Stairs present a special challenge when it comes to vacuuming. First of all, the spaces on top of the stairs are narrow so the vacuum that you use must be small enough to fit in that space or light enough to be held. Handheld vacuums need to be light enough to be carried up or down several stairs and also have enough power to pick up debris from hard surfaced as well as carpeted stairs. Everyone has their preference, but we took a look at three types of vacuums suitable for cleaning your stairway.
Handheld Vacuums
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These small and compact vacuums are lightweight and easy to carry. Most of these vacuums weigh less than five pounds, some are slightly more, but if weight is important to you, then you should carefully research that before you make a final purchase.
Another consideration is whether you want a vacuum with a cord or a rechargeable one. Corded vacuums can be pesky and problematic, but so can battery operated vacuums with a short battery life that crap out halfway through the job. Remember to consider battery life when you are looking at handheld vacuums if you are considering a cordless model.
Most handhelds are bagless, meaning they have dirt cup that must be emptied once full. This can save you some money (although vacuum bags are not that pricey) but more importantly, you won’t have to stop vacuuming because your bag is full and you forgot to buy more. Another feature you should look at for carpeted stairs is a “riser visor” that prevents debris from escaping, putting it directly in the path of the suction of the vacuum.
Upright Vacuum with Removable Canister
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You can use upright vacuums with the removable canister to vacuum your stairway as the detachable canister is lightweight and easy to carry along with you as you clean stairs. A primary upright vacuum that can be used as a handheld is very versatile and can be used to vacuum carpeted stairs or hard surfaces as well as regular rooms with carpet.
The fact that the canister is removable makes this type of vacuum easier to use instead of having to take the whole unit up the stairs where it may not exactly fit on the risers. Look for an upright that has a variety of useful tools that can be helpful in keeping your stairs spotless.
Again, most uprights with a canister are bagless, so there is no issue with having to worry about replacing bags on your vacuum. You should be able to see when the dust cup is full and needs to be emptied. Some uprights are cordless (only a certain amount of run-time) while others are fully corded and this can be problematic if you have a lot of stairs to vacuum (more than 20 feet worth). You will also need to decide if you should plug the cord in at the top of the stairs or at the bottom, but this will be a personal choice.
Canister Vacuums
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If you choose a canister vacuum, then you are choosing a corded vacuum cleaner. Most of these types of vacuums also come with bags, so you won’t need to constantly empty out a dust cup when you are in the middle of a big job like a long stairway. Canisters can fit on risers too, so you will not need to carry them, leaving your arms free for other things, like hanging onto the handrail.
The suction power of a canister vacuum tends to be superior over other types of vacuums too. You can really see the difference once you clean your stairs with this type of machine. Definitely make sure that you choose a vacuum with a longer cord (up to 30 feet) and one that has many attachments that can help you to really scrub those carpeted stairs, removing all of the debris that is tucked into each riser.
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