Eureka Boss 4870MZ Review

Introduction

Tenderness with carpet is a luxury, and you don't get that for the Boss' $135 sale price. Still, we would've preferred a vacuum whose brushroll was a little more targeted; instead, we found ourselves dodging debris, as it got flung across the lab.

Design & Usability

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Heavy and obstinate. Just using the Boss sometimes feels like you’re about to break it.

Though there are a plethora of height options on the 4870MZ, none of them are tall enough to prevent the Boss from getting bogged down on medium-height carpet. This puts wear and tear on the vacuum, your carpet, and your arm muscles. We’re also concerned about the 4870MZ’s storage lock lever. As it is, it requires a very specific yet firm press of the foot to unlock the vacuum from the upright position. Since the foot-pedal interlock also mechanically shuts off the brushroll, it’s even harder to lock the vacuum for storage, requiring a wrenching motion that not only could be difficult for some users, but also feels like it’s going to break the machine.

At close to 20 lbs., this isn’t a great machine for anyone who needs to climb stairs often. Just pushing it requires a decent amount of effort. By using the hose you’ll only get about six feet away from the cleaner itself, but that’s plenty for vacuuming high ceilings or behind furniture. As far as attachments are concerned, the 4870MZ comes with a “Power Paw” mini turbine brush, a crevice tool, upholstery brush and floor brush. They all store on the vacuum itself.

The power on/off switch is on top of the cleaner, below the handle. All other controls are on the front of the brush head, and require the user to bend over. The 30-foot power cord doesn’t automatically retract, and must be rewound on the back of the unit. Open up the front cover and you'll find a sealed HEPA system with replaceable filter, plus a large bag that's easy and cheap to replace—in bulk, they sell for under a dollar each. The front of the vacuum won’t close unless there’s a bag in place.

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Features & Performance

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Adept at cleaning up dirt—but not debris

Among all the flooring types we test, the Boss did the best job on high pile carpet, cleaning up more than 50 percent of the dirt we put down. That puts it in a rare group of cleaners that can tackle flooring choices thicker than berber. Short carpet wasn't a problem, nor was pet hair. It didn’t do so well on debris, however, as the design of the brush head launched items instead of sucking them up. Otherwise, nothing really distinguished it from many of the other cleaners out there.

We rarely test a vacuum as loud as the Boss, whose growls would carry through the walls of a corner office. Not only was the sound level high, but the quality of the noise was quite aggravating.

Conclusion

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Meet the new Boss, same as the old Boss

Among the eternal questions, humans have wondered just who, exactly, is the boss? Some say Angela, others Tony. Further hypotheses have included Bruce Springsteen, Rick Ross and—a theory posited by a fringe group of researchers—none other than Kelsey Grammer.

In Eureka’s case, the Boss is an upright vacuum cleaner with a $199 MSRP that can easily be found on sale for $135. It’s a mean boss, the kind that makes carpet work late and tells hardwood floors his ideas are stupid. That said, it gets the job done, even if it does so inelegantly.

Introduction

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We put all our vacuums through a standard course of tests, from dirt on hardwood floors to pet hair on high-pile carpets. The Eureka Boss 4870MZ didn't really distinguish itself. Though it did a great job on high-pile carpet, its overall performance means this cleaner blends in with the rest of the low-cost upright pack.

Cleaning & Debris

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Rough, though good at getting up dirt

On average, the 4870MZ cleaned up more than 50 percent of the dirt we put down in high pile carpet. Considering that most vacuums we test leave behind between 70 and 80 percent of dirt, we were impressed with the Boss. Unfortunately, even at the highest setting, the 4870MZ’s brushroll kept getting stuck on the thicker materials.

Other vacuums have done better than the 4870MZ at cleaning dirt out of a short pile carpet, but not by much. We were impressed that the Boss cleaned up 95 percent of the test dirt we put down. Similarly, on wood floors—with the brushroll turned off—the Boss dominated, cleaning up nearly all of the sand we put down.

It took a few passes, but the 4870MZ got up pet hair without leaving traces behind on the carpet or wrapping any fur around its brushroll. The Boss also comes with a detachable, turbine-powered brush for upholstery and stair cleaning.

The worst results came from the debris cleanup test, which made us feel like we were the target of a different sort of boss...you know, the kind that has padding in their lower jaw, likes to eat oranges, and doesn't give favors lightly. On high carpet, the Boss’ powerful agitator grabbed the pennies, dimes and pasta we use for testing and shot them off in various directions—including right at the leg of yours truly. When set to “bare floors,” the cleaner was too low to suck up debris. Moving the floor height selector up a notch decreased suction to the point that a dustpan and brush would’ve been more effective.

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Energy & Noise

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Loud and energy hungry

This is one of the loudest vacuums we’ve ever tested. That powerful brushroll growled its way to 76.45 decibels, which is comparable to having a freeway in your front yard and all your windows open.

The 4870MZ also used up a ton of energy—around 1336 watts with the brushroll on, to be exact. Unless you’re vacuuming for several hours a day it’s not going to affect your electric bill, but it could mean blowing a fuse if you plug something else into the same circuit.

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