Most of the flooring in your home is hardwood rather than carpet. You love how stately hardwood flooring looks, but you struggle to keep it clean. You recently bought a Dyson Ball vacuum for the few carpets you do have, and wonder whether you can use it on your hardwood floors as well. We've looked into Dyson's Ball vacuum capabilities to get the answer for you.
Some models of the Dyson Ball, such as the Dyson Ball Multi Floor, are intended for cleaning hardwood and carpeting alike. Dyson also produces a series of vacuums exclusively for hard flooring, including the Dyson Omni-Glide and the Dyson Micro.
In this article, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about using your Dyson Ball vacuum on hardwood flooring, from the potential risks to the upsides. We’ll even recommend some floor vacuuming techniques, so make sure you keep reading, as you won’t want to miss it!
What Is a Dyson Ball Vacuum? Is It Meant for Hardwood Floors?
Before we can address whether the Dyson Ball vacuum cleaner is appropriate for hardwood floors, you need to be up to speed on this vacuum and its capabilities.
Dyson is a UK company that produces robotic vacuums, bladeless heaters and fans, heatless hand dryers, and bagless vacuums with brushless electric motors and cyclonic separation technology.
For any type of cleaning conundrum, you can rely on Dyson! That includes cleaning hardwood floors. Although not all Dyson Ball models are appropriate for hardwood, the Dyson Ball Multi Floor vacuum cleaner is.
The Dyson Ball Multi Floor is a 42-inch vacuum that’s 15 inches wide and 13 inches long. Weighing slightly over 17 pounds, the vacuum produces 181 air watts of suction and has a max reach of 50 feet.
With its Radial Root Cyclone technology, a washable filter, and a self-adjusting cleaner head, dust and dirt don’t stand a chance. As its name would suggest, the Dyson Ball Multi Floor vacuum cleaner is intended for hardwood and carpeting. Its stair tool lets you clean your stairwell too, whether it's carpeted or not.
As we touched on in the intro, Dyson also produces several vacuum cleaners intended exclusively for hardwood. They are the Dyson Omni-Glide and the Dyson Micro. Let’s take a closer look at both models.
Dyson Omni-Glide
The Dyson Omni-Glide vacuum cleaner is among the skinniest from the manufacturer. The roller cleaner head is softer as well as omnidirectional, making it the first of its kind in the Dyson family.
An included charger and docking station ensure that the Omni-Glide can charge quickly, so it’s always ready to use. With a combi-crevice tool, getting into tight corners is possible for a whole-room clean. Dyson even protects the Omni-Glide vacuum under its two-year warranty, which covers labor and parts.
Dyson Micro 1.5kg
The Dyson Micro is a cordless vacuum that weighs slightly over three pounds. As compact as it is lightweight, this easy-to-use cleaning tool can capture particles and dust down to 0.3 microns. The vacuum is supposed to suck up nearly 100% of these particles due to the filtration throughout.
It, too, has Radial Root Cyclone technology. The Micro also features a Hyperdymium motor that runs on 105,000 RPMs. The Micro Fluffy cleaner head is soft enough for hardwood. With carbon fiber filaments, the Micro Fluffy head can pull even fine layers of dust from hard flooring.
Can Dyson Damage Hardwood Floors?
Considering how many vacuum cleaner models that Dyson produces, what’s clear is that not all are made for hardwood floors. The three vacuum cleaners we discussed in the last section–which are the Dyson Ball Multi Floor, the Dyson Omni-Glide, and the Dyson Micro 1.5 kg–will not damage your floors.
Using any other Dyson vacuum model on hard flooring could lead to scratching and other destruction. One such vacuum that’s anti-hardwood is the Dyson V8 Animal.
Users have complained that its roller wheels begin wearing out after several months of use on hard floors. As the roller wheels become strained, they leave scuff marks. You can remove the scuffs from hardwood with some baking soda or even a tennis ball, but it usually takes some elbow grease.
Some users have reported that even after getting a new set of wheels for their Dyson V8 Animal vacuum cleaner, the new set wore out in kind.
Besides scuff marks, the Dyson V8 Animal’s wheels have also been known to scratch hardwood. Scratches are much more serious damage compared to scuffs.
With a wax stick or a paste wax, you can buff out most hard floor scratches. Combining olive oil and baking soda might also treat scratches, so they’re less noticeable.
Still, if your hardwood floor is brand new or even a couple of years old, the last thing you want to do is scratch your floor when you are only trying to clean it. If the scratches don’t come out all the way, your floor looks worse for wear. You’ll want to tear out the damaged hardwood and start over, which can be quite costly!
Read more: "How Long Before You Can Use New Hardwood Floor?"
What Is the Best Way to Vacuum Hardwood Floors?
Compared to vacuuming carpeting, you might not be sure where to begin with your hardwood floors. Dust can skitter across the floor from the air gusts generated from your vacuum, always slightly out of your reach.
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If vacuuming hardwood leaves you frustrated, you might want to revise your technique. Here are our best tips for vacuuming hard flooring.
No Beater Bars on Hardwood
Many vacuum cleaners use beater bars, which are nylon bristles attached in a row. The bristles burrow into your carpeting as you vacuum over the rug, digging up the dirt and then suctioning it. As you can imagine, the last thing you want when vacuuming hardwood is a series of bristles trying to embed themselves into your flooring.
Hard bristles–especially at the speed a beater bar can go–can wreck your hardwood floors in a jiffy. If you’re vacuuming your carpets and then transitioning to hardwood, stop before you reach your hard floors and remove the beater bar.
Vacuum First, Then Mop
Do you mop your hardwood floors and then vacuum them? You’re cleaning in the wrong order.
Your mop doesn’t collect dust. Rather, it soaks the dust and then pushes it around your hard flooring. You’re not really cleaning your floors at all, just coating the whole floor in filth (even the areas that weren’t previously dirty).
In the future, vacuum the hardwood first until you remove all dust. Then you can mop. The floor will be cleaner as you’re not shoving filth around the hardwood.
Use the Included Tools and Attachments
Your hardwood vacuum cleaner wasn’t the only thing in the box when you bought it. It also came with attachments, so don’t discard them. The vacuum attachments are intended for easier cleaning of hard-to-reach areas such as hardwood staircases or those corners of the room where dust always seems to pile up.
Read more: "How to Cut Hardwood Floors Near a Wall."
Is Vacuuming Better Than Sweeping?
Rather than lug your vacuum cleaner all over the house, maybe you’ll just grab your broom and dustpan and sweep your hardwood floors instead. Is it better to vacuum your hardwood floors or sweep them?
That depends. If your vacuum cleaner isn’t formulated for hardwood and other hard flooring materials, then we’d recommend you sweep your floors every time. The vacuum could scuff or scratch the hardwood, as we talked about. Although both issues are usually fixable, keeping your hard floors clean with a vacuum will become more trouble than it’s worth.
Sweeping is usually more labor-intensive. When vacuuming, you need to push the vacuum over the areas you’re cleaning, whereas when sweeping, you must accumulate piles of dust and dirt and then collect them on a dustpan. There’s a lot more bending to it, which can lead to backaches and other body aches.
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A broom and dustpan can’t collect dirt and dust from corners as well as a vacuum cleaner can, which can leave parts of the room neglected. Before you know it, you’ll have big, fluffy dust bunnies in your living room, dining room, or entertainment room.
There’s also not much you can do about liquid spills with a broom and dustpan. Not all vacuums are formulated for handling liquids either, but many of them are. Time is of the essence when you spill on hardwood, as stains, discoloration, and other damage can accumulate without quick intervention.
In Closing
Dyson Ball vacuum cleaners are a beloved product found in the homes of many. Only the Dyson Ball Multi Floor vacuum is adept at cleaning both carpeting and hardwood. You can also shop several Dyson hardwood vacuum models.
With a vacuum cleaner, you can enjoy a whole-house clean for hardwood and carpeting alike!