Shark Clean & Empty Cordless Stick Vacuum BU3521

This is my 4th Shark cordless vacuum, and they have all been outstanding. This new model adds the convenience of having a docking station that not only charges the battery but also empties the dustbin whenever the vacuum is placed in the dock. The vacuum is very similar to the most recent Shark I got which is the Detect Pro. This new vacuum is very lightweight and easy to assemble. The vacuum has 3 parts consisting of the main power head, wand and floor brush. The docking station consists of 2 parts. There are also a crevice tool and pet brush for furniture. The docking station has what they call a quiet mode which turns off the auto empty function so if you are only doing a small area and the dustbin on the vacuum does not fill up you don’t have to empty it. The ... MoreThis is my 4th Shark cordless vacuum, and they have all been outstanding. This new model adds the convenience of having a docking station that not only charges the battery but also empties the dustbin whenever the vacuum is placed in the dock. The vacuum is very similar to the most recent Shark I got which is the Detect Pro. This new vacuum is very lightweight and easy to assemble. The vacuum has 3 parts consisting of the main power head, wand and floor brush. The docking station consists of 2 parts. There are also a crevice tool and pet brush for furniture. The docking station has what they call a quiet mode which turns off the auto empty function so if you are only doing a small area and the dustbin on the vacuum does not fill up you don’t have to empty it. The emptying function works great and removes all the dirt in the vacuum. The vacuum itself provides more than enough suction for carpets and hard floors. The vacuum moderates suction based on the surface you are cleaning. The display on the top shows the battery level and provides 3 different settings for Eco, Auto and Boost. Auto will adjust the suction based on the flooring you are using it on. The floor brush features LED lighting which is always a big plus. There are filters for both the vacuum and docking station that can be washed with water only. Even though the battery is charged in the docking station it is still removable and there is a charging port, but the vacuum does not come with a charger. The quick start guide lists the chargers that can be purchased separately if needed. I tend to vacuum different areas of my house at different times, so I have not really seen how much battery life it has. So far, I have not run out of battery for my cleaning needs. Like all of Shark’s vacuums this performs as well as any of them with the benefit of having the docking station to empty the vacuum and charge the battery. I would not hesitate to recommend this vacuum to anyone looking for a light weight and powerful vacuum with all the added features.

The Shark cordless vacuum is an awesomecleaning machine! It sports an auto empty system, is lightweight, easy maneuverable and offers an auto sensing brushroll which adjusts to various floor heights and carpeting. The vacuum is lightweight, weighing in around 12 pounds. Since it is so lightweight it is highly maneuverable. It has an auto-empty base which according to the manufacturer holds up to 30 days of dust and debris.LED headlights on the vacuum head help illuminate dust and your targeted cleaning areas especially in those dark corners of one’s home. The brushroll is capable of cleaning hardwood floors, tiles or carpeting. There is no need to adjust the vacuum for the floor type and manages to clean effortlessly. The auto-adjusting brushroll ... MoreThe Shark cordless vacuum is an awesomecleaning machine! It sports an auto empty system, is lightweight, easy maneuverable and offers an auto sensing brushroll which adjusts to various floor heights and carpeting. The vacuum is lightweight, weighing in around 12 pounds. Since it is so lightweight it is highly maneuverable. It has an auto-empty base which according to the manufacturer holds up to 30 days of dust and debris.LED headlights on the vacuum head help illuminate dust and your targeted cleaning areas especially in those dark corners of one’s home. The brushroll is capable of cleaning hardwood floors, tiles or carpeting. There is no need to adjust the vacuum for the floor type and manages to clean effortlessly. The auto-adjusting brushroll automatically adapts to different floor types optimizing cleaning performance all by itself.It has approximately 40 minutes of runtime which should be more than sufficient time to vacuum your entire house without a recharge. My home is approximately 1750 square feet and I had plenty of battery to vacuum my entire house with recharging.One of my favorite features of this product is the auto-empty system. When vacuum is placed onto its doc, it auto empties and charges itself making itself ready for your next cleaning session. The vacuum has a Hepa filtration system which is designed to reduce dust exposure which is a big plus for those consumers suffering from allergens.Overall, the Shark is well-suited for those looking for a convenient and efficient cordless vacuum with advanced features like auto-emptying and adaptive brushroll technology. The Shark cordless vacuum is a versatile and convenient cleaning machine, which is fun to use. With its advanced features and ultra modern design, it’s sure to be an hit with consumers. So far, my household is very happy with this product and its high on my recommended list

I have been a user of cordless “stick” vacuums for the past five years and find them to be just as good at cleaning and way more convenient to use than their corded and heavy counterparts. This Shark Clean & Empty cordless vacuum (model BU3521) is billed as being an “ultra-light cordless” that also utilizes an “auto-empty system” incorporated into the charging stand that holds the vacuum when not in use. The vacuum can be used as a floor vacuum utilizing a long wand with a powered nozzle that contains a motorized brushroll with lights, or as a hand vacuum without the wand but with the nozzles attached directly to the handheld vacuum unit. This model came with a motorized floor nozzle, a crevice tool, and a “pet multi-tool” in which the brush snaps on and off of the ... MoreI have been a user of cordless “stick” vacuums for the past five years and find them to be just as good at cleaning and way more convenient to use than their corded and heavy counterparts. This Shark Clean & Empty cordless vacuum (model BU3521) is billed as being an “ultra-light cordless” that also utilizes an “auto-empty system” incorporated into the charging stand that holds the vacuum when not in use. The vacuum can be used as a floor vacuum utilizing a long wand with a powered nozzle that contains a motorized brushroll with lights, or as a hand vacuum without the wand but with the nozzles attached directly to the handheld vacuum unit. This model came with a motorized floor nozzle, a crevice tool, and a “pet multi-tool” in which the brush snaps on and off of the tool.The auto-empty system activates each time you hang the vacuum on the charging stand (AKA dock), with the dirt and debris being sucked out of the dust cup on the vacuum and into a larger dust bin at the bottom of the dock base. This larger dust bin is just that, a container without a bag like some other systems use. The nice thing is that you empty this large bin much less often as opposed to a vac that has to have its small dust cup emptied every time you use the vacuum which usually creates a small cloud of dust that doesn’t all end up in the trash can and potentially in your face. The auto-emptying feature happens each time you hang up the vac on the dock so that it is ready to go the next time you need to use it, but there is a button to defeat this feature. This is in case you don’t want the noise the dock motor creates when it sucks the debris from the vacuum’s dust cup, such as late at night when it might disturb others in the household. This button has a moon-shaped icon on it to denote nighttime use and the “moon” illuminates when this quiet mode is engaged.The dock charges and stores the vacuum in addition to emptying the vacuum and storing the debris. Full charging takes about 4.5 hours according to the manufacturer. There is a prominent light on the battery that glows green when it is fully charged. The wand needs to be attached to the hand vacuum in order to charge as the electrical contacts for charging are at the top end of the wand. The hand vacuum can be used without the wand and floor nozzle such as when cleaning furniture. The battery is removable and has a charging port on it to accept a cord from a charger. This type of charger is not included with this vacuum, but appears to be available on Shark’s web site along with additional batteries (I consider the battery price to be reasonable when compared to batteries for power tools).The charging dock, with the vacuum in place, takes up an area about 11” x 15” on the floor. The overall height is 43.5”, but overhead clearance of 46” is needed to get the vacuum on and off the dock. The dock provides tool storage for only one of the included tools, the crevice tool. There are two other tools available for purchase from Shark according to the owner’s guide, but unfortunately, a hose is not one of them. The full owner’s guide is available as a downloadable document only and the only paper documentation that comes with the vacuum is a Quick Start Guide that includes maintenance information and safety warnings.During use, the Cordless Clean & Empty vacuum is light and easy to maneuver. Sometimes a little too easy to maneuver as it glides over hard-surface floors with very little resistance. The powered floor nozzle which will undoubtedly get the most use by owners, has a couple quirks that are unique and may take some getting used to depending on the vacuum you were using in the past. The LED lights are mounted at the top of the nozzle above the large brushroll and the light seems to be directed to the floor via the clear plastic housing. This angle does not illuminate debris on the floor quite as well as lights mounted down low on the leading edge of the nozzle. The articulated joint where the wand meets the head forces the head to always swivel left and right as you tilt the handheld unit from side to side and this limits your ability to steer the floor nozzle under furniture and around legs, thus limiting your reach under some obstacles. Also the floor nozzle will “lock” at a 90 degree angle to the wand if you accidentally pull it too far back towards you and this feature accidentally engages. That means you have to place a foot on the nozzle to snap it free from the locked position so you can continue vacuuming.The controls on the handheld motor unit consist of two simple buttons, one is on/off for power, and the other cycles between Auto mode, Eco mode, and Boost mode. Eco mode provides sufficient suction power for non-carpeted floors and it also gives the longest runtime. I found the amount of suction generated is on par with competitors (I have no way to quantify this performance though) and I found vacuuming to be relatively easy on low-nap carpet. When you transition from hard flooring to carpet in Auto mode, the vacuum automatically senses this and increases suction and RPM speed of the brushroll. If you are on carpet with a deep pile, this increase in power can make the vacuum very difficult to push and pull. The Boost mode offers greater suction power, but I found that this is of little value on carpet because of even greater resistance to moving the vacuum. I found no need to manually switch to Boost mode on hard-surface floors, so I suspect it may be best used on furniture while using the crevice or multi-tool.The powered floor nozzle has some ingenious, short tines that keep long hair from wrapping around the brushroll and they do work as my wife leaves a lot of hair on the floor and I found none encircling the brushroll after cleaning the house, like I have in years gone by with other vacuums. The brushroll and filters are very easily removed without tools for cleaning. All of the filtering media in both the handheld vacuum unit and the charging stand, are washable with plain water (do not use soap) when needed. It appears from the literature that the main filter in the dock is a HEPA filter and the one in the vacuum itself is not - as far as I can tell.The vacuum comes with a five-year warranty (two years on the battery) which is pretty amazing considering the price point of this vacuum. Having a cleaning tool that is easy to use can make home chores more pleasant - I will stop short of saying fun - and the Shark Clean & Empty is about as good as it gets for this. If you are tired of lugging around a big, heavy, inconvenient, corded vacuum, you owe it to yourself to try a modern take on an appliance that has been around forever and see just how much better the experience can be.