10 Best Vacuum for shag carpet-Buy Guide

April 21, 2021

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Shag carpet has come a long way from the tendrils of dreadlocks of decades ago. Today, deep piles feel soft and rich without the tendency to knot or tangle. To care for them properly, you need a vacuum with special settings to maintain your shag investment.

The best vacuums for shag carpets come in all styles and price points to meet your flexible needs. It depends on your preference for ease of use, need to protect against allergies, and desire to control noise. If you have other types of floor covering or limited storage space, you’ll want a vacuum that’s more multipurpose or smaller in size.

To pick the best vacuum for shag carpets in your home, consider how often you’ll be using it and how durable you want it to be. Cleaning after shedding pets or sucking up dried crumbling leaves determine how much power you need. Here’s our take on the best vacuums for shag carpets based on different living situations and household requirements.

Features for Vacuuming Shag and High Pile Carpets

Large back wheels and a low center of gravity for maneuvering on shag carpet
Adjustable suction power to gently clean shag carpets
Removable brushroll to safely clean shag carpet.

7 Best Shag Carpet Vacuums

IMAGES

MODEL

FEATURES

Soniclean Soft Carpet Upright Vacuum

Big wheels make it easy to move
Adjustable vents
Fits well under furniture and into corners.

Miele Turbo Team

Allows you to adjust the amount of suction
Has a HEPA filter and self-sealing debris bag
30 feet power cord

Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away True Pet

Lift-Away system
Swivel base
The dust cup holds 3.3 quarts of debris

iRobot Roomba i7+

Transitions easily between varying floor surfaces
Stated to remove 99.9% of allergens
Wi-Fi programmable

Kenmore 22614 Pet Friendly Canister

14 inch brush head
Retractable power cord
Works well on solid surfaces

Eureka PowerSpeed NEU182A

Five height adjustments
Ergonomic design
25-foot power cord

Dyson V11 Torque Drive Stick Vacuum

Intense suction
works well on solids and other kinds of carpet
Up to 60 minute cleaning time

1.Soniclean Soft Carpet Upright Vacuum

This Sonicare vacuum is recommended by many as the best in shag carpet cleaning, and with good reason. Its big wheels make it easy to move on deep, soft pile, and users note it is easy to push across all surfaces. Its HEPA filter feeds debris into a bag you remove and toss, and the 35-foot power cord and range of accessories fit a wide variety of cleaning needs.

Adjustable vents on the front of the brush roller are a unique feature to control how much suction is working on the rug. It can be set high for tall shag and lower for textured Berber, helping with maneuverability. Soft bristle brush heads won’t damage carpet fibers and in deep pile, an activated sonic bar pulses against the shag and releases even more dirt.

2.Miele Turbo Team

This Miele Turbo is reported to work for vacuuming all carpet heights. A rotary dial on the canister unit allows you to adjust the amount of suction in the brush head to accommodate different carpet and flooring types. Air flow in the brush head can also be adjusted for high carpet heights with a foot lever on the head.

This Miele vacuum has a HEPA filter and self-sealing debris bag to ensure the air coming out of the machine is cleaner than the environment it’s in. A power cord almost 30 feet long coupled with the standard length hose plus wand give you plenty of range in distance when cleaning carpet floors. Ergonomically it is easy to move and reach under furniture, even low sofas.

3.Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away True Pet

While we listed this as the best vacuum for households with shag carpet plus pets, this Shark offers much more in versatility. The Lift-Away system allows you to turn this into a handheld vac for stairs or for the upright wand to reach under furniture. The swivel base makes it easy to turn and direct, even in thick piles.

If your floors include both shags and solid surfaces, you can adjust the height and suction for both with the flick of a finger. The dust cup holds 3.3 quarts of debris between emptying. Air filters are washable to minimize ongoing expenses.

4.iRobot Roomba i7+

A robot vacuum is a great tool to keep your shag carpets from becoming too dirty in between deep cleanings. This Roomba transitions easily between varying floor surfaces including shag carpeting. While the air filtering system is not HEPA rated, it is stated to remove 99.9% of allergens as it runs.

When its battery needs a recharge or its dust bin is full, it will return to its home base, charge, and empty into the base dirt bag automatically. You can control the mapping of where it cleans and how often, which means you can run it over the shag where it’s needed more often than other surfaces that don’t accumulate debris as quickly. It has high performance suction to get whatever is deep in your shag fibers.

5.Kenmore 22614 Pet Friendly Canister

Some vacuums like this Kenmore are designed with varying surfaces in mind. It is bagless, eliminating ongoing costs, with the first filter being washable and the HEPA. The brush head is 14 inches wide, which means fewer passes to get your cleaning done.

Deep cleaning comes courtesy of dual motors for extra suction power. A powerful centrifuge provides the force needed to suck the deepest dirt out of the deepest pile. Not all vacuums come with a retractable power cord, but all 24 feet can be hidden here with the touch of a lever.

The biggest complaint about this vacuum is the loud noise it creates, something users describe as a scream. While the overall system is heavy, the head you move around is light and easy. It works equally well on solid surfaces, pet-laden rugs, and shag that’s accumulated so much that other vacs couldn’t get to.

6.Dyson V11 Torque Drive Stick Vacuum

To be the best budget model and still make the list, the machine must shine in almost all aspects of vacuuming for shags. This Eureka fits that description, with five height adjustments to transition from your shag rug to hardwoods. It is a lightweight vac and easy to maneuver, scoring highly with users for cleaning effectiveness, ergonomic design and accessories.

It has no bags to worry about, opting instead for an extra-large one gallon dust cup you can remove and empty with the touch of a lever. The 25-foot power cord and seven foot (when extended) hose give you plenty of reach into corners without fuss. The cleaning path is over a foot wide, avoiding repeated passes that smaller machines would require.

7,Eureka PowerSpeed NEU182A

While cordless vacuums aren’t ideal for cleaning thick shags with long fibers, they do have a place with textured Berbers and other sturdier taller piled shags. This Dyson generates intense suction to lift away dirt hiding in deeper rugs while its light weight makes it easy to lift and move. Cleaning effectiveness on thick shags isn’t what you’ll see with other corded machines.

Cordless has a place, though, like in households where you only have a shag throw rug and no other thick pile surfaces. This machine works well on solids and other kinds of carpet too. Care will need to be taken on deep shags.

What You Need to Know About Vacuuming Shag Carpeting

Just as not all vacuums are created equally, different types of shag carpeting require varying attention to features. Universals across all types is the need to dig out dirt deep in the pile. That means your machine must tolerate and work with depth, thickness, and problems that might not be the same, even from room to room in your house.

Here are things you need to consider when deciding on the best vacuum system for you. We begin with the areas where people are tempted to take shortcuts and find they’re dissatisfied with the results. Digging out deep dirt takes power and flexibility.

CONCLUSION:

To keep your shag rug as clean as possible, take it outside and shake it out at least once a week. Doing so will help loosen up and eliminate stubborn dirt.

Consider investing in a carpet cleaner. Some of them work very well with shag and thick pile carpet. See our list of the best carpet cleaners here.We also recommend that you flip your shag rug over and vacuum the underside. Doing this once a month will help keep the rug thoroughly clean.

This guide is designed to help you find a great vacuum cleaner for shag carpet, if you still are not sure on which option is best for you, or have a question, let me know in the comment section