How much is a genuine Kirby vacuum cleaner cost (the Sentria model)

Serpentor

Serpentor

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i paid a whooping $1600 for it... i think i got ripped off... that's what happens when you let a sales person inside the house. i'm not saying the product is not good (man, the amount of dust the thing sucked up is pretty creepy), just that i didn't know a good vacuum cost that much...

any comments? besides "hahaha sucker."
 
Door to door vacuum cleaner salesmen still exist?

Seriously though, I dont think I am enough of a clean freak to pay that much for a vacuum. No matter how much dirt it sucks out, it will get dirty just as fast as it normally would and you will have to vacuum again in a few days. So why bother.
 
my dad paid $1800 for one about 4 years ago. I'm still pissed at him. anything over $500 (and even that is pushing it) is fucking insane for a vacuum.
 
Well I know a few familys that have had their Kirby's for 30 years or more. Might cost a lot but I understand they are built to last. I bought a 200 dollar Eureka Boss that came well reviewed. Unfortunatly a year later the thing is falling apart, it's clearly not designed to be used once a week. Once a month I guess maybe. All plastic, the end of the hose is crumbling more every day, the latch to keep it upright snapped off. I live in a 2 bedroom apartment, clean once a week or bi monthly. This thing was not abused and the cheap plastic is just crumbling. Called the company well your 1 year warrenty is up. I'm like my package says 2 year warrenty because it has the Good Housekeeping seal of approval (BS I assure you). Call Eureka they tell me that warrenty is through Good Housekeeping. I call Good Housekeeping they are like we're a magazine we certainly don't have warrenties, you need to call Eureka. So here I am with a lame duck vaccume and a no good warrenty. Filed with the BBB. Currently saving up for a dyson maybe but each day goes buy I wonder if I shouldn't deal with my broken one til I buy a house and get a damn Kirby and be done with it. You sir will get no haha sucker from me. I say enjoy your clean home!
 
[quote name='Yo Mama']http://www.cockeyed.com/citizen/kirby/kirby.html[/quote]

Oh man, that's some read... damn, it's sooo true, i wish i read it before i let the guy in! It's a good product, but still, man, it cause more than a good HD TV! Ah, i kinda regret it, but then again, i want cleaner carpets, floors and beds!

the thing is more than two PS3s and one Wii!
 
[quote name='macdude22']Well I know a few familys that have had their Kirby's for 30 years or more. Might cost a lot but I understand they are built to last. I bought a 200 dollar Eureka Boss that came well reviewed. Unfortunatly a year later the thing is falling apart, it's clearly not designed to be used once a week. Once a month I guess maybe. All plastic, the end of the hose is crumbling more every day, the latch to keep it upright snapped off. I live in a 2 bedroom apartment, clean once a week or bi monthly. This thing was not abused and the cheap plastic is just crumbling. Called the company well your 1 year warrenty is up. I'm like my package says 2 year warrenty because it has the Good Housekeeping seal of approval (BS I assure you). Call Eureka they tell me that warrenty is through Good Housekeeping. I call Good Housekeeping they are like we're a magazine we certainly don't have warrenties, you need to call Eureka. So here I am with a lame duck vaccume and a no good warrenty. Filed with the BBB. Currently saving up for a dyson maybe but each day goes buy I wonder if I shouldn't deal with my broken one til I buy a house and get a damn Kirby and be done with it. You sir will get no haha sucker from me. I say enjoy your clean home![/quote]

Oh thanks for the kind words, i really need them... my wife is cursing the crap out of me "it's not that you can't afford it, it's that the damn thing is freaking expensive, are you out of your freaking mind?"

Oh man, if the salesperson was a hot blond, i think i'm in deeper crap!

Yeah, i had a Dirt Devil and a Shark (total investment is about $300), none of them work that great, either with broken parts (still functions) or not enough suction.

The guy told me that the Dyson blows the dirt/dust into the carpet than sucks them up. It gives people the impression it cleans up the carpet (there were salt experiments to prove it). Now, this from the guy tries to sell me the Kirby so it can be biased...

However, a good Dyson is around $700, so that's alot of money to waste if the thing is not that good as it claims to be...
 
But will a PS3 last 30+ years? That was a good read though, good to know you can talk them down to 1200ish. If the current ones are built like the old ones, thats not all that bad of a deal if you ask me. The one's I've seen are built like tanks.
 
[quote name='rodeojones903']Kirby vacuums are awesome. I actually got one for free that was left over when I moved to my current house. :D[/quote]

Man, before i know about Kirby vacs, i probably gonna say, "Wow, you got a free vac, that's nice." But now, it's more like "damn, that's better than a PS3 and a Wii!"
 
[quote name='kromekoran']my dad paid $1800 for one about 4 years ago. I'm still pissed at him. anything over $500 (and even that is pushing it) is fucking insane for a vacuum.[/quote]


that's what my wife's attitude right now... except that to her even at $500, it's still too much for a vac. *sigh* of course she says that, b/c she's not the one vacs the house... Well, she does mop the floors, so she's entitled to her opinion.
 
[quote name='macdude22']But will a PS3 last 30+ years? That was a good read though, good to know you can talk them down to 1200ish. If the current ones are built like the old ones, thats not all that bad of a deal if you ask me. The one's I've seen are built like tanks.[/quote]

I got the latest vac (model is incorrect, since Kirby only makes one model), the Sentria. The initial price was $1900, wtf!!! Then i got some trad in credits (my old Shark) and minus the shampoo kit... So, down to $1621 exact.

I did a search on the net, there are Sentrias selling for $1200, but according to Kirby Customer relation center those vacs are stolen goods.

I did some search on eBay as well, but i can't stand the though of used vac (especially i want to vac my beds) and not to mention genuine Kirby parts and warrenty...
 
My beef with the dysons I looked at (the supposed animal super models) was they look to be made out of the same cheep plastic as my broken one. I'm not convinced they will last.
 
You must REALLY like clean carpet. I can't imagine paying that much for a vacuum cleaner. Then of course I'm a little on the cheap side (hence my interestin CAG ;) )
 
[quote name='musha666']Door to door vacuum cleaner salesmen still exist?

Seriously though, I dont think I am enough of a clean freak to pay that much for a vacuum. No matter how much dirt it sucks out, it will get dirty just as fast as it normally would and you will have to vacuum again in a few days. So why bother.[/quote]

True, and yes, i'm no clean freak either (like Monica from Friends). However, since you have to clean anyway, why not use good tools to do it? i hate to waste my energy and get no good results.... The damn Dirt Devil and Shark are total jokes, i have to vac over and over and still not good enough (hairs anyone?). Swifters are good, but they are freaking expensive in the long run... I only use the dusters for my DLP and rest of the electronics.
 
[quote name='MikeC']You must REALLY like clean carpet. I can't imagine paying that much for a vacuum cleaner. Then of course I'm a little on the cheap side (hence my interestin CAG ;) )[/quote]

*sigh* no, i don't... but i got kids and the thought of dusty environment bothers me... especially after what i saw the the stuffs got sucked out of the beds, nasty craps man...

Hell, i'm freaking cheap too, hence CAG, we're same :)

i can't imagine myself paying $1600 for a vac either, but yeah, i did it... and i thought the PS3 was the most expensive gadget i brought this year.

Well, the truth is, the thing is made to last, so perhaps, it's a good investment for home owners i would say.
 
I was convinced I wanted a Kirby after a hot Russian saleslady showed me all the features in my home.

Then I said no and bought one for $350 on eBay.
 
My mom bought one of those damn things back in early March after one of her co-workers said how amazing the thing was. Paid $1300 on top of a trade-in of a ~$300 Hoover carpet shampooer ... I took it back the next day. After some sort of "shell-game" involving whether or not they could void the purchase since they said they didn't charge the credit card (... which they did) I managed to get a refund and the trade-in back.
 
We've got a Kirby vac (specifically, the G6 shown in the cockeye.com link). Before that we had a G5, and before that some 20 or 30 year-old model.

Regardless of whether or not you got ripped off, at least know you won't be buying a vaccum again for a very, very long time. Kirbys really do last pretty much forever- neither of the 2 we had before our current one were at all broken, although the decades-old one had lost some suction power compared to the new ones.

What you Do have to watch out for, is repeat salesmen. We only got the G6 becuase they came back a year after we bought the G5 to show off the new model. (I think mom and dad went with it becuase we traded in the old vac when we got the G5, and she decided she wanted downstairs and upstairs vaccums.) Just don't let them come back, and you'll be plenty happy.:D
 
Ok when I first read the title I thought it was a Kirby (as in Nintendo) vaccum cleaner and thought the OP was crazy for paying that much for a novelty appliance. But after reading on I realized this was an actual company.

Now I've decided on the ultimate Roomba hack. The Kirby Roomba. Just make a roomba that works exceedingly well and slap it inside a Kirby doll and let it run around the house sucking things up.

I'm off to sell this idea to nintendo...
 
[quote name='phreak5k']Ok when I first read the title I thought it was a Kirby (as in Nintendo) vaccum cleaner and thought the OP was crazy for paying that much for a novelty appliance. But after reading on I realized this was an actual company.
.[/quote]

In all seriousness, so did I
 
I came in here expecting a vacuum that looks like Kirby. Instead I find a thread with a bunch of cleaning freaks discussing vacuums.

I'm very disappointed.
 
Are these things way better than Dyson's? You can get a damn good vacuum for a few hundred...

[quote name='Yo Mama']The Kirbys are considered 'stolen' because the Kirby corporation will only service Kirby vacuums which are in the possession of the original purchaser.

More from Rob Cockerham:

http://www.cockeyed.com/citizen/kirby/kirby_techniques_2007.shtml[/QUOTE]


From that page - "Which means that you don't get the rebuild warranty or the 40 year warranty on it. So if you ever take it in for service or let someone from kerby know you have it and don't have the registration papers, it can be taken and felony theft charges brought against you because you can't prove ownership and it is a machine that is worth 2,300.00"

I'd like to see a case where someone was actually charged with felony theft for buying a kirby vacuum 2nd hand from the original owner. Unless the things are technically just leased from Kirby you should be able to sell it if you want.

My vacuum was ~$30 (shipped) on clearance at either outpost or frys.com :mrgreen:
 
I did mentioned the game/cartoon character Kirby to the sales person... I told him the little cartoon guy sucks in stuffs too and he said "really?"

Anyhow, i'm gonna go with a cheaper vac, a Kenmore or Eureka, the wife is not very happy at all... *sigh* returning this damn thing is another matter, gotta do this within three days and the guy is trying to push me to keep it...
 
Return it! It's obvious that these thing ruin relationships. :lol:

It seems like a huge scam to me, it's like they overvalue the vacuum so people can't sell them to other people for a fraction of the cost and vice versa.
 
Hmmm.

This gives me an idea.

*goes to buy a Roomba and some pink paint*

SHUT UP YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M PLANNING YET
 
[quote name='DuelLadyS'] Regardless of whether or not you got ripped off, at least know you won't be buying a vaccum again for a very, very long time. Kirbys really do last pretty much forever- neither of the 2 we had before our current one were at all broken, although the decades-old one had lost some suction power compared to the new ones.
[/quote]


My parents also own a Kirby vac - Heritage II model to be precise, which they bought sometime in the mid 80's. It's still running ilke a champ after a good 20 years of solid usage and I can't remember it every having any kind of problems. I mean sure it's not as fancy as some newer vacuums but it gets the job done well enough. Not sure how much they paid for it, but I would have to say it was indeed a worthy investment. I expect they'll probably get many more years out of it.
 
I'm in the process returning the vac, but the guy is really giving me a hard time...

he said that if i finance it, i got three days to cancel the purchase. However, in my case, i paid in full (credit card), there might be a problem. He said, it's like buying something discounted (how's that discounted, i don't know) or final sale, there's a chance that they won't do a refund. I'm in NYC, can they do that? i mean, that's so wrong...

he's still waiting for the answer from his "boss."
 
A few years ago, I was hard up for a job during the summer (the Lab I was managing closed for the summer), and thought it would be a good idea to sign up for some "guaranteed $1800 a month" job. Turned out it was about selling Kirby vacuums on comission, and I never came back.

I did stay through the whole demonstration. The business operates as a pyramid scheme (pyramid selling) and relies on incapable people unable to do basic arithmetic to go with it. The most curious bit that I've learned is that Kirby has a "non-expirational" patent on their vacuum, and they go after everyone who makes anything remotely similar (i.e. with an engine right next to the suck hole). Their patent was registered before the Patent expiration laws were set, and someone smart paid off a good team of lawyers to have just what they have - something trivial that they can overcharge for.

The vacuum was good to the best of my impression (I was there for a day, though, I haven't worked outside of a university since 2002, and this attempt was "accidental" at best). They showed this video to the people that was brainwashing at its best - all kinds of people that look like they have money, telling their stories which described everyone in the room. Except they were stereotypes - single moms, douchbags out-of-highschool athletes with no marketable skills whatsoever, etc. Was quite disgusting, though interesting to an "outside observer."

Don't get a Kirby - you can get a smaller, cheaper, and almost as efficient of a vacuum cleaner.
 
[quote name='Serpentor']I'm in the process returning the vac, but the guy is really giving me a hard time...

he said that if i finance it, i got three days to cancel the purchase. However, in my case, i paid in full (credit card), there might be a problem. He said, it's like buying something discounted (how's that discounted, i don't know) or final sale, there's a chance that they won't do a refund. I'm in NYC, can they do that? i mean, that's so wrong...

he's still waiting for the answer from his "boss."[/quote]

Again, I've seen how these people operate. They said directly that "you need to make them want it really hard right then and there so that they would be willing to buy." Trust me, they are not going to be easy to return. START BITCHING AND THREATENING THEM RIGHT NOW.
 
My Mom has a Kirby that is older than I am (I'll be 25 next week) that still runs very well. The only issue is it weighs as much as a small car. Carrying it up the stairs is a pain, even for me.

I had the unpleasant expierience of MC above me, getting suckered into their sales pitch to work for them one summer. No good.

It's certainly a good machine, but$1600 good? I dunno.
 
ah, papa colbert, your wisdom is a bit late for me....

how do i make threats? i already called the credit card company for a dispute, basically i told them the seller is refusing me to make a return per his/her policy. They are sending me a form to document the incident, and in the mean times i'm not liable for the charged amount.

*sigh* i think i just got screwed....
 
About 4 years ago, I was looking for a new job and saw that same ad in the newspaper that MarioColbert saw. Went in for a job interview and got the job.

Next day, they started training us how to operate the damn thing and techniques on how to vaccum and shit. It was funny watching myself and everyone else following what the trainer doing.

Next day, I went out on the field with an experience person and started to sell these suckers. I remember that you can get the price as low as around $750-800 for them. You just got to haggle like crazy and show some interest that you might like it. Everyone there is an independent contractor, so they will say that they cant go lower than $1000 because they want their commission to be as high as possible per sale. Its been awhile, but I remember if you sold one at $1200 you get around $500 commission for that price.

When I went out, I didnt go lower than $1200. I was only there for like a week before I quit since I thought it was completely a waste of time doing this shit.
 
reading this thread makes me want one of these vacuums, but fuck, I'd never imagine one being so expensive.
 
[quote name='musha666']Door to door vacuum cleaner salesmen still exist?
[/quote]
There's actually a documentry called "Salesman" about door to door salesmen that still exist.

EDIT:
That movie was put out in 1968
 
[quote name='Serpentor']ah, papa colbert, your wisdom is a bit late for me....

how do i make threats? i already called the credit card company for a dispute, basically i told them the seller is refusing me to make a return per his/her policy. They are sending me a form to document the incident, and in the mean times i'm not liable for the charged amount.

*sigh* i think i just got screwed....[/QUOTE]

No surprise they are making it as difficult as possible. The CC dispute is your best bet. IMO you'll win the dispute as credit cards are very consumer friendly, but I would expect the Kirby people to fight tooth and nail (and probably lie to the credit card company - "Mr. Serpentor was told that since he was paying in full the sale was final and there was no return period.")

There is also the BBB (but I bet Kirby just ignores the BBB) or maybe a complaint with your state attorney general. But I'd do the CC complaint first.

It's entirely possible they told you verbally there is the 3 day return period, but whatever documentation you signed doesn't mention it. I don't know how that would be handled. If the 3 day return period isn't in the documentation it might be a tough complaint to gain traction.
 
Hey - I see a lot of people in here discussing vacuums, and because I've sold them, and been an owner of one for 8 years, I felt compelled to respond. I know this is an old thread, and probably no one is interested anymore, but alas, here I am.

I went to work for them one summer because they were the only job I could find that would hire me for three months. When I found out it was door to door sales, I was bummed, to say the least. However, I did learn a lot about the disgusting crap that is in your carpets and your beds. And let me tell you - nothing out there is better than a Kirby. Working for them, I've seen them compared to all kinds of vacuums, Dysons, Rainbows, Electroluxes, etc. - and done the comparisons myself - and there is NOTHING out there that will clean your house like it does.

If you have a pet, this thing is the best thing ever for getting pet hair off of furniture - just use the Zip brush, and it's gone off of your furniture like magic, and anywhere else it accumulates. It's been a godsend for me with a long haired cat. The shampooer is awesome too - a great clean for your carpet without soaking the rug and letting mildew and mold grow in the bottom due to taking so long to dry. When you consider that you get two types of vacuums (canister & upright) - and air compressor - and a shampooer all in the same piece of equipment, it really is a bargain. Especially when you realize how much it conserves your carpets and hardwoods from ruination from kids and dogs for longer than a regular vacuum cleaner.

That being said, although the retail may be high - it's just like a car sale - it's negotiable. You can trade stuff in, get them to lower the price, etc. The bottom line is, they want a sale, and their salary is more or less commission. So it's up to you to decide how hard you think he's worked. Also, you ALWAYS have 3 days to cancel the sale, regardless of what he tells you, and regardless of what the contract says (which I think they all have to say the same thing, since they come from Kirby I believe). It doesn't matter how you pay.

I know the OP probably already returned his - but I would think twice the next time you are presented with the opportunity to buy them. They come with a warranty that lasts over your lifetime, and you can get the engine rebuilt for a fraction of what you paid for it should it ever die. I've had my newer Kirby for over 5 years now, and it's never broken. It might be a little heavy, but isn't cleaning hard work anyway? Besides, if a little heaviness is the tradeoff for a clean floor and no bed bugs, I'm in.
 
You're right my friend, we do talk ALOT about vaccums. You can't get on here without someone blabbing your ear off about their personal vaccumming preferences.

Anyways I just wanted to say welcome to CAV, cheap ass vacummers. I look forward to your many contributions to this site, since you clearly aren't a Kirby PR-googler moving from forum to forum.
 
My family has an Oreck, which is great, and it doesn't cause back problems because it is so light. I would highly recommend them, and I know people who have had Oreck's for a lot more than 10 years. I don't think the Dyson is very good, as its heavy and looks like a robot. Its tough to find a basic vacuum that doesn't look like a robot and weigh a ton these days. I don't have pets but we do have to haul the vacuum up the stairs so the light vacuum is a godsend. As far as buying experience we went into the store, bought it and were out. They didn't try to push anything and honestly it was one of the most low pressure buying experiences I have ever had, and that comes from someone who HATES sales pitches of any kind. I would suggest buying one of the more expensive models as the base model does feel very cheap, but you can still get out of the store for $500 or less. There is no pressure to buy a warranty because the warranty comes with the product. The warranty's and tune ups that come with the more expensive models are worth the cost of one of the upgraded models alone. You get the canister vac and the upright vacuum as a package. Oreck's also come with a good warranty, the model we bought comes with 10 years and several free tune-ups.
 
i have a $175 infinity nv29 and i'd put it up against a dyson anyways (mostly because it is a dyson clone)..and fuck a lot of paying $1k+ for a vacuum
 
Okay I know I'm probably gonna get crap for this but i was a kirby salesman back when they were selling the G4. really for the price you pay it's an awesome vaccum they are built to last years but what really pissed me off and made me not sell any was that they rip the customers off by selling the vaccums that they use for demonstarations. They would go demo the vaccum at peoples houses then, when people wanted to buy the vacuum they would say they were going to the office to get them a new one.. but in reality they went to the office, cleaned up the one they just used, and take it back to the customer. So although its a great vacuum you pay way too much for something thats already been used, possibly numerous times before you even get it outta the box.
 
this is quite an interesting read. im stunned i missed it first time around. but im glad you bumped it.

now.. how much did kirby pay you to post on this board?
 
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