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Author Topic: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!  (Read 5713 times)

Offline beko1987

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Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« on: August 04, 2021, 09:10:54 pm »
Hi! This week's essay is all about a DC20 Stowaway, which came to me somehow, I cannot remember tbh (a good while ago looking at the images, the poor Laguna2 it's sat in went to become a washing machine a few years ago now...)

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It had all the tools

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It's the stowaway model, which makes it actually very similar to other cylinder Dysons of it's era, bar a different and hard to find wand setup and parking slot so it all wraps around the cleaner for storage (taking up way more space than just shoving it in the cupboard without wrapping the hose up...)

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First up. the hose and wand

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The machine clip is removed by undoing this screw

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Then popping the join and sliding it off

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The other part of the hose connector can be removed now, which involves much prying and levering without slipping and stabbing a hole into the hose as you do it to pop the inner clips out, then it slides off too

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Then the locking clip is undone by it's one tab and pops off (note the small hole in the hose that brings about the above little warning... nothing a small drop of glue doesn't fix though!)

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Time to have the pre motor filter out now

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #1 on: August 04, 2021, 09:15:00 pm »
Which looks to be well maintained...

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Both hose and filter go into the washing machine with some towels to soften the banging for a nice long hot wash whilst we carry on and turn to the main turbo head

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To remove the wand end, one side (on these earlier ones, the later identical heads don't do this, you need to lever it more) pops nicely out, releasing the pivot nicely

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The inner hose can come out now

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Should you feel so inclined the locking mechanism can be removed, simply pop the outer cover off

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Then the cover, locking tab and spring come away

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At the bottom of the neck, a small wheel sits and can be popped out, axle and wheel

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Onto the front part now

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Remove the base plate as you would for routine maintenance

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #2 on: August 04, 2021, 09:21:55 pm »
The front wheels pop out much the same as the one we just removed, the rubber strip that stops it kicking dirt backwards on hard floors can be tapped out from underneath then levered out (it will be packed with fluff underneath) and the baseplate seal can all be removed too

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The brushrolls come off with a half twist each

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Then, undo the screws holding the clear cover on, and remove it's rubber seal

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This part is the rubber flap that diverts the airflow between the turbine to spin the brushroll and the suction channel itself.

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Remove the short rubber seal that runs over the top of it, then the flap itself levers out easily enough

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Onto the turbine now. Gently so you don't tear the rubber gasket, pop the red outer part off, it's got 3 shallow clips holding it on and isn't too hard

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Said rubber gasket comes off now

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On the other side, pop the grey outer cover off. This can be a bit of a pain and it's easy to chew the edges up as it's soft plastic, but it does come eventually

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This is where the easy part ends though, as you cannot really strip the turbine housing down anymore. The brushroll drive shafts are pushed in through a brass bushing, which is impossible to do without whatever machine Dyson made to do it... Either split it open as I have here and clean it up as best you can, remove all the hair etc or if it's not too bad anyway drip a nice bit of oil into either end where the brushroll axles go through and it'll be as good as it can really

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #3 on: August 04, 2021, 09:26:45 pm »
Where you can get to though is the flywheel. Under the red cover we removed earlier, hiding under a thin foam gasket that can be peeled up slightly is the black top of the turbine. Around the edge you will see slots where this sits, some gentle levering has it lifted up and off of the flywheel axle (it has to come up straight though so don't lever it at an angle, work around the edges and lift it evenly)

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That white part can crack, I have seen it before. If this is an issue you have, Q-Bond is your friend, and I've had good survival rates from doing this  :tiphat: That is about as far as the main head comes apart, time to move on to pretty much the same...

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But smaller! Remove the baseplate

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Foam seal comes out

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Remove the brushrolls

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And clean the hair off them

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Unscrew the top clear cover, and remove it and it's foam gasket

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The turbine assembly is held in with a little screw here

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And lifts out just like the bigger one

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #4 on: August 04, 2021, 09:30:49 pm »
It's then pretty similar, pop the grey side of the turbine off

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And the red side

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Lift the rubber seal out

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Pop the middle housing off

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Lever and lift the turbine casing off and remove the turbine

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I then removed the rubber seal that goes between the turbine and main housing, another rubber rope seal, the diverter flap and locking button

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Then moved onto quite possibly the worst hard floor tool I have EVER used

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The top shell comes off with a couple of screws and much levering of plastic clips

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Then the outer brush assembly levers out from yet more plastic clips

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #5 on: August 04, 2021, 09:35:55 pm »
The easiest way to clean any brush assembly like this is to gently waft it over a wire wheel in a bench grinder/drill, it flicks the fluff out instantly, but don't push too hard or stay in one place or it melts the bristles.

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One more time for the locking clip (there's not much point in doing this TBH, I just did it for show here...)

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Onto the wand now, and before I explain in great detail how to do it I'll say DON'T! I very nearly made it never work again when I was done and sheer luck and hammering the plastic bits back into shape saved the day, although it was never quite as smooth again. These stupid telescopic wands (DC11 has the same problem, and the DC08 one they did) either work fine or are scrap, rarely inbetween). But...

The suction release valve pops off with 2 little tabs on either side



And if you remove the two screws the entire top part of the wand comes away from the rest

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Nice build up of crud hiding inside

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The nylon seal comes off the end

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On the inside of the handle grip is a plastic cover. Pop that off and a screw welcomes you underneath

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The part splits into two with that removed

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #6 on: August 04, 2021, 09:41:50 pm »
And the 2 locking tabs that clip the hose on pop off too

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Onto the bit you MUST NOT DO now...

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Using about 5 screwdrivers to open up and then hold open the plastic tabs that run around the outside of each part of the wand

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You can slide the sections out of each other, eventually pulling the fattest top one through the top of the grey outer shell

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The fact that it all works on friction to lock it into place, and we've just gone and warped the sodding things is the reason I do not recommend this...

There's yet another blurry crosshead screw hiding on the handle grip

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Which splits the handle grip into two as well

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That is all the tools done! Time to move onto the machine now! Open up the pre motor filter cover and pop the two hinge pivots off to remove it from the machine

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We have a nice crevice tool

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But nothing else, and of course the tools for this machine are bespoke to JUST this machine unless you change the entire hose and tools, but then they won't fit on the machine... Nice job Dyson  :censored: :censored:

With one screw from the underside, the hose holder and parking slot for the floorhead lift out

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #7 on: August 04, 2021, 09:46:27 pm »
Remove the rubber seal that connects to the back of the cyclone when it's fitted, and I also removed the tool holders themselves but again, it's not too important (and NEVER do this on a DC11 as they snap...)

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Next, time to open up that post motor filter cover

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Yeet the filter in the bin. Then, have the machine with the back facing you

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Find your stoutest, most manliest flatblade screwdriver and a sharp lever on the wheel from the inside out will pop them off fairly easily

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Then undo the 4 outer screws that sit under the wheels, and the two at the top and the housing separates into two

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Lever the cable exit guide out of the rear housing, and pull the cable through. Said guide is split in the middle too so comes off the cable easily

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The suction release valve comes out with a small push from the top down, to release the yellow top cap (it's a friction fit). Mind to catch the spring though.

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The power and cord rewind buttons come out after pushing the two locking tabs in, you can do one side then the other, they hold themselves steady

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We can now remove the motor and cord reel

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #8 on: August 04, 2021, 09:53:04 pm »
Lift both out together

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Unplug the neutral wires by opening the terminal cover block, then push the switch up and out of it's holder, then unplug the 2 live wires and pull them back through the bottom of the switch holder

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The next part happens quickly. The bottom motor mount rubber can be pulled off the outer housing. Then, pop the clips on the lid to extract the motor. The motor inner mount is a clear spacer/locator and the rubber part which fits it to the motor itself

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Back to the cleaner housing, the hose inlet part comes away with one screw, then a sharp smack from the inside on the locking tabs. It then splits further on some, but I have seen this part plastic welded together so you can just leave it...

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Under the front of the machine the front wheel can be removed, although the lighter grey housing does not, at least I've never managed to get it off, and tbh have never needed to

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Finally, we get to arguably the most filthy part of the job...

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Remove the bin from the cyclone, then pull out the lower cone and remove it's rubber seals and gaskets

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We are now left with the cyclone itself

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Undo all the screws at the top of the cyclone and the cover lifts off

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #9 on: August 04, 2021, 09:59:32 pm »
The carry handle is held on with 2 screws to the rear

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To remove it you need to bend it, alot. Using a small screwdriver, lever up the 2 front tabs that lock it into place at the front to the cyclone lid, then the whole thing slides/lifts off. It then separates into two parts (this is what gives the handle it's springy feeling)

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Undo the screws holding the white cyclone top on. Remove this and the indestructible brilliant old style rubber gasket (before all the foam crap came in that always needs replacing)

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Now back to the shroud. Pop the 3 screw covers off

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Remove the screws. Then take a deep breath or put a mask on and lever at the join and the shroud will lift off the cyclone assembly and a cloud of dust will follow

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Next remove the lower cone from the shroud and even more crap will shower you, your tools and your workspace

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Remove the rubber seal that runs around the edge of the cyclone assembly (this is the upper bin seal)

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With that, everything is stripped down. All the plastics can be gathered together and thoroughly washed

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Then once dry, I polish it all up with cream cleaner (dyson plastics come up really well, it gets all the paint marks off) then laid out for the obligatory beko exploded diagram image of every single component of the machine!

Collector and restorer of vintage vacuums, Dyson Appreciator! Come and see my blog, where I am uploading all my mountains of brochures, manuals and other vacuum cleaner paperwork, and also my youtube channel @beko1987!

Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #10 on: August 04, 2021, 10:04:23 pm »
We can then start to hammer it all back together! I started by fitting the cone seal to the holder that sits in the bottom of the bin

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You will notice that this part will not fit back into it's place as the thin rubber seal keeps getting jammed. Remove and bin it, I've never had or heard of a problem without it, the plastic parts fit tightly together as they are  :thumbsup:

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Then fit the bin seal to the edge of the cyclone housing

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Take your almost spotless shroud

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And refit it. To align it properly, note where the holes stop and the plastic turns solid, this solid part lines up with the dirt entry hole in the bin, so offer it all up, then you'll easily have the 3 screw holes lines up. Push the shroud on, do up the screws and refit the screw covers

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Refit the lower cone seal

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Then fit one of the 3 tabs into it's slot and push the cone onto the shroud, the other 2 distort the shroud easily then slide down and snap into their places. 

Up top now

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Fit the rubber seal in place

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #11 on: August 04, 2021, 10:07:30 pm »
Then drop the cover on

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And do the screws up

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Time for the cyclone handle now

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Slide the handle part on (might need to bend the tabs we levered up back down so they latch on) then slide the back part on with it's spring

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Fit the top to the cyclone and refit the screws

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And you have a cyclone unit as clean as the day it was unboxed when new!



The does not clog sticker is relevant and true again now!

Onto the machine. Refit the front wheel and axle

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #12 on: August 04, 2021, 10:12:26 pm »
Snap the two parts of the hose inlet together if you split them up

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Then slide it onto the machine

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Motor now. Fit the rubber mount to the plastic spacer mount

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Sit that on the motor (it only fits into two of the holes)

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The motor is nice and clean still despite the state the machine was in when we started

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Then plug the wires back in (does not fully matter which wire goes where as the motor doesn't care but red-red and black-black is best practise) and drop the motor into the motor housing, being sure to align the rubber back mount as it only fits in one way. It needs to drop right down to be correct

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Fit the fancase seal to the top

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Then click the top cover on. This only goes on one way too, the tabs are not evenly spaced around the edge. Help the lip of the fancase seal through the hole although it usually sorts itself out anyway as the clips snap in

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Refit the motor housing to machine housing seal

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Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #13 on: August 04, 2021, 10:20:35 pm »
This next part happens all at once...
  • Fit the switch and both live wires together
  • Fit the motor housing to the cleaner, making sure the rubber seal slides fully into the chassis
  • Fit the neutral wires together and refit the cover
  • Fit the cord reel back into place
  • Tuck all the wires behind the clips on the motor housing and make sure they wont get trapped when the top shell goes on
  • Swear as it all falls out with the slightest nudge...

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Moving onto the top shell, we can refit the release valve

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Spring first, then the black valve drops on, then the yellow top part pushes firmly into the chassis. Make sure it's fully home or *PING* and you'll have to go find it... That's if your face doesn't catch it first. Also refit the random clear pipe that I always forget exists and have had to whip many a cleaner back apart when I find it at the end of a job, I even forgot to mention it during the stripdown...

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Pop the pedal springs in then snap the covers on, they only go on one way and just push in until the tabs click

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You can then refit the top shell, making sure to push the flex through, and screw it home, Then fit the cable exit guide over the cable and it pushes in, with a handy moulding peg so it only goes on one way too.

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Now is an ideal time to plug it in and check all is well, it'll be loud with no filters or cyclone though. Assuming all is well, line the rear wheels up at the centre and punch the middle of the outside to pop them into place.

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Time to fill a shiny hole

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with a new post motor filter



And refit the cover

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Collector and restorer of vintage vacuums, Dyson Appreciator! Come and see my blog, where I am uploading all my mountains of brochures, manuals and other vacuum cleaner paperwork, and also my youtube channel @beko1987!

Offline beko1987

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Re: Dyson DC20 Stowaway - FULL Stripdown & Refurbishment!
« Reply #14 on: August 04, 2021, 10:23:48 pm »
Refit the tool clips to the tool holders if you removed them, and refit the seal

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Join the two parking brackets back together

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And screw that to the cover

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The pre motor filter washed up a treat and can be refitted

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Fit the filter cover/tool holder back to the machine

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And with the cyclone refitted the cleaner itself is back to almost brand new!

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Time for the ruddy wand...

Pop the handle grip halves together

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Collector and restorer of vintage vacuums, Dyson Appreciator! Come and see my blog, where I am uploading all my mountains of brochures, manuals and other vacuum cleaner paperwork, and also my youtube channel @beko1987!

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