I tried this Bissell CrossWave OmniFind wet vacuum and it's a winner for pet owners

When my reliable cordless stick vacuum I'd used daily for four years finally gave up on me, I was in need of one of the best vacuum cleaners.

And since I have both hard floors and carpet, it was perfect timing to test Bissell's newest offering — the CrossWave OmniFind.

I'm no stranger to a wet and dry vacuum or a VOP (that's a vacuum and mop, ICYDK). I've tested one before but honestly: I didn't find it handy enough to warrant the intense cleaning process required afterwards. But, this time I was completely wrong!

The Bissell Crosswave Omnifind surprised me in more ways than one, and I think it has just taken first place for cleaning the downstairs of my home over my old vacuum. And that's a big claim.

I've been using this wet and dry vacuum in my home for three weeks, as my everyday vacuum cleaner. Thanks to my lovable dog, Doug, and my chaotic and messy toddler, I use this vacuum once or twice a day.

I used it to clean everything from spilled coffee to cereal and even ketchup. And its ability to clean pet hair is impressive—not a strand of hair gets stuck in its roller brush.

Its 25-minute battery life and sizable water tanks managed to clean all of the floors in my three-bedroom home. But was it good enough to completely replace my previous vacuum?

Here's what happened when I used the Bissell Crosswave Omnifind vacuum to clean my busy, three-bedroom home.

Bissell Crosswave Omnifind review: Price and availability

The Bissell CrossWave OmniFind is sold in the U.S. for $299.99. You can find it at Amazon for $294.99. This is a pretty average price for a cordless wet and dry vac as most of them sit around the $300 mark.

The model is also widely available at most retailers, including Walmart, Target, and Best Buy.

Bissell offers several wet and dry vacs under its CrossWave range. The cheapest option in this range is the CrossWave HF3 which retails at $169.99 and is also cordless.

While the newest addition to this range is the Bissell CrossWave Edge All-in-One which costs $229.99. It's very similar to the OmniFind but it's corded and it claims to reach edges.

Bissell Crosswave Omnifind review: Design

My initial impression of the Bissell CrossWave OmniFind was that it was pretty basic—in a good way. It wasn't tricky to put together, and it's a bulky yet sturdy unit that feels high-quality.

The packaging was minimal, mostly comprised of recyclable cardboard, and it was still well-protected. It needed to be assembled, which was easy and well-explained in the instructions attached to the handle of the unit.

This vacuum also mops your floors at the same time, hence why it has a dirty water tank and a clean water tank. It sits on a stand for charging and this stand features storage for the brush roller. This stand allows the roller brush to air dry while standing upright.

Bissell Crosswave Omnifind review: Performance

Overall, I enjoyed many things about this vacuum mop. In fact, what makes it stand apart from the rest is its ability to pick up pet hair.

My pug was kind enough to put this wet vac through its paces as it's currently shedding season.

Another plus point is it's super easy to clean. Most similar models require a lengthy clean after each use but this takes five minutes, if that.

However, there were a few caveats while cleaning both hard and soft floors. It has a wide head at 10.5 inches, which means the wet vacuum couldn't fit into certain corners in my home, such as the space between my toilet and the wall. In this case, I would use my other vacuum or a crevice tool to reach these spots.

It also might struggle to pick up anything that's wet, or anything that's stuck to your floors — it's more for everyday debris, spillages, and smaller food items.

For example, I noticed that it picks up cereal easily, but raisins not so much. You learn to know what it can and can't suction up as you go.

One thing to note is if the majority of your home is carpeted, this might not be for you. While I loved using it downstairs to clean my hard floors, I found that it left my carpets very damp. And over time I think this might make them smell.

So, I'll continue to use it for surface cleaning downstairs on my hard floors and rugs, but only use it every few months upstairs to give my carpets a refresh.

What is it like on carpet?

Image 1 of 3

First, I tested this machine on my carpets upstairs, plus my living room rug. You need to change the mode on the machine for soft floors by pressing the middle button on the unit.

To be honest, I didn't notice this changed anything. It didn't adapt the water flow from what I could tell, and its noise level stayed the same as well as the speed of the roller brush.

Again, I noticed that it didn't manage to get into the corners of my carpets, which was a shame.

I wouldn't necessarily recommend it for use on carpets all of the time as it does leave them feeling damp.

On a better note, it did leave carpet lines in my bedroom thanks to the water it sprays out. Plus, it managed to collect crumbs, pet hair, and more, all very well on carpets.

When it came to the short-pile rug in my living room, it performed very well and I found that it didn't leave this area feeling too wet. It managed to pick up crumbs and debris easily while It also didn't get stuck at the corners of the rug.

I didn't notice that pet hair was wrapped around the brush roll after cleaning any soft floor areas. A downside is it cannot be used to clean stairs because of its size; it doesn't transform to a handheld unit.

What is it like on hard floors?

Image 1 of 3

Next up, I put it to work on my hard floors. I performed a series of tests using different foods to see how well this wet vacuum performed.

First, I tested it with coffee, and it sucked up the liquid instantly. I was surprised at how easily it coped with spills — which is an almost twice-weekly occurrence for me.

Then, I tried dried cereal, which it did struggle with a little. It took longer to completely clean the pile and some pieces it was spreading around the room. It did eventually clean up every piece.

Lastly, I tested it using ketchup and while it did suck it up instantly, the ketchup managed to touch the brush roll window, which then ended up smearing it around my home. Noted for next time!

This vacuum mop glides across floors and it picks up dirt easily, though you might find that you have to go over some larger pieces of debris (such as cereal) twice.

Overall, it left floors visibly clean — some might find it leaves them more wet than a mop would. I didn't mind this as I always use it while my windows and doors are open so everything dries fast. You need to get the cleaning solution to water ratio right or you'll notice that your floors look soapy and you'll see streaks.

It can't get stuck-on-foods off floors, so you can't use it for scrubbing. And so it only offers a surface clean instead of a deep clean, which is perfect for cleaning everyday messes.

I do think it would be handy if there was a button you could press to turn the water sprayer off so that it could just be used as a regular vacuum. Since I don't always need to mop certain rooms every time I vacuum.

Noise levels

When it comes to noise level, Bissell claims it cleans at 65 dB. I tested this and its noise level was around 73 dB on carpets and similar on hard floors at roughly 74 dB.

On rugs, it was slightly louder at 76 dB. Even though this is higher than it claims, I still didn't find that it was loud while in use, and I would happily use it with my toddler asleep upstairs.

Battery life

In terms of battery life, the Bissell CrossWave OmniGlide claims to clean for 25 minutes. I tested this but noted that it ran out of cleaning solution before battery life.

At 15 minutes in, the clean water tank was empty while it still had two bars of battery left.

Bissell Crosswave Omnifind review: Ease of cleaning

I've tested other multi-surface cleaners, and the one thing that has put me off using them more often is how difficult they usually are to maintain.

One of my favorite things about this machine, other than how convenient it is to clean, is that it separates dirty and clean water. Its dirty water tank is great as it has a built-in strainer so that you can easily pour this into your trash can. And this means you're never cleaning your floors with dirty water.

I also noticed that while cleaning, it can stand upright even when not on its stand. This can be super handy if you need to pause to move something out of the way, but a few times I noted that if I turned the machine off and went back to it, a small bit of water and debris had leaked onto the floor.

It wasn't a huge problem as I suctioned it up when I turned the machine back on, but it did happen more than twice.

Plus, the Bissell CrossWave OmniFind almost cleans itself. And after you perform this once or twice you'll know how to do it without referring to the instructions.

Once you're finished using this machine, go ahead and pop it on the charging stand. Then, empty the dirty water tank — it has a handy strainer tab to separate the debris and hair from the water, so you needn't get your hands dirty.

Pop this back onto the machine and then check the clean water tank—ensure the water reaches the Clean-Out Cycle line. Then you need to press the cleaning button on the machine, which takes 40 seconds and is a little loud.

After, you can remove the brush roll window and take the brush roll out. Pop this in its place on the charging stand. I found that I also had to wipe the brush roll window clean after every use.

Lastly, empty and clean both water tanks and allow them to dry before re-attaching them to the machine.

There are extra instructions in the manual to perform a deep clean. The machine also comes with a bottle of solution to avoid odors.

Deep cleaning the Bissell CrossWave OmniFind is easy too, with just a few extra steps. You can clean the machine filter (and screen) as well as the brush roll and window, all under soapy water. Then leave it all to air dry before re-attaching it to the main unit. Be sure to give the charging stand a wipe-down, too.

Bissell Crosswave Omnifind review: Storage and maintenance

While this multi-surface cleaner doesn't take up too much floorspace, as it sits tidily on its charging dock, it needs to be placed near a power outlet.

For me, this was frustrating, as the only place I have to store it is essentially in the middle of my kitchen. Rest assured, you don't also need to store attachments or anything — it's all on the charging dock which has a footprint of 11 x 10 inches.

What's more, this vacuum mop cannot be wall-mounted. And while there is storage on its dock for an attachment, this is to house its brush roll while it's drying.

Bissell Crosswave Omnifind review: Comparisons

When it comes to competitors, Shark has launched the Shark HydroVac which retails at $299.99.

Similar to this Bissell model, it's cordless and it has LED headlights. It also has a self-cleaning mode for convenience. It has a slightly smaller cleaning path width of 9.3 inches and it weighs less than the Bissell CrossWave OmniFind at 8.46 lbs. It offers a similar runtime of 20-25 minutes, while it takes 4 hours to charge. It's rated 4.2 stars out of five on the Shark website.

Dyson has also launched the V15s Detect Submarine which sells for $949.99. It has a 60-minute runtime, a built-in laser to reveal invisible dust on floors, and also it comes with a range of attachments. It weighs less at 8.3 lbs (empty) and it takes 4.5 hours to charge. Reviewers gave it a 4.3-star rating.

Bissell Crosswave Omnifind review: Verdict

If you live in a busy household with pets and children (or even both), this wet vacuum will definitely make your life easier.

Not only is it easy to use but it's simple to clean, and you won't believe how much dirt it manages to collect. It's worth the expense if you find yourself vacuuming and mopping several times a week or even every day as it does both at the same time.

My only complaints were that it struggles to reach into corners and that you can't use it to deep clean effectively.

If your home is mostly carpet, I'd probably avoid it — while it performs well on both hard and soft floors (that includes rugs!), it does leave carpets feeling a little too damp for my liking. Also, you can't disable the mopping mode while cleaning so it's both or nothing.

Those concerns aside, I think the $299 Bissell Crosswave Omnifind is worth the money. Most decent vacuums are a lot more expensive and, with this, you're getting two products in one.