For order for a vacuum cleaner to work well it needs to be maintained. Most placements you will go to will have a vacuum cleaner they all need to be maintained regularly to work efficiently.

Check the belt

Belts stretch and eventually wear out. Most manufacturers recommend that you change the belt every year. Loose belts may cause the roller brush to only spin slowly or even not at all.

Clean the roller brush

Hair, string, wool, and animal fur can wrap around the roller. This will cause strain on the belts, making them stretch. This can also find its way into the bearings of the vacuum, and they may seize up. In bad cases the hair can melt the nozzle housing and the vacuum may stop working completely.

Check the bag

In many vacuums there is an indicator light to show that the bag is full and needs to be emptied or replaced. Continuous running with a full bag will impair the vacuum’s performance. Ideally the bag should be emptied when it is 79 – 80 % full.

Check the filters

Some vacuums have filters which are washable, and these should be washed at least every three months. Some need to be replaced and this should be carried out at around the one-year mark. In vacuums with filters which need to be shaken clean, you may want to do this every second time you use the machine.

Check the nozzle height

If the nozzle is too close to the carpet it will not work efficiently because there will be no airflow. The height should be set at the point where the bristles make contact with the carpet pile. Any lower and the vacuum will battle to work.

Check the performance

If you notice that the vacuum is not picking up debris, or is smells as if it is burning, then stop and find out what is going on. Often a vacuum will burn out because it is simply all clogged up. Blogged clogs stop airflow and cause the vacuum to overheat. Never continue using a vacuum which is not working correctly.

Don’t forget a service

You can easily do this yourself, by checking the ducting, bristle length and whether the belts need replacing and the filters are clean.

In the long run, this will mean a vacuum cleaner which does the job it was designed to do.

Final thoughts

Even though checking the vacuum cleaner may not ‘technically’ be a part of the job description for a live-in carer it may be something advisable to save you the hassle of a machine that does not do a good job. A quick check need not take very long, and you will once again have a vacuum that actually picks up dust and debris.

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