating to use. The four day wait is just crazy for such an expensive hoover. Sorry to hear it’s been relegated to the shed. Lucky shed.
Agree. The V10 is a bad machine, sorry Dyson but i had a V6 that worked great only cleaned yhe filter every few months. Bought a V10 and gave the v6 away. Have always had trouble with it from day 1. Vacuum 15 minutes and filter plugs, needed new battery , the trigger plastic broke off and to boot it can suck up dust. Useless, so I bought a Miele canister which will suck the paint off your wall for less money than the V10.
I have the same problem with mine. They sent a replacement filter a few months ago, and now even when I clean it, I put it back on and within 1 minute it starts to act up. When I take the filter off, it’s completely clogged again! I have tried everything to get the dirt out, but there is no way to take it apart! Very frustrating.
Thank you for your feedback Wendy. It is incredibly frustrating. For the most part, the replacement filter has worked a lot better for us, and we get 1-2 weeks of use with each filter, but the rate at which it clogs up is annoying, given the hefty price tag.
We did, at one stage, have a blockage (small piece of cardboard) that got lodged in the hole that leads into the vacuum and that was giving us a filter “error”. This gap is visible when you open the Dyson to empty it. See if there’s anything in there. Other than that, there’s not very much else to clean. I would definitely raise this again with their support because it’s unacceptable.
I owned a V6 prior to buying a V10. I loved the V6 and only cleaned the filter once a month. The V10 is not a good vacuum. The filter clogs after 15 minutes of use. Can’t believe they would sell a machine like this for the price. It also doesn’t suck up much more than smallest dust particles. Never again.
I fully agree with you Pat. I wonder if the V11 is any better? Given the price tag of the V11 and the poor performance of the V10 I’m not prepared to throw any more money at Dyson at this stage.
V11 is basically the same thing with slightly bigger motor and bigger batteries then a V10. So good luck.
We have exactly the same issue and it is driving my wife mad. Today I took everything off, just leaving the main body, and took it out to the garden and shook and tapped for at least ten minutes until it stopped looking like I was in a snow storm. It seems that you get a build up of dust inside the machine, even though you can’t figure out where it is hiding. As soon as you clean, dry and insert the cleaned filter it just sucks up debris from inside the workings and clogs the filter again. Will see how it goes, but after four Dysons this will be the last!
It’s absolutely astonishing Andrew for a vacuum with such a hefty price tag.
We’ve now all but switched to our Karcher corded vacuum. It’s just a workhorse and is not phased by dust or dirt. We empty the bag every six months.
What are you considering as an alternative?
The hidden build up of dust is correct. My V10 showed a blockage light, but it all looked clean. I took it apart and found that the space between the inlet tube on the main unit and the thin metal filter with small holes, was full of dust all around. Cleaned this out and it now works. I think taking off the bin and tapping the unit to dislodge any build up is the way forward.
Shark seems to be well regarded on the doggy Facebook groups we are on but I do like the small size of the V10. It is great, apart from needing to wash the filter every 5 minutes! After the VERY thorough shake out this morning it worked fine and the filter does not look very clogged and no snow storm when giving it another shake out, so I’m hopeful that is the solution. We did have an “engineer” come to check it out a while ago and he recommended washing the filter and running it without actually putting it on the floor to clear any backlog of dust. I suspect the really good shake out is just a more manual way of doing that but at least the filter doesn’t need washing again straight away. If it “is” the answer it would be good if Dyson put it on their website!
I have the same problem with our V10 except I don’t even get 5 minutes. This is our fifth Dyson and our last. It’s useless.
Thanks for the feedback Sean. It’s astounding how many people have issues with this vacuum. I wonder if the V11 is as bad?
I had the same problem with mine. Being a retired engineer I set about literally taking the machine apart and removed a awful lot of dust some of which had become compacted. I know there is a compacted block of dust just below the cyclone so removed the three screws needed to get tin (I’ve got the right tool for this) but no matter how hard I tried the parts would not come apart. It’s still under warranty so they can have it back or send an engineer out to fix it.
Dyson v10 complete waste of money filter issues too much to bare any more going in bin considering the cost they should scrap it and have a re think
Received an email today from Dyson to buy their V11. Hard pass for me.
Just wanted to comment on this, as we have this issue in our home, we can do probably 2 rooms before it starts doing that stupid pulsing/i’m choking thing.
I mean it can’t handle more than 2 rooms, with regular carpet? We don’t have pets and we don’t have a dusty house.
It’s getting to the point now where I’m thinking of replacing with a regular vacuum that doesn’t cause so many issues.
And another issue is it blocks really easily, the little hole inside the cylinder where the dust/debris comes in, gets blocked by nearly everything, especially hair.
Thanks for the feedback and comment Adam. The choking is really annoying and frustrating. The fact that you don’t have pets and a clean house, makes it even more crazy that this expensive Dyson can’t cope. We now exclusively use the Dyson to remove cat hair from carpets and all other jobs are left to our corded Karcher which is a beast of a vacuum.
I have exactly the same problem with my V10. It’s driving me potty. Bought a cheap Vax to fill the frustration gap and have started using it now as my first port of call. £500 for a wall ornament! Dyson – what a fall from grace.
My Dyson V11 – Animal is completely useless. Every time I use it for a few seconds it clogs up with my cats hair. I have to open the dirt reservoir and clean out the small hole inside.
I have had Dyson cleaners for years, Luckily, I did not throw out my old Dyson ball cleaner.
That’s crazy Paul. An expensive vacuum that can’t deal with cat fur and dust. Madness. Dyson’s stick vacuums are pretty dreadful.
I bet the Dyson ball is a beast though.
Interesting comments here, my problem is the new filter doesn’t fit my v10, it would need to be forced onto the vacuum and I’m not going to do that. This is my second filter also, both too small I think. I have a v7 and much prefer that to the v10. I won’t be buying a Dyson again.
Thanks Margaret,
I am glad I am not the only one. I have always bought Dyson vacuum cleaners but,
Not any more.
My hairdresser bought a Shark Vacuum and she said it is very good.
PAUL D,
I was thinking about a Shark but feel a bit apprehensive about a cordless now, I have a corded Sebo vacuum, it is so heavy though especially after using a cordless. So now I have a Dyson v10 with two spare filters that don’t fit + I have had a text message this morning telling me I’m going to get another filter today, I wonder if there is a v10 out there that these filters will fit, probably not.
We have same blockage problem as all the others. I wonder what Mr. Dyson uses?
Our V10 has just run out of 2 year warranty. Its completely useless and not fit for purpose. Last year under warranty we’ve had a new battery after they diagnosed this the reason for the lack of suction. It wasn’t the problem, so after weeks of waiting with a non working vacuum, they sent a replacement cyclone. This fixed the issue, but it remained sensitive to dirt! A few months later, the turbo head is now refusing to turn. I’ve looked at advice videos but nothing is troubleshooting the issue. 2 years of unreliable, over priced rubbish. We also own a sebo upright which is a solid, well functioning vacuum. I’ve owned several Dysons, both upright and stick ones and I think they’ve got steadily worse. I wouldn’t buy another Dyson. A replacement stick vacuum would be valuable, but I’m unsure whether to buy Shark or the expensive option Miele (they seem to have longevity ?)
Absolutely agree with everyone’s comments. I have had my v10 for about 2 years and it’s seems to be getting worse, always needing the filter cleaned or indicating that it is blocked. I have tried the shaking method which does remove a lot of compacted, fine dust. I thought a vacuum cleaner was supposed to help but it just adds to the house work! Will try another brand of cleaner next time.
I have v11 Animal and it is the worst vacumn I’ve ever had. It doesn’t pick ANYTHING up. I sweep my hard floors and gather pet hairs on carpets via a brush. The cost of the appliance is a complete waste of time. I would NOT recommend this machine to anyone its simply useless.
Sad to hear that the V11 has not been an improvement either.
I wish I had seen this site before I purchased my V10 last year. The whole point in buying the stick cleaner was to make it easier for me to hoover up after a very messy/hairy dog, especially the stairs as I have a bad back. In 12 months I have had the bin replaced and now the filter as my machine is pulsating and a constant flashing light. When it works properly it is excellent, but with hindsight I don’t think I would purchase again. I would be interested to hear if anyone else experiences dirt/dust/hair sucked up to the top of the bin rather than the bottom?
I agree with your summation. Excellent when it works, but clogs very easily. We have avoided vacuuming fine dust, and it prefers that. We now just vacuum cat hair, and it takes months for it clog the filter now.
Yes… mine seems to get clogged in that area before it’s even 1/4 full. And now… won’t work at high or low setting which is fine b/c I don’t use much anyway. But, for the price, it’s disappointing. If not for that clog issue, I think k it’s an awesome vacuum.. Too bad!!!
We have a Dyson V10 and agree with everything said here. For a quick run over solid floor it is fine, does not pick up well from long/thick pile carpets. Having extension built, plenty of dust and small chippings (plaster, dried paint etc.) Does not pick up the small chippings, not enough power to bring into rubbish cylinder. Take finger off trigger and the chippings fall back onto floor. Hugely disappointed having spent £500, far better results from my dustpan and brush! Dyson need to step out of their hi tech factory and ‘beam down’ to an ordinary house to re assess what is required from a vacuum.
Just smashed my V10 in complete frustration and finally given up with it.
Constantly coming up blocked despite not being blocked. Lucky to get one vacuum out of it however I won’t be getting any now as it’s in bits in the rubbish.
I’m going back to Henry…simple and worked.
The V10 worked great for the first two years. After that, it’s been a real pain. How often it clogs or how often the filter needs to be cleaned/replaced.
I did find this video and it did make a difference.
https://youtu.be/A9e_hsbE1qo
This talks about and shows deep cleaning. It worked but be warned apparently it will void your warranty. My warranty was up.
Wow, I thought it was just me. My V10 is a pain in the neck. I was told buy Dyson customer service that I’m supposed to wait 72 hours before putting the filter back on. It says 24 hours in all their instructions. They tried to tell me that it was my fault. I was pissed. I then thought I would just purchase a second filter so they sent me one that doesn’t fit. I have to force it on the unit. I told them there was something wrong with the second filter and they kept telling me it was the correct one. They send me a second one and it’s as bad as the first one. I have finally given up. Wish I had spend this incredible amount of money on a different brand of cordless vacuum. I’m sorry so many of us are not happy.
Vicki
I totally agree with all you have said.
I think we should be given compensation, my V11 animal is total rubbish.
I too have to clean mine out every time I use it.
I can’t use it on full power for many minutes, it jams up.
You need to be some sort of strong person to empty it.
My wife can’t empty it at all. I can’t think what possessed me to pay £500 for such junk.
I have had a few Dyson cleaners.
The ball one lasted years and I am so glad I didn’t bin it because, I still have to use it.
Sweeping more Effective than the useless V10. Not only does it pulse after barely doing 1 room the stick removal is also very difficult to empty it.
Have you sent this comment thread onto Dyson as we should be able to get our money back due to the product not being fit for purpose even if out of warranty!!!
Agree we have the V10 hopeless…..Dyson you’ve lost the plot
11 April 2021
Yes. I have the same problem. Shockingly useless and ridiculous to spend that time waiting for the filter to dry out. And now it is not working at all while I wait for them to send another filter. I wonder if anyone has had a proper response from Dyson for this issue?
We’ve contacted them a few times with no response. Last weekend, I dropped a table spoon of flour on the floor. Used the Dyson to vacuum it and the filter immediately choked up and I had to wash it.
All the reviews are so brilliant and it always comes out top. I am fed up with this. It is only reviewing the machine as NEW. I wrote to ‘Which’ about this and today got this response:
Hello Lucie,
Thank you for getting in touch to make us aware of the filter issue you’ve experienced with your Dyson stick vacuum.
You’ve raised a significant issue here, so I’ve passed your comments on to our dedicated team of researchers for their consideration for a future report. I’d like to thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us.
They are not always reviewing machines as new, my V11 animal has not worked since I collected it from Curry’s store. It has always blocked in the stupid small suction hole.
£500 for rubbish. The thing is, no-one wants to know, complaints fall on deaf ears.
I have always bought Dyson cleaners but, this is the last.
I have had the same problems as everyone else. I have received replacement parts from Dyson so I now have 2 machines apart from the central pole but still find it virtually unusable. As the machine does not carry out its function, namely cleaning, has anyone thought about forming a group to sue Dyson for our money back.
Count me in !!
So after reading everyone’s experiences and then going to Dyson to see that my filter is no longer sold.. I decided to take matters into my own hands and slide a knife through the paper section of the filter. I figured it already had the fabric filter that helps protect the motor .. why have a double finicky obsolete redundancy .. and it now has full suction again. I am now going to peel that sticker off to see if I can remove the paper filter completely and potentially find some sort of replacement. Cheers and good luck All.
Originally from the UK but living in Canada since 1975, I could not agree more with the negative comments about the Dyson V10 which I bought when it first came out with all available attachments for use in my retirement apartment which I share with two cats. Fussy is an understatement. I expected a Rolls Royce of a portable vacuum at the high price that I paid. What I got was a pain in the ass every time it quit because of supposed blockage which always boiled down to thorough cleaning of the main unit well beyond recommended Dyson maintenance or replacement of filter. My latest struggle to get the device working again after washing the filter – what Rolls Royce requires parking the vehicle for evidently upwards of 24 hours just to give it a clean? – took a full day of searching the internet for a solution until I hit a home video about using compressed air deep inside the main unit to force out all deeply accumulated fine dust which finally revived my device. What sort of vacuum is crippled by dust, for heaven’s sake? I see no radical changes in newer models to avoid this apparent basic design flaw but a lot of ongoing complaints about this line of portable vacuum.
Spot on Stephen.
We have the same vacuum and have four rotating filter and it doesn’t matter, it still clogs up after not even a full battery use. And we have no pet hair to contend with. It’s the absolute worst vacuum we’ve ever owned and I’m embarrassed we spent the $ on it. The stress and time over trying to get the stupid thing to work are maddening.
I’m about to throw my cordless dyson out of the window ! I bought a new filter and it clogs up with a little dust within minutes and then the pulsing begins. So frustrating, I feel conned into thinking it would be an asset and would be worth the considerable price tag. I have a spare Karcher that I’m now thinking of bringing out of the cupboard, it’s heavy and cumbersome to get up stairs but at least it does what it says and works.
We’ve also had the same issues, contacted Dyson UK support today who are going to send me a replacement part – basically a new unit from the description (for £60), sadly we’ve been charged the pleasure for Mr Dysons innovation as clearly there is a design flaw in this vacuum cleaner… perhaps by V20 he might have fixed it and made a financial killing as well at £500 a pop. Probably only costs £10 to make.
i have found my people! the group of people who have been plagued with this horrible vacuum. It was not always terrible. For the first year or so it worked well enough obviously not as well as a corded vacuum but it did the job. Then yesterday the clog light came on… I am used to dealing with the shitty filter that needs cleaning and drying every time i use the thing but this clog was different, there was no clog… Took the entire thing apart, nothing.
searched a bit and came to the conclusion i hate this bloody thing and i have hated it from day one really, went and picked up a corded dyson, this thing is my new favorite item. I am almost scared its going to pull the carpet up when i clean now lol, almost feels self propelled with how fast the brush spins.
long story somewhat shorter, cordless dysons suck (and not in the good vacuum way)
I have a range of no less than 5 filters that I store. I actually bought some from Amazon that pretend to be Dyson but probably aren’t (due to price tag). I often have to change the filters twice during one hoover of my small house! It’s the only way I’ve not set fire to the stupid thing….it cleans well, when it’s actually working! Why haven’t Dyson done something about the over sensitivity of the filters?
Hi All, I thought our dyson was great for the first few weeks, then as above the same issues. Pulsing, no suction constant blocked filters.
Here’s what I do to make the problem slightly less of one.
1. Buy some cheap filters of eBay or Amazon they work ok.
2. If the tapping and washing of the filter still gives you the pulsing try the below.
3. Place a clean filter on, make sure the battery is fully charged.
4. Take away the utensil or wand from the cylinder.
5. Place your hand over the suction hole and place the Dyson on full power.
6. Feel the air sucking through your fingers.
7. After a few seconds check the filter if it’s looking dusty it’s being transferred from the metal filter to the micro filter.
8. Tap the micro filter in the garden outside to clear it and repeat.
9. This may take a few attempts and gradually you’ll see very small holes in the metal filter clear as this is being sucked into the micro filter. If you keep tapping the dust out you’ll have a clear metal filter and micro filter.
This should alleviate pulsing especially when using that real thin utensil that gets down the side of the cushions in the sofa. I find when there’s blockages the this utensil won’t work on full power!!
Hope this helps.
All the best 🙂
How can I disable the sensor that is telling the dyson the filter is clogged or wet or what ever. It’s not. It’s fine. I would very much like to cut the cord on the sensor. Thank you!
I have th’e V11 and it has to be unblocked at the bend between the stick and cleani’ng head after about 5 minutes of use. There seems to be a design fault in having a small metal bar across at the joint wh’ich’ collects dog hair and forms a huge wedge. I have to use surgical tweezers to clean out the blockage every time. The cleaners also seems to j
Just blow bits around rather than suck things in. I have 2 filters and agree they should be provided with the machine. Can’t wait to get rid of this expenSive useless cleaner.
We bought our Dyson after reading the report on Which magazine. We hate it! We are in the process of buying another different brand vacuum cleaner and will not rely only on the Which report any longer. to thinnk of that money lining the pocket of Mr. Dyson while we have to spend again from our meagre pensions makes very angry.
Time to debunk the Dyson brand. Expensive and useless!!!
Thanks for all the comments above. We’ve had this vacuum cleaner for about a year and have followed all the instructions and suggestions carefully. We obtained a second filter from Dyson enabling us to swap it out when the choking/flashing light thing happened (every time we cleaned). Yet still it’s hopeless (we’ve owned many vacuum cleaners over the years). It is a little galling that the company continues to talk about innovation and design yet it would seem there are some basic design problems here that their testing didn’t pick up. £400… We’re going to have to send it back, and I’ll be exploring different brands.
I had a V6 cordless when I lived abroad, and I was so impressed that I bought one for my parents. No trouble sucking up dog and cat hair at all.
I was surpised to find this page so full of people having problems with them, so I thought I should reply as I may be able to help.
Years ago I somehow heard of the cyclones getting blocked with dust and that causing reduced suction.
In order to prevent this I tap the central tube (that goes from the top to the bottom of the bin) with the crevice tool each time I empty the bin. Masses of dust falls out of the cyclones and straight into my wheelie bin. I continue until it stops coming out. I do feel that Dyson should advise this prominently in their instruction manuals.
Secondly, I noticed a few people mention having used their Dyson to suck up DIY dust, plaster dust, or flour.
Bagless cleaners, no matter whether Dyson or any other brand should NEVER be used with the above. Dyson do point this out in their manuals. Cyclonic systems cannot cope with the airflow being laden with fine dust – only use bagged vacuums for that and preferably NOT domestic ones.
Also, be very careful never to accidentally switch the machine on when emptying the Dyson bin. When the bin is open the bottom seal is open, which causes airflow to take a different route and effectively dumps the contents of the cylone system into the filter.
I believe this has prevented our machines from having the issues that you and your readers describe, so I hope that it helps you. Please give this a go and let me know how you get on.
Incidentally my sister has a Shark and is constantly having problems with blocked filters, and loss of suction. Henry always saves the day!
Good luck!
Dyson may have been revolutionary but they screwed up on progress, our V10 Absolute constantly throttles on and off because it gets clogged so easily. What a lousy design to remove the visibly collected dirt and hair from the cylinder that has restrictive rubber rings both ends, but it is the plug of dirt and hair deep within the central chamber that is impossible to pull out. I had to use a long flexible snake with retractable metal clasp to grab the wedged in plug. Why on earth would they have not created a twist off section to clean it? I will never buy a Dyson product again.
So glad I googled and found your website. Thought we must be the only ones struggling with the filters. Dyson is such a big name so how can a vacuum get so clogged with dust so easily.
I’m looking for a replacement and was hoping for some recommendations…Henry or karcher seem to win!
We have a Karcher – wired, SE4001 (probably discontinued now) – it is indestructible.
It seems that the number one cause for blocked filters is switching the vacuum on by accident when emptying the bin. You can prevent that by removing the filter or just unscrewing it a little before emptying the bin, that isolates the motor.
The guys recommend using compressed air to clean the filter and the inside of the cyclone if it is blocked and pulsing.
Other things to avoid are:
filling the bin above the MAX line
cleaning up plaster and DIY dirt
Also, when you empty the bin tap out as much dust from the centre tube as you can.
The Dyson V10 is so poorly engineered as to be not designed by an engineer at all. I think James Dyson had a degree in ‘hoodwinking the public’ Dyson machines stand no real chance against any opposition. I bought a builders vacuum (because you can’t use a Dyson to clean up plaster dust. It just can’t cope!!!) for under £40 and it far out performs the Dyson in every way but one – portability. But that matters little to the time wasted with a Dyson. It takes you more time to keep it working than it does to do the vacuuming. it is just so badly designed.
Very good point Andy – we had some work done in the bathroom last year and we had some plaster dust. It took less than two minutes for the Dyson to choke up. I also recently spilt some flour, which I vacuumed up with the V10 and it didn’t even get through getting it all up before the filter blocked up. Had to wheel the Karcher out to finish the job. It’s an excellent vacuum for pet hair on carpets – that’s about it.
We’ve had the Dyson V10 for a while and the filter is a nightmare.
I agree with absolutely everything said in this review. I’ve gone back to my old V6 which is a great little vacuum that needs the filter cleaned every six months not six minutes. V10 is a flawed machine because of the filters. For serious vacuuming I have a Miele canister that will suck the paint off the wall.
Given up on it and bought a second hand Henry for £50. Absolutely superb sucking power that just keeps going. How can dyson keep the con going for so long with their kit
V-10 cyclones plug up with pet hair after a years use. This has happened 3 times now involving dismantling the whole Vacuume. Is there a way to prevent this?? Thanks for any answer to this situation….
My Dyson v11 Animal cannot even pick-up after my cat, I bought a Karcher WD5, this is far superior and about a third of the price.
I’ve been through several cordless brands and they all seem to be useless. Don’t mind with the cheaper ones, because it’s not such a financial disaster, but Dyson just take the mickey. Yes, the filters are rubbish- but the real issue is that they can’t do ‘serious’ work. Perfect example: kitchen food prep. After you’ve prepped a meal there’s always a bit of stuff on the floor, right? Scraps of chopped onion, bits of parsley- that kind if thing. My Dyson 10 throws its hands up in finicky horror when asked to deal with such stuff- refuses to suck. It prefers polite little dust particles from elderly ladies’ heirlooms. It reluctantly sucks, then spits out. Thank God thst I never threw out my Henry or my Kirby. They may be heavy etc but at least they work.
I loathe my dyson v10 animal. I spend more time hunting blockages, cleaning filters (leaving them several days to dry). I even bought another filter two years ago. I end up sweeping instead of vacuuming; actually quicker. I have a clean filter and NO blockages yet still the lights are on and off constantly. Useless machine and these vacuums are not worth a bean. I have a shark corded vacuum also. So frustrating!!!
I find that the quality of every electrical appliance I have purchased has decreased over the years. I suspect its the business model companies operate under. Why build an appliance that lasts 20 years when its financially better for an appliance to be replaced after 3-4 years. Its annoying that we have the technology to build better “everything” but we seem to prefer low quality to make more $$.
It seems to me that Dyson has lost the plot. I had a Dyson ball animal cleaner for 10 years, it was excellent. But my V11 Animal looks good on the surface but, it can’t cope with the hair from my Russian blue long haired cat. It is the biggest waste of money I have purchased.£500,