Giveaway: Oreck VersaVac vacuum cleaner and steam mop ($250)
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.
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.
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.
tweet https://twitter.com/jtwark/status/253971180967571456
fb fan, worse mess was my grandaughter when she found my flour bag and decided to surprise me with pancakes, eggs and all. most of it was on the floor, love her!
https://twitter.com/hbbs55/status/254022928973320194
I am a subscriber with this email address.
The biggest mess my son made wasn’t fixable with a vacuum (but he makes a mess with crumbs all the time).
He drew on the wall, the ottoman, my bra (!) and so many other things. All in one shot.
It’s what happened when he became a big brother 🙁
Messiest moment was when my daughter dropped a full bag of flour on the floor. Oh my. I am a facebook fan. The snap on steam plate is the best feature.
I love that it does double duty as both a steam mop and vacuum!
Hmm, the biggest mess my kids ever made..does their disastrous room right now count? Ugh, always a battle. I did have one drop a Sam’s club size bottle of syrup on the kitchen floor, and it cracked and broke all over 🙁
I tweeted https://twitter.com/stickyprints/status/254077346297049091
Okay, once my daughter snuck into the kitchen and opened an ENTIRE container of cocoa onto EVERYTHING. Every surface of my kitchen and living room (we have an open plan house) was covered in cocoa dust.
I just stood there laughing- it was a fabulous scene. Not to mention that she was covered in cocoa dust too :D.
Then I cleaned it. By hand. We don’t have a vacuum.
My kid just pees on everything. This morning it was the couch.
I’m a FB fan!
One time, my son found my 25 lb bag of flour and poured it across the hallway. While I was cleaning up, he went back, and did the same to my 20 lb bag of white sugar.
Hmmm, one of the messiest moments for sure was when my 10yo son (then a baby) found the bottle of baby powder – POOF. Everywhere. Still not as messy as the time he was in his isolette in the NICU (preemie) and he pooped so much they had to send the whole contraption off to a specialty medical supply cleaning place – I didn’t have to clean that up, but I’m sure they slapped it on the hospital bill.
I love the vac’s size – our baby now instsits on being carried while I sweep. I could really use one that’s lighter and less clunky (a vac, not a baby).
i am a mommy shorts fb fan, and holy wow I would love to have a versa vac. I love that it is so (imagine that) VERSAtile. Multiple functions, multiple surfaces, I mean, this thing does it all! I am not the best about cleaning house, but this would certainly make it easier and may improve my overall home cleanliness level!!
and because I oops forgot, my kids’ biggest mess…um…they are overall messy all the time, but I’m not sure one specific thing has been messy. oh wait, just remembered – they got a science experience kit for a gift. they didn’t blow up my kitchen, but it sure looked like they did after using it!!
tweet https://twitter.com/stigay/status/254265052205572097
I am your Facebook fan! I like the washable re- usable steam pads.The biggest mess I ever made as a kid was when I decided to melt an entire bag of chocolate chips onto the toaster. Just to see what would happen.
https://twitter.com/kayte71/status/254389333149233152
They got a Bean Bag chair open, and made it snow!I am still finding the occasional ‘bean’.
I love that it’s Dual Functions-Hard floors to carpet & Steam mop to vacuum in one is amazing.
I’m an email subscriber.
I Tweeted
https://twitter.com/maxfate/status/254475736390455296
I like you on Facebook as Renee Walters and my son decided that gardens should be inside the house not just in the yard. He brought in a pail of dirt and started planting on the carpet. It was a lovely mess to clean up. I love that this machine is versatile and so easy to use! Thanks so much for the fantastic giveaway!
Reneewalters3@yahoo.com
this would sure help on the tile and hardwood floors all
dog hair really gets to me
I’m a FB fan and love the multipurpose option’s, I can steam and vacuum, WOOOO! Right before Easter my 2 yr old let my 1 yr old in the fridge and he grabbed all the egg’s we were going to color out. They had not been boiled yet. There was about 5 dozen egg’s. I was folding clothes and thought they were still playing in the Living room, boy was I mistaken. There was 5 dozen broken slimy egg’s all over the Kitchen floor. It was the grossest thing IO have ever had to clean up, yuck!
tweet
https://twitter.com/mngirlinssp/status/254588109046575106
My kids once had a field day with shaving cream.. it got everywhere and when it dries it’s a very soft powdery mess. I love the bagless feature on the sweeper
email subcriber
I have a jade plant that I’ve been growing for years & years & my granddaughter decided to pull off every little leaf & throw them all over the floor!! I was so angry! But heck, it’s just a thing & it’s grown back but it sure made a mess. Hey, vaccuming & mopping at the same time is a godsend.
FB follower – adjustable steam settings is my favorite feature. Ok messy story – I was working nights and would get home at about 11pm. My husband fell asleep and I guess at some point while he was sleeping my son got into the sugar and poured it everywhere – including all over my bed. Not fun.
tweeted today
My son ate granola bars and it stuck to everything on the floor and his flashcards and clothes.
I love that this works on all floor types.
I’m a FB fan as Tamar Swe.
biggest mess was spilling the hamster cage all over the floor
My two kids – ages 3 and 18 months, my husband and my inlaws are all living in a townhouse after moving 20 hours from home. The kids aren’t overly messy or haven’t done anything terrible but apparently I’m the only one in this house capable of picking up a broom, or a mop or the vacuum or laundry off the floor or… Well you get the idea.
Um…amazing! I NEED this. I don’t live with kids, they are more like mini tornadoes leaving a path of paper, gum, trash, wrappers, crayons and clothing everywhere. I like the Double Helix brushroll on this bad boy, at my house, it’s gonna need it! Would seriously LOVE luuuuuve lurve to win this fantastic cleaning contraption! (I like you on Facebook – Amber H). Thanks!
Tweet tweet:https://twitter.com/roomofmyown/status/255039169137610752
fb fan and my kids would be my cats lol they shredded the paper towels it was everywhere
i like that it is a vacuum/steam mop all in one
tweeted as showdown561
https://twitter.com/showdown561/status/255149959702278144
My daughter left her 5k plus bead bin on the dining table for my toddler son to dump all over the dining room. Little.tiny.seed.beads….the end
FB at Melanie B
https://twitter.com/kaiasmommy/status/255185835597639680
Biggest mess – my 3 year old asked me for a bag of fake snow…and I gave it to him. (Maybe not my brightest moment.) I like that it can be used all all surfaces – we have carpet and hard wood floors, which have all seen many, many messes.
I am following you on facebook
I just twitted https://twitter.com/intent/tweet/complete?latest_status_id=255465216807149568&
i think it ws when my daughter got a hold of her diaper cream and was putting it on over her pants!
missyingling@yahoo.com
Probably using a marker not on paper but on the carpet, floor and door.
You know I love you on FB and Twitter, but what I don’t love is the figure eight shaped stain that is STILL on my carpet. It was made just two weeks after we put in the carpet (three years ago) on the second floor…when my one year old daughter got her hands on an empty ink cartridge from the trash can (yes, I know, I’m supposed to recycle them dammit!) and proceeded to shake it all over the landing. We tried two different kinds of carpet cleaner – and now we’re just waiting until the rest of the carpet gets as dirty as the current stain.
Those first two weeks of pristine carpet were awesome, though!
My daughter got into the long grain rice bag once…it was everywhere! This would’ve come in handy at the time. I love that it’s a lot smaller than what I’m used to now.
fb fan xferriza2 dani marie
i love the fact it does carpet and hard wood/tile! and of course no bag. i hate bags.
the biggest mess i have ever made was when i spilled glitter all over the floor. it looked like i killed a fairy. 🙁 i think im still finding glitter years later.
ferriza2(at)yahoo(dot)com
He “decorated” the walls with every crayon he could find. The bottom of a bunk bed too.
I tweeted:
twitter.com/Kismetchris/status/255603960709271552
A huge mess was a time my daughter spilt glitter everywhere in the living room. It was stuck in the carpet, stuck on me, stuck on her…and I swear I would see it clung to things for weeks.
I am a FB fan of your blog. I like the suction power of the vacuum is that of a large vacuum because we have a constantly shedding dog too!!
desireedunbar@hotmail.com
I am a facebook fan, and I like that it has steam settings. The biggest mess my kids made was dropping a dozen eggs all over my carpeted living room.
I am a Mommy Shorts Facebook Fan. The biggest mess my toddler made was when he knocked over the dogs dry food all over the kitchen floor. My favorite feature is the 1400 watt steam mop with variable steam levels.
Tweeted: https://twitter.com/yummyfaerie/status/255821636203339776
We made the mistake of having the flour and sugar on the lower shelf of our cupboard. Our daughter, when she was 4, grabbed the bags and poured them all over the living room carpet. A few years later when we replaced the carpet, the padding underneath had spot of white flour residue on it. I don’t even think this vacuum could have fully cleaned this mess.
Also, my favorite feature is the bagless capability. Vacuums always last longer than the availability of the bags. I had a Hooover vacuum that I had to get rid of because you couldn’t buy the bags anymore.
I follow you on facebook and I tweeted at https://twitter.com/1brisket/status/256099687298383872
My son once opened every cereal box in the house (about 8 of them from the pantry and several half open ones) and poured them into a big bowl …. well a very small portion made it into the bowl, the rest was all over the floor !! I think I am still finding little pieces that rolled under appliances and cabinets.
LOVE that it can be used on all different surfaces !!
FB fan 🙂
Mommy Shorts Facebook Fan, and I love that it has a 2-in-1 cleaning system for both hard floors and carpet. No children here, but pets sometimes make the same messes as babies (think stomach flu).
tweet https://twitter.com/chellesyvonne/status/256180690150903810
with 2 sets of twins there are more messes than I can remember. However, there are 2 that stand out. My oldest spent a night at my OCD friend while his twin was in the hospital. When she woke up in the morning she found that he had taken off his poopie diaper, shmeared it all around his pack n play, neighboring walls, bed and stuffed animals and was in the process of licking it- YUCK! another time my younger twins raided the pantry while I was feeding their little brother they went “swimming” in croutons and then made ovaltine paintings on the floor and walls. I really like that he versa vac is both a mop and vacuum in 1, the less clutter I have the better
https://twitter.com/aahaft/status/256215848509906944
my daughter took a whole bottle of baby powder and shook it all over my up stairs
My little ones love spaghetti but it gets everywhere! The noodles even have been found hanging from the dining room light!
I like that the Oreck is both a vacuum and a mop! So cool 🙂
treece2122(at)gmail(dot)com
I guess the biggest mess would be spilling an entire meal of milk and drink on the floor as well as on themselves!
I’m a fb fan! And I don’t have any kids (yet), but one of my cats loves to tear up anything made out of cardboard and makes such a mess!
The biggest mess my kids have made was grape Kool-Aid on the kitchen floor. I mean a whole pitcher of the stuff all that also spilled under the fridge which had to be moved to clean under.
I don’t have human kids, but I do have 7 fur babies (cats) and hope that can count! LOL The biggest mess they ever made is something that happens every single week. They track litter EVERYWHERE in my house. I have three litter boxes so you can imagine how often I vacuum my hardwood floors! LOL
BTW I like you via FB as Angela A. Lilly and I subscribe via google reader.
I tweeted here: https://twitter.com/MsTofuFairy/status/256429239589556224
I’m a facebook fan 🙂 The biggest mess we had was a lot of mud and grass rubbed into the carpet after everyone came in (with the dog) after being out in the rain! It was the worst! I love that the VersaVac has steam settings!
The biggest mess that I can remember would be.. I had just made a 2 gallon thing of ice tea and my daughter was trying to get it all by herself (she was 5 at the time) and she dropped it and it went all over the floor, yes I make my tea sweet to so it was a huge mess. I love the Chemical-free cleaning with steam function feature.
ericka082 at gmail dot com
Tweeted
https://twitter.com/Ericka082/status/256540812526116864
ericka082 at gmail dot com
FB fan here! Totally digging that it can be used just about anywhere!! The biggest mess my kids ever made was the “cookie incident” I left my 7 and 2 year old alone for a few minutes while I snuck away to use the bathroom. While in there I heard a lot of giggling and whispers. When I came out there was flour, butter, oil, and food coloring mixed together ALL OVER the kitchen floor, cupboards, carpet nearby, and themselves. It was the worst mess I have ever seen.
Our youngest was in a grumpy mood one morning. At breakfast she managed to knock a jar of grape jam onto the floor and what a sticky gooey mess to clean up along with shattered glass
Fav feature is the long 30′ cord on it!
brich22 at earthlink dot net
tweet
https://twitter.com/Ardy22/status/256549625991942144
brich22 at earthlink dot net
I am a FB fan. My biggest mess was when I accidentally dumped used coffee grounds all over my carpet. I like steam function on this machine.
Tweeted https://twitter.com/happeegirl/status/256561736545628160
Then my son came home and walked thru the coffee and it was ground into the carpet. What a mess it was.
when i found out my 2 y/o gets car sick when watching a movie in a moving auto threw up all over herself the car seat the floor and the door
like you on facebook—-when my daughters where young they found a box of dancefloor dust in our garage. They took the dancefloor dust into the house and spread it all over and I do mean all over.
mattnneb tweeted: https://twitter.com/mattnneb/status/256569434024599554
Liked Mommy shorts on FB
My youngest son is autistic and thru his younger years , we didnt dare set anything pourable within his reach. Im talkin from age 2- age 14 or so…he has poured bottle after bottle of shampoo,dish detergent down the drain….but i would have to guess the biggest mess he ever made was takin my dawn and tryig to blow bubbles all over…..and of course it made everything in my bathroom wet……but tht wasnt enough fun..he found my stash of bath powder. and me being a couponer i had several containers..he took the bath powder and squeezed it..blowing powder dust sticking to everything that was damp in my bathroom..talk about sneezing and taking forever to clean…
i like the bagless feature
I like your facebook page as Jessica Miller. So far the biggest messes my daughter makes are when I let her try to feed herself. I love that this machine is bagless. Thanks for the giveaway!
I tweeted
https://twitter.com/jjak2003/status/256580961595183104
like you on facebook kathy pease
kathypease(at)gmail(dot)com
my biggest mess was when my son was younger and he thought it would be fun to dig in my big potted plant with a spoon. I love the Chemical-free cleaning with steam function 🙂
https://twitter.com/klp1965/status/256584155754803200
My kids constantly make messes! Ugh! I think the worst one yet was when they wanted to play outside in the rain and forgot to take their boots off when they came inside. There was mud tracked everywhere and dug into the carpet…it took me forever to clean it all up! My favorite thing about the versavac is the versatility =) I hate having to sweep and then vac… I love that I can do it all with one thing.
I tweeted! =)
https://twitter.com/Clatterbuck84/status/256594554684317697
I like you on fb: julie hawkins
I like the removable water tank feature.
The biggest mess my kids every made was to throw their food all over the floor.
tweet:https://twitter.com/jhoneypie411/status/256613906628349952
I haven’t really had a huge mess by the kids, but when I was younger I made one for my mom. I was about 12 and was learning to do the laundry to help my mom out. Well we ran out of detergent so figured dishwashing liquid would do the same thing, right? Umm, wrong! I totally freaked when I went into the garage to see bubbles everywhere. I got it cleaned up and my mom never knew. 🙂
tweeted: https://twitter.com/liliumhigh/status/256638325593616384
I have a 15 month old and we have nothing but messes 🙂 The worse is probably red juice on our beige carpets in our rental. I love how you can use it on tile and carpet!
Tweeted
https://twitter.com/ChristinaStrapp/status/256675310165172224
I’m a FB fan-tracey byram. The biggest mess the kids ever made was finding a can of old paint and painted everything in sight including themselves. I like that the Versavac converts from vacuuum to steam mop.
traymona[at]aol.com
My kids have made spectacular messes, but what took the cake was when two of them carried a cake into the living room together and one of them tripped. Yeah, that was fun with the dyes from the icing in the carpet.
I forgot to say my fave feature is that it can be used on multiple surfaces.
Tweeted https://twitter.com/dddiva/status/256737170281336832
Follow on Facebook – Mommyofone Shanna
Biggest mess .. My son was down for a nap and wasn’t feeling good .. I go in there a little while later to check on him and he had vomited everywhere. I mean walls, floor, bed , toys EVERYWHERE . It was a huge smelly mess !
Fav Feature – 2-in-1 cleaning system works on both hard floors and carpet
https://twitter.com/ShannaEAnderson/status/256745583874826240
I’m a FB fan and I like that I could use this on my carpet and on my bare floors. The biggest mess was when my daughter spilled a whole bag of popcorn I had just made for her and her juice too.
https://twitter.com/susan1215/status/256777444047085568
im a email subscriber,the biggest mess to date from my 2 little ones was the shampoo battle of 2011,no casualties ,but one huge mess!!! my fav feature isthat its a vaccum cleaner and a steamer in one awesome feature!!!!