Inside Consumer Reports Test Labs: Reviews of vacuums from Oreck, Garry, Bissell, and Eureka

As part of the testing for our continuously updated ratings of upright and canister vacuums (available to subscribers), our testers come across all kinds of claims from manufacturers.

The Oreck Halo, $600, whose claims we covered in this June post, uses the same UV technology the company bought from Halo Technologies, maker of the Halo UVX upright we tested last year. "Halo Technologies," we reported then, "says its uprights, including the $400 UVX, kill dust mites, flea eggs, and germs using UV light. We didn't test those claims because the UVX was only so-so at the more primary tasks of cleaning carpets and picking up pet hair." So was the Oreck Halo, which excelled only at cleaning bare floors and keeping emissions low. What's more, the Oreck Halo weighs 19 pounds, more than Oreck uprights we've tested in the past.

Among other recently tested models are the Bissell Lift-Off Multi-Cyclonic Pet 89Q9 (shown), $180, and the Eureka Whirlwind+ Pet Lover 3276, $120, both designed with pet owners in mind. The Bissell, like earlier Lift-Off models, has a modular motor/bin assembly that detaches for use as a canister vacuum or a heavy handheld. As a standard upright, however, it fell short of the Eureka in carpet cleaning, vacuuming with tools, and some other tests—including pet-hair pickup, for which the Eureka was excellent.

The Garry Ultra Light vacuum, $200 without shipping, sold through infomercials and at www.garryvac.com, was also among the latest batch of tested models. The manufacturer touts that this vacuum can cut cleaning time because it picks up everything on the first pass and that it can clean the air and kill germs. What's more, the maker's current pitch promises free bags for life, a free (before $30 shipping) steam mop, and a no-hassle guarantee of a free replacement vacuum if you ever have a problem, no matter what.

Get more details on this model by reading " Inside Consumer Reports Test Labs: The Garry Upright Vacuum Is a Lightweight . . . In More Ways Than One." —Ed Perratore | e-mail | Twitter | Forums | Facebook

Essential information: If you're in the market for a new vacuum cleaner, check out our free buyer's guide, which also includes ratings of hand and stick vacuums.

1127/09 UPDATE: We've read and heard your calls for reviews of steam mops and cleaners. We don't have a specific date for our review but we are working with our Tech department to test several well-known models.