Okay, NOW I am done....Fairfax Vac

[fantomfan57]

Last week when I found a Sunbeam Courier, I had decided I was done having found a vacuum I had wished for.

However....yesterday I found a Fairfax vac at my local thrift. I had been looking at a picture of one last week and thought it would be nice to have one. So I was surprised to find one all disheveled...PN/wand separated and on a shelf, the hose attached but laying about along with the motor unit in the aisle. Of course I moved quickly to claim it. The motor top had been unlatched from the bottom, the bumper was pulled down and inside was a dusty flat filter and FULL bag.

There was a red conical shell with it, but I was not sure what it was for. At first I thought the logo was for Ozark camping gear, but of course it was the Fairfax logo. I actually went back to rescue the other part hours later to complete the exhaust filter module. I also found the red dusting brush.


Not much spa needed for the motor unit, but I found the Eureka clone PN needs cleaning and to have the foam sealing replaced.

Now comes the task of finding a copy or original User's Guide. The unit I have has the white plastic tub,not the chrome metal.

If anyone has a spare manual or a scan file copy, I would appreciate you contacting me.

 

[dysonman1]

Congrats on the Fairfax. The 'conical thing' is the water valve. Put it inside the tank when picking up liquids. Eureka actually built that power nozzle for Fairfax (as they did many other companies). Fairfax always used "bojack" bags, just had them packaged in genuine packages. I much prefer to make my own bag out of a Miele hepa cloth bag, that way you get excellent filtration.

 

[kirbyvertibles]

I love Fairfax they are one of my favorite vacuums especially with the Eureka made power nozzle. Tip!!!!! If you use Kenmore hepa cloth bags 5055 you will get superior filtration. I take one bag and install in tank then I take another and cut a round filter and put in place of the paper filter over the bin. Make sure you wash the filter attached to the underside of the motor unit. People usually don't ever clean these lol I'd like to see a pic especially of the conical shell you were talking about. I'm not sure what that is.
I have several of these machines.
A straight suction 2 speed,

an early 70s with their first power nozzle (big chrome power nozzle used on Royal and Airway),

an early 80s model with their second power nozzle (Hoover made Powermatic used on the early Celebrity)( my canister is chrome but I believe the early 80's one with Hoover power nozzle went to plastic),

an early 90's model with the Eureka made power nozzle (first use of self contained electric hose with power nozzle switch),

and the currant model made from late 90s though now the black touch of class model with wessel werk power nozzle

 

[kirbyvertibles]

Oops sorry Tom you must have been typing the same time I was lol
Now I under stand what the cone thing is, the floater thingy lol it just didn't register with me.

 

[fantomfan57]

To clarify...

the conical shell I was mentioning, (I should have said domed) was the top cap to the exhaust filter unit. The bottom flat-ish/funnel piece is the part that locks into the exhaust port. Inside I think there is a carbon filter set and a sponge plug used for scenting the air.

Power nozzle has been spa-ed and reassembled. About to order the manual and intake sleeve. Apparently this was missing which explains why the bag was duct tapped into the basin.

Thanks to your suggestions, I am going to use the Kenmore and/or Miele bags for both the flat filter and bags. I will use the dirty flat filter to make a template for further use. I also found a box of carbon filter material which I will trim for the external filter.

I appreciate your help.

 

[n0oxy]

fairfax vacuum

I got a fairfax a couple weeks ago as well, at the vacuum convention, Tom gave me a great deal on one since I'm such a big canister vacuum lover. It's the one with the Wessel Werk nozzle, I would like to find some cloth bags for it, does anyone know if a Numatic Henry bag will work? Henry is also a tub vac just like the Fairfax. It's a great cleaner for sure.
Mike

 

[fantomfan57]

Exhaust filter...

AKA... the Filterizer. When I finally get a manual, I should see what components go inside.

Sorry for the confusion.

 

[fantomfan57]

Guys, about using other bags....

Tom, will the Miele and Kenmore bags stay on the intake tube?

When cutting out another cloth bag for the flat filter, do you use all the layers?

 

[dysonman1]

If you have the rubber intake spout 'seal' over the metal, then YES, you can pull/push the Miele/Kenmore bag collar opening onto the spout. It will take some effort, which means the bag won't come adrift in use. When using a HEPA bag for a filter, cut the bag open, and use one side (fluffy side towards bag). Save other side for next filter.

 

[luxlife]

I always did like these!

 

[fantomfan57]

Thanks Guys...

I made a makeshift temporary seal out of an orphan turkey baster bulb from my odds & ends box. It will do until my new seal arrives. I placed a Kenmore Q cloth bag over the temporary intake seal and used the old flat filter as a template to cut out the flat filter. I also cut out an exhaust filter insert out of a piece of carbon air filter material.

I will try out the vacuum this weekend.

 

[n0oxy]

cloth bags

I'm thinking the numatic Henry bags may also work, the fit is a bit looser than I would like, I have some Miele GN and Kenmore Q bags here, maybe I will give those a try. I found with my fairfax, there was a round piece of paper on top of the filter, not sure if that had any purpose, I removed it and there seems to be no loss of suction. The filter on mine looks really clean so probably won't have to worry about that for a while. The other tub vac I have is a Lindhaus HF6, perhaps I can get a cloth bag to work with that as well, I'm just not a fan of paper bags. Not as good of filtration and they are prone to ripping. Of course, the Numatic vacuums are also great tub vacs.
Mike

 

[cam2s]

Fairfax

Last time I bought bags my black Fairfax I got them from ecovacuum.com, who is suppose to the official retailer and manufacturer or Fairfax machines. They sell regular paper bags or cloth bags, and you can get them in a combo pack with the flat filters. I don't know if the bag is from another machine or is manufactured for the Fairfax but it fits and works just fine in it. I didn't order the flat disk from ecovacuum so I can't comment on those. I have a Silver King as well so I used the spun polypropylene filter disc from it. Though Silver King has gone out of business other members have stated that the original filters are still manufactured and are available for sale on eBay.

I attached a picture of the exhaust kit that ecovacuum sent me, which is a black course filter and a purple sponge for oils.

Cameron

 

[fantomfan57]

Intake seal & Manual...

arrived in the mail yesterday. The seal makes fitting and holding on to the bags much better. I was advised to apply a couple of drops of glue to ensure the seal stays in place even though it is already a tight fit.

The Manual is informative and is for the newer model, but they inserted a page that relates to the Eureka built PN.

I did not order the bags sets as I will be using Kenmore bags (or others that fit) as both the bag and cut to fit filters. I will be making Ecovacuum my new supplier because of their location (Texas).

 

[fantomfan57]

Is it me or...

does the filter bag in Cam's pictures look like Cloth Hepa bags used in Kenmore Canister Vacuums? It's the cardboard collar that looks familiar.

Tom did mention Fairfax using "bojack" bags earlier.

 

[tolivac]

This may seem like a silly question-I can't remember if Fairfax is still in business.I got a red Fairfax free from a vac shops trade in pile-only came with the hose.Was one of the Kirby places.The few times I tried it-a nice quality vacuum.It did come with the water ball valve.You take the bag and filter out and use the ball valve-then the machine could pick up liquids.The valve would close the airflow when the tank was full.

 

[cam2s]

Well here is a Genuine Kenmore Q/C bag for comparison. They are about the same length however the Fairfax bag is wider. The opening for the Q/C bag was just a smidge small for the Fairfax fill tube, it would have fit though just would have been tight. The cardboard collar on the Fairfax bag did slide right into the collar holder in my Progressive canister.

Cam

 

[n0oxy]

tight fit

A tight fit may be a good thing, that way you don't have to worry about the bag coming off. I'm not sure if fairfax is still around or not, so many of the good brands such as airway and compact tristar are now gone. I know that Aerus now owns Tristar but I think the non-aerus models were much better. Have not heard of ecovacuum but I will check out their site.
Mike

 

[fantomfan57]

Also....

It looks like Ecovacuum sells the flat filters for Silver Kings which look like the Fairfax flat filters.