Eureka AirSpeed Unlimited Rewind - Belt issues?

[niclonnic]

I've had this vacuum for close to 3 years, and it has been a great vacuum, until now.

Tonight I decided to vacuum a rug in my garage, which was coated in dog fur. Everything seemed to work fine. But then, I heard a high-pitched squealing noise! It happened as I was pushing the vacuum forward. I also noticed that the brushroll would bog down at the same time. In addition, I smelled a slight burning smell.

The weird thing is, when I pull the vacuum back, the brushroll speeds back up! These issues only happen when the vacuum is being pushed forward.

So I took the hood off, removed the belt tensioner and inspected the belt. This vacuum takes Eureka W belts. These belts are made of a material that doesn't stretch. When I inspected the belt, it looked to be in good shape overall. However, I found some loose fibers on one part of the belt.

This is a point of concern for me. Although a new belt is a cheap fix, I wonder how much longer this current belt will last?

I have uploaded a video below. Also, I tried taking a macro photo (using a macro lens) of the belt with my Canon DSLR. You can see the fibers sticking out of the belt.

 

[niclonnic]

I should mention that

This issue only occurs on area rugs. It doesn't happen on carpet. On carpet, the brushroll spins at full speed.

 

[niclonnic]

Anybody?

Is anybody going to contribute to this thread?

 

[crazykirbydude]

What's happening here is that the vacuum seals itself to the area rug. The reason this only happens on ruck and not carpets is because those mats have a rubber backing, which seals off the air. A carpet has a breathable backing.