Dyson DC05 Motorhead Review

Overall Rating

light weight,
motorised head.

plasticky and fragile,
easily blocks,
does lose suction.

A cylinder cleaner with a motorised head is a great idea. When I saw this Dyson DC05 vacuum cleaner I thought it combined the best of both cylinders and uprights. And it was a Dyson! So I handed over the dosh and went home with my new toy.

However I feel that I was taken in by the the hype. I was impressed by the initial results, but on its second outing the motorhead broke. A common problem so it appears. This was eventually replaced. But I am now very conscious of how fragile and plasticky it is.

I then noticed that there is no way of regulating the suction to allow for the vacuuming of curtains and upholstery. The strong suction pulls the curtains off the rail!

The motorised head does not pick up anything larger than small pieces of grit, anything more than 5 mm in diameter just rattles around in the head before being spat out, because the entrance inlet to the telescopic arm is so small.

After about a month I noticed that suction was diminishing, and realised that the washable filter was getting clogged with dust, i.e. the claim that it doesn't loose suction is blatantly false. I washed the filter and it performed alright for a while. This filter has to be washed more often than claimed and I cannot find a retail outlet that stock a replacement should it get worn out.

The cable no longer retracts automatically, presumably because the spring has worn out.

Emptying the dust cylinder is a rather dusty and dirty process. It gets scratched and stained and soon looses that shiny space age look.

The machine seems to be very susceptible to blockages, whether in the pipe or in the machine itself. Vacuuming on the stairs caused all the fluff in the cylinder to rise to the top and block the outlet.

Trying to vacuum the house became a nightmare as I was having to nurse the cleaner along: emptying the cylinder, shaking the filter, unclogging blockages.

The end finally came less than six months after buying it! The controls have broken. I can switch on the motorised head but not the vacuum. It will not suck. It just sucks!

I am hugely disappointed. It is a very expensive cylinder vaccum cleaner and does not live up to expectations. Nice idea, poor execution. Designers might love it but for serious cleaning it is just not robust enough.
I am attempting to get a refund of my £290.

I am currently looking for a functional and reliable vacuum cleaner that will probably be a lot cheaper and last longer.