Hoover WindTunnel 2 Rewind Upright Vacuum

Avg. consumer rating = 75/100 

The Hoover WindTunnel 2 Rewind bagless upright vacuum (model UH70825) is a very affordable machine and can often be found for under $100.  It is fairly basic and comes with HEPA filtration and several tools.  But its claim to fame is the retractable power cord – something not very common in uprights.  This is a feature that consumers are very pleased with.  However the vacuum itself doesn’t get stellar reviews from owners and it is a bit on the heavy side.  It also has no brushroll on/off control and it has an annoying propensity to clog and to shut off.

 

Quick Specs
Type	Upright
Bagged/Bagless	Bagless
Best for...	Carpet
Pet Hair Features	No
Approx. Weight	17.4 lbs
HEPA Filter	Yes
Power Cord Length	25 feet
Motor Driven Brushbar	Yes
Warranty	2 Years

 

Consumer Ratings
We found over 600 consumer ratings at a number of retail websites.  These are shown in the table below.  When these reviews were averaged they resulted in an overall score of 75 out of 100 (about 3.75 stars out of 5).

While a score of 75 out of 100 may seem quite good, it is important to check the scores of other uprights to get a better idea of how this machine stacks up.  The average score of an upright on our site is just over 80 so the Rewind is below average in this respect – although one may wish to consider that this machine is quite inexpensive.   You can check out the scores of other uprights in our upright vacuum ratings table or you can view all vacuum scores using our Vacuum Finder feature.

Source	Consumer Ratings	#Ratings
Amazon	4.0 stars out of 5	168
Canadian Tire	4.0 stars out of 5	80
Home Depot	3.6 stars out of 5	240
Staples	3.7 stars out of 5	98
Walmart	3.4 stars out of 5	97
Overstock	4.0 stars out of 5	1
Wayfair	5.0 stars out of 5	1

 

Owner Insights
A thorough review of owner comments has yielded the following Hoover Rewind likes and dislikes:

PROS
- Affordable
- Auto-retractable power cord
- Nozzle height control
- HEPA filter
- Tools all store on-board vacuum
- Good suction
- Assembly is quick and easy

CONS
- No brushroll on/off control
- A bit on the heavy side
- Has a habit of just shutting off
- Some parts break easily
- Reports of brushroll refusing to spin

This machine is something of a hit and miss – but you see a fair bit of this kind of thing at this price point.  On the plus side consumers feel the UH70825 has good suction and is quite capable on carpet.  The multiple height settings on the vacuum nozzle also ensure you can set a good cleaning height depending on the level of carpet (or even for bare floors).

Some assembly is required but it is very straightforward and easy.  It also only takes a few minutes.  In addition, this vacuum has HEPA filtration.  HEPA filtration is a good feature if you or your family have asthma or allergies.  However, for best results a vacuum should have a sealed system combined with a HEPA filter but this machine does not have that.  You can read more about HEPA filters and sealed systems in our HEPA filtration article.

One of the most popular features on this upright vacuum is the retractable power cord – something more commonly found on a canister vacuum.  This is often a very popular feature when provided. Vacuum owners love not having to manually wrap a power cord.

However, there are a few issues to watch out for on the Hoover Rewind.  One of the key items is that the brushroll is ON when the vacuum is ON - there is no brushroll ON/OFF control.  This is a disadvantage when cleaning bare floors.  A spinning brushroll has a tendency to scatter debris on hard surfaces.  In addition, the brushroll continues to spin when using the hose and tools.

Another issue that has frustrated some owners is the vacuum shutting itself off after only a few minutes of use.  This is coupled with reports of the vacuum clogging frequently.  It is likely that the clogging is causing the motor to overheat thereby activating the thermal overload switch and shutting the vacuum motor off (our opinion).  Regardless of the cause, it has resulted in quite a few unhappy owners.

There are also reports of parts or features just simply breaking.  For example, some folks have had the nozzle brushroll refuse to spin for no apparent reason while others have had the dust canister bottom hinge break, etc.  In many cases people have returned the vacuum and received a replacement only to have something else break over time.

You may want to see more UH70825 owner reviews at Amazon.

Vacuum Specifications & Details
The WindTunnel 2 Rewind is a bagless upright vacuum with a bottom empty dust canister (bottom door swings open at the press of a button).   It also has two filters – one in the top of the dust canister and one near the bottom.  The filter in the top of the dust canister is rinsable (with water) and should be cleaned every two months or so.  The other filter is the HEPA filter.  The HEPA filter should not be rinsed or washed.  It should simply be tapped over a dustbin to shake off any loosely clinging dust or debris.  You should probably clean the HEPA filter every two months or so as well – depending on how much vacuuming you do.  Both filters are designed to last the warranty period of the vacuum (2-years in this case) before they may need to be replaced.

Tools provided include:
- Turbo tool (for furniture and stairs)
- Crevice tool
- Dusting brush

The turbo tool has a brushroll which is driven by the airflow of the machine (ie suction).  This tool does not have a motor driven brushroll (the giveaway here is the term “turbo”).  Turbo tools can perform fairly well but will generally not provide the same level of cleaning performance as a motor driven tool as they get more easily bogged down, especially in deeper pile carpet.  If there is sufficient friction the brushroll in these tools will sometimes simply stop spinning.  The turbo tool is shown in the image below.

Hoover also provides an extension wand as well as an 8 foot hose.  Combined, and with tools, these result in about 10 feet of cleaning reach.

The Rewind uses Hoover’s WindTunnel 2 Technology.  The company is somewhat vague about this particular technology but the 2 apparently stands for 2 channels of suction.  They also indicate that normal WindTunnel Technology only has 1 channel of suction.  We have also seen WindTunnel 3 Technology which, we can only assume, uses 3 channels of suction.   Does this “technology” really help with cleaning ability?  Well, in theory it makes some kind of sense to spread the suction more uniformly across the nozzle via multiple suction channels but we have yet to see/read any real proof of better cleaning results.

 
This machine is on the hefty side and it weighs in at 17.4 lbs.  This is perhaps a little heavier than most uprights today.  In contrast, you can view our list of lightweight vacuum cleaners and their weights to get an idea of some of the lighter machines on the market today.

The power cord on the UH70825 is 25 feet in length which in our opinion is on the short side.  We think a minimum of 30 feet for an upright is best – and many machines meet this requirement.  However we should point out that we have not heard any complaints from consumers about the length of the power cord in this unit.  The power cord is also auto-rewind and it retracts at the push of a foot pedal near the vacuum nozzle.

The UH70825 is ETL certified.  ETL is a group that performs electrical and reliability tests on products to ensure they meet US product safety standards.  Other features include a cleaning path width of 13.5 inches, a soft bumper (scuff guard), and a 2-year limited warranty.  

Vacuum Cleaner Manual
The manual for this machine is pretty basic but it does cover operation, tools, maintenance, troubleshooting and warranty.  You can see it here: Hoover WindTunnel 2 Rewind Manual