Rainbow Vacuum Price
If you have had the sales pitch from a Rainbow Vacuum distributor and are looking for a cheaper way to get a Rainbow, you are in the right place!
I had the sales pitch last week- it was very impressive. A young lady came to my house and gave a demo of the Rainbow air purifier and Rainbow vacuum. The Rainbow uses a water tank as its filter. You don't need any bags or filters- you just dump the water and replace it with tap water. The air purifier function seems to work great. You can run the motor at low speed or high speed, and it does make air smell fresh like air outside after a rain shower. Scent oils are also provided if you want a scent such as vanilla, cinnamon, or others. My favorite was the unscented water.
The Rainbow vacuum demonstration was even more impressive. You can read details of how the Rainbow sales pitch worked in this article.
The clear conclusion was the the Rainbow does a much better job of cleaning than our cheap $80 Hoover upright vacuum. But the Rainbow costs $2,300. I liked everything about the Rainbow except the price tag. I was expecting a "but wait, there's more" sort of offer with a lower price, but it never came.
The clear conclusion was the the Rainbow does a much better job of cleaning than our cheap $80 Hoover upright vacuum. But the Rainbow costs $2,300. I liked everything about the Rainbow except the price tag. I was expecting a "but wait, there's more" sort of offer with a lower price, but it never came.
We were offered a chance to apply for credit and pay $80 a month, but the price for the Rainbow vacuum was still $2,300. We were also offered a chance to demonstrate Rainbow vacuums and get ours for free if we sold enough. I didn't like any of these options, but I still liked the Rainbow vacuum. Is there a cheaper way to get a Rainbow vacuum?
How to Get a Cheap Rainbow Vacuum
The manufacturer of Rainbow, Rexair, appears to only distribute new Rainbows through their distributors. As you may have gathered, the distribution arrangement is a multi-level marketing organization. You can make money selling Rainbow vacuums and also by recruiting others to sell Rainbow vacuums and getting a percentage of their sales. That's all fine as long as I can get a cheap Rainbow...Fortunately, there are plenty of used Rainbows for sale on eBay and amazon. The upside of buying a used Rainbow is the low price. The downside is that you will not get a warranty from the manufacturer and the condition of used vacuums can vary quite a bit. Another issue is there are several models of used Rainbow vacuums for sale- you'll need to be careful to ensure you get the one you really want.
I said above that used Rainbows do not have a manufacturer's warranty. You can find some used Rainbows sold by vacuum shops that have a warranty from the shop, which is certainly better than no warranty at all. Many used vacuums are sold "as is" and some even state "no returns".
How much can you save buying a used Rainbow? The answer depends on what model you buy, but you can get a used Rainbow with a shop warranty for around $400- a savings of around $2,000! If you want the cleaning performance of a Rainbow vacuum without the high price, there are some good opportunities to find a used Rainbow that will last for many years.
Rainbow Vacuum Models and Prices
Rainbow E2 E4 Black ModelThe fancy new model that we saw at the in-home demonstration is called an E2 E4. This model has the two speed brushless motor and LED lighting on the water tank and on the power vacuum head. The 2-speed motor allows the air purifier function to run quietly. A HEPA filter after the water filter removes small particles. These are still expensive on eBay, selling for over $1,500.
Rainbow E2 Black Model 12
The Black E2 released in 2011 introduced the 5 wheel dolly design and it also has LED lighing for the water tank. The 2-speed brushless motor allows the air purifier function to run quietly. A HEPA filter after the water filter removes small particles. These are still expensive on eBay, over $1,000.
Rainbow E2 2-speed Models
The 2-speed Rainbow models were first introduced in 2003. The 2-speed motor allows the air purifier function to run quietly A HEPA filter after the water filter removes small particles.. The Rainbow 2-speed models have a brushless motor. There are a couple variants of the Rainbow 2-speed models: the Gold model and the Blue model. The Gold model was released first and the Blue model (2008-2011) adds some sound absorbing material around the motor to make it quieter. You can get the Rainbow E2 Gold 2-speed for around $500 on eBay.
Rainbow E Series E2 (1-speed) Model
The E Series was introduced in 1998. The older E series models of Rainbow vacuums used a 1 speed motor with brushes. These models do not have a slower- and quieter- speed for air purification. These Rainbows are either on or off. This was the model that added the HEPA filter in addition to the water filter. This is useful for filtering small particles that make it through the water filter. The Rainbow E series 1 speed models are great vacuum cleaners and sell for around $400 on eBay.
All of the Rainbow E Models above move 80 cubic feet of air per minute and have a HEPA filter in addition to the water filter.
If you are willing to look older models more than 15 years old, you can get a Rainbow vacuum cleaner for under $300. Here are the older Rainbow Vacuum models:
Rainbow SE / SE PN2 Model
This model added the electrical cord inside the hose to power accessories. The SE is the first model that can use a RainbowMate, which is a powered upholstery cleaning accessory.
Rainbow D4 Model
The D4 has more power than older models and is considered a reliable vacuum cleaner with relatively simple design.
The D4 and SE Rainbows move 72 cubic feet of air per minute.
Rainbow D3 Model
The D3 was made in the 1980's. I would be concerned about reliability and availability of replacement parts in a model this old.
The D3 moves air at 67 cubic feet per minute.
Which is the Best Model of Rainbow?
I have decided to look at E2 models. These all have the HEPA filter added in addition to the water filter, have more power than older models, and are relatively new which should increase their life expectancy. At first I was considering the 1-speed model since these can be purchased for around $400, but I do like the idea of being able to run the unit quietly as an air purifier. So now I am focusing on E2 2-speed models. The 2-speed models feature brushless motors which should last a very long time.Cheap Rainbow Vacuums on eBay
Start here to find cheap Rainbow Vacuums on eBay:Cheap Rainbow Vacuums on amazon
Start here to find cheap Rainbow Vacuums on amazon:Cheap Rainbow Vacuums on craigslist
I did not have much luck finding Rainbow vacuums for sale on craigslist in my area. There were a couple for sale, but one was $2,100 and the other was $1,400. Both of these prices were much higher than similar ones on eBay or amazon, and there were only two available for sale on craigslist.
Recommended Reading:
The Sales Pitch: How to Sell Anything is an article that describes the sales pitch for a Rainbow Vacuum in detail.
If you want a great whole house air purifier that is much less expensive than a Rainbow, check out this New Comfort air purifier
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