To many restorations in 2 months

[huskyvacs]

I disassembled and washed the motor from my very first Electrolux, an Epic 8000 I bought for $25 at the Salvation Army store. Someone had vacuumed up cat poo and vomit, Went right through the bag, through the motor and, well, you can imagine the rest. Oh boy was it fragrant! Full tear down of the vacuum and detailed sanitizing, ran the motor for ages but it still stank to high heaven. With advice from my favorite vacuum shop I disassembled the motor and washed it in that Orange cleaner from Zeps that Home Depot sells. After rinsing everything thoroughly I sat it the parts in a metal can on top of my block wall in the July Mojave Desert sun and baked it for a full seven days. No more smell. ! Yay. Put it back together and it ran good for many years.

Yeah enzymatic cleaner will cut out the animal smell. I use Stuart's and it works. The issue is when the motor gets hot the smell gets into the laquer of the windings, then when it cools, it impregnates the smell into the laquer. This is why you smell it every time you switch the vacuum back on, forever. The keratin oil in animal hairs and when it rots is what gives vacuums that wet dog smell that people that dont own dogs, don't like.

The desert heat likely pushed it probably 300F+ on the metal. I used to wash tube TV's I took out of the dumpster. I would hose them down with a garden hose and soap and theywould be drenched with water to get all the garbage juice off. Then leave them in the sun in summer for a week. They all worked after. But when you're dealing with motors it's too many nooks and crannies for water to hide, I wouldn't risk it. I have too many vacuums that cannot ever be found again to risk hurting the motors. That's why I've spent so long studying motor repairs and learning what they look like and function like.

 

[cheesewonton]

Yeah enzymatic cleaner will cut out the animal smell. I use Stuart's and it works. The issue is when the motor gets hot the smell gets into the laquer of the windings, then when it cools, it impregnates the smell into the laquer. This is why you smell it every time you switch the vacuum back on, forever. The keratin oil in animal hairs and when it rots is what gives vacuums that wet dog smell that people that dont own dogs, don't like.

The desert heat likely pushed it probably 300F+ on the metal. I used to wash tube TV's I took out of the dumpster. I would hose them down with a garden hose and soap and theywould be drenched with water to get all the garbage juice off. Then leave them in the sun in summer for a week. They all worked after. But when you're dealing with motors it's too many nooks and crannies for water to hide, I wouldn't risk it. I have too many vacuums that cannot ever be found again to risk hurting the motors. That's why I've spent so long studying motor repairs and learning what they look like and function like.

Today I would have just put a new motor in it but at the time that was outside my budget. As it was after a replacement hose blank ( handle was good, just needed the hose ), brush roll and belt it became a $200 vacuum. One of my favorites though so no regrets.

 

[centralsweeper63]

Ooh, I wouldn't try that.

 

[cheesewonton]

Yeah enzymatic cleaner will cut out the animal smell. I use Stuart's and it works. The issue is when the motor gets hot the smell gets into the laquer of the windings, then when it cools, it impregnates the smell into the laquer. This is why you smell it every time you switch the vacuum back on, forever. The keratin oil in animal hairs and when it rots is what gives vacuums that wet dog smell that people that dont own dogs, don't like.

The desert heat likely pushed it probably 300F+ on the metal. I used to wash tube TV's I took out of the dumpster. I would hose them down with a garden hose and soap and theywould be drenched with water to get all the garbage juice off. Then leave them in the sun in summer for a week. They all worked after. But when you're dealing with motors it's too many nooks and crannies for water to hide, I wouldn't risk it. I have too many vacuums that cannot ever be found again to risk hurting the motors. That's why I've spent so long studying motor repairs and learning what they look like and function like.

Today I would have just put a new motor in it but at the time that was outside my budget. As it was after a replacement hose blank ( handle was good, just needed the hose ), brush roll and belt it became a $200 vacuum. One of my favorites though so no regrets.

Ooh, I wouldn't try that.

It made me pucker to do but a vac shop that has rebuilt many motors for me over the years coached me on the process.

 

[centralsweeper63]

Ah, I see.

 

[cars-guy]

The issue is the cardboard insulators can come apart and deteriorate from water, as well as the lacquer insulation encasing each coil winding. Hard water can leave corrosive deposits, and not getting all the water out of the motor can blow it up. Just too many variables. It's like the people that shove a power washer in the car engine and then the next day find out their car is dead. You can dry brush it with some nylon brushes and an electric blower, that's all I'd ever do. Professional motor rebuild shops have special blower ovens they bake motors in to remove water during rebuilds, but its not something you can do at home. They do have special spray now for degreasing electric motors but I never seen anyone use it in a vacuum cleaner.

I’m very careful when using the dishwasher. I check every 5-10 minutes to make sure that everything is holding up. It’s not an exact science but your concerns are very real and not something to be taken lightly. I may have generalized some of my posts here.

 

[cheesewonton]

I’m very careful when using the dishwasher. I check every 5-10 minutes to make sure that everything is holding up. It’s not an exact science but your concerns are very real and not something to be taken lightly. I may have generalized some of my posts here.

I didn't use a dishwasher. I put the parts in a container with a solution of warm water and the orange degreaser from Zeps Products that you buy at Home Depot. After soaking the parts they received a gentle warm water rinse in the sink then out to the back wall to sit in the hot July desert sun for a week. No more stink and motor ran fine.