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My grandpa accidentally vacuumed a sock with his Bissell 41221 pictured below. He peered at the pipe, and see the sock clogged at the green arrow.
He detached the Dry Floor Nozzle, but he doesn't know how to separate the Metal Tube from the Hose. Is he correct they can't be separated?
Then he "straighten[ed] out that coat hanger into one long straight piece, then fashion a small hook on one end", and tried to pull out the sock. But the sock won't budge!
Perhaps the hook in the end of the wire became snagged in the hose interior rather than the sock. Ensure that the wire is free to move in and out smoothly.
Try twisting the wire after the sock is snagged as you pull it to clear any obstacle in the air pipe.
It is highly unlikely anything could become jammed in a straight tube with a smooth interior.
A broom stick pushed from the thin end toward the widest end should also be able to dislodge most any obstacle in a vacuum cleaner hose.
EDIT The pieces can be separated. According to the user manual, the three parts—extension wand, floor nozzle, and hose assembly—should be disassembled to remove blockages. That's on "Troubleshooting" for possible causes for low suction on page #9 of the User Manual.
As the wand halves telescope in and out, try to alternately extend and retract them to get better positioning for removing the problem.
Wish your Grandpa Good Luck
I think Grandpa can't separate the tube from the hose where the orange indicator is because that is not where they come apart. The tubes of cleaners I have/had don't separate just there.
I would try to separate the straight aluminium part of the tube in its centre – where the clip is. It looks as if the two straight sections are telescopic. The right hand part has a series of ridges where the clip engages.
If I had that in front of me, I would try manipulating the clip to see if the right hand part will come away. I can't try, because I don't have that make of cleaner.
If it does, that just leaves a short straight section to fish out the sock with a wire-type coat hanger, cut and bent into a hook. I hope the sock bites!
At least, GP will be able to look through that part of the tube, and know if the sock is further up. The right hand part is now accessible with a hook.
I tried several things but the cloth was caught in middle. So, I remembered I had purchased an auger tool/snake drain to unclog a toilet. It basically goes on a drill. If you have one handy it did the job in about 2 seconds.
If the sock won't budge, it must be caught somewhere. My theory is that it's caught right in the middle of the metal pipe, where you can adjust the length of said pipe, because this is where 2 seperate pieces touch and can snag an object.
First I'd try pushing the button in the middle of the pipe and pushing both parts towards each other. If the sock is really caught at the transition, you push it right out. Otherwise you decreased the length of the pipe and have an easier time fishing it out with the coat hanger hook.
If that doesn't work, grab the upper end of the metal pipe with one hand and the bent plastic pipe with the other and gently twist and wriggle to seperate them. These parts are usually stuck together with no threads or locking mechanism. If there is a button on the plastic pipe, try pushing it and gently pull the parts apart. Once you succeeded seperating the metal pipe, you can push the suck out with something like a broom stick.
I'd the hose will attach to a shop vac, you can use the blower end of the shop vac to clear the sock from the tube
There is a spot to disconnect the metal tube in the middle. It is directly to the right of where the hose is in this photo. My dad is 90, and still pretty with it mentally, but this is something he would never be able to handle. It is too far out of the day to day stuff he normally does. It might be bet to have a neighbor or someone local go over and give him a hand removing the sock.
