DIY Noise Reduction Eureka Bravo

Eureka Bravos are notorious screamers. 12 amp large fan models like my 7642 ‘The Boss Bravo II’ are among the worst offenders for making too much noise. I like this vacuum but I just can’t stand the noise. I think the fan and scroll design is such that the vacuum emits rapid pulses of air kind of like a tornado siren. The tight tolerance between the edge of the impeller and its housing increases vacuum performance but at the cost of extreme noise from the exhaust into the bag.

I had enough. I cut a section of egg crate mattress topper to the same dimension as the outer bag jacket. I then placed this inside, sandwiched between the disposable bag and the outer bag. I faced the ridges of the foam toward the disposable bag with the hope this orientation would provide the most benefit. Imagine anechoic walls. As an added benefit, the ridges should allow air to flow out of the disposable bag. That said, this foam is so breathable that I think most of the air just flows through it rather than around it, anyways.

The noise reduction was not out of this world, but it did make a difference, and with no discernible impact to vacuum performance. It makes me wonder how many other vacuums could benefit from something like this. My feeling is that any number of vacuums could be made quieter with something like this.

Photos... < > Photo 1 of 3 View Full Size


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Post# 468844 1/21/2024 at 09:22 by broomvac (N/A)
Checkrate/Likes Eureka Bravos are notorious screamers. 12 amp large fan models like my 7642 ‘The Boss Bravo II’ are among the worst offenders for making too much noise. I like this vacuum but I just can’t stand the noise. I think the fan and scroll design is such that the vacuum emits rapid pulses of air kind of like a tornado siren. The tight tolerance between the edge of the impeller and its housing increases vacuum performance but at the cost of extreme noise from the exhaust into the bag. I had enough. I cut a section of egg crate mattress topper to the same dimension as the outer bag jacket. I then placed this inside, sandwiched between the disposable bag and the outer bag. I faced the ridges of the foam toward the disposable bag with the hope this orientation would provide the most benefit. Imagine anechoic walls. As an added benefit, the ridges should allow air to flow out of the disposable bag. That said, this foam is so breathable that I think most of the air just flows through it rather than around it, anyways. The noise reduction was not out of this world, but it did make a difference, and with no discernible impact to vacuum performance. It makes me wonder how many other vacuums could benefit from something like this. My feeling is that any number of vacuums could be made quieter with something like this. Photos... < > Photo 1 of 3 View Full Size

Post# 468846 , Reply# 1 1/21/2024 at 10:47 by convertible18 (Utica, New York, USA)
Checkrate/Likes *cool* can we hear it running

Post# 468858 , Reply# 2 1/21/2024 at 16:07 by eurekaprince (Montreal, Canada)
Checkrate/Likes What a great idea, Broomvac!!!! Though not discussed much, this is another reason why traditional bagged vacs are better than bagless dust bin vacs: they are quieter! Bagless vacs have really noisy cyclones that are very difficult to muffle.

Post# 468866 , Reply# 3 1/21/2024 at 21:46 by panasonicvac (Northern Utah)
Checkrate/Likes I really like that Bravo, I've been after one of those for a while now. Even know they're very loud machines, I personally would take over over a Hoover Elite. I just prefer them more in my humble opinion.

Post# 469296 , Reply# 4 2/5/2024 at 22:18 by Durango159 (State College, PA)
Checkrate/Likes *Have you serviced it??* Something tells me that your machine is suffering a malfunction. I have the same model and love it. It's quieter than the Hoover Windtunnel upright I had which was a TTI version with shrill motor. I have replaced the brush roll and greased both motor bearings. The sound is consistent and even all the time. It's loud but not shrill like many newer vqcs. My ears can't tolerate a Kirby in attachment mode nor some other things. I could vacuum for hours with my Bravo though!! I have torture tested it too. Filled that bag up to the intake, I was curious how performance would handle and if sound would change. It did very well! Photos... < > Photo 1 of 2 View Full Size

Post# 469297 , Reply# 5 2/5/2024 at 22:26 by Durango159 (State College, PA)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Here's a video comparison that I made of mine a few months back along with a very unique WorldVac upright.

Post# 469381 , Reply# 6 2/8/2024 at 08:48 by broomvac (N/A)
Checkrate/Likes 1 *@Durango159* Funny you should say that. I had started to wonder this, too, so last weekend I put a NOS fan and outer fan chamber in my Bravo II. That reduced the noise by a lot! When I originally restored it, I only replaced the inner fan chamber (with bearing), the belt-side bearing, and the brush roll. It seems something must’ve been off about that old fan even though it looked fine. Perhaps it was warped. The new hardware plus my sound insulation has really quieted it down now.

Post# 469399 , Reply# 7 2/8/2024 at 15:28 by huskyvacs (Gnaw Bone, Indiana)
Checkrate/Likes The noise comes from the motor and fan, not from the exhaust. You need to insulate the motor vibrations and motor shell itself with a non-flammable material. They increased the motor size but not the baseplate form, so the plastic chassis can't quiet the noise levels as effectively as if it had a smaller motor inside. This is why high end vacuums have so much plastic and baffle material around the motor. www.lonestarvacuum.com/sh... View Full Size