Giveaway: Oreck VersaVac vacuum cleaner and steam mop ($250)

Kids-and-flour

Before I had a kid, I mainly pulled out the vacuum to make sure the fibers of my carpet were all going in the same direction. I'm sure I dropped a potato chip every now and then, but that's about it.

I don't remember ever eating cereal on my couch, deciding I didn't want it, then turning the full bowl upside down to prove my point. I also don't think I ever poured myself a glass of orange juice and then hurled it across the kitchen because it wasn't apple. Or put a cracker on the carpet and then crushed it with my foot just for the hell of it. 

These things are just not done by adults living on their own.

But once grown people add a toddler to their living arrangements, it's a whole other story— remember the kids up top?

I've always had a broom, a vacuum, a dust buster, a mop, a swiffer and something called a "swivel sweeper" all crammed into my tiny utility closet ready to spring into action when necessary. Cereal spilled in the kitchen— get the broom; cereal spilled on the rug— get the dustbuster; cereal and milk spilled in the kitchen— what happened to all the paper towels???; cereal and milk spilled on the rug— buy a new rug!

My utility closet is small and also contains my washer and dryer, so I usually have to take everything out to get the item I need. Attempting to get them all back in is a story that doesn't always have a happy ending…

Act I: I shove everything inside.

Act II: I close the door as quickly as possible.

Act III: Everything comes crashing down on me the next time I need to open the door.

With all this in mind, I was very excited when Oreck contacted me to do a review and giveaway of their new VersaVac— a vacuum cleaner and steam mop in one. They promised I would be able to do away with my broom, my dust bin, my mop and my bucket because the multi-tasking VersaVac can be used on all floor surfaces— including carpet, wood, tile and stone.

Oreck-versavac

The VersaVac is very streamlined (as you can see above), but still has the same strong suctioning ability of a much larger vacuum. Plus, it's bagless (you just empty a removable canister and snap it back in place) which makes things even easier and is great for the environment.

Screen Shot 2012-09-27 at 7.43.17 AM

It easily transitions from vacuum to steam mop by using a snap-on steam plate and filling a small removable tank with water at the sink. You can use a low setting for sealed hard wood floors and a higher setting for kitchen tile. So you can vacuum the crushed cracker out of your carpet and then two seconds later, use the same apparatus to get the sticky patches of badly cleaned-up juice off your kitchen tile. Making cleaning your home, if you feel the need to do such a thing, take much less time.

My only complaint is it doesn't have a hose attachment like my old vacuum so I would still hang on to my dustbuster to clean my crumb-filled couch.

Today, Oreck is giving away one VersaVac ($250) to one lucky reader.

Just follow the giveaway rules below and maybe the next time your child ends a crafting project by ceremoniously dumping a cup of glitter on your throw rug, you'll be excited to test out your new vacuum instead of wondering if you can trade your child in for an upgrade.

GIVEAWAY RULES

1. You must be a Mommy Shorts Facebook Fan or subscriber to enter. Then describe the biggest mess your kid(s) ever made along with your favorite VersaVac feature in the comment section below.

2. For a second entry, tweet about the giveaway and leave a second comment saying you did so:

Share your kid's messiest moment for a chance to win a $250 @Oreck VersaVac from @mommyshorts http://bit.ly/UZEQzq #giveaway 

Winner will be chosen at random and announced on October 12th. Good luck!

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The giveaway winner must be a resident of U.S. 48 contiguous states. (Sorry, Hawaiian readers!)

I received a VersaVac in exchange for this post but as always, the opinions are my own. Oreck Corporation provided the prize for the sweepstakes but is not the sponsor of the sweepstakes.