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 to be cleaned.
 

 

Carpet Performance

When we weighed the results, this model did surprisingly well sucking up the sand, but it pushed around rice and Cheerios. That caused us to spend time chasing down the plowed piles as we tried to get them up.

In addition to forward plowing, we also observed back plowing. What's worse, the reverse strokes were not very effective, so we recommend approaching most materials with forward passes and avoiding attempts to remove dirt on the reverse.

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.

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; therefore, you'll need to experiment to find the right balance.

With patience and a forward-heavy stroke pattern, many people could find success with this vacuum in rooms where there's usually not high-pile carpet. it helps improve its collection abilities on hard floors, which we'll discuss below, but the side effect is that this flap plows debris during reverse strokes.
 

Hardwood Performance

Unfortunately, the Swivel Pet isn't nearly as effective on hard floors as it is on carpet. However, we 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. To achieve acceptable results with this machine on hardwood, you'll likely need to focus on clearing all debris while moving forward.

This vacuum, which can successfully perform a head-on pass in this test, is great for collecting crumbs on stairs or capturing debris under kitchen counters.

Before Testing After Testing

 

It doesn't do as well, running along the long hallways, often flicking some material off to the side rather than sucking it up.

Pet Hair

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.
 

Pet Hair Cleaning Performance (%)

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

 

Before Testing After Testing

 

The downside to this model is the non-removable brush roller. It wraps hair and can collect fur.

 

Filtration

We use Dylos sensors to spot and measure particles in flour that we vacuum up during this test. Our monitors spiked to 1,521 small particles during testing.
 
 

This is a poor filtration score for our tests. Those with allergies may prefer a vacuum with better filtration. While not all vacuums with good filtration use HEPA filters, nearly every vacuum we've tested with a HEPA filter has performed very well in our filtration tests.

Ease of Use

Despite the swiveling head, we had a hard time making tight turns around table legs and into corners without extra effort. But once we were vacuuming open areas of the room, pushing it in a straight line felt much easier.
 

 

The fixed canister limits reach under furniture, and the need to bend down to adjust the height dial when switching between floor types can strain your back during frequent transitions. It is a basic design, and many better vacuums place suction controls right on the handle for easier adjustments.

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.

The motorized attachment tool worked surprisingly well when we went to clean the couch and other upholstery. The included crevice tool and dusting brush round out the package, giving you a full spectrum of tools to choose from.
 

 

Should You Buy the Bissell CleanView Swivel Pet

There are better options in our review that cost less but still provide better cleaning ability. This vacuum can handle simple messes that aren't overly daunting, but with its underlying poor filtration, we think it would be wise to search for something else.

What Other Upright Vacuums Should You Consider?

The Kenmore Intuition costs about $50 more, but it's much better on both carpet and hardwood, though slightly less effective with pet hair. If you're looking for a budget-friendly option that's still reliable for cleaning up after your pets on carpet, the Eureka PowerSpeed is a great alternative.