Kärcher WD2 Wet and Dry Vacuum, Steel, 1000 W, 12 liters, Yellow with Kärcher Wet and Dry Vacuum 5 x WD2 Paper Filter Bags

This is a wonderful appliance that I note has had poor reviews from some. I agree it has its issues, the ones that I note are that it tips over easily--so go easy with it and not like a bull at a gate--and that the head detaches too easily, i.e. is press-fit and doesn't latch into place. HOWEVER, the upsides are huge and I am not sure how anyone can expect more from an appliance at this price band. I bought mine first for around £80 (this is the second...just bought a new one) and was so impressed by it that I have bought the second.I love that it has the multi-functional base, that can be used wet or dry, with a vast container that I use for many other things besides vacuuming! I detach it regularly and use it as a mopping bucket, and the fact it's on wheels makes it so easy to move. It literally glides along... so if you have to transport heavy fluids, this base does the job.The cleaning power on dry dust and debris is fantastic, and I have bought the second specifically for building debris and dust that will soon wreck a standard vacuum cleaner and stop its motor working. I used my first Karcher (same as this) on all manner of debris for years and never had an issue, no loss of suction.I have even used it to clean the gravel drive up. As years go by, the gravel acquires all sorts of general crud and dust, also tiny leaf particles that stop it looking good. I got rid of the weeds and lay a garden sieve down on the dirty gravel areas, sliding it around with the vac head inside the sieve. heck, the muck this deposited in the container was a fine dust I could barely even see, and it left the gravel looking like new. Of course, nothing major could come up into the container because the sieve holes are small enough, but they were equally big enough to stop the gravel being sucked up. I recommend the technique! It's time consuming but if you are selling your house and have patches of gravel covered in builder's debris etc, give it a whirl on a nice dry day. The drive will end up looking like the gravel was freshly laid.I have never used the appliance on wet spills but will give it a whirl as I have acquired an absolutely filthy sofa from ebay, ha... I plan to soak it outside and vac off the residue.The filter unit in this is easy to clean and lasts a long time. I believe that the key to staying satisfied with most vacuum cleaners is that you look after them. If you use on wrong surfaces and crud up the filters etc, you won't see them last. But for robustness, longevity and general efficacy I am very pleased with this. I have even considered buying several to have them in stock in case they cease being made. So take poor reviews with a pinch of salt, so to speak, because some users expect the earth and yet they're paying low and probably expecting more than it's designed to do.I think I will weight the base with something too, and see if it stops tipping... if so, that makes it perfect for all sorts of home uses.

Bought this for cleaning up DIY jobs in the garage. Used to use a Dyson but the suction was not powerful enough and was always blocking up and cleaning the filters afterwards was not easy. Now with this Karcher it is easy to use, powerful suction and just throw away bags when full. It’s great to clean dogs hairs out of the car which get stuck and impossible to suck up with lesser cleaners. Have read some complaints that it tips over when pulled along which is true but doesn’t put me off rating this highly. I’m just a bit more careful pulling it along. Great powerful cleaner and a good price.

This is a nice machine let down by some obvious failures. First off it may quote a 12 litre tank, but it can only suck one to two litres of liquid. Secondly the instructions are bare bones and hard to follow. For instance it doesn’t seem to tell you to remove the paper filter before sucking water, so it gets soaked and cuts down the vacuum, and takes ages to dry afterwards. Finally there is some simple assembly to do to fit the wheels on.Apart from the obvious frequent emptying, the squeegee tool cleaned my inflatable hot tub from the outside instead of me kneeling in the water with a sponge and bucket, so I am happy with it. Construction quality and durability also seem good, but the optional extras are extremely expensive.TBH I think that paper bags are superfluous given that the air filter is easily rinsable and the tank could hold double what the bag could.

I've only had this for a couple of hours but it's exceeded my expectations by far.My flat's got the most stubborn, claw-like carpet in the history of Victorian housing and NOTHING would get crumbs, wood chips, or other small hard pieces of debris out because they'd stick in there like velcro. One run with this vac and the carpet's clean. Makes me feel like I was living in a swamp.The "instruction manual" is phenomenally useless though. When you get it, lift the flaps on the side to take out the wheels which are inside the vac. Attach them to the bottom, then attach the hose to the vac and one of the pipes to the hose. Then either attach the floor attachment (and its brush insert) or the crevice tool to the pipe. If you're using it on dry surfaces then make sure you affix the bag inside the vac. (& vice versa, if you're sucking up liquids then take the bag out!) Insertion is a bit finicky and requires folding it so that it fits in at the edge of the vac, leaving room for the filter. But the whole thing from unpackaging took me less than 5 mins.Re the reviews saying this topples over too easily, I haven't found that to be the case unless you're pulling it from the direction opposite where the hose is coming out from (i.e. you're pulling it backwards.)I don't know what to say about the reviews saying it leaks as I haven't used the wet vac feature yet. I may update this review later down the line if needed.

Does the jobs that your posh vacuum doesn’t like doing.