Vacuums

How to Identify and Fix Common Vacuum Problems ?

Our sources include academic articles, blog posts, and personal essays from experienced Vacuum Technicians :

The most common cause of loss of suction is that the filters have become blocked. They may require cleaning or replacing. Another cause could be that the vacuum cleaner hose is blocked.
Keeping your vacuum filters clean is vital to getting top performance and suction every time you vacuum your home. Clean filters and beater bars allow air to move freely through the vacuum and enable moving parts to operate properly, so suction power stays strong and you clean more efficiently.
Vacuum means the absence of all matter including air. As there is no air in the vacuum, air pressure will be zero.
Low suction or poor pick-up may be due to a clog in the vacuum cleaner. If you notice a change in the sound of the motor or a reduction in the spinning action, check for clogs. First, remove the Easy Empty dirt tank from the vacuum and discard all dirt and debris.
Loose connections will cause your vacuum cleaner to lose suction. Make sure that the dust container, the hose, the tube and the brush are all attached properly. If the problem continues, your vacuum cleaner might have a technical problem. If you suspect this to be the case, contact an authorised service agent.
All vacuum cleaners operate based on air flowing from the opening at the cleaning head or tool, through the vacuum cleaner and the bag and/or filter system and then out the exhaust port. This airflow is created by the vacuum motor, which also may be referred to as the suction motor.
Gravity and friction are the two main forces that make vacuum suction work. While gravity pulls molecules in the air toward the earth, creating an atmospheric pressure, the suction cup and vacuum pump cause a pressure difference, attaching both surfaces.
If the suction machine has a low pressure: use the suction machine pressure gauge to increase the pressure level.
Your filters get clogged with bacteria, dust, smoke, mold, and other particles. These can all affect the air quality in your home as well as the performance of your vacuum`s cleaning abilities, if the filter is clogged you will find the suction and general performance of your vacuum will be minimized.
You can rinse the filter in water, tap excess dust off of it or remove some dust with a vacuum, but this can definitely damage the mesh of fibers that allows the filter to remove particles from the air. Even if the filter looks undamaged, some of the fibers will be broken or stretched out.
In the U.S., the common standard to measure rough vacuum is inches of mercury (“Hg), which can be measured in two different ways. One method is as “Hg gauge (“HgV), where the scale starts at 0” Hg (atmospheric pressure) and goes up to 29.92″ Hg, which is perfect vacuum.
Perfect vacuum is an ideal state of no particles at all. It cannot be achieved in a laboratory, although there may be small volumes which, for a brief moment, happen to have no particles of matter in them.
A strong odor from the shellac that coats the copper coil windings is an indicator that the motor is about to or has burnt out. If the motor is still running, even if it turns on and off by itself as it is heating and cooling, you can still run the motor until it gives up for good.
You Need to Change Suction Power Settings

One of the most common reasons for a vacuum that`s hard to push is using the incorrect suction setting. Most people want to use the maximum suction setting all the time, when in some cases this isn`t necessary.

We have two possible ways of adjusting the pressure in a vacuum system: first, by changing the pumping speed (altering the speed of the pump or throttling by closing a valve); second, through admission of gas (opening a valve).
The ECU will generally operate the SCV by PWM to control the rail pressure as required for the driving and load conditions. This pressure is monitored by the fuel rail pressure sensor to ensure suitability.
Suction pressure should be kept at less than 200 mmHg in adults. It should be set at 80 mmHg to 120 mmHg in neonates. [3] The catheter size used for suction should be less than 50% of the internal diameter of the endotracheal tube.
There are two separate suctioning techniques, namely the closed and open system. Basic principles of suctioning are the same, and care should be incorporated during suctioning.
Vacuum suction pressure in adults is 120mmHg.

The lowest vacuum pressure is recommended to reduce the risk of hypoxia and tracheal mucosa injury. However, the pressure has to be strong enough to remove the secretion. Usually, it`s between 80 to 120 mmHg.

A suction regulator is a medical device that converts the high-pressure vacuum supplied by the Hospitals central vacuum system to a safe level for use on a patient.
Reverse osmosis systems are best suited for domestic use and provide a highly efficient way to purify your drinking water at home. Increasingly, these systems are also used in hospitality environments to treat water made for coffee as they offer the finest level of filtration available.
The filtration occurs as a result of the pressure differential. Atmospheric pressure (1 Bar) presses on the liquids surface, while negative pressure (vacuum) pulls from beneath the filter. Vacuum pressure of 1/10 atmosphere (100 mbar or 76 Torr) pull liquids through filtration membranes at excellent rates.
Vacuuming can release and re-introduce pollutants back into your air, while washing the filters could potentially cause mold to grow if the filters are not dried fully. The only way to keep your filters fresh is to replace them regularly.

Relevant Questions and Answers :

the most relevant questions and answers related to your specific issue

The original belt on my upright Kenmore Progressive broke and I replaced it with the spare that was in the vacuum. The vacuum and spare belt are about 10 years old. Then the spare broke after one vacuuming session and there was a burning smell coming from the vacuum. I ordered new belts and replaced it with the new belt. It seems to be working fine with no smell. I checked the belt after I vacuumed the family room and although it was in tact, the belt was very hot. Is that normal? Should t
ANSWER : The belt heats up due to the friction, as well as being in contact with the shaft of a hot motor. It is normal.

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My vacuum has suction the belt is good i cleaned the filters but it won’t pick up nothing
ANSWER : The belt may look good and not broken, but it could still be stretched or worn. I would try changing the belt, I bet it does the trick! You didn’t specify a model but you can get just about any belt here:

www.vacbelts.com

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I purchased a brand new Eureka Pet vacuum, sorry don’t know exact name but it the one that has the self cleaning duster on it. Last night I used the vacuum on my carpet, it was working fine until I accidently sucked up the corner of a scarf that was hanging off a couch. I shut the vacuum off, pulled out the scarf and and resumed vacuuming. Much to my dismay the suction on the vacuum had ceased. Can you tell me if there is a reset button on the vacuum? The vacuum does not appear to be damage
ANSWER : If the motor is running, there should be suction. Possible problems depend on whether it’s a canister or upright and are:
.A clog in the hose, UR or canister. Detach hose. Drop small coin in one end and lift hose causing it to roll out the other. If it does, no clog in hose. Drop same coin into hose opening on power head. If it rolls out, no clog in PN.
.Broken fan blades, UR. Needs to be taken to shop for repair/replacement.
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.A reset button is for use if the motor isn’t running, so won’t have anything to do with the suction.

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OUR DYSON 07 SWEEPER HAS VERY LITTLE Vacuum, have cleaned all filters and hoses, on line troubleshooting has said to check soleplate being on correctly, we have done this, still does not have good vacuum, belts are covered by a housing, the video that shows the changing of the belt is not the same, I need to know how to remove the cover to check both belts and any help in gaining the vacuum
ANSWER : This video shows you everything you need to know

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My Dyson Animal has good suction and works fine for actually picking up dirt, but when I use the vacuum with the roller, I hear a grinding/rumbling noise. Its only when I use the vacuum with the brush rotating. It does not happen hen I shut the roller brush off. The belt is fine. I cannot figure out what is wrong as there are no clogs, debris, or foreign objects stuck in the brush or in the belt. The noise seems to be the only issue. The vacuum picks up fine. It just doesn’t sound right a
ANSWER : Trace the path of the suction into the tank and see if there is anything loose or ingested..Also, remove the brush and clean as best you can. Perhaps there is something caught in it. Lubricate where it makes sense with some WD40.

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My electrolux oxygen cannister has the “bag change” light on when there is a new bag. The light stays on when the suction power is high (to pick up small particles) and it won’t pick up, but the ight goes off when the suction power is low (to pick up big objects). I changed the hepa filter, cleaned the motor filter and changed bags, but all that didn’t help.
ANSWER : You may have a clog in the hose, and/or the inlet by the brush roll. A clog will turn on that light as well as a full bag.

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Poor Suction Heya! So I just picked up a used Dyson, but when I vacuum with it, the suction is pretty weak and it spits all kinds of stuff out the back and into my feet. When I pull the hose I have good suction, but in regular mode it hardly picks up anything. The brushes are spinning, and it eventually will clean an area if I go over it again and again. Maybe a clog somewhere? Please tell me that Dysons have better suction than my $50 Dirt Devil! Thanks!
ANSWER : I recently bought a second hand Dyson DC07. Its suction was poor. I removed all the un-clipable pipe bits and to remove any blockage but it all looked clear. The Final Sponge and hepper filter did have a lot of dust in it and the rotating brush was full of hair but nothing bad.
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.I eventual gave in to curiosity and removed the three screws in the top or the yellow removable dust collection tube and cyclone bit to see what was in there. The mechanism to release the flap at the bottom of the collection tube does not allow you to remove the lid completely but it does open far enough to get inside. I found the whole top section of the yellow plastic bit blocked by a big plug of compacted dust and a champagne cork. If you are willing to take the risk and have a torx 15 screwdriver handy it that part may be blocked. It did get a bit messy.
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.If I was going to attempt the same procedure I’d remove the dust collection unit from the vacuum cleaner as I did before, but leave the clear tube attached and the emptying flap firmly closed to reduce the mess from the dust falling out the bottom while cleaning the top part.

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Hoover WindTunnel Self-Propelled V Belt
ANSWER : I had this same problem with the V belt on my Hoover Vaccuum..
.There are three (3) basic things that will cause the brush roll not to spin..
.1. When handle is upright, brush roll is OFF..2. When switch is set for HARD surface, brush roll is OFF..3. Broken/worn FLAT belt or V Belt, brush roll will not spin.
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.I noticed that the brush roll was not spinning when my vacuum was set for CARPET. After removing the cover I noticed that the V belt was loose, I thought the belt was worn so I purchased a correct replacement belt and installed it, but the new belt was also loose and when I turned the large flat belt pulley it did not turn the V belt pulley at the same time..
.I double checked the surface setting and I had the vacuum switch set for carpet, but still when I released the handle out of the upright position the brush roll would still not spin..
.My aggravation finally led me to this posting on FixYa’s website..
.The first thing I did was checked the screw to the left of the V belt as suggested by ejmjr5 and this did nothing to solve the problem or create more tension on the V belt, even when the upright handle was not in the upright position..
.After playing around with the surface setting control switch/nob I notice that when I moved the switch out of the HARD surface setting and over to CARPET, I had thought that the switch was set for CARPET as it visually appeared, but I was not pushing the switch over hard enough to click it into the CARPET setting mode..
.VOILA, the brush roll now spins correctly even though the V belt seams to be too loose for the pulley..
.You really have to force the switch into the CARPET setting. Be sure that you hear the switch/nob click into place..
.Now you can effectively clean up after that hangover of a party!.
.Burp!

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