We Tested the Miele Classic C1 Pure Suction Canister Vacuum Cleaner

You’ll find powerful suction and great maneuverability in this Miele canister vacuum

The Miele Classic C1 is a bagged canister model with outstanding features. It comes with 6 different suction power, unique AirClean System settings and it’s quiet – making it stand out from the competition. And with a 7-year manufacturer warranty on motor and casing, you’re sure you’re making a good investment.

Since this is one of the most highly rated Miele models, we wanted to put it to the test on a variety of surfaces in our home.

Read on to find out whether this model is suited to your household.

What’s in the Box

• Miele Classic C1 Vacuum
• Pure Suction Combination brush head
• Upholstery Tool
• Crevice nozzle tool
• Dusting brush
• AirClean filter
• Miele Original AirClean Filter Bag

This Miele canister vacuum is mostly made of plastic. But it doesn’t look or feel cheap – I thought it was sturdy and built to last.

Once you’ve got it out of the box, putting it together is super easy! The main unit is already assembled and so all you have to do is attach the hose and whatever tool you want to use.

There are no fancy features, for example, LED lights or settings that change automatically, as you’ll find on some canister vacuum cleaners.

But, on the other hand, this Miele model is cheaper than other canister vacs, and its simple design is one of its charms – plug it in, pick a setting, and you’re good to go!

The caster rubber wheels are another great plus on the design front. They mean that this vacuum cleaner will glide smoothly over all surface types.

I also liked the adjustable working height, perfect for cleaning stairs. And the stainless steel telescopic tube is particularly efficient for vacuuming kitty litter – too.

And, this vacuum cleaner looks very sleek in its graphite gray color. But for something a bit different, it’s also available in white, black, red or blue.

There are a couple of slight flaws that I picked up on. One, there isn’t a handle on the wand, and second, the images for the settings aren’t all that obvious without captions.

But you should get used to which setting means what very quickly with regular use.

One of the biggest plus points of this canister vacuum is how easy it is to move it around your home. Compared to other canister models, I found it lighter and not at all cumbersome to steer and pull around.

As I said above, the wheels make it easy to use on all different types of flooring. And they won’t scratch hardwood floors either.

There’s a handle on the main body of the vacuum. So if you want to carry it to clean your stairs or car, this is also easy.

The shallow floorhead means that you can clean into all those awkward spots like under tables and couches.

Plus, there’s a smaller plastic wand which is ideal for when you want to vac things like your furniture or curtains.

This Miele canister vacuum was tested on all floor types – including laminate, tiles, rugs, and carpets. I found that it performed well on all surface types and got rid of pet hair from everywhere.

But, I have to say that it performed best on bare floors. It was gentle on the hardwood floor – as I mentioned earlier, you don’t need to worry about the wheels scratching.

Therefore, whereas I would recommend this vacuum for all surface types, I’d say that it’s especially ideal for your home if your floors are mainly wood, tile, or laminate.

The vac did struggle a little over the high pile carpet. It did eventually pick up all debris, but this took a little longer and I found that it didn’t maneuver quite so well over these thicker surfaces.

But for cleaning bare floors and even low pile carpet, you can’t find much better!

This model is advertised as the “Classic C1 Pure Suction”. So I was eager to see whether it lived up to its name!

And it does. This Miele Classic C1 vacuum has high suction power and had no trouble in picking up smaller and bigger bits of debris.

The 1200W motor increases the power efficiency of this appliance. You’ll be left with clean surfaces each time you use this vacuum cleaner.

Plus as above, it picks up dirt from all different surfaces and floors. To help with this, there’s a footswitch on the carpet head that you can press when you’re moving from hard floors to low pile carpet.

Furthermore, there are 6 different power settings on a dial on the main body. Once you’re used to what each of the symbols means, simply select the setting you want.

For example, there’s a setting for cleaning upholstery, and another one is an energy-saving mode that is quieter.

I did find the length of the power cord a bit disappointing. At 18 feet, it’s not as long as a lot of cords on other canister vacuums.

This might not be an issue for you if you have a smaller home or live in an apartment. But for bigger houses, you might find yourself having to unplug and plug in again quite often when you’re doing a full house clean.

But, the Miele Classic C1 is advertised as having a 29.5-feet cleaning radius. I didn’t find that it stretched quite this far, but there are ways to make the shorter cord length less of an issue.

You can stretch quite far with the 5-foot hose and wand, so your 18 feet do go a bit further.

Plus, I didn’t find that the cord got in the way like other models I’ve used before. And there’s an automatic winding button for the cable once you’ve finished using it, which is handy.

For a canister vacuum cleaner, this Miele C1 Classic holds a decent amount of dirt and debris. This is collected in a dust bag.

There’s an indicator to tell you when the bag is full, so you don’t need to keep checking it. And emptying is easy – simply put the bag and its contents straight into your trash can.

You’ll then need to replace the bag before using it again.

Due to the dirt bag size, again I’d say that this vac is better suited to smaller homes. Or if used for quick clean-ups.

If you’ve got a large household and lots of cleaning to do, you may find that the bag fills up too quickly. Then, this takes up more of your time in emptying it more often – and will cost more in replacement bags.

It won’t take you much time or effort to look after this canister vacuum cleaner.

The bag and both filters are easy to reach. And they are disposable, so there’s nothing to clean there or no waiting time for items to dry.

Occasionally, you might need to clear debris out of the vacuum head, or hair from the brushes. But this is straightforward and can be done quickly.

For a canister vacuum, the Miele C1 Classic is small and compact. So you don’t need a lot of space in which to store it.

You can clip the floor head onto the vacuum itself. Plus, there’s a clip attachment for the tools and brushes.

This goes onto the top of the hose connection point. So there are no loose items to store, everything goes together as one neat piece.

So for a strong-performing vacuum cleaner – without the bulk of an upright vacuum – this model is ideal for storing if you have a smaller home or condo.

This canister vacuum comes with 3 handy accessories – a bristle dusting floor brush, a crevice tool, and an upholstery nozzle.

So whatever cleaning chore you need to do, you’re covered! I tried out all the attachments and found that they all came in handy, whether cleaning furniture, curtains, or the car.

There are 2 filters – a motor protection filter and a Miele AirClean exhaust filter. This, along with the dust bag completes Miele’s AirClean filter system.

This ensures that 99.9% of fine dust particles are trapped. So, as Miele promises, “after vacuuming, the room air is even cleaner than it was before”!

One downside to the bags and filters of the Miele Classic C1 is the replacement costs. The bag has to be replaced each time it’s filled.

And the filters should be changed approximately every 4 to 5 full bags. Depending on how much you use your vacuum, this could be every few months.

So there are some ongoing costs. However, the bags and filters aren’t too expensive – and considering that this model isn’t as expensive as other canister vacuum cleaners, further costs aren’t as much of an issue.

Alternatives

Miele Compact C1 Pure Suction

This Miele model also has powerful suction, the same accessories, and the AirClean filtration system. Customer feedback suggests an overall positive experience with this vacuum.

It’s also (as the name suggests) a little smaller than the Classic. But this also means that the dirt bag has a smaller capacity – so again, this is probably not a model that is suited to large households.

Miele Complete C3 Calima Canister Vacuum

Miele Complete C3 Calima Canister Vacuum
This Miele vacuum offers all that the Classic offers and more. There’s a turbo brush floorhead to tackle cleaning low pile carpet even better, and a HEPA filter along with the AirClean system.

However, these extra features will cost you more – more than double the price of the Miele Classic C1. So it’s up to you whether the additional performance is worth the extra money.