Can we I test suction power of a central vacuum system (and is this how to test the system in general) when suction seems to have reduced to feeble?
Motor is 16 years old. Filter bag (between dust canister and motor assembly) is 22 or 24 years old, perhaps clogged by decades of use (despite careful brushing this morning.)
How long do these motors last anyway?
Motors can last indefinitely.
Remove anything between the inlet and the motor: filters, bags, etc., and see if the suction dramatically increases. If it does, start putting things back together until the suction drops off.
Another possibility is a leak somewhere in the piping. Perhaps you can tap off the various outlets, checking for a change in the suck. If I were going to check suckage - and I have no idea about the best way to do it - I'd hook up a shop vac to blow into the system and set off a smoke bomb in the shop vac's innards.
Until they burn out. Check the brushes on the motor; you're probably on your first set.
If you don't use it, it'll last forever.
But that was caused by the extra 5000 feet of hose.
You can test the sealed suction by using a piece of clear hose and seeing how many inches of water it can suck. Be prepared for over 100", it could be as much of 160". You don't really want the water to go into the system, so start on the long side. That all said, sealed suction isn't everything. CFM is also important. You could have an almost plugged filter and still get a high reading for sealed suction. But, if you get a good sealed suction reading, chances are there isn't a major leak in the system.
Depending on what type you have, some material may be either stuck in the piping (look at elbows) or some material may have bypassed your filter bag and got stuck on some metalwork or grill and is reducing the suction. My Beam was installed in early 1980s making it almost 30 years old and it is going strong. Vacs come in permanent bag types, such as mine, replaceable bags, and cyclonic. Vacs using cyclonic action have a final screen that stops lumps from hitting the impeller. Stuff that doesn't drop out with the cyclonic separation builds up on this screen. Just take a shop vac and clean way up inside and it will be as good as new.
Many newer models are cheaply made of plastic and also don't last as long as the solid old models, the same as with tools.
Ouch! That's funny! Laughed out loud. Honest.
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