How To Clean Your Canister Vacuum Filter With Bonus Tips

After having used your vacuum to clean the house, pushing it once per day and after the day’s cleaning, you shove under your stairs, when you’re done the cleaning. Do you know what that does to the performance?

Now, consider the way your vacuum helps in your house cleaning, do you see the sparkling look it gives your house? Well, that’s if you can see with your two eyes… to think of it; you hardly or never consider cleaning it, have you?

Manufactures and producers of this machine, proudly state their products suffers no loss of suction…

But obviously you think it’s all hogwash, so they keep getting orders because it fails you when you need it the most, well that’s if you didn’t recognize the tell-tale signs, but wait! They actually are not wrong, well that’s if you take out the time to read and understand the manual, and most times in the manual, it’s boldly written “keep clean regularly” because your warranty depends on you doing your duty of keeping it clean!

It’s that simple! if you clean it regularly they’d endure no loss of suction.

OKAY…

Before cleaning the filter, it’s good you know if your filter needs some attention, oh yes, we all get the attention we need, so why deny the poor vacuum its attention…

The following symptoms are what you should look out for;

1. Loss of suction power: when the fan motor powers the suction to pull the dirt through a hose in your vacuum, the more it does this, the more dirt the hose has to deal with, a situation where stubborn particles are stuck in the hose, brush head, it eventually leads to a failure of suction power.

2. Unpleasant smells: there a myriad of issues that can lead to an unpleasant smell when cleaning; a major contributor to this is if the filter has smelling contents like, pet urine, or excessive dust.

3. Weird sound: when your vacuum start emitting weird sounds that are not in sync with the usual cleaning sound most vacuums have, then it’s one of the three deadly noise; rattling; which is normally caused by little stones stuck in the beater brush area. Whistling; this is caused by air being blown inside a narrow gap in the vacuum. Constant Grinding; this can be coming from damaged fans or roughed edges due to stuck dirt/small stones.

4. Failure to pick dirt: as with the symptom above, they are many factors that may cause your vacuum to cease from picking dirt, examples of this factors; clogged air filter, obstructed hose, overflowing dust bag, etc.
We have experienced all this, pushing the vacuum around the house, only to discover the irritating sound, offensive smell, and not cleaning a thing, making us rant on the vacuum like it hears us venting.

The Cleaning Process:

1. Clean the Dust Canister:

It’s important your canister remains clean, because this is where the debris and dust particles are sucked in, so if not properly and regularly maintained, it can cause the dirt to enter into other parts of the machine.

Another point while cleaning is to empty the canister regularly, at least when you see the hose is full. As stated before, if the dirt is left and not disposed of, dirt can enter into the machine, whereby messing the performance.

After riding the canister of the dirt particles, it’s a good decision to wash with water and detergent. This should be done at least once a month. Note when washing the canister it’s important to use dishwasher detergent, because of its softness, this can help remove the stubborn particle that has become stuck in the sides of the canister. A soft brush is a tool you can rely on to get the soap to places your hand won’t get to in the canister.

After cleaning, please do not put the canister back immediately when wet. This may lead to a shock, and further dirt you suck in will form an even stronger mold. Endeavor the canister is completely dry before fixing back!

2. Clean the Rotating Brush

Before you start cleaning, make sure the vacuum is unplugged. After unplugging, place the cleaner on its back, so you’d clearly see the under of the rotating brush. First, use a pair of scissors to cut strands of hair or fabric stuck in the brush area. Most times, this is the cause of the vacuum’s slow performance.

If after this little exercise you still have some sort of dirt particle stuck in the brush, you may likely unscrew the housing box and unhook the fan belt. This allows you to easily unclip the rotating brush from the box. With the rotating brush out, you have a better chance of cleaning properly, as there is no obstruction now.

After the rotating brush is clear of dirt particles, reverse the process, clip the rotating brush and screw all the necessary bolts back into the vacuum.

When screwing make sure you attach the fan belt properly, failure to do so may lead to further performance issues. Before plugging, try to roll the rotating brush to see if it moves freely, if it does, then you can plug the vacuum and notice the way it cleans perfectly.

Excited? Okay, let’s move on to the next tip:

3. Clean the Foam Filter

Most present-day vacuum cleaners have an auxiliary filter, produced using plastic.

But note, some models come with an additional foam filter. Before commencing check to see if your model has the foam filter because of manufacturers’ advice against washing the foam filter with water.

The best way to clean this type is to wear a set of gloves and tap the dirt out into a trash can in an airy area. Once you’re satisfied with the look on the foam, place it gently on one side.

Depending on the make, you may likely have 2 to 3 filters; remove them gently one by one, after the cleaning each, place the filter the exact way you removed them, along with the foam filter. If you get the order wrong when putting the filters back, the vacuum may not function.

4. Clean the HEPA Filter:

HEPA filter of your vacuum is usually located at the bottom of the dirt canister, clicking into the vacuum. After removing the HEPA filter, carefully tap excess dirt particles into the trash can. Note, this should be done in an airy area.

Although some models come with a set of HEPA filters, this is an added advantage, as you clean one filter, you replace with the spare filter. This way you get to rotate the filters to avoid wear and tear, thereby prolonging the life of both HEPA filters

For cleaning purposes; you’d have to wash the HEPA filters (with dishwasher detergent, because of its softness), and wipe out every stain from the surface of the filter.

If you notice discoloration, that’s normal. Please make sure the HEPA filter is given an ample time to dry because it takes more time than Foam filters. Also before putting the HEPA filter back in the vacuum, ensure it’s totally dry.

BONUS TIPS:

1. Have spares
2. Clean regularly at least once a month
3. Use non-abrasive detergent

If you follow the above steps along with the added tips, your vacuum will work efficiently for years to come.

Do you have any questions regarding your canister filter? Or do you think we’ve missed a tip on this list? Let us know in the comments! And lest I forget, if you liked this post, please share!!! Cheers!