Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet Review

Even though the CleanView Swivel is a basic, budget-focused upright vacuum, we appreciated its handy Suction Power Indicator. What is it? It's a visual, mechanical, color-coded indicator that turns from green to red if the vacuum loses suction or becomes clogged. Even better, it can indicate a partial clog or loss of suction, which can occur after filling the dustbin or when the filter needs cleaning.
 

Performance Comparison

 

Carpet Performance

Most users still rely on upright vacuums for carpet cleaning, even though more people are starting to use them to clean hardwood floors, too. We test vacuums on low and high pile carpets, considering suction power and cleaner head features, which affect performance on different surfaces. For example, a cleaner head that easily rolls over lightweight debris on a low pile carpet could push it around on softer carpets if it sinks into thick high pile fibers. If your pets or kids track in a lot of lightweight debris like leaves, this could be critical information for you.
 

Before Testing After Testing

 

Low Pile

The Swivel Pet sucked up 86% of debris on low pile carpet, which is slightly below average.
 
 
When I weighed the results, this model did surprisingly well sucking up the sand, but it snowplowed rice and Cheerios. That caused me to spend time chasing down the plowed piles as I tried to get them up.
 

Before Testing After Testing

In addition to forward plowing, I also observed back plowing. What's worse, the reverse strokes were not very effective, so I recommend that you approach most materials with forward passes and forget trying to nab dirt on the reverse.

High Pile

 
 
This model only sucked up 29% of the debris, which is a very low collection rate. Plus, it tended to backplow Cheerios, leaving them behind with no really chance of collecting them without turning completely around to approach them head-on.
 

Before Testing After Testing

Like many budget vacuums, shag carpet proves to be difficult to lift the debris within thick shag carpet. Here, you can see the Bissell does a great job at picking up the Cheerios head-on but leaves the majority of the rice and sand behind.

Overall Carpet Cleaning Performance

The cleaner head and brush roller design seems to cause some lackluster results — but you might be able to make some adjustments to get better results on your own floors.
 

Carpet Cleaning Performance (%)

Product	Low Pile	High Pile
Best	97	73
Average	88	51.4
Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet	86	29
Worst	67	27

First, you might be able to adjust the height of the cleaner head beyond the recommended settings to reduce the plowing of larger debris (like cereal) or lower it for small debris (like sand). These changes can affect the vacuum's suction seal, reducing its effectiveness, so you'll have to experiment to find the right balance.

With patience and a forward-heavy stroke pattern, many people could find success with this vacuum. Because the Bissell CleanView has a flap of rubber behind the brush roller, ostensibly to improve its collection abilities on hard floors, which I'll get to below, the side effect is that this flap will plow debris on reverse strokes.
 
If modifying your stroke pattern or taking extra passes to clean up messes isn't your jam, check out the relatively affordable Kenmore Intuition 3-in-1. It absolutely crushed our carpet tests, outperforming premium vacuums that cost twice as much.
 

 

Hardwood Performance

As vinyl and hardwood floors become more popular, people are looking for vacuums that can handle different surfaces. Some people with hardwood floors in open living rooms and kitchen areas use area rugs to warm the living room and define its space. A versatile vacuum that can switch between the rug and hard floors could save you from having to use a broom. To find out how well vacuums work on hard floors, we test them on flat floors, check how well they clean gaps and crevices, and see how they handle wall edges.

Cleaning Performance

Unfortunately, the Swivel Pet isn't nearly as effective on hard floors as it is on carpet. In our vinyl floor test, it collected just 74% of our test debris, which is well below average.
 
 

However, I noticed a significant difference in effectiveness between forward and reverse strokes. On forward passes, it sucked up debris pretty well but aggressively plowed on the reverse. If you want acceptable results with this machine on hardwood, you'll likely need to focus on hitting all debris while moving forward.

 

Crevice

After cleaning a house, we don't want to find dirt lingering in crevices and between grouted tiles, so we test this aspect of cleaning to ensure you have a vacuum that can handle it all.
 

 
The model collected just 12% of the sand, an epic fail, far below average. I can't recommend this model to anyone with tile floors or crevices in their home. However, if you do have just one or two crevices, you could use the included crevice tool to suck up dirt by hand.
 

Edges

Vacuums differ greatly in their close-to-wall cleaning capabilities. Some are great at it, while others are not so hot. To figure out which ones are the best, we put them to the test. We scattered some coffee grounds on a wall and watched how they cleaned up with both parallel and head-on attacks.

Before Testing After Testing

 

A vacuum that can successfully perform a head-on pass in this test is ideal for collecting crumbs on stairs or capturing debris under kitchen counters.

This model collected some coffee grounds on the forward attack and sprayed on the parallel pass, making it a poor choice for those who want to clean long hallways and avoid a broom.
 

Overall Hardwood Cleaning Performance

The CleanView Swivel Pet underperformed in every hard floor test.
 

Hardwood Performance Ratings

Product	Cleaning	Crevice	Edges
Best	8.9	8.5	9.0
Average	6.4	5.1	6
Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet	5.6	1.7	5.0
Worst	1.0	1.4	3.0

 

While it might be possible to get acceptable results on a hard floor, you'll likely have to spend more time using primarily forward passes to find success. For a much-improved experience, consider the Shark Navigator Lift Away Deluxe NV360, which is often on sale, making it an excellent value.

Pet Hair

Pet fur is a common problem for dog and cat owners, especially those with multiple furry friends. To help you find the best vacuums for your furry companions, we put our vacuums through rigorous tests on both low-pile and high-pile carpets.
 

Pet Hair Cleaning Performance (%)

Product	Low	High
Best	78	82
Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet	72	74
Average	71.8	57.2
Worst	56	34

 
Our pet hair stress tests are meticulous. We start with a measured 4-gram mix of dog hair collected during tail-wagging (and occasional purring) brushing sessions. Then, we spread this hair across 13 square feet of carpet. To make it even more realistic, we add 1 gram of long hair extensions to account for the hair shed by other family members in the home. Finally, we press the hair into the carpet with a heavy wheel, creating a clingy pet hair mat that sticks to the carpet in a way that pet owners can likely relate to. Each vacuum gets 12 seconds to collect as much hair as possible.
 

Before Testing After Testing

 

While the Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet met our average collection rate of 72% on low pile carpet, it did an outstanding job on high pile carpet, matching or beating vacuums that cost significantly more.

 

Filtration & Suction

We put vacuums through a rigorous filtration test to ensure they can clean up without introducing new problems. Good filtration is super important because if a vacuum doesn't filter well, it can send tiny particles into the air, reducing indoor air quality and even making people sick, especially those with allergies or lung problems.
 

 

Suction power is key because it determines how well a vacuum can suck up dirt and grime from carpets and hidden spots. We can identify possible causes for certain performance issues by measuring a vacuum's suction power. For instance, some vacuums that are hard to push on some carpets can have too much suction, making them feel sticky to the floor, while others are easy to push but have too little suction to suck up sand.

Filtration & Suction Performance Ratings

Product	Filtration	Suction
Best	9.0	7.2
Average	8.1	3.7
Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet	2.0	3.3
Worst	2.0	3.3

 

Filtration

We use Dylos sensors to spot and measure particles in flour that we vacuum up during this test. Yikes. Our monitors spiked to 1,521 small particles during testing with 163 large particles.
 
 
This is a poor filtration score for our tests, even for an inexpensive vacuum. Those with allergies may prefer a vacuum with better filtration. While not all vacuums with good filtration use HEPA filters, nearly every vacuum I've tested with a HEPA filter has performed very well in our filtration tests.
 

Suction

To measure suction power at the cleaner head, we move the cleaner head over a hole in a test box connected to a manometer that can measure a pressure differential created by the vacuum.
 

 

The Swivel Pet generated a relatively low, below-average suction score of 224 pascals. With a well-designed cleaner head, a vacuum with this suction score should be able to collect a decent amount of sand from a crevice. For instance, the Shark Navigator Lift Away generated a suction reading of just 100 pascals but collected 56% of the sand in our crevice test compared to the Swivel Pet's 12%. What can we infer from this data? The Navigator likely has a much more effective cleaner head design than the Swivel Pet.

Ease of Use

Upright vacuums come in all shapes and sizes and can be a real pain to use when the design isn't quite right. Some are a breeze to maneuver, while others make us feel like we're pushing wheelbarrows full of dirt. We put each vacuum through its paces to see how easy it is to use, which can be especially important to those with tricky home layouts or balance issues.
 

Ease of Use Performance

Product	Maneuverability	Maintenance	Reach	Upholstery
Best	9.0	7.0	6.5	9.0
Average	5.6	5.6	6	6.2
Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet	5.0	4.0	5.5	7.0
Worst	3.0	4.0	3.5	3.0

 
To evaluate ease of use, I consider maneuverability, evaluate maintenance requirements, measure weight and reach, and conduct an attachment test.
 

Maneuverability

I test many vacuums in my own home, and I also conduct a special maneuverability test in our lab. This involves moving the vacuums around cones, sliding them under furniture, and checking out any special features that affect how easily they move.
 

Despite the swiveling head, I had a hard time making tight turns without exerting a lot of force, but pushing it back and forth wasn't difficult. The fixed canister limits its reach under furniture. The cleaner head has a dial that lets you adjust the height for transitioning from hardwood to carpet, but you have to bend over to make this adjustment every time you move to a different floor type, which might be difficult for aging adults or those with back issues.

Maintenance

The biggest pain in keeping this machine clean is the ability to access the brush roller. It's not removable, so you have to cut wrapped hair and pick it through small openings to remove it, which can be a real hassle.
 

 

Upholstery & Attachments

Many people use hand tools that come with their vacuums to clean and dust furniture, so I test the included tools for usability and performance. To test for use on upholstery, I spread coffee grounds on a throw pillow and then use the most suitable attachment to remove them.
 

I loved the motorized attachment tool! It worked surprisingly well. In my coffee upholstery test, it left a few streaks behind but cleaned at least 90% of it with just a couple of passes, earning it an above-average rating. The included crevice tool and dusting brush also function as they should.
 

 

Should You Buy the Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet

If you're looking for an entry-level vacuum for modest vacuuming challenges, the Swivel Pet can handle simple tasks on the carpet if you're patient and attack most messes head-on. The crevice tool will likely be necessary for cracks and certain debris, but on hardwood floors, it may not be worth the effort. Surprisingly, it handled pet hair well, making its name fitting in this regard.
 

What Other Upright Vacuums Should You Consider?

The Kenmore Intuition costs about $50 more, but it's far better on carpet and hardwood but slightly less effective with pet hair. The Eureka PowerSpeed costs much less but is better on carpet, worse on hardwood, and similar with pet hair. For about twice as much, the Eureka QuickShift OmniVerse NEU801BL outperformed in every test and earned our coveted Editor's Choice award for Best Value.