Electroluvin on a Sunday morning

[Gr8DaneDad]

the sidekick has a plastic brushroll, the PN should be wood, Ash to be precise.  Though aftermarket brushrolls may be alder, ask or oak, at least I've seen those 3, may be others.

 

[Gr8DaneDad]

Geez.. I should have told you earlier too... you can make it run without a bag, just press in on the piece that sticks out on the inner door... with a bag in place it is depressed and completes the circuit allowing the motor to run. Just don't go vacuuming the floor with it


 

 

[super-sweeper]

Desert guy,

Fun fact-a lot of those older Kenmore canisters had to be recalled because you can stick you finger in the moving fan! Yikes!!

 

[DesertTortoise]

Gr8DaneDad, you're right. There is so much stuff wrapped around the floor brush, but yeah it's wood.

I figured out the bag interlock and fooled the vac into running. Boy, even after cleaning everything it still reeks! I really don't want to pull the motor apart. What is the easy fix? Sit it outside and let it run for 30-45 minutes in fresh air to air the motor out? The rest of the interior of the vac, as you saw in my photos, was scrubbed clean with citrus degreaser.

My attempted hose repair was a dud. I had a vac that would not turn off and only ran on low speed. All the speeds and the on/off/floor feature worked when I tested it at the Salvation Army so it is my hose "repair" that is the culprit. A new hose ought to solve that problem.

I really want to see this thing functioning as designed, see what she has.

 

[DesertTortoise]

Supersweeper, that is very interesting. Now I understand why there is a little adhesive grid over the fan opening on a somewhat newer Kenmore canister I have.

 

[Gr8DaneDad]

Short of pulling the motor apart, getting an odor out is not easy. I would either pack it in aquarium charcoal - and I mean pack that charcoal in every opening and in the fans, as much as you can - in a box just big enough to hold it all and leave it there for about a week. Choice 2 is to run the motor through a cycle in the dishwasher, or wash it with citrus cleaner... just make sure it's rinsed very well and completely dry before hooking it back up. I've done both without creating an issue but if you wash it, you may have to open her up and replace the bearings depending on how good the seals are... with this motor, seals should be good and not an issue, but the caveat is there.

 

[DesertTortoise]

Wash an electric motor? Wow.

Wrt aquarium charcoal, you mean pack it into the gap between the armature and the windings and everything? Sounds like a momma bear to clean the motor afterwards. Might be easier to wash it as you suggest and let is air dry in our nice hot dry desert for a week or two while I wait on a hose and brush rolls, etc..

So just submerge it in a mixture of Big Orange and hot water, agitate it, then rinse it out thoroughly and air dry? Do I try to remove the brushes first of just leave them in for the treatment? Labor wise that is the easy way to do it, just makes my boys retract thinking about it. Tell you what, that vac gets turne on outside the first couple of times, with a 10 BC fire extinguisher handy.

 

[DesertTortoise]

Just to check, there is no problem getting the armature wet? I am thinking of submerging the fan assembly but only brushing the field with de-greaser.

 

[Gr8DaneDad]

Motors are very simple things... they can get wet if not electrified. It really won't hurt anything. I usually remove the carbon brushes, just because they are a wear item and it makes getting the comm clean easier. Don't leave it soaking for a few months, but a few hours wet won't hurt anything.  When you're done washing, put another vac in blower mode (if you have one) or use an air compressor to blow air through the fans and out the motor. Most of the moisture will be evaporated in short order. I've even washed one in winter and used the blower from another Electrolux to dry it in a few hours. The warm exhaust air does a fantastic job.