We bought the vacuum and used it regularly mostly on our two area rugs and couch. We clean it after each use as we have a cat and want to be sure it runs at optimum capacity. It has been 6 months and it no longer has suction and smells when we run it. We have hardwood floors, so we sweep before running the unit so as not to over clog it (cat). With how easy our one bedroom apartment is to clean, this unit should not be over worked. It is simply poor construction or parts.