Nice 1205
Nice 1205 and nice that you posted that advertising brochure that you must have received with it. I haven’t seen one of those showing the “cut away view” and all of the detailed items pointed out...though we can’t read the detail as the photo resolution isn’t good enough.
That’s an early 1205 with the power nozzle wire connection port under the hose port. That was discontinued after the first year when the electric hose with integrated wiring was introduced. Electrical connection was made via connections on the hose collar that inserted into the vac. If the front collar on your 1205 has a “cut out” at the 9 and 3 o’clock positions in the solver hose port collar, then yours is dual and can also be used with the electric hose. Some were made with both.
The Electrolux’s do last a long time, but the motors eventually do wear out. I have a Silverado I bought used in 1994 at 10 years of age. Used as my regular vacuum for my home, the motor has finally worn out this August. It may just need new motor brushes but I have yet to open it up.
Looks like the original elbow for your power nozzle has been replaced at some point and you have the rare telescoping power nozzle wand on yours. They tended to crack as the upper portion was not metal reinforced so the design was abandoned and replaced with a metal wand with a plastic sheath over it and the wire was changed to be longer with a pigtail cord that had to be plugged into the electric hose or hose wire after the wand was inserted. The wand you have was the earliest version of the direct connect hose handle for the first generation of the electric hoses. It too was quickly discontinued for an older style perhaps due to durability issues and was reworked and reintroduced in 1974 on the Golden Jubilee 1205 version. That version of the hose handle is still in existence today used on the Aerus Lux Classic and has been a staple of these machines since 1974 and proven to be quite durable. It will work with your power nozzle wand should you have the model with the option to use the full electric hose, however care should be taken with your wand since it is not metal reinforced.
If the power nozzle brush is worn or very soft you can get a replacement and the power nozzle will remarkably be restored to best cleaning ability.
Check inside the bag compartment to make sure the screen has not gotten clogged with fuzz. Typical on these older models to find some dirt in there.
The automatic control should be set in the medium dirt range (3-4 stripes) for regular cleaning...if you have pets use a coarser dirt setting (1-2 stripes) and only use the fine dirt settings (5-6 stripes) for special cleaning needs when you might be vacuuming fine dirt that could clog the bag quickly and you need to finish the fine dirt job without the automatic control stopping the machine indicating a clogged bag. To maintain peak efficiency especially when cleaning carpeting, use a coarser dirt setting and the automatic control will signal when it’s time to change the bag by opening and stopping and the red check bag light will come on. While the bag may not be full, the system is telling you that suction and cleaning efficiency has been reduced by the bag clogging with dirt to the point the suction is less than optimal. Bags should only be filled to about 2/3 full or motor damage could occur due to too much stress on it from running it with more clogged bags. It causes the motor to use more power, operate at more stressful levels and build up more heat which damages it and the reduced airflow can’t cool the motor nearly as well.
Many people insist on saving money on bags and set these machines on 6 stripes to pack the bags before the machine will shut off and open indicating a full bag. This is not good practice and they’ll pay much more by burning out their motors and having to replace the motor or the entire machine.
The automatic control constantly monitors suction levels before and after the bag.
The top handles on the 1205s have a tendency to break so be careful with it. The power switch is easily replaceable and still available should it fail. They have a tendency to wear out once or twice.
Jon