Best stick vacuum cleaners for everyday messes

Small, light vacuums that still deliver Ross McLaughlin has the results after Consumer Reports put different brands of stick vacuums to the test.

Many Metro Vancouverites are used to living in small spaces, so a stick vacuum cleaner might be easier to store and come in handy for everyday cleaning.

Consumer Reports put a variety of stick vacuum cleaners to the test to see which ones were able to pick up sand, as well as a mixture of rice and cereal. Many of the models just pushed the mixture around and some left the sand behind after two passes, but some of the pricier models were more successful.

The Dyson V6 Absolute was the winner of this test, picking up all the sand. However, it costs $500 and only has about 14 minutes of battery life.

Consumer Reports also recommends the Shark Rocket DeluxePro TruePet, which costs about $230. It has a cord so you don’t have to worry about charging batteries. It also has a light on the front so it illuminates hard to reach spaces like underneath furniture. It weighs about nine pounds and performed well when picking up pet hair.

The Shark and Dyson models also come with detachable hand vacuums so you can clean hard to reach spaces like the crevices of furniture and inside your car.

The Electrolux UltraPower Studio also performed well picking up debris on carpet and bare floors. It costs about $300 and holds its charge for about 20 minutes. Tests also showed that it was less noisy than some other models.

However, Consumer Reports recommends using regular sized vacuums if you’re in need of doing a deep-clean.