On Feb 1, 3:03 pm, (Una) wrote:
wrote:
The ones I've used so far (DirtDevil, DustBuster) all use NiCd, and
they had really poor charge capacity - all would run out of steam in
1-2 minutes, even though I'd make sure to charge them for several
hours, or even days, prior to use.

Sounds like you have a problem with your battery management. Seehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel-cadmium_battery#Memory_effect

Una

Wrong guess, I'm afraid. I've tried using a deep discharge cycle -
e.g., leave the vac turned on for the whole day, then, when I got back
home that night, I'd turn it off and charge it overnight. That didn't
help at all.