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Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away Review

Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away Review

December 3, 2014 Sarah Coggins
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I was excited when approached by #SharkCleaning to try their new Rotator Powered Lift-Away vacuum cleaner and write a review. Confession – we’ve always purchased pretty basic, inexpensive vacuum cleaners from a big box store and replaced after they died with another basic, inexpensive model. I always took the “a vacuum cleaner is a vacuum cleaner approach.” No more. The Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away has completely changed my opinion.

Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away Review

Our house has a mix of flooring (laminate, sheet vinyl, wood & carpet) and weird angles in a few spots like the stairway and upstairs hallway. I was curious to see if the Rotator Powered Lift-Away was a single vacuum that could handle all of these areas and was pleased to see it not only could, but did so very easily and effectively.

I initially tried the Powered Lift-Away on the laminate flooring in our family room. Since moving to this house 2 years ago, we’ve always swept the entire first floor with a broom and then used a dry duster or mop behind as needed. Our existing vacuum wasn’t really a good match for hard floors so I wanted to see how well the Hard-Floor Genie attachment on the Shark Rotator worked. Not only is it easy to attach to the wand, it glides smoothly across the floors even tackling the colorful foam squares where we sit and play in front of the fire (yes, I’m in need of a good area rug or carpeting in that room but that’s another post!).

The furniture arrangement gave me a good opportunity to see how well the Powered Lift-Away wand swivels to handle tight spaces. I could easily turn it, slide between the couch and side table; straighten to vacuum; and turn again to pull it back out and continue on the open floor. With previous vacuums I had to move the furniture. That’s extra time and energy I do not currently have with a 5 year old and 6 week old (hello, sleep deprivation).

Shark: Tackling tight spaces

The suction area at the front of the Hard-Floor Genie attachment sucked up the dirt I could see and plenty of hair and dust bunnies I hadn’t noticed while the soft, machine washable microfiber pad collected even more dust and hair. It was a bit gross, but also “Wow! Now the floors are really clean” sort of moment. I really love that now I have a quick, single step process for cleaning our entire first floor instead of broom + dry duster.

The second floor of our house and stairs are carpeted (minus the bathrooms, of course). At home with a newborn, I was struggling to find time to squeeze in testing the Powered Lift-Away on both floors and calming a baby in need of a nap until an idea hit me – why couldn’t I do both at once? Thanks to our baby wrap, I snuggled Miss E up to me where she quickly settled down. I was concerned at first that the noise would startle her, but it’s much quieter than our older vacuum. She napped through me cleaning our entire second floor!

Shark Cleaning - clean while baby wearing!

Besides how much quieter it is, I appreciated how easy the Rotator Powered Lift-Away was for me to operate with one hand. It has some serious power to it and, while it weighs a tad more than our old vacuum, it glides across the carpet with ease. It also rotates easily (as the name implies) and tackled the angled corners in our upstairs hallway in one sweep. Thanks to the long cord, I  was able to completely vacuum 3 of the 4 bedrooms and the hallway plus part of the master before having to turn off and replug in a new location.

With two kids, one cat and numerous DIY projects as we turn this foreclosure into our home, we constantly have some sort of mess to clean up and I can confidently say that we finally have a vacuum that can keep up with us.

Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away: tackles stairs with ease

One final great feature is the filtration system. Considering the dust some of our DIY projects kick up plus the fact I suffer from asthma and just don’t want my kids breathing in bad air for obvious reasons, I love the sealed HEPA system with washable filters. Our house actually smells fresher and cleaner after I’ve vacuumed and I know the filter is helping retain the dust picked up and not just stirring it up or kicking it back out. A huge plus.

For the record, our previous “basic” vacuum has officially been donated to our local thrift shop. I’m sure it will find a good new home and be useful, but we’re completely converted to the power behind our new Powered Lift-Away now.

Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away Vacuum with TruePet Review

Find all of the “official” details about the Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away on Shark’s website here.

Disclosure: I received the Shark Rotator Powered Lift-Away vacuum free for review. The opinions expressed here are strictly my own.


I often get questions about how the Shark compares to a Dyson. Check out Lindsey’s video review at Redhead Baby Mama where she shows what the Shark did after she used her Dyson.

2 Comments

  • Scott M December 8, 2014 at 5:01 pm
    Hi Sarah, Passing by your site while reading your Stone's post (a great store!) and happened to notice your review of the Shark vacuum. Just a quick note of warning... Sharks perform well until they break down. Mine lasted about two years. One more than the warranty. THEN you have a problem. Why? Because nobody will fix them. Literally NO ONE in the Triangle wants to fix a Shark. According to the two most popular area vacuum repair shops, Shark refuses to sell replacement parts, so they're virtually impossible for a repair shop to try to fix. I made a call to their "warranty hotline," and they aren't very helpful. Your one option is to ship the vacuum to their repair center. Frankly, the cost of shipping is almost half the cost of the vacuum. To quote one of the repair shops, "Your better off just tossing those plastic vacuums in the trash." It's a shame to dispense this type of product in a landfill. Last I checked a couple years ago, there were plenty of complaints out in the Interwebs about Shark's shoddy repair options. Readers, you've been warned.
    • Sarah Coggins December 12, 2014 at 11:44 am
      I'm sorry to hear that. I confess, as hard as I work to keep things out of our trash by recycling/donating/etc, I hadn't even thought to try to get a vacuum cleaner repaired in the past. I did see a vacuum at the Scrap Exchange in Durham recently. Not sure if it worked or not. Possible someone donated it to be used for parts. If so, that would be a great option locally for old, broken vacuums vs the landfill. I know this doesn't help with the repair issue though.

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    Hi! I'm a DIY and craft obsessed mom to 2. I have my hands covered in sawdust or paint any given day. My husband and kids join me in many of our projects. When we aren't creating at home, we're creating memories in our many adventures. Join along! Read More

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