Forgot to add - based on $270, I assume you're looking at the 236 powerhead. If you're willing to give up the headlight, the 228 powerhead would save you about $50.

Thanks. I’m leaning in that direction. How do I know which powerhead will fit this nine-year-old machine? I know it’s called a Capricorn but I don’t know what the model number is.

@nancizim It looks like the Capricorn came with the 236 powerhead (with the light). Either the 236 or 228 should work. The 236 has been around for a while (I have a 2006 Miele with this powerhead, and it was relatively new at the time). The 228 came out roughly around the same time as your vacuum.

Are you sure your power head is broken beyond repair? You might just need to replace a cheap little rubber belt. If you post some pictures and describe the issue, I can help you. I’ve completely disassembled and reassembled my S514 (Solaris) canister, including the powerhead, so I’m intimately familiar with these machines. Btw, there should be a sticker on the belly of the canister that has the model number, serial number, production date, etc.

Thanks Sammy. When you press on the "pedal" that lowers the long metal tube to align with the powerhead (basically so you can use it!!) it does not click into lower position. My husband says he hears a piece of plastic rattling around inside and he's pretty handy. He thinks it is broken and cannot be fixed. The other "pedal" on the powerhead which retracts the cord works perfectly. Sorry for the awkward description of the problem but hopefully you can figure out what I'm talking about. And thanks for letting me know where to find the model number, etc,

I think I know what you’re talking about, but you’re using the wrong part names! So, to be clear:

So, is the problem with the electrical connection between the wand and the PowerBrush (pretend the hardwood floor brush in the picture is really your PowerBrush)?

Can you use the wand with the non-powered attachments, like the Parquet floor brush (pictured above) and the onboard tools (crevice, upholstery & dust brush)?

Edited to suggest that perhaps we should have a Zoom meeting to get the proper diagnosis. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Oh, and the 228 will work.

no, this is not actually the problem. The problem is that the metal wand attachment which fits into the power brush (SEB 236) does not lower when you step on the "pedal" of the SEB236 so you can't actually vacuum a rug!

It's the pedal itself that appears broken - On the SEB236 there are two places to step - one retracts the cord and one lowers the handle.

No offense to your handy husband, but I believe I’d get a second opinion as to whether this could be fixed.

Not that your husband is like this, but when mine says something can’t be fixed he means it can’t be EASILY fixed. And he doesn’t want to mess with it.

Looks like this is the issue you're experiencing with not being able to lower the wand. Perhaps you tried to force it and broke a piece off. Here's a very knowledgable vacuum tech fixing that issue:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xa8jgg1tdzI&t=827s 

I'd recommend calling a vacuum repair shop to get a rough price quote.

If I were you, I would try my very best to either get it fixed or to just replace the part that is broken.

We throw away so many good things that are still good just because of a piece of plastic here or there.

It looks like the video provided might be a good place to start with fixing it.

If you do end up buying a new vac you might only need a small upright of some kind for the carpet areas and not another entire canister, assuming that your vac still works for other purposes. Not having any carpet I just use my shop vac in the house, or a broom and mop.

Hope you get it fixed. We need more real durable goods that are able to be repaired.

Hands down -- Miele. Nothing like a Miele. Even the el-cheapo (relatively speaking, in Miele terms...) model I have for the basement is better than the mass-market cr@p.

I would take yours to a vacuum shop -- the good ones service Miele, they might be able to fix it or come up with a work-around.

I had an older model a long time ago that didn't come with a powerhead option -- the vacuum guy jimmy-rigged a solution to fit a different model's powerhead onto that (took some electrical plug-in work and such), that worked perfectly until the machine finally bit the dust after I don't even know how many years...a LONG TIME.

I have a Capricorn with the 236 power head. There is no cable to the power head. It's left pedal releases the tilt of the wand from straight up to free tilt. The right pedal sets the carpet height. Power to the power head goes through the wand. There is also a wand release pedal.

On the canister there are two 'pedals'. One turns the unit on and off. The other retracts the power cord.

If you do decide to buy a new vacuum, make sure it has the same maximum vacuum motor wattage that your Miele has now. Supposedly the newer vacuums are limited to maximum motor wattage! Suction will not be nearly as good!

We were never very impressed with our Miele vacuum cleaner - we spent most of our time trying unblocking it. My old Electrolux was the best, and our Sharks have been the best of the newer ones we have tried. Roman Majda, I will check out the Kenmore, thanks!

Oh I used a good bunch of Miele, they are pretry good in my opinion but the one I recommended and only tha one from kenmore line I recommend is better , much better , shark upright has decent performance but clunky to work with and filter not as convenient to clean out as the kenmore 22614, the old Electrolux were excellent vacuums to say the least , when they sold the company and called it lux then some were ok too , have not used theirs newest if they even made any and from what I remember what you might see now in a store called Electrolux vacuum is not the same thing as say 20+ years ago ...

I do not sell these kenmores and get absolutly nothing from anyone for this - just dont buy them all out lol, the sale they have now at $269 is a smoking deal - be sure to buy a bare floor attachment as for whatever reason the company decided this model does not need it and I disagree ... bare floor attachment is $7-$13 .

Here is a nice comparison I can get 6 months out of that kenmore if I needed too maybe more - now keep in mind 1 week for me is almost like a year for a normal household .... my 4 month old kenmore I put in garbage can still out vacuum your vacuum lol when the filters are all clean but we just replace ... heck we killed some very expensive well known vacuumes in under a month , heck some in less then 2 weeks... dont get me wrong those Miele are not bad and definitly some of the best on the market and just a few weeks ago when kenmore 22614 was unavailable and all sold out i was considering getting a few miele to get as by for a few weeks but thank goodness kenmore 22614 came back in stock....

I used to sell vacums at Sears way back in the 90s. At that time the best vac on the market for most of America was the Kenmore canister with the powerhead. It was a really good machine.

Then, Sears, tried to sell the Miele vac alongside the Kenmore.

The comparison put the Miele at a disadvantage. It did not have a powerhead with a rotating brush for carpet. It seemed so lame alongside the powerful Kenmore canister.

If I am remembering wrong and you know differently, please feel free to correct me. But, I do remember it being the Miele vac. It has been some time ago. I know it was a European vac.

At that time it was still popular to have wall to wall installed carpet. This was. just before the trend went to eliminating carpet and going to hard floors. In my mind it is one of the best hygienic things that America has done. That carpet is just so very dirty and unsanitary.

If you had the hardloors this Meile may have been a good choice. But, it you still had old fashioned carpet, it was not of much use at all.

From what I am seeing it appears that Miele now has a powered cleaning head.

Back at that time there was no way that it was going to clean up carpet.

It is that rotating power brush that lifts debris off of the surface of the carpet, not the suction.

People would come in all the time looking for something with a strong suction to clean pet fur from carpet. Suction was not going to do it. It needs to be mechanically lifted from the surface before it can be sucked up into the bag. That is why you have to clean the rotating brush so often, because fibers get wrapped around it.

I just use an inexpensive and multipurpose shop vac now for any cleaning need. I only wish that it had a more secure attachment to hold the hose and wands together. I have found that the blower end of the shop vac is immensely helpful when cleaning out the car and garage. You can blow debris from places more easily that you can suck it up and it gets into every small crevice. I will open the door and use it much like one would use a leaf blower to blow the dirt right out the door. I do this in the house, the porch, the car, anywhere where I can get a good aim to direct the debris in one direction. It is, by far, the best way to clean the interior of the car.

I don't have any carpet and that makes it so easy to clean.

Getting rid of the carpets is the best thing I have done in my house.

I don't know anything about Kenmore vacs now. That was some time ago, but I do know that they were pretty darned good machines. I always had one and my daughter has one that is probably about 12 years old and doing just fine. They were/are very versitile

I will say that Shark vacuums have very good agitation! However, the suction is not as good as my Miele's. We have never had an obstruction in our machine after 4 years, so I can not explain that one! My favorite vacuum to use? A Kirby!

I owned the little cheapie Kenmore canister vacuum that was $69 when on sale that was 18 years old and finally died last year. That bad boy worked like no other vacuum I ever owned in the last 40 years. I'll miss those Kenmores.

Apparently there's a new(ish) company, Titan, that makes Kenmore-style canister vacuums for vacuum shops. I believe you can order them online too. Apparently they took the best of the old Kenmore/Panasonic body styles and beefed them up a little bit in order to make them more durable. I've never used one myself but seen them recommended by others on various sites. I agree with a PP that the Kenmore canisters of the 80's and 90's were hard to beat. I know my parents had one from the year I was born well into my college years.

Just as I suspected. I'd have to mortgage my house to buy one. Reminds me of another company. I bought a Regina carpet steamer for around $75 in the late 80's. Oreck must have bought the company out because they were selling the same thing for much, much more. Must not have been a good seller for the price they were asking because I don't see them on their website anymore.