As with most things in life, there is really nothing free. The two most claimed advantages to bagless vacuum cleaners were lower operating costs and better performance. As far as the cost issues go, all vacuums must filter the exhausting air they use to carry the dirt into the collection area, as they would otherwise simply pick the dirt up from the floor and spit it right back out.
Whether you have a bagless HEPA filter, a pre-filter, or disposable bags, they all need to be changed at some point. With the average life of a vacuum cleaner, you can expect to spend the same on either collection system for filters, but if you value your time, you can expect to spend quite a bit more on a bagless system.
To keep your bagless vacuum cleaner operating at peak levels, you’ll need to empty the dirt container when it is full and perform regular maintenance on the filter. The type of filter the vacuum uses will determine just how much service will be required, although most use a pleated HEPA filter.
Cleaning Even though the claim of better airflow performance with bagless vacuums is true in a sense, over the life of the vacuum you’ll get the same, or...