Kirby Sentria 2, extension hose?

[tlc1976]

Hi, new here. From the local Craigslist I recently bought a Kirby Sentria 2. It came with a container of attachments, shampoo attachment, and some extra belts and bags. I’ve always heard they were built like tanks and had some of the best cleaning power. I’ve been using it for awhile and am pretty impressed. I like the classic vibe and I like to keep things going rather than toss and upgrade.

Well anyway, I’ve found that it would be very beneficial to have an extension hose attachment. Then I can leave the vacuum parked while I go around and clean the room. With all that is offered for this thing, I’m really surprised to not find an extension hose. Do they make one? Or is there something generic that fits?

 

[panasonicvac]

Kirby offers a 12 foot stretch hose.

 

[tolivac]

There was a time sometime ago when Filter Queen and Electrolux offered long hoses for their vacuums.A good vac shop should be able to make a longer hose as well.The vac shop I use can make long custom hoses from central vac hose stock.He gets this in 50-100ft coils.I have helpted him make hoses and ones for some of my vacuums.

 

[tlc1976]

Thanks for the info. I really don’t want a stretch hose, I want something that lays loose. And though we do have a good vacuum shop sort of nearby, I don’t have the time off work to get there.

So last night I did some experimenting with my existing hose and attachments. I found that if I just looped the hose (to simulate the connection of a second hose), it almost locks tight together, but not quite. However if I use the inflator piece as a coupler, it locks nice and tight. So does an extension tube, but the inflator piece is nice and compact.

I also learned you can buy a replacement latch for the vacuum end of the hose. Therefore the latch comes off the hose. It doesn’t have to come off just to join the hoses, but it sure makes it look a lot better.

So that’s what I did. I ordered another hose, and an inflator piece. I’ll pop off the hose latch. And trim the inflator piece to the correct length so it allows full airflow, yet still locks the hoses tightly together.

One extension hose will make a huge difference and should cover all my needs. If for some reason I find the need to add another, I know what to do.

 

[jade_angel]

There are also hoses meant for Riccar and Panasonic uprights that plug into the back of them. It just so happens that the plug-in cuff for these fits pretty neatly over the Kirby hose end. I've used this with an old Heritage II before.

 

[lesinutah]

Riccar

Riccar/Simplicity have a vacuum attachment accessory kit. It has a 12 foot hose.
It's also has accessories everything less than you can get a regular kirby hose.
I've attached a link to one for sale.
I've converted a couple of these to kirby hours.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1455135584...iSVRhZiQfi&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

 

[tlc1976]

That’s great to know about the Riccar hose. I already had a used Kirby hose coming for $23 shipped, plus another $5 for the inflator piece. As of today I have them both. Could have had a different color for under $20. By ordering gray I was expecting something lighter, but it’s ok.

Using 2 flat blade screwdrivers, I was able to get the latch started, and I worked it off by hand. So I have a spare if the lugs ever snap off.

Inside the hose end it is about 1 5/8” to a ridge. So I cut off the inflator piece for the tightest fit (1 7/8” long total).

It works great! Locks together tightly, won’t come apart during use. But can still be pulled apart when needed.

 

[huskyvacs]

I am not aware of any longer hoses for the Kirby, other than what you are doing and bodging multiple hoses together. Perhaps maybe a pool vacuum hose and then fitting Kirby hose ends on it but other than that, not sure what else would look so uniform and tidy. The earlier Kirbys came with a shoulder sling and you just carried the motor part around with you after converting it to hose mode, but I do not know of anyone that ever used that. I believe it was long since phased out by the time the G series came out.

Just keep in mind the longer the hose increases the more you lose suction strength. With the Kirby's motor you shouldn't notice a big deal about it, but with other vacuums you might notice a significant loss of suction.