Sparks from the Kirby Motor

the surge is caused by a faultering armture, might be caused by low carbons or sticking carbons, strip the motor down for inspection. Or take it to your local kirby service centre shop for clean and service and polish. price range from 39 to 59

BEWARE you must ALWAYS contact the seller before buy this kind of parts and give up your serial number ofthe vaccuum because of marketing technical correct parts to get as if it was or not modified by knowing the year of build and production type.
220 volt motor for Kirby vacuum

I'm assuming that you brought a vacuum cleaner from a country that uses 220V to a country that uses 110V.

You either have to change the motor to a 110V motor, or find a way of plugging the cleaner into a 220V supply.

You could contact the manufacturer and ask them if they have a 110V replacement motor for your model. (Safety warning... it will take double the electrical current, which will cause four times the heating in the cable; this could be dangerous.)

A better solution would be to have an electrician fit a 220V outlet in your house. The pin arrangement will be different to prevent 110V deviced being plugged in to it. You'll have to cut the existing plug and replace it with the correct one for that voltage for your country. (I have used a British 'Dyson' in this way, plugged in to a tumble-dryer outlet; I use a GFI for extra safety.)

Hi,
Such an abrupt fault is more than likely a very simple fault, such as a loose wire or damaged electrical cord or a faulty switch. I would most certainly check or have these components checked before purchasing a new machine. They should be relatively inexpensive and easy to replace.
Best wishes,
Graemevm

Depends where the sparks are spitting from.Unplug from the wall and try to detach the cord from the vac itself, where it plugs in. If there is a small hole burned in the side you will need to detach the entire cord from the handle where it clamps on and buy a genuine new one from a vac repair shop or Kirby dealer. Cords do wear out. Ther is a slim possibility you could have a bad switch below but generally the switch just dies , no sparking.
If the sparks were shooting out from inside the motor housing, you will likeley need a motor rebuild which should be done by a professional at vac shop.

either cord shorted out or switch failed would replace cord first if that doesn"t work probably have to take into repair shop

Greetings from GoVacuum.com,

Unfortunately there is no fuse on a Kirby Generation model. In my 10 years of repairing Kirby's as well as other vacuums, I will tell you that 9 times out of 10, when a Kirby Generation doesn't turn on, it's the cord that needs to be replaced. This is by far the most common problem that we see on Kirby repairs.
The Kirby motor is very well built, and usually has a life of 30+ years (G3 is about 12-15 years now). The only other problem it could be on the Kirby would be carbon brushes, or the switch assembly.

I would first try testing the power cord, I think this will solve the problem for you. To test a cord on a Kirby Generation (all Generation models are the same machines, just different colors) first follow where the cord goes into the Kirby at the bottom. To access this cover easier, first remove the "boot" at the bottom of the outer bag. This is the plastic part at the bottom of the outer bag that connects onto the Kirby. You will see that there is a plastic cover over the cord. You will need to remove the screw that holds this cover on.



Now after you have removed the cover, pull the plug out of the machine. Once you have the cord disconnected from the machine, you can now test it to see if there is a short somewhere in the cord. You will need to purchase an inexpensive continuity tester from Home Depot, Radio Shack, or most other electronic stores. This will tell you if there is power running through the cord, or if the cord is bad. With the continuity tester, plug the cord into the wall outlet, then put the positive, and negative testing rods into the female end of the cord that plugs into the machine. You will then be able to tell if the cord has continuity going through it. The tester will indicate if there's continuity or not.


The picture here shows that the cord is good. If your tester does not light up, or indicate that there is continuity, you'll simply just need to purchase a new cord. As I stated earlier, this is the most common reason that a Kirby won't turn on.

If however your cord tests OK, this indicates that the machine either needs a new motor (or carbon brushes in the motor) or it needs a new switch.

Please feel free to email me if you'd like instructions on how to diagnosis the switch or carbon brushes, or if you need to purchase a cord for your G3. Also I can send you a parts diagram of the Kirby should you ever need any other part for it. I have all parts for Kirby in stock, and we are the cheapest price online.

Chris Jones
GoVacuum.com
[email protected]

Hi There, Could be a number of differant things really. Just check that the both the safety switches are being activated but other than that it will need to go to a repair center. Many Thanks Chris www.elidistribution.co.uk