I'm a home improvement contractor and I've been looking for a small vacuum for quite some time now. I've always looked at the 1 gallon shop vacs but never liked the size or the reviews. One night I entered small vacuums in the search and just kept clicking page after page after page and eventually saw this little Oreck. Read the reviews and it seemed like it was a good little machine.

I wasn't looking for a big shop vac to do major cleanups. I have that and it's just a pain to have to take it out of my shop, load it into the truck and bring it into a clients home. I have a Fein dust extractor that's quiet, but it's big. It'll take care of the big jobs if I need it. But I have to be conscious and make sure to bring it. I wanted a vacuum that I could always have in the truck, so I wouldn't have to remember to pack it up. The rectangular shape and small size allowed me to find a permanent spot in the truck boxes so I'd always have it with me.

Now the main use for me is cleaning up after installing cabinets and moldings. These type of jobs produce sawdust and small wood shavings. I usually put down tarps or other types of floor protection but no matter what the dust finds it's way onto the floor or carpet. I use the vacuum during and after the job to keep the site clean. I guess the only real complaint I have is the small bag. It's not really that bad except when the tablesaw is used because it produces quite a bit of sawdust. The bags are very inexpensive, under 40 cents each. Usually I'll dump the sawdust out 1 or 2 times before swapping out to a new bag, just because I'm frugal. I've learned that you can store 2 extra bags inside where the vacuum bag goes on either side of the machine. Makes it nice so I don't have to go out to the truck when it needs replacing.

My first major use of the vacuum was installing casings for doors and windows and baseboard in a house that had been gutted and redone. The floors were all hardwood oak and stained a walnut color. White sawdust on a dark floor just sticks out like a sore thumb. The Oreck with it's larger floor attachment does the trick. I use the brush function on the floor attachment to clean the dark floors and it just picks up everything so nice. If something is a bit ground in then you might have to make a back and forth pattern to get the dust up, but usually one pass in an area was enough to clean it up perfectly. The round brush is good for getting the tops of baseboards, window sills and inside of freshly installed cabinets without leaving marks or doing damage.

I had the same problem as others with the strap coming loose and the vacuum dropping to the floor. I used the twist tie that came with the machine and wrapped it around the strap to keep it from pulling through, solved the problem. This is definitely something Oreck needs to remedy. It's uncalled for.

As for storing the vacuum in the truck I built a small plywood box that holds the vacuum and all the tools securely with a very small footprint. So far I'm pretty impressed with the vacuum.

I have stairs in my home to which conventional vacuums don't readily lend themselves, I felt the ORECK BB900DGR was a promising alternative to lugging an upright or conventional canister up and down two flights of stairs - and a good solution for quick pickups. I was disappointed when on initial use the most critical part of use for stairs - the shoulder strap pulled through the attachment slots, eliminating the over the shoulder functionality I had hoped would make it easily used.
The vacuum does pick up dust and debris and functions in that capacity, however, I am in the process of locating a heavy duty shoulder strap and modifying the strap attachment points to allow it to be fully useful on the carpeting on the stairs. The strap and it's attachment points at best inadequate
and with out modifying replacing the strap and modifying the attachment points - re-enforcing them, a large part of the intended use of the ORECK BB900 is unavailable

I have been a loyal Oreck customer for many years. This purchase, however, is one I very much regret. The quality of product parts on this vacuum is extremely poor. Every time I use it, something else on it breaks. The strap and plastic nozzle broke almost immediately. Although it is only a year old, it looks like it has been in use for decades....it is only being held together by lots and lots of duct tape. My loyalty to Oreck products is over. I will never buy another Oreck product!

I used to have one of these and it was great. Whoever manufactures it now has really ruined the product. I bought a new home and bought this to suck dust from high cabinets. First use the shoulder strap broke and I nearly fell off a 12' ladder to catch it. Next the attachments broke. I'd return it if I hadn't trashed the box. Don't buy this!!!!

This is an excellent portable vacuum cleaner and is even better than I expected. The suction power is excellent and I find this vacuum to be very useful. It is built very well and feels solid. I really like the heavy duty long cord because it allows me to get a lot of vacuuming done without switching outlets. The floor attachment cleaned my rugs amazingly well. If you wanted to you could use this as a "main" vacuum because it certainly is capable but I would not recommend that because you have to use this unit while you are carrying it and that will get cumbersome really fast. I actually use it in addition to my Oreck XL to get to the smaller areas where the larger vacuum cannot reach. I'm actually very impressed with the suction power of this vacuum.

We recently got a brand new red rug for the living room and it looked nice by itself but after one pass with this unit, it picked up so many "stray" fibers that the rug actually looks a deeper shade of red and so much nicer. I was really surprised what this vacuum picked up. When I was going over the rug, I could feel the suction as opposed to just gliding over the rug.

BE CAREFUL WITH THE STRAP!!! Another reviewer pointed out that the strap came loose and the same thing happened to me. It just dropped and fell on the floor. Luckily it fell behind me or else it could have fallen on my foot! The simple fix for that is to attach two rivets to the strap and it won't slip through the opening on the vacuum. I can't understand why Oreck wouldn't pick that up at the factory because it is a serious (and dangerous) flaw. I am attaching a picture of my simple DIY fix which will basically take away any danger from using the strap. Go to your local auto parts store or eBay and buy a pair of seat belt button stops. They are very low-profile and you can install them with just a pair of pliers. The sharp pin end goes through the strap and you match it to the female end and then you use the pliers to "crush" the plastic creating a solid connection. Very easy, very effective, and very safe.

Others have pointed out that they don't like the "Slinky" hose but I like it a lot. I feel that it is very good quality and it just adds to the compactness overall. The quality of the plastics is excellent and the unit does not feel cheap at all. The wands and the floor attachment feel very solid and robust. Another important thing is that the noise is very tolerable. I used to hate bringing out my old canister vac because it was so loud and I wanted to finish up vacuuming fast and put it away. This little Oreck is very powerful but it's not as loud as you would think. To be more specific, the noise is very refined; it's not obnoxious like some other vacuums.

The only gripe I would give this unit is that carrying the unit on your shoulder is a bit cumbersome if you are doing a lot of vacuuming and it would be nicer if there was a way to mount this unit like a backpack. The hose is not long enough for you to vacuum with this sitting on the floor. Regardless, I am using this smaller unit more often than I use our larger Oreck XL...which is also equally good.

Other than that issue, the vacuum itself is excellent and I am very happy with it. I should have bought it years ago.

EDIT July 2017: Just thought I'd update this review after using the vacuum for a little over six months now. I still like it and it essentially picks up where the my larger Oreck XL leaves off. I'm still impressed with the quality and performance. The only thing I want to reiterate again is that this vacuum is a little cumbersome to use for an extended cleaning job. You can't lay this on the floor and vacuum due to the length and location of the hose as well as the overall shape of the vacuum. You have to use this either with the shoulder strap or by carrying it with the handle. In my opinion, I think this vacuum is more of a "touch up" vacuum for areas where a larger vac can't go. It's not something I would want to use and vacuum my whole house with even though I technically could. I find myself using it for less than a few minutes at a time. So if you are looking at this "mini" Oreck, make sure you have a solid vacuum that you are using to get 90% of your vacuuming done. This smaller model will easily take care of the rest and then some. It's also a great vacuum to use when cleaning your car. I still highly recommend it and it makes my life easier.