Our Verdict: The Numatic Henry is a reliable and powerful cylinder vacuum cleaner that’s available for a great price. It’s not the most convenient vacuum, due to the heavy and bulky design, but it’s simple to use and provides decent cleaning performance. We don’t think it’s the best option for pet hair or thick carpets though.
Numatic Henry HVR200
Pros:
- Huge 9-litre dust capacity
- Strong suction power and decent all-round cleaning performance
- Great for cleaning hard floors
- Long hose and power cord
Cons:
- Floorhead doesn’t glide easily over carpets
- Heavy and bulky
- Not great for carpet pickup
The Numatic HVR200-11 Henry bagged cylinder vacuum cleaner, or just “Henry” to most people, is one of the most recognisable vacuums. With its large capacity and powerful suction, Henry has always been a firm favourite in the UK.
We think Henry provides excellent value for money. It’s bulky and heavy, but it generates strong suction that’s more powerful than most alternatives in this price range. It’s also excellent at cleaning hard floors and has a huge dust capacity.
But how does the latest model, the Henry HVR200-11, compare to previous iterations of Henry? Can the Henry still compete with cylinder vacuums from brands such as Dyson (click here for our comparison)? And, most importantly, is it worth the price? Keep reading our Henry review to find out!
Overview of Numatic HVR200-11 Henry Features
- Large 9L capacity reduces how often you need to empty it
- 580W motor and decent suction power
- 10 metre cable with a quick rewind system, allowing you to clean more of your home before switching plug sockets
- TriTex filtration system
- Classic Henry appearance – although you can detach the smiling face if you want a more serious vacuum!
In-depth Look at the Numatic HVR200-11 Henry
It’s easy to dismiss the Henry vacuum due to its cute appearance – but this is a mistake. The Numatic HVR200-11 is designed for serious cleaning, and it has the features to match. Let’s take a closer look at what’s included.
Appearance, Features, and Design
The appearance of the Numatic HVR200-11 Henry doesn’t need much introduction! With its distinctive red and black colour scheme, along with the perpetually happy face, it is one of the most interesting vacuums we’ve reviewed. While this is the original Numatic series, there is a wide range of other Henry vacuums on the market.
Henry is considerably larger than compact models (including the smaller Henry 160). The exact dimensions are 34x37x36cm. This larger size is mainly due to the large dust capacity of 9 litres, which means you won’t need to change bags as often as smaller vacs.
While we like how easy the Henry is to use, we don’t think it’s the most convenient choice. The 200 series is quite bulky and heavy compared with most vacuums, so we don’t recommend it for elderly people or anyone with mobility issues.
Dust Capacity
We mentioned the large 9-litre dust capacity in the previous section, but it’s worth taking a closer look as this is one of the best features of the Henry vacuum.
As the Henry is a bagged cylinder vacuum, every bag replacement costs money. While bags are relatively cheap, this can add up over time – especially if you’re using the vacuum a lot.
The Numatic HVR200-11 Henry helps alleviate this problem with a huge dust capacity. Each bag can hold 9 litres of dirt and dust, so you won’t need new bags after every clean. Aside from reduced cost, this also makes the Henry more convenient than smaller cylinder vacuums (for an overview of the different options when buying a cylinder vacuum cleaner, click here).
Of course, we’ve already mentioned the downside of a large capacity: a bulky and heavy design. So, if you’re looking for a vacuum with a large capacity, be aware that this will always lead to a less mobile vac.
Tip: Need even more dust capacity for bigger cleaning jobs? You may want to take a look at the Henry XL Plus.
Suction Power and Cleaning Performance
As you would expect, the Henry generates decent suction power. It’s not the most powerful vacuum we’ve reviewed, but it’s a great choice for cleaning around the home.
In particular, we think the Henry offers strong cleaning performance on hard floors. This includes laminate, vinyl, and tiles. It can sometimes push around larger debris, but it’s excellent for sucking up dust, hair, and other small particles on these surfaces.
It’s not quite so effective at cleaning carpets though. While it does an acceptable job for everyday cleaning, we think the Henry struggles to provide a deep clean on thicker carpets. It also finds it difficult to remove pet hair that’s ground into carpet fibres, so this type of job often requires multiple passes.
Additionally, the floorhead can sometimes feel difficult to push across a carpeted floor. So, if you like the Henry’s design but need improved cleaning performance, we recommend checking out the Henry Xtra.
Aside from the raw power of the Henry, the vacuum is also much less likely to get blocked than similar cylinder models. If you accidentally vacuum small toys, hair bobbles or other small items, you probably don’t have to worry about blockages or damage.
It’s not the best option for stairs though. The round size makes it difficult to balance on a step, although the long hose partly makes up for this.
Ease of Use
Aside from the large capacity, which is probably the most important usability feature, here are a few other ways Henry aims to make your life easier:
- The 10 metre cable provides a large cleaning radius – and the rewind function makes it easy to pack away. We wish it came with an automatic rewind function though.
- It’s quick and easy to empty the Henry vacuum. You just need to open the lid, remove and throw away the bag, then replace it with a new one. Emptying is also much less messy than bagless vacuums.
- Numatic has reduced the sound level of the Henry compared to previous models.
- The motor is designed to last a long time – especially compared with cheaper vacuums.
- A “docking” system is used to easily store the wand.
It’s not all good news though. The 8kg weight is above average for a vacuum cleaner, although this is to be expected from a vacuum with a huge dust capacity.
It’s also worth noting that this version of the Henry doesn’t include two suction modes. Older models have this function, but there’s only one power setting on the HVR200-11.
The reason for this is that the regular setting is the same suction as the older models, but the energy efficient motor means the low-power mode is no longer necessary. Still, if you’re looking for a two speed Henry, then you might be disappointed by this.
Filtration
There is some confusion about the filtration system – with some listings claiming the vacuum has a HEPA filter, and others that it uses Numatic’s “TriTex” filtration system. Until told otherwise, we are going to assume that this version of the Henry only uses the TriTex system, which is a standard filter. It does come with HepaFlo bags though.
This doesn’t mean the filtration is poor though. The TriTex system is designed to maintain capacity while filtering greater amounts of small dust particles and allergens. We also always recommend bagged vacuums to people with allergies, as they are much more hygienic to empty.
Price and Value
The Henry HVR200-11 vacuum cleaner isn’t the cheapest on the market, but it sits comfortably in the lower range of quality cylinder vacuums. Considering the large capacity and strong suction power, we think the Henry is worth the money.
It’s not the best choice if you have pets or lots of thick carpets though. In this case, we recommend spending a bit more to get a vacuum cleaner with a motorised brush bar.
Tools and Accessories
An accessory set is included with the Henry. This contains an upholstery brush, making it easy to clean sofas, along with a floor nozzle, dusting brush crevice tool and steel extension tube. We think the combination of large cleaning radius and included tools mean the Henry can handle almost any cleaning job.
Unfortunately, there is only storage for one tool built into the Henry, so these tools will need to be kept separately. This isn’t a major issue, but increases the chance of an accessory being lost.
Henry HVR200-11 Specification Table
| Ninja Column 1 | Ninja Column 2 |
|---|---|
| Type | Cylinder |
| Bag | Bagged |
| Filter | TriTex |
| Price Range | ££ |
| Weight (kg) | 8 |
| Capacity (Litres) | 9 |
| Motorised Tool | No |
| Hose | Yes |
Frequently Asked Questions
Does The Henry Come With a Pet Tool?
No, unfortunately the standard Henry doesn’t come with a pet tool or a motorised brush bar. For that, you’ll need to upgrade to the Henry Xtra.
Does The Henry HVR200-11 Have a Two Speed Motor?
No, the HVR200-11 has a single-speed motor. Older versions of the Henry had two suction speed options, but this feature has been removed from more recent models.
Can You Use The Henry Without a Bag?
You shouldn’t use Henry without a bag. The bag prevents dust and other small particles escaping, so not using one will cause the filter to become clogged very quickly.
Verdict
Despite its low price tag, the Henry vacuum generates strong suction and decent cleaning performance. It’s particularly effective on hard floors. We also love that the Henry is durable and easy to use.
However, we don’t think it’s the best choice if you’re looking for a lightweight model, or need a vacuum for deep cleaning carpets. While it provides acceptable cleaning performance on carpets, there are better options available.