To own the best HEPA vacuum for allergies can be of great benefit for all of us especially for people who are hypersensitive on dust, pollen, pet dander, and other allergens and also for those who suffer from asthma.

With the HEPA vacuum cleaner, you can clean your home from all types of dust, dirt, debris, pet hair and also you can get rid of all types of airborne allergens that are cause for many allergic reactions of the body. This can be really frustrating and even frightening for millions of people around the world.

Many people who never faced this problem will say that you can use any type of quality vacuum cleaner to clean your home, it doesn’t need to be HEPA certified. Yes, that’s true and makes sense.

But, the main problem with vacuum cleaners who are not HEPA certified during the cleaning process, they can release a certain amount of dust and allergens back into the environment. That’s why you should really start to consider buying a more efficient vacuum cleaner that can literally keep all dust and micro-particles inside during cleaning. This is really important especially for people who are sensitive to dust, allergens and those with asthma.

Today on the market are vacuum cleaners with a different and improved filtration system and they can do really a great filtration of the air from all types of allergens and dust while you clean your home.

But, in this case for people with asthma and highly sensitive on any type of allergies and dust, we strongly recommend a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter and a Sealed Vacuum System. The vacuum cleaners with a HEPA filtration system are able to trap extremely small size of particles, dust and other allergens from the air and to keep them inside. Here are some of the important things to know when you need to buy a vacuum cleaner for allergies.

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What Does It Mean HEPA and What is Exactly a HEPA Filter?

The acronym HEPA means – highly efficiency particulate air or also it can be called high-efficiency particulate absorber. The HEPA filter is a specially designed media of tightly woven and randomly arranged fibers to capture and hold 99.97% of particles from pollen, pet dander and other airborne allergens to a minimum size of 0.3 microns.

Does the Vacuum Cleaner with HEPA Filter is Always Effective?

Anyway, a lot of vacuum cleaners that use HEPA filtration over time will lose the effectiveness of the filtration and small percentage of the dust and allergens escape out from the vacuum cleaner together with the exhaust air which is a real problem if you have allergy or asthma. To solve this problem, many of the manufacturers are designing vacuum cleaners that besides a HEPA filter have sealed vacuum system with two motors.

The Sealed Vacuum System

A sealed system is actually specially designed an airtight housing of the vacuum cleaner that prevents leaking some percentage of the exhaust air together with dust and allergens through some openings, cracks, and seams of the housing. The only air that is released into the environment is the air that has been filtrated through the HEPA filtration system.

So, if you need real protection from the allergens you need to look for a vacuum cleaner with a HEAP filtration and a Sealed Vacuum System because many of the vacuum cleaners with HEPA filters don’t have the sealed vacuum system. Definitely, you must check for those to features.

The S-Class Microfiltration

Some of the manufacturers go one step further when it comes about filtration of the air inside the vacuum cleaner with implementing the S-Class Microfiltration which is also called hospital-grade filtration. These types of filters are designed from micro-fiber material that is electrostatically charged.

These filters besides capturing and holding the dust and other particles, they also attract them with 99.97% of efficiency down to the size of 0.3 microns. Not all of the vacuum cleaners have the s-class microfiltration.

The AAFA Certification

Many of the people who suffer from asthma and allergies are familiar with the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America or AAFA which founded back in 1953. This is a non-profit organization which supports the people who suffer from asthma and allergies and educate them. This organization has a certification program that investigates and tests products if they meet the strict standards that will be of great help for those with asthma and allergy.

But, you should know, if the HEPA vacuum cleaner doesn’t have an AAFA certification, it doesn’t mean that it cannot provide a true HEPA filtration. Most of the vacuum cleaners have HEPA filtration, but the main reason why they don’t have an AAFA certification is that the manufacturers didn’t request their vacuum cleaners to be tested by the AAFA organization.

Here is the link of their main website if you want to know more about the AAFA organization and their activities.

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What is Better Choice for Allergies and Asthma Bagged or Bagless Vacuum Cleaner?

This is one of the main questions when you need to buy a HEPA vacuum cleaner for allergies and asthma.

Bagged Vacuum Cleaners

Let’s go first with the vacuum cleaners that are using dust bag (also they are called bagged vacuum cleaners). The bagged HEPA vacuum cleaners have extra protection when it comes about cleaning and maintaining the quality of the air in your home.

Besides, the HEPA filtration of the exhausted air, these vacuum cleaners are using dust bags that are made from multiple layers of filter media for perfect isolation and keeping the whole content inside the dust bag.

Plus as extra protection, some dust bags have an auto-seal closure, when you need to dispose of them or they have hygienic caps so you can seal the dust bag before you remove it. This means nothing can be released into the air.

But, the main disadvantages of the vacuum cleaners that are using HEPA dust bags are:

• The extra cost of the HEPA dust bags
• When the dust bag gets half full some of the vacuum cleaners are losing the suction power.

Bagless Vacuum Cleaner

The bagless vacuum cleaners are more economical because you don’t need to spend more money to buy dust bags. The bagless vacuum cleaners are collecting all the dust and debris into a dust canister (dust bin or dirt bin). When the dust canister is full, you can simply detach it from the vacuum cleaner by pressing a button and there is another button to press when you need to dump the whole content from the canister into the trash bin, it’s so simple.

After emptying the dust canister you can wash it before next cleaning Also, don’t forget to wash the filter, most of the bagless vacuum cleaners have washable filters.

But, the main disadvantage of this type of vacuum cleaners is the moment when you empty the dust canister at the same time will be released a small amount of dust and allergens into the air. It is impossible to empty the dust canister without escaping a small amount of dust and allergens into the air. This will be a big concern for hypersensitive people to allergens.

In case if this is really a problem for you and you don’t want to buy a bagged vacuum cleaner and spend more money on dust bags, then you can buy a bagless vacuum cleaner and when the time will come to empty the dust canister, you can do it outside from your home into a trash bin or a plastic bag. Besides this, you need to know that some of the high-end bagless vacuum cleaners can be efficient and they can do an excellent job as the bagged vacuum cleaners. As I said the only problem will be when you need to empty the dust canister.

This is Our Choice for the Best Bagged and Bagless Vacuum Cleaners for Allergies and Asthma

Dyson Ball (formerly DC65) Animal + Allergy Complete

Company: Dyson

Price: $$$

Our Rating: 9/10

Overview: Here we have a model from another well-known brand that manufactures high-quality vacuum cleaners and the model we chose is the Dyson Ball (formerly DC65) Animal+Allergy Complete.

The Dyson Ball (formerly DC65) Animal+Allergy Complete is an upright bagless premium vacuum cleaner with a great design and especially is intended for people who are pet owners and are hypersensitive on dust, pet hair and other allergens.

It has the Ball technology that allows you effortlessly to navigate through your house while you clean. What is more important this vacuum cleaner it has a HEPA filtration and also is certified as an Asthma and Allergy friendly product.

It comes with a lot of handy tools for more convenient cleaning in any situation like Stiff Bristle Brush, Multi-Angle Tool, Flat Out Hard Floor Tool, Combination Tool, Stair Tool, Carbon Fiber Soft Dusting Tool, and Tangle-Free Turbine Tool.

This vacuum cleaner features with self-adjusting cleaner head which means you don’t need to worry when you do a transition from carpet to the hard floor while you clean.

This Dyson Ball Animal has a motor with powerful suction that will pick any mess from the floor. It has the Radial Root Cyclone technology that filtrates the dust and other allergens from the air.

You can easily detach the Dust Canister simply just by pressing a button and you can easily empty the content from the Canister also by pressing another button.

The Main Features and Specifications for the Vacuum Cleaner Dyson Ball Animal+Allergy

• Type: Upright Bagless Vacuum Cleaner
• Its cord is long 35 feet (about 10.6 Meters)
• The Dust Canister has a capacity of 0.55 gallons (about 2.1 Litres)
• Input 1200 W
• HEPA and Asthma-Allergy certified
• Post-turbine HEPA filtration with washable filter
• The Warranty for this vacuum cleaner is 5 years

This Dyson Ball (formerly DC65) Animal+Allergy little bit overpriced like some of the other vacuum cleaners from this brand, but the good things are it comes with many useful tools, it has great suction power and easy to maneuver.

Kenmore Elite 81714 Pet-Friendly Ultra Plush

Company: Kenmore

Price: $$$

Our Rating: 8.5/10

Overview: If you suffer from allergies or maybe you have asthma and if you are a pet owner, it is sure that besides the problems with the dust and the other airborne allergens, the pets’ hair and dander are an extra headache for you.

In this case the vacuum cleaner Kenmore Elite 81714 Pet-Friendly Ultra Plush will solve all those problems. This model features the HEPA air filter that prevents any type of allergens from releasing into the air while you clean in your home.

For more thorough cleaning on the carpet in your home, you can use the Ultra Plush nozzle that uses a strong airflow which is able to remove even the deepest particles from the carpet. For the airflow always to be steady and strong this Kenmore vacuum cleaner has a double wall design.

Also, there is a Pet PowerMate attachment that will pull out even the most stubborn pets’ hair and other debris from the carpets.

For better navigation on the floor, this vacuum cleaner has a Swivel-Steering technology and if you are dealing with delicate carpet and rugs, you can use the Variable Power mode.

The Main Features and Specifications for the Vacuum Cleaner Kenmore 81714

• Type: Canister Vacuum Cleaner with Dust Bag
• Its Cord is 26 feet (about 8 Meters) long
• It comes with 4 attachments like Crevice Tool, Motorized Pet PowerMate, Horsehair Dusting Brush, and Horsehair Floor Brush
• HEPA certified
• The main weight of this unit is 22 lbs (about 10 Kg)
• The hose of the vacuum cleaner is 7 feet (about 2.2 Meters)

The Kenmore 81714 is really capable to remove not only the pet hair from the carpets but also the most stubborn particles deep in the carpets. The air that is released from this vacuum cleaner while you clean is purified thanks to the HEPA media filters which this Kenmore vacuum cleaner would be a great choice for your home.

Shark DuoClean Powered Lift-Away NV803

Company: SharkNinja

Price: $$$

Our Rating: 9.5/10

Overview: The Shark NV803 is an upright powered lift-away bagless vacuum cleaner with DuoClean technology.

For those who need a powerful all-purpose vacuum cleaner to do efficiently cleaning at any place in your home like carpets, hard floors, stairs, upholstery, and more this Shark DuoClean NV803 is the one you need.

The Key Selling Features

Its DuoClean technology with a system of two different brush rolls can perfectly deal with all kind dirt and debris on any surface in your home. This vacuum cleaner features with Powered Lift-Away technology that allows you with just a press on a button to detach the lift-away canister from the rest of the vacuum.

This technology and using any of the cleaning attachments will give you the flexibility to clean any dirt and debris everywhere in your house like behind the appliances in the kitchen and the laundry room, under, above and around any furniture, above and hard to reach places, the stairs and more.

There are also Advanced Swivel technology and LED headlights that will allow you to easily maneuver everywhere on the floor and to spot and clean the dust and debris in places with low light conditions.

Then we have the Anti-Allergen Complete Seal Technology that has three mechanical air filters which are washable to deliver HEPA filtration of the air. This system is able to successfully filtrate 99.99% of all dust, pollen and other types of allergens to a minimum size of 0.3 microns. There are fingertip controls that are located on the handle and you are able to switch to one of the desired cleaning modes.

Included Accessories

• Pet Multi-Tool for cleaning the pet hair from the upholstery, rugs, and carpets
• Duster Crevice Tool for easily cleaning the edges, corners, baseboards and hard to reach areas
• Under-Appliance Wand will help you to clean effortlessly dirty places under furniture, behind appliances and other objects in your home.
• Accessory Storage Bag where you can keep all accessories of your vacuum cleaner.

The Main Features and Specifications for the Shark NV803 Vacuum Cleaner

• Type: Upright Bagless
• Advanced Anti-Allergen Complete Seal technology with 3 system HEPA filtration
• 30 feet (about 9.1 Meters) long cord
• Accessories: Pet Multi-Tool, Duster Crevice Tool, and Under-Appliance Wand and Storage Bag
• This Shark weighs 15 pounds (about 6.8 Kg)
• LED headlights
• Dust Cup with a capacity of 0.9 dry quarts
• The vacuum cleaner is Intended for all types of floors

This Shark NV803 is not a cheap vacuum cleaner, but when you see all those advanced features like Powered Lift-Away, Anti-Allergen Complete Seal technology, the Swivel and DuoClean technologies with all included accessories it’s a great solution for your home to get rid of all dust, dirt, and allergens.

Kenmore 31140 Pet and Allergy Friendly

Company: Kenmore

Price: $$$

Our Rating: 9/10

Overview: If you need a vacuum cleaner not only to be a HEPA but also to have a strong suction power that you will easily clean up everything from the floors in your home including the hair from your pets then you need to consider this Kenmore 31140 pet-friendly upright vacuum cleaner.

This Kenmore 31140 has two motors that will ensure nothing to be missed from your floors while you clean your home. Also, Kenmore has included the Power Flow Technology that will increase the suction ability of this vacuum cleaner.

This vacuum cleaner uses a bagged system for collecting and filtration all dust, debris, dirt and other things from any type of surface in your home together with a triple HEPA filtration system that is certified from AAFA.

Included Attachments

With this Kenmore 31140, you will get three attachments that will meet your cleaning needs and they are:

• There is a Telescopic Extendable wand which is 10 feet (about 3.048 Meters) long and is made from aluminum.
• Then we have the Pet Handi-Mate tool that will assist you in deep cleaning especially when you need to remove the pet hair and dander.
• And, the Combo Dust and Crevice Tool that will help you to clean tight and hard to reach corners and baseboards.

During the cleaning in your home, you can also do an easy transition from carpet to hard floors simply by pressing the button at the bottom of the vacuum cleaner with your foot. There are 5 levels of high adjustments.

The Main Features and Specifications for the Kenmore 31140 Vacuum Cleaner

• Type: Upright Bagged
• A triple HEPA filtration system
• Its cord is long 35 feet (about 10.6 Meters)
• Attachments: Telescopic Extendable Wand, Combo Dust Crevice Tool and the Pet Handi-Mate Tool
• 5 High Adjustments
• It weighs 19 pounds (about 8.6 Kg)

Related: Miele Dynamic U1 Cat and Dog Upright Vacuum Cleaner

Black + Decker HCUA525JA POWERSERIES PRO

Company: Black+Decker

Price: $$$

Our Rating: 9/10

Overview: On our list for the best vacuum cleaners for allergies, we have a stick cordless vacuum cleaner that comes from the famous brand Black + Decker. The model that we picked up is the Black+Decker HCUA525JA Power Series Pro 2 in 1.

This is a vacuum cleaner form the new Power Series with a lithium-ion battery and it will give you constant powerful suction up to 60 minutes to clean your home.

This Black & Decker has an easily removable canister and by attaching the flexible hose and any of the interchangeable cleaning attachments, you will easily turn it into a canister vacuum cleaner.

The great thing about the removable canister is that has an anti-allergen filter capable to filtrate 99.99 percent of dust and other allergens. It features the Filtersense technology that notifies you when you need to change the filter.

Also, it is worth to mention the AutoSense feature that will do automatically adjustment of the suction when you do a transition from carpet to hard floor.

There is built-in dust compactor which its main function is to compress down all dust and dirt to make more space in the dust canister. On this way will get more time for cleaning before you empty the dust canister.

The Main Features and Specifications for the Vacuum Cleaner Black+Decker HCUA525JA PowerSeries Pro

• Type: Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner
• This unit weighs 8 pounds (about 3.6 Kg)
• It has a HEAP filtration with washable filter
• This model comes with 3 cleaning attachments like 3-in-1 Accessory Tool, a Long Brush and a Nozzle Brush Tool
• The Dust Bin has a capacity of 1 Liter
• With this vacuum cleaner, you will get 2 years warranty

This is a great vacuum cleaner for a hard floor and a low pile carpet. But If you need a vacuum cleaner for deep cleaning a high pile carpet, then it is better to check the other choices from our list.

Anyway, this Black & Decker HCUA525JA PowerSeries Pro offers the versatility of usability in your home.

Final Thoughts

We hope after reading this post you will know how to choose the best HEPA vacuum for allergies. Our recommendation is to go with the bagged HEPA vacuum cleaner with a sealed system which is the best option. But if you don’t have a problem with emptying the dust bin of the bagless vacuum cleaner you can go with them. There are a lot of choices of high-quality HEPA bagless vacuum cleaners specially designed for asthma and allergens and they can be highly efficient like the HEPA bagged vacuum cleaners.

It is important for your health to have a really high-quality HEPA certified vacuum cleaner, but their main disadvantage always is the price. Anyway, you know that you are investing in your health and buying of high-quality vacuum cleaner will last many years.

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