Dirt Devil Ultra...Do I have to use the word suck?

In going through my opinions this morning I noticed that out of the 27 that I've written, not one of mine is an actual product review. I feel that I should add at least one, because so many of the product reviews on this site have helped me in my buying decisions. I'd like to return a little of that help to anyone who may need it.

I chose to comment on the Dirt Devil Ultra Hand Vac because this is a tool I use everyday, one that I feel I couldn't live without. My full size vacuum is a Kirby and though I am very pleased with it's performance and have been for many years, it's a very heavy machine. This was fine by itself four years ago when we lived in a modern but small townhouse, with 8ft ceilings and 6 very wide stair steps. It wasn't too difficult to drag the Kirby around the house and getting the cobwebs and dust from the ceiling was a snap.

When we decided to make an addition to our family, we also decided that the townhouse was too small and we had to have more room. We found a beautiful 100 year old house in the country with three times the space. We had to have it, unfortunately I was looking at lugging my monster Kirby over 3700sq feet of house, 12ft ceilings and 15 very narrow stair steps. Whoa, I'll be a power lifter soon with more muscle than my husband!

After about 6 months of weight lifting, I had to lift the Kirby onto a chair to get to the ceiling and forget about those stairs...I used the broom, I was fed up. I started pestering my husband for a hand vac that had a little more power than a cheap dustbuster. His argument was the same every time...when you talked me into paying an outrageous price for the Kirby, you said it would be the last vacuum you would ever need. Well, I meant that...but this was different, really it was.

I quit cleaning up the cobwebs right then and there. You'd be amazed at how these little spiders can decorate your house in such a short period of time, within another month my husband was fed up with the webs and decided to do it himself. He got out the Kirby and started in on them, after clearing all of them he quietly put the Kirby away, grabbed his car keys and took off to buy a hand vac. (smile) I wish I had thought of this earlier, I could have saved myself a whole lot of pain and suffering.

He came home with a Dirt Devil Ultra Hand Vac and I have been taking care of these ceilings ever since.

These are the pros :

20 ft cord that goes anywhere in any room of my house.
Handy little hose attached that has just as much power as the main brush.
Simple and cheap bag replacement.
Very easy to change the belt, a piece unscrews in front just for that purpose.
The bags and belts can be found in a wide variety of stores.
Much more power than a simple dustbuster.
Nice little wrap attached to hold the cord when you put it away.
Lightweight and easy to carry around for extended periods.

The cons :

The only things I've found wrong with this little machine, I would find wrong with any little hand vac. The bags are small and have to be replaced often.
The belts break on mine more often because my children insist on vacuuming up strings, yarn and dog hair, then not clean the brush when they're done.

The Dirt Devil Ultra Hand Vac is a great little tool, I vacuum every morning with the Kirby and use this thing many times the rest of the day. It takes care of the cobwebs, the leaves and dirt the kids bring in, the tumbleweeds my dog leaves around the house during shedding season and does a great job under my two year old's chair after mealtime. I would highly recommend this little hand vac and like I said, I couldn't live without it!

Now, did I have to use the word suck?....hmmm...nope I guess not! (smile)