As far as the bags, of course the company will tell you to use the genuine ones, but I've never had a problem with the better quality generic ones. When you had the thing apart, did you look at the spring-loaded switch on the lid? If the vac doesn't turn on, open the lid, turn on the power and then depress the switch. It should power on as soon as it's depressed. If you have to jiggle the button or depress it really hard or repeatedly then that's where the problem lies. By slamming the lid hard it connects but after awhile it loses contact. Also check the little rubber funnel-shaped air tube on the upper rim of the bag compartment. That needs to line up with and seal against the corresponding hole in the lid face to complete the automatic shutoff "air circuit."
