Anyway to fix a Shop Vac?

[MrAudio815]

Hello,


It's been a while... So sorry.

I have been using my Lowe's "Shop Vac" a bit more lately for fine plastic dust. One day it started sounding weird & loud like something was rattling around in the motor. I turned it off, emptied it, blew out the motor area, turned it on & same sound. I still used it & after a 5 minute use it was getting hot.

Anyway to fix it before it's destroyed. I bought it in 2008 & rarely used it until Oct last year (2013) when I used it quite often about 5-10 hours a week at 8-20 minutes intervals. Still used the same filter just kept banging out the dust.


Thanks for any advice.


Sincerely,

Matthew

Matthew'sWoodworks

Seller of the Matthew's Sleek Rest HERE for Rifles

 

[tryingtokeepmyfingers]

without seeing it or messing with it my guess is you lost the bearing on the armature..... does the shaft of the impeller have lots of play in it... does is spin smooth... make sure you unplug it first


if you are using it as a dust collector you might want to upgrade to a real dust collector not that a dust collector replaces a shop vac.... another upgrade is to at least get a dust deputy for the shop vac.... even if you are using it for general shop clean up the dust deputy is a real help

 

[golfdad]

Lowes had big shop vacs on sale around Christmas for 49.00.....they might still have some left

 

[Guy in Paradise]

Not sure ShopVacs fall into the fixable category.

 

[Roy G]

About all you could do is take it apart, if you can, and see if there are any obvious problems, like the motor armature wobbling around. If its not a bearing, look and see if there is some crud rattling around in there.

Roy G

 

[Ptofimpact]

I cannot speak to the repairing of shop Vacs , however, what I do to prolong filter life [ dry materials] is go to Dollar store, they sell ladies knee highs , 6 for a buck, I put one of these over the filter, collects a lot of junk, then discard it when I clean the vac out.

 

[farmerbw]

I had problems with mine a few years ago and emailed ShopVac an explanation of the noise it was making. They shipped me a new motor and the easy replacement instructions for free in a couple of days. You may want to drop them an email and see what they'll do for you. Mine was probably much older, and more used, than yours is at the time.

HTH,
Brian.

 

[Hmerkle]

I cannot speak to the repairing of shop Vacs , however, what I do to prolong filter life [ dry materials] is go to Dollar store, they sell ladies knee highs , 6 for a buck, I put one of these over the filter, collects a lot of junk, then discard it when I clean the vac out.

Maybe "they" do that on the coast - here in the piedmont we send our wives for pantyhose! :rotflm:

Just kidding!

 

[thrytis]

I had problems with mine a few years ago and emailed ShopVac an explanation of the noise it was making. They shipped me a new motor and the easy replacement instructions for free in a couple of days. You may want to drop them an email and see what they'll do for you. Mine was probably much older, and more used, than yours is at the time.

HTH,
Brian.

I second emailing them. My motor stopped suddenly a little over the 5 year warranty period, and I emailed to see if replacement motors were available. They just sent me a new motor for free. Their customer service goes beyond what anyone can expect a company should do.

 

[ScottM]

Not a fix to your issue but the March 2014 issue has a write up on shop vacs. Their pick were the Craftsman Brand XSP 12006 and XSP 12007. They only looked at 12 and 16 gallon models priced under $150.00.

 

[Ptofimpact]

Maybe "they" do that on the coast - here in the piedmont we send our wives for pantyhose! :rotflm:

Just kidding!

That's funny Hank~

 

[blakeyon2asd]

I had in my shop that is sitting in the dumpster right now I think once they go they are just gone.