Dyson V8 Animal : Vacuum w/o cords

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V8 Animal

Someone in the local Buy Nothing group was giving away a Dyson V8 Animal vacuum stick with all the attachments, tools, and bits. Apparently, the vacuum had a “problem” so of COURSE we had to have the device and see how to fix the “problem.” 

The description said that the battery had been replaced but still wasn’t holding a charge of more than a few minutes. The, uh, offeree, said it was free to anyone interested in repairing it or using it for parts. After our recent success with the Oreck repair (we rock, repair-wise), we thought we would give this Dyson a go, and hopefully keep it out of the landfill.

The Dyson V8 Animal vacuum stick features:

• Fully sealed filtration;
• Combination, Hair screw, and Crevice tools;
• Motorbar cleaner head; and
• Charger

The V8 motor spins at 110,000rpm, generates 115AW of suction, and can run for up to 40 minutes depending on the power mode used.  The Combination tool has a wide nozzle and brush for easy switching. The Hair screw tool has a brush for picking up long hair and pet hair. The Crevice tool allows precise cleaning around edges and narrow spaces. The Motorbar head is for floor cleaning and has auto-clearing of wrapped hair, which, if you have pets or people with longish hair, makes it the holy grail of tidying up…

The motor and battery are positioned around the handle, creating a nice balance for easy handling and maneuvering.

Cleaning

While the original owner’s complaint of lack of suction was most likely due to a weak battery, we thought it would make sense to check all the areas/spaces for potential obstructions (pre-filter, post-filter, main-filter, canister) and to give the machine a good “cleaning.”

The collected dust is hygienically emptied using Dyson’s ‘point and shoot’ mechanism. The design operates in such a way that there is no need to come in contact with the debris. Bonus!

Filters

The Dyson V8 Animal has two filters (pre, post) and they are both washable for reuse. The frequency of cleaning them is really dependent on usage. From a visual inspection, both filters appeared somewhat dirty but really quite useable as they were.

The filters keep the machine operating at the level where the fully sealed filtration system is spec’ed to trap 99.99% of microscopic particles, even ones as small as 0.3 microns (which is very small indeed).

We got a second pair of filters so that we always have a pair ready to use. That way, we can just swap out the in-use ones when they need to be cleaned.

The pre-filter blocks larger particles (like dust/hair/debris) before they find their way to the main filter. This pre-filtering extends the lifespan and efficiency of the main filter.

The  post-filter is extremely fine and designed for the end of the air path, ensuring that the air coming out of the Dyson is as clean as possible. Even if microscopic particles were sucked in into the vacuum stick, if they manage to make their way past the pre- and main- filters, they will be removed from the air exiting from the vacuum cleaner!

Battery

The Dyson OEM battery is lithium-ion (21.6v, 5 Ah). After much consideration, the replacement battery we decided on was an 8000 mAh high capacity Lithium Polymer unit. The battery’s built-in chip provides over-voltage, over-current, short circuit , high-temperature, and over-charge protections. 

Swapping out the battery in the Dyson V8 Animal is a quick process, but not one that Dyson expects to happen on a frequent basis. Unlike replacing a battery in a power drill and the like, the Dyson battery is held in place with three screws. 

The Dyson V8 Animal battery takes about 5 1/2 hours to fully charge, and the connector is plugged directly into the battery itself. This complete integration ensures that all components work together as a single unit. 

After a full charge, the Dyson V8 Animal worked exactly as we had hoped. The suction was strong, it ran for as long as we needed, and it had no problems picking up dirt and hair on either the rug or the bare floor. We didn’t use it until the battery ran out, but will do so at some point to test the run time.

FinalThoughts

A used Dyson V8 may not work as well as when it was new for a lot of reasons, but the main one may be the battery. We did not choose the OEM battery because it was silly expensive, and instead got a replacement unit off Amazon. The fit of the replacement filters and battery were exact and we installed them without any issues. We went with a larger-capacity battery for a longer run time. 

Dyson makes good vacuum cleaners, but they are expensive. If there is an opportunity to pick one up to repair at a great discount or even for free, we highly recommend taking a chance on it!!! We were not disappointed 🙂

Links to items mentioned:

• Dyson V8 Animal 8000Ah replacement battery
• Dyson V8 filters
• Dyson V8 Animal