Motor Life Expectancy of Electrolux Silverados

[bagintheback]

I vacuum about 2.5 hours a week with my Silverado, and should I continue cleaning like this, 120 hours will be the average usage each year.  Since the vacuum is already 30 years old, I'm afraid the motor might go out in a few years considering my heavy usage. Would anyone know what is the average life for these motors?

 

[kenkart]

They will last!

Practically forever, if you keep the automatic control set so that the airflow is not diminished too much before you change the bag, and also use good quality bags, never use the cheap single ply bags, genuine Aerus or Electrolux bags or the Perfect hepa bags are what I use, my Aunt bought a Silverado new in 84 or 85 and my cousin is still using it daily. so dont worry about it wearing out.

 

[dysonman1]

If you think about it, the life of a motor is determined by two factors. The length and size of the Carbon Brushes, and the number of 'slots' on the commutator. The temperature at the point where the brushes touch the commutator (while running) is 1400 degrees.

At the worst case scenario, the commutator could become so grooved and worn by the contact of the brushes, that it fails. A new armature is easy to install, along with new motor brushes, and the motor will last as long as if it was new (you might also install a new ball bearing at the same time, they're less than $2 each).

Ironic that just yesterday I found a box with two new Super J - style armatures (fits super j, olympia one, and silverdo). And I thought to myself "I bet I'll never use my Luxes enough to ever need one of thse) - but I have two 'just in case'. When we used to be able to order Super J armatures commonly, I believe they cost about $20 each. A small price to make an Electrolux motor "brand new" again.

 

[suckolux]

My local vac shop only wants to change my motor out when its done! I wanted to see if they would lube, brushes and check it over.Maybe they just want to sell a motor or no parts. They have been very kind for years, but I sense not wanting to keep mine sounding like new. Seems still fine.....

 

[d-jones]

I agree with everything said by other members here. Brushes and bearings are easily replaced and armatures with worn out commutators can either be replaced or sent out for repair. But as kenkart mentioned, proper airflow is critical to keeping operating temps low. The motor windings are nothing more than copper wires coated with a thin layer of varnish which provides insulation so that they don't short out. If a motor is run with improper airflow, temps will rise and the varnish will soften. As the varnish softens it can literally be squeezed out from between any wires wound tightly against each other which would result in a direct short at that point with catastrophic consequences to the motor. But this needn't happen if you follow kenkart's advise regarding bag maintenance, so don't be afraid to use that machine.

 

[suckolux]

My very fears! I never run bag even partly full to keep it cool, always on 1. However a few years ago I let my neighbor use it and she had the crevice tool on all day, not even sure how long it ran that hot. Not good.

 

[suckolux]

My neighbor as my Big Swede step father would say " has no fetchen up! "

 

[bnsd60m9200]

unless you do something to intently kill it, like using it to suck up wet stuff or use non 4-ply bags, you shouldnt haven any issues at all. luxes from the model g in 1960 thru the silverado in 1984 were reguarded as "some of the best vacuums ever made" by both dealers and collectors. i have a golden j, olympia, and silverado. all perform great. chances are youll have to fix the cordwinder before the motor goes bad. luxes back then were made to last , and be easy to fix, not unlike other vacs of appliances of the day. once the diamond jubilee came out in 1984, many agreed electroluxes glory days were behind them.

hope this helps

Will Hemb

 

[suckolux]

Its a very nice, well made, good looking machine.

 

[electrolux-dude]

Silverado's are great machines

I've got several Silverados that I have in my collection all are still working fine. I found a Silverado several years back sitting out by a dumpster, and I snatched it up immediately! The original hose looked like it had been run over by a car as it was smashed flat. The front latch on the lid was a little bent. Needless to say I snatched it up immediately. I serviced the motors in the vacuum and powernozzle, and put a different hose on it and it still is working perfectly today. I have found numerous Silverados at Estate sales and thrift stores, and the motor brushes and armatures still look like new. Great Machines! I agree with all the other posters, regarding using the good kind of bags and keeping them changed regularly. Service the motors approximately once every couple of years or so, and they'll run practically forever.

 

[suckolux]

Not sure mine has ever been serviced, I can't.

 

[electromatik]

Virtually all Lux machines lasted for decades. They were extremely durable from 1912 onward. They had a few missteps such as the early automatic control system, the early 1205 wand, the early upright, and the early Diamond Jubilee. They always corrected the problems all the while innovating. Up until the early 1990's, Electrolux USA maintained #1 market share in canister vacuums. The decline started exactly with the rise of Walmart and the throw-away society. Many appliances became commodities rather than investments. I hate to say it, but it's true. Walmart nearly drove the quality companies out of business. The "poorer" population who had limited resources started running to Walmart every 2 years to buy a cheapo machine rather than paying a hefty price for something better. This has relegated the high-end companies largely to the high-end population. However, we probably don't know the true market share of the high-end companies because many of those sales of Bissell's and Eureka's are repeat buyers. All the homes with Kirby's, Filter Queen's, Tri-Star's, etc. keep those for far, far longer. Bissell will sell 10 vacuums during the average lifespan of 1 Kirby... Back to the Silverado... The Silverado is one of my favorite machines. The Diamond Jubilee had a faulty motor that proved not as reliable but the later one's switched to a better motor. I am not sure if the Silverado was affected by the faulty motor but they still seem to run like tanks. Speaking of Lux, Aerus has removed the Guardian Ultra from the website. I wonder if they are going to discontinue it or what?

 

[suckolux]

I think Silverado early were the good motor, later?? Mine is early.

 

[floor-a-matic]

<span style="font-family: verdana,geneva;">If U use HEPA bags, they give better motor protection than the 4-ply bags; & you'll be dusting less often since the dirt won't go thru a HEPA bag.</span>

 

[suckolux]

OH with long hair fuzzy cat, its dust and mop every day anyway! Thanks.

 

[bagintheback]

Thanks everyone for responding. I'm happy to hear how durable the Silverado is. I bought mine refurbished off eBay with a new cordwinder, so it seems I'll be good to go for decades!

 

[suckolux]

Nice!

 

[kenkart]

The Silverado motor..

Was the last really good one,the only older one that gave any trouble was the first Super Js had a vibration problem, this was soon fixed.

 

[dysonman1]

The Super J, Olympia One, and Silverado all used the same motor. One reason the motors don't tend to overheat is the bleed tube, which bleeds clean cool air from the cord winder area into the bag chamber. If you ever take one of those models apart, you have to reattach the rubber cool air tube to the bag chamber and the cord winder in order for the cooling air feature to work. The models 1205 and G had this bleed tube as well, in order to keep the motor cool under extreme conditions.