I caught a shoelace in the vacuum and now the roller won't go around. Is there a belt I can replace and if yes, how? I unscrewed 4 screws on the bottom but it won't come apart. Do I force it? Thanks Shari

cut the ribbon out

Most vaccumeing have 4 to 5 screws holding the bottom plate remove plate pull out roller . Slide it off the roller and motor replace with new belt by first slide belt around motor arm then roller pull roller into place then roll the roller 3-4 times to insure it's in the right spot. Replace bottom plate

Check to see if there is hair or string or something preventing it from moving. Or, you might have a button or something that stops the roller from moving for suction for the hose only if it detaches for use that way. If it's not that, unplug the vacuum and see if you can move the roller by hand. If not, take the roller off by unscrewing the shield, probably 4 screws and check to see if the pegs that hold the roller in are in properly or broken. Rollers aren't expensive. If it's broken, just replace it. But, I'm thinking that there is something like string holding it. Another thing might be the belt is broken. If that's the case, do this:

First, make sure the vacuum is unplugged. Turn it over and you will see that on the rollers a cover. This cover should have about 4 screws holding it on. Unscrew and remove the cover. Note how it was put on. Take a look at the roller brush ends where it goes into the sides of the vacuum. Pull the roller straight out, noting how the pegs that hold it into the vacuum are situated. Take the broken belt off. It might be attached to one side of the roller. Note which side it is on and which side of the vacuum it is on. If it's not attached, no problem, just note which side it should be on. Now, on the bottom where the belt goes around, should be a silver peg that the belt slides over. Sometimes it's hard to see, but it's there. Take the broken belt to the store and match it up to a new one. Some are thinner than others, smaller or rounder than others. Be sure to get the right one. Now, back home, comes the hard part. Put the new belt on the proper side of the roller, only. Try and get the roller back into the vacuum snugly and secure. Once you do that, holding the roller with one hand, snug against the vacuum, pull the belt down and slide it onto that silver peg. If it needs to be twisted on, do that, but it probably doesn't need to be twisted. Once you have it on the peg, move the roller around with your hand to settle the belt into the proper position. With that done, replace the roller cover and you're done, Bob's your uncle! Plug the vacuum in and have at it.

your gonna need to remove bottom plate and take a sharp knife or scissors and cut the string close to the brush then peal off. might need to replace belt at this time. just pull out brush roll and remove belt then match it up with new one and put it back together,

Tool Needed, flat head screwdriver (larger one works a little better). Serious Safety Precaution: Make sure unit is unplugged. Preliminary: Check: that nothing is caught like threads etc, preventing roller brush from turning. I've had this model vacuum 10 years and have pulled threads out countless times. However it still has the original belt on it. To change belt: 1.) There is a plastic plate underneath roller, towards front.. Pry the 3 tabs at front, the plate hinges downward slightly (to clear the front tabs). Next, there are 2 little clips at bottom of plate. Insert screw driver at each of these clips to fully release the plate the rest of the way. (Or it may even come off without having to pry back on these. The plastic clips need pushed towards front, to clear the ridge that catches towards the back). Pry one, then the other, clip forward, while gently pulling the plate the rest of the way out. (Gentle prying will assure it will snap back together OK, so you still get a good seal.) You now should see the whole roller brush. 2.) Remove the shell/motor cover: To do this, a.) pull off the rug height adjuster lever, and take not where you put it so you won't loose it. b.) push foot release down and keep vacuum bag in the vacuuming/hinged/operating position (not the upright/locked position), and position cleaner on it's side, or upside down. c. Pry around the bottom edge, starting at right corner, then go around, prying in about 4 different places. Shell/motor cover will now easily pull off (upward and out towards front), exposing motor shaft and light bulb. 3.) remove belt from motor shaft. 4. slide roller and old belt out the bottom. 5.) remove old and place new belt on roller 6.) slide roller back into place. 7.) wrap other end of belt on motor shaft. 8.) shell cover, rug height adjuster knob, and bottom plate snap back into place. check that roller turns without much effort. 9.) It now should be ready to plug in and vacuum.

The brushes on the roller are driven by a wide, short rubber belt. These belts get old, worn, overheated, and break periodically.

It should be a fairly simple matter to unscrew & remove the plate, revealing the belt and roller assembly. You can get a replacement belt at Sears or nearly any vacuum shop.

While replacing the belt, it would be a good idea to take scissors or a knife (careful!) and remove the hair & other material that's wound around your roller. One thing that can cause a belt to break is when you're vacuuming & accidently pick up a string, a shoelace, a piece of cord... you know how fast that gets wound around the brush roller and locks it up? At that point, the belt is still trying to rotate the roller (which won't rotate)... and within seconds, the belt will get extremely hot. This can cause it to break, or reduce its life significantly.

This should be an easy fix, requiring nothing more than a replacement belt and a screwdriver. Good luck!

Hi,
Yes there is a belt and yes it is easy to replace it. There are a couple of screws that hold the cover on and then you can just lift out the brush, get the new belt around the motor shaft and then around the brush. The new belt will need to be stretched tight but that is a good thing....
new belts can be purchased at many grocery stores or vacuum repair shops...

heatman101

Greetings from GoVacuum,

Make sure the vacuum is NOT plugged in. In order to replace the roller brush, you'll need to unscrew the 6 screws on the bottom plate of the vacuum cleaner. Oreck uses a Phillips Head screw, so you'll need to get a Phillips head screw driver to replace the brush.

After removing the screws from the bottom plate, simply pull up on the plate by putting your fingers into the open area where the existing brush is located. After the bottom plate has been removed you will have access to the roller brush and belt.

You can now just grab the roller brush and pull straight up on it. It's beneficial to change the belt of the vacuum when you're replacing the roller brush anyways. There is a spare belt on the actual bottom plate of all Oreck XL vacuums.

You'll notice that the new roller brush has two black square plastic caps on both sides of the roller brush. You can look on the outside of this black cap, and you'll see the words OLD and NEW. Rotate the NEW side so it's facing upwards, and the OLD side is the side that's down inside the vacuum cleaner, make sure that both sides have the NEW side facing upwards. You'll need to wrap the belt around the silver pin in the back of the vacuum on one side, and through the roller brush's metal pulley on the other side. The just stretch the belt with the brush inside of it, and place the black plastic parts back into the vacuum cleaner.

Congratulations, you've now just replaced the roller brush in your Oreck!

Please feel free to email me if you have any questions on how to complete this repair, or just request a clarification through this Fixya page. My email address is [email protected].

If this repair solution was helpful, please be sure to rate this repair as helpful by clicking the 4 Thumbs Up icons in the top right hand corner of this repair solution.

Be sure to check out http://www.govacuum.com for all Oreck vacuum cleaner parts and supplies!

Chris Jones
GoVacuum.com

I have had problems with the belts on my Mach 5 overheating (smell of burning rubber) and also with the motor overheating and shutting down.
I learned the hard way that one of the issues might be that the roller/brush on the bottom of the unit has a metal bearing inside the roller/brush that can become clogged with hair (both human and pet hair) which effects performance of the unit.
It’s fairly easy to fix.
Lay the vacuum on the floor so that you can see the roller/brush. Then remove the phillip head screws that hold the protective plastic plate over the roller/brush. (There are about 6 screws that hold this plastic protective plate in place) Also, you will be removing the (1) screw that also holds the plastic plate over the belts. There are (2) belts that you can remove and when in doubt replace these (2) belts for around $9.00.
Once you have the protective plastic plate off that covers the roller/brush disconnect the belt is around the roller. Take the roller and cut off any hair that is wrapped around the roller. Next, grab the roller by each end and twist the ends caps and (1) of the ends will unscrew. Once you have unscrewed one of the ends remove any hair or dust that is trapped under this cap. (Be careful not to lose the small metal washer that sit on top of the bearing)You will notice under this cap is a metal bearing that can become clogged and jammed with hair. The hair should come out fairly easy and allow the brush to spin fairly easy once you have screwed the end caps back in place test that it spins freely. If it doesn’t spin freely replace the roller/brush with a new one for about $23.00.
When you put the belts back on the thick rubber one (Belt # 40201-271) has probably become stretched and should be replaced for about $3.00. The small diameter belt that goes over the roller/brush probably does not usually need to be replaced and does not usually fit very tight. I have heard that people will take the small roller/brush belt and turn it upside down to get a better fit.
I just did this on my Mach 5 and it runs like a new machine. I did end up replacing the roller/brush head.
Hopefully you will find this useful.

Greetings from GoVacuum.com,

Replacing a Belt on an Upright vacuum can vary from model to model, but it is basically going to be the same for most upright models.

First you will need to access the belt. Most upright vacuums this is done by turning the machine upside down, and most you'll need to remove the bottom plate by unscrewing (usually 4) screws that hold the plate on. You should see screws that are closest to the actual roller brush, simply remove these screws, and take the bottom plate off. If the machine is a Eureka, or Kenmore, the top agitator housing will be removed from the top of the vacuum, not the bottom.

Once you have removed the bottom plate, or top agitator housing, you should be able to see the belt (or broken belt) along with the roller brush. Remove the broken belt. Make sure that you purchase the correct belt by taking the make, and the model number (located on the back or bottom of the machine). Please note that a broken belt may be 4-5 inches longer then a new belt, as they stretch a lot before they finally break.

Once you have the new belt, you will need to remove the roller brush. Pay attention to how the roller brush fits into the agitator housing, usually there will be fittings on the end of the roller that have to be put in a specific place, or in a certain way to work right. After the roller brush is taken out of the machine, you will need to wrap one end of the belt around a metal pulley on the opposite side of the roller brush. Most pulleys are located where the main housing (handle part) of the vacuum meet the the agitator (floor part) part of the machine. Anyways, wrap one end of the belt around the pulley, and then put the roller brush through the other end of the belt. This is where you'll need to put some elbow grease into it. You'll need to stretch the roller brush and belt so that the brush and belt are stretched back to the place where you took the roller brush out of the vacuum.

Once you have replaced the roller brush with a new belt around it, pull the belt a few times to make sure that the brush spins while you are pulling it, to ensure that the belt is not pinched, and is spinning freely.

I hope this helps. Here's a video showing how to replace the belt on a Hoover Windtunnel Self Propelled model; Feel free to email me if you'd like to send me the model number of your vacuum, this way I can be a little more specific, and give you part numbers. I have all belts for all vacuums in stock. Email; [email protected]. 1-866-468-2288. You may also chat with me by going to our website, www.govacuum.com, and clicking in the top right part of the page. Thanks!