I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction. I thought the
filter had gotten clogged but even with the filter off altogether, there's
barely any suction. While they're not obscenely expensive, I like to try and
keep something alive if possible. I wonder if there's a common cause of this
that's readily fixed?

Thanks for all input.

"Doc" wrote in message
news
I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction. I thought the
filter had gotten clogged but even with the filter off altogether, there's
barely any suction. While they're not obscenely expensive, I like to try
and
keep something alive if possible. I wonder if there's a common cause of
this
that's readily fixed?

There's not much to a shop vac -- basically an impeller/fan and a motor.
Something's likely clogged somewhere. I assume you tried it without the
hose and aren't getting suction at the machine? If not, you probably have
something lodged in the hose. Otherwise, something may ahve got caught up
in the power head...

-Tim

Tim Fischer wrote:
"Doc" wrote in message
news
I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction. I thought the
filter had gotten clogged but even with the filter off altogether, there's
barely any suction. While they're not obscenely expensive, I like to try
and
keep something alive if possible. I wonder if there's a common cause of
this
that's readily fixed?


There's not much to a shop vac -- basically an impeller/fan and a motor.
Something's likely clogged somewhere. I assume you tried it without the
hose and aren't getting suction at the machine? If not, you probably have
something lodged in the hose. Otherwise, something may ahve got caught up
in the power head...

-Tim



You may find that the impeller itself has gotten filled with crud. They
often have several disks with vanes inside spaced rather closely together.

If you don't find any major blockages ahead or behind the impeller then
get down to where you can probe inside the impeller's segmentns with a
piece if wire and see if you can hook and push junk out of it, then take
it to a sink and wash it out well before reinstalling it.

YMMV,

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
"What do you expect from a pig but a grunt?"

In article . net,
Doc wrote:
I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction. I thought the
filter had gotten clogged but even with the filter off altogether, there's
barely any suction. While they're not obscenely expensive, I like to try and
keep something alive if possible. I wonder if there's a common cause of this
that's readily fixed?

Thanks for all input.



Of course you already checked the hose for obstructions, right...

If the motor sounds normal, see if you can get access to the impeller
and if anything is stuck to them. It's also possible the impeller has
loosened on the motor shaft, but usually this will noticeably affect
the sound the vac makes.


--
No dumb questions, just dumb answers.
Larry Wasserman - Baltimore, Maryland -

Doc wrote:
I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction. I thought
the filter had gotten clogged but even with the filter off
altogether, there's barely any suction. While they're not obscenely
expensive, I like to try and keep something alive if possible. I
wonder if there's a common cause of this that's readily fixed?

Thanks for all input.

After you follow the prior instructions about cleaning possible
obstructions I will add the possibility that the motor may be going bad.
Likely it is not worth repair if that is the case as most shop vacs are not
worth the time.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit

Doc wrote:

I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction.

You say it "suddenly" lost most of its suction. What were you doing
with the shop vac when this "suddenly" happened?

That might provide a clue to help diagnose the problem.

On 5 Oct 2006 06:40:41 -0700, "Ether Jones"
wrote:


Doc wrote:

I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction.

You say it "suddenly" lost most of its suction. What were you doing
with the shop vac when this "suddenly" happened?

Vacuuming a cotton painter's cloth once? Who did It?

That might provide a clue to help diagnose the problem.

Cotton cloth and debris clogged my vac up -- stop and clear.
--
Oren

"Well, it doesn't happen all the time, but when it happens, it happens constantly."

Joseph Meehan wrote:
Doc wrote:
I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction. I thought
the filter had gotten clogged but even with the filter off
altogether, there's barely any suction. While they're not obscenely
expensive, I like to try and keep something alive if possible. I
wonder if there's a common cause of this that's readily fixed?

Thanks for all input.

After you follow the prior instructions about cleaning possible
obstructions I will add the possibility that the motor may be going bad.
Likely it is not worth repair if that is the case as most shop vacs are not
worth the time.

--
Joseph Meehan


Sounds like a bad motor.

If you have your receipt, I'd take it back

GM

wrote in message
ups.com...


Sounds like a bad motor.

If it was a bad motor, you'd almost certainly hear a different sound than
usual coming from the unit...

If you have your receipt, I'd take it back

He never said anything about the age of it. It could be very old...

-Tim

On Thu, 05 Oct 2006 01:41:40 GMT, "Doc"
wrote:

I have a Shop Vac that suddenly lost most of its suction. I thought the
filter had gotten clogged but even with the filter off altogether, there's
barely any suction. While they're not obscenely expensive, I like to try and
keep something alive if possible. I wonder if there's a common cause of this
that's readily fixed?

Thanks for all input.

I find vacuum cleaners in the trash all the time. The problem is
always that the hose or the hose equivalent (for uprights and electric
brooms, the path from the floor to the dirt depository) is clogged.
I've never yet found one with a burned out motor or even a bad
impeller.

I bought some 12 inch tweezers at a hamfest once. Didn't know what I
would use them for, but they were cheap. They were great from
removing the clog from an upright. (also great for removing splinters
from the fin of a blue whale)