How do I dispose of my broken vacuum cleaner?

What type of vacuum is it? you might be able to get it fixed for free, and then donate it

@melanie81 If it doesn’t work, is very old, and isn’t worth the money to fix, why do you feel bad throwing it in the trash? I don’t see how this can be recycled (parts are most likely discontinued for this old geezer). Don’t be a hoarder. If you don’t need it, throw it away and forget it.

@BBSDTfamily meeh, I guess I feel like someone could use the parts somewhere? Perhaps not, which is why I wanted to tap the collective.

Do I hear Robot costume for halloween?
Also, vacuums are very inexpensive to fix.

Chuck it

Or… if you have a manually powered organ your might convert it to blow the pipes?

Organ donor.

Or maybe the air flow can be constricted in such a way that it becomes a one pipe organ in its own right. Maybe.

List it on Freecycle.org There are many people who can use that sort of thing, and are ready and willing to keep it out of the landfill.

If it’s that old, all the vacuum repair place and ask them if you can donate it to them to be used for parts.

Lift over head. Toss in dumpster.

@YARNLADY beat me to it freecycle in a super way of getting rid of stuff you don’t want, what may be your junk is another treasure!

In Germany shops will take it, if you buy a new one.

Around here, scavengers come around on trash day to pick up anything that can be repaired or recycled.

Old vacs had permanent dust bags that had to be periodically emptied. Sounds like that’s all that’s wrong with yours; it’s probably ruptured, and that is why it’s spewing dust. I’d think twice about tossing it, as these things were pretty well made.

Freecycle, or find a small shop that repairs elderly vacuums and see if they would take it off your hands for parts.

@IchtheosaurusRex Scavengers come around here several times a week. If we want to get rid of something, we simply put it out by the curb, and by the next day or two it’s gone.

Set it out on the curb with a sign…$5.00
Someone will steal it within a couple of hours…
Problem solved…..

Hey guys, good news! I just called the area vacuum store, and they said it sounds like it’s just clogged up and would cost less than 20 bucks to fix….had no idea it would be that cheap.

Well, then, now you have evidence of the way people used to build things to last.

I am still using my grandmother’s 1938 sewing machine, and my mother’s 1960 vacuum cleaner.

@melanie81 That is good news. I have to take mine in too, it seems to have lost it’s power. I bought it brand new in 1982, and have had it serviced from time to time since then.

@YARNLADY , unless you can hear the motor bogging down, you probably just have a worn belt. You can fix that yourself; just go to the local Ace hardware and ask one of the guys in the red vests about it. They sell belts for most models.

@IchtheosaurusRex thank you for the advice, but you are implying that I actually know what you are talking about, or have a screw-driver that I could use to find out. hahahahaha

@YARNLADY , some of the stores will even fix the vac for you.

@IchtheosaurusRex @YARNLADY uhh yeah, it only cost me 10 bucks to have the guy replace the belt – totally worth it, IMO, to not get totally dirty and nasty in the process…