Vacuum repair
A vacuum that's quit is more often a belt, a blockage or a full bag than a dead motor.
Bring the machine in, or call first and describe what it's doing. A description narrows it down and the machine on the counter settles it — a vacuum that's stopped picking up and a vacuum that's stopped running are different repairs, and the difference is rarely obvious from the other end of a phone.
What the symptom usually means
None of this is a diagnosis. It's the short list of what each complaint most often turns out to be, so you can tell roughly whether you're looking at a part or at a new machine before you get here.
- It runs but doesn't pick up. Usually a full bag, a blocked hose or wand, or a belt that's snapped or stretched.
- It smells like burning rubber. On an upright that's the belt slipping against a brush roll that's stopped turning.
- The brush roll won't spin. Either the belt, or something wound tight around the roller — hair, thread, a shoelace, a strip of carpet backing.
- It's gone loud, or the pitch has changed. Often a blockage forcing air somewhere it shouldn't go; sometimes a bearing.
- It cuts out after a few minutes and starts again once it's cooled off. That's a thermal cutout doing exactly its job, and it almost always means airflow is restricted somewhere.
- The cord won't retract, or the machine only runs when the cord is held at an angle. That's the cord or the switch, not the motor.
What to bring
- The machine — and the hose, wand and powerhead with it if the trouble is suction. A blockage in the hose looks exactly like a blockage in the machine.
- The bag that's in it, or the box the bags came in. That's the fastest way to be sure a replacement fits.
- The model number, if you can find it. It's usually on a plate on the underside or the back, not on the handle.
Whether it's worth fixing
Sometimes it isn't, and that's worth saying out loud. A machine that was cheap new and needs a motor has crossed from repair into replacement. The line moves depending on what the machine is and what's actually wrong with it, which is why this is a conversation with the vacuum in front of you rather than a number a website can give you.
Bags, belts, filters and parts
The shop stocks bags for around twenty-five brands, along with belts, filters, hoses, floor brushes and the small parts that wear out. Bags are the thing people most often get wrong, because manufacturers reuse the same letters for bags that are not the same size or shape.
Commercial and janitorial
The shop carries commercial uprights and canisters and stocks the bags that go in them. If you're buying for a cleaning operation rather than a house, say so when you call — what you need out of a machine is a different question, and so is the answer.
Send the details instead
If it's easier to write it down than to describe it on the phone, the contact page takes the brand, the model and what the machine is doing.