Thread Number: 18770
Never underestimate the power of an Elite!
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Post# 206501   11/11/2012 at 20:12 (4,155 days old) by dustin (Jackson, MI)        

dustin's profile picture
I have a light gray 1993 soft bag Elite that used to belong to my great aunt, then my aunt and uncle have had it for the past 7-8 years. 8 years ago, it was in nearly mint condition, worked flawlessly, and had all the attachments. Unfortunately my aunt and uncle are not the world's cleanest people (oink oink, get my drift....) and could care less what condition it was in as long as it made noise when switched on, and the bag filled up eventually. I had replaced the belt just before they got it (at that point it was not mine, my great aunt had gone in a nursing home and they got it). 8 years pass, and I end up with it, now filthy, the height knob broken off, sounding horrible, missing all the attachments and with the same belt still installed... I decided to tackle it today. I had wiped it off last week and serviced the brushroll bearings (it was so thick with dust, dirt and cigarette smoke residue, there was no telling if it was light gray, dark gray or black) I completely disassembled it, and washed everything that could be removed, including the bag, then dried and reassembled it. I used a sanding stone on a dremel tool to smooth out the edges of the fan slightly, replaced the bag and belt, and gave ot a test run. WOW! it actually runs good and picks up again! I vacuumed the laundry room with my Dirt Devil platinum force, which is an excellent cleaner, and then used the elite and after about 10 minutes had picked up about a cup of sand. I have used several vacuums on that carpet, and thought it was clean. I was really impressed, I have always thought of elites as a good everyday type cleaner, but not overly good at deep cleaning.

Post# 206581 , Reply# 1   11/12/2012 at 12:03 (4,154 days old) by bvac6 (Fort Wayne, Indiana)        
Diehard

bvac6's profile picture
Cool! I have seen some machines take an awful beating but Elites seem to be able to handle it surprisingly well. I repair sweepers out of my home and I have seen some monstrously abused Elites come through. I have a Windsor Versamatic that is so scarred and gouged the logo is almost gone but it works flawlessly. (I didnt abuse, it came to me that way! LOL)

Post# 206586 , Reply# 2   11/12/2012 at 12:22 (4,154 days old) by dustin (Jackson, MI)        

dustin's profile picture
I have had the same experiences with elites. I have found several in the trash with stuff jammed in the fan, and all have turned out to run very well. I have only had one elite style motor go bad, and that was on my grandma's, a 7.2 amp caddy vac. The bearings seized up, and while it still ran, it was very strained and made a horrible screech. She actually used it that way for about a month until I transplanted the motor with a 12 amp that I had for parts. It really grabs onto the carpet now!

Post# 206607 , Reply# 3   11/12/2012 at 19:46 (4,154 days old) by joshuak420 ()        

I've had similar experiences with Elites. Careless owners pick up something to large and shatter a fan or fancase, it gets loud so they throw it out. Or the fan gets stuck from a object to big to pass through it. Once a new fan is installed or the object gets removed, it's almost always alright. One of hoovers best cleaners. They can take a pretty big beating before they are to worn out to work anymore.

Post# 206613 , Reply# 4   11/12/2012 at 21:55 (4,154 days old) by dustin (Jackson, MI)        

dustin's profile picture
The suprising thing is, the fan on my Grandma's looked great, the machine looks almost new and was running fine. She told me it just started screeching. I had it torn down to just the motor and no doubt the fan end bearing had seized. I replaced it with a 12 amp motor (found in trash, jammed. The machine itself was beyond repair so I kept it for parts) and it really works well now, Grandma is thrilled. I have used it and my complaint is that it is LOUD!

Post# 206621 , Reply# 5   11/12/2012 at 23:13 (4,154 days old) by floor-a-matic (somewhere)        

Joshuak420

Welcome to the VCCC!

Today I found another Elite. The cord has been cut off; but I'll put a new one on.

Curb side finds are quite rare here.

I had an Elite when I moved out on my own; but I traded it for a Bissell Big Green Powerbrush 1680.


Post# 206671 , Reply# 6   11/13/2012 at 21:44 (4,153 days old) by mieles7 (TX)        

mieles7's profile picture
I love the elite style hoovers. Once it's on the correct height setting, my Power Drive becomes one of my best cleaning vacuums.

Post# 206672 , Reply# 7   11/13/2012 at 22:07 (4,153 days old) by dustin (Jackson, MI)        

dustin's profile picture
I have been using the one pictured above, and really cannot believe the amount of dirt it picks up. I think I'm going to use it until the bag gets full or I get tired of it, whichever comes first, then use my self propelled Windtunnel and see what it does.

Post# 206676 , Reply# 8   11/13/2012 at 23:15 (4,153 days old) by suckolux (Yuba City, CA)        

suckolux's profile picture
I think my Concept outcleans all my other machines

Post# 206697 , Reply# 9   11/14/2012 at 11:03 (4,152 days old) by dustin (Jackson, MI)        

dustin's profile picture
That wouldnt surprise me... they are awesome cleaners!


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