We get a lot of requests for “how-to” posts when it comes to our blog, so today were going to focus on a moderately hard repair that should be done by a professional under most circumstances. A PC board (or circuit board) in central vac’s regulates the power supplied to the motor and also controls any electronics & safety resets. If the unit isn’t plugged into a surge protector (which is more often than not) then a small electric surge can burn this PC board and cause the electronics to go haywire. Luckily when the circuit board goes bad, it doesn’t affect the motor and the repair can be made at a reasonable price with central vacuum parts from our store.
Today, we’re going to specifically focus on the Canavac central vacuum models, as they all contain the same PC board.

The Steps to change out a canavac PC board are as follows:

1 – Unplug the main unit and open up the motor compartment at the top, there will be two screws across from one another which keep the top hood intact. Remove these two screws and peer into the motor compartment.
2 – The PC board will be located on the interior wall of the steel housing, and will be attached, remove the PC board while making sure to take a picture of the current wiring.

Here is a picture of the correct wiring needed for the 511XLS power unit:

3 – Reattach the wiring in the correct fashion, then attach PC board back to the steel housing. Plug in the unit and enjoy your newly fixed central vac!

If you have any questions feel free to contact us at 1-800-649-7996.

Thanks for reading and happy cleaning!

The Central Vacuum Direct Team