He had a Hoover vacuum that was at least 3 years old. Frequently emptied the trash can and flushed the filter marked "cleaned and rinsed". Nevertheless, the suction power decreased a little over time. We decided to order a replaceable NERA-FILTER filter (double filter, including the "washable" filter). The filters arrived before the promised time, they changed both filters and did a general cleaning of the garbage collection bin. When we turned it on, the suction power improved. Difficult to clean (pet hair) 3" x 5" and 5" x 7" carpets were spotless. The only "problem" was that the suction was so strong that we had to stand on the carpets to finish cleaning. Replacement is intuitive and easy as there are no instructions included with the filters (You Tube can help here!). Money better spent! Almost new vacuum cleaner and much more efficient. Thank you Bob S!