The max suction mode on a Dyson vacuum is surprisingly powerful and great at taking care at difficult jobs, but what if it’s not working for you?
Also known as boost mode on some model including my don V11, this setting is really neat for taking care of especially hard-to-clean surfaces.
But, if it’s giving you troubles like no suction, take a look at my troubleshooting guide to see what’s wrong.
Why Max Mode Is Not Working On Dyson Vacuum
- Weak/Old Battery
One thing I want to everyone to know before I continue is that max mode takes a huge toll on the device.
It’s very powerful, and even completely new Dyson vacuums can only run it for a few minutes.
Even with a battery at full power, you’re not going to be able to run max/boost mode for more than 10 minutes, and that’s with a good battery.
It gets even worse when you have weak batteries.
In case you have an old battery, it makes sense why max mode isn’t working for you.
Your battery has gotten weaker with age, and can’t handle the high pressure required by this setting.
If the battery is also not charging or not holding charge, my video below might be able to help you.
If you’ve had your vacuum for over a year or two now and never got a new battery in that time, this is almost definitely the reason for your issue.
I’m afraid your only solution is to buy a replacement battery.
- Overheating Problems
Are you sure there’s nothing wrong with the battery?
Well, then I think your device might just need a break from max mode entirely. By this, I mean the high pressure of this feature could be causing overheating.
Since it’s so draining for the vacuum, Boost mode is known to cause overheating when used for multiple minutes in a row.
In this specific instance, I believe it probably has something to do with the motor.
Max mode makes a lot of power pass through motors, and too much of this power makes it heat up. When that happens, the vacuum stops to protect itself.
You can see how I’m using boost mode in the image above. But, if I keep it on for too long, it’ll either drain my battery entirely or overheat the motor. Either way, it will stop working.
So, I recommend using max mode in bursts, rather than consecutively going at it. Small breaks between uses will give the vacuum enough time to cool down, and prevent overheating.
- Airways Blocked Message?
This last thing I want to talk about is specifically for people that are seeing an “Airways Blocked” message on their Dyson vacuum whenever they turn on max mode.
If it happens only when you use this setting, it means there is a specific part of your filters that’s obstructed.
Because of the power this mode utilizes, it needs the filters to be completely clean for maximum air flow.
To give you an example of this, my filters getting dirty and parts of its airflow was obstructed..
Then, I tried to use max mode. Here’s an image to show you what happened when I did this.
My point is, you need to clean your filters. Take them out of the vacuum and give them a nice rinsing.
Yes, probably normal “Dry cleaning” won’t work, and you need to use water to clean the filter.
I experienced the similar issue before, and here is my video on how I fixed this issue.
After that, let them dry for no less than 24 hours before putting them back into the device.
When your filters are completely clean and dry, give max mode another go.
Do not install wet filter to the vacuum or it might not turned on after the filter cleaning process.
If you cleaned properly, the message shouldn’t show up anymore and you’ll be able to use the feature!
Just keep in mind what I said about how powerful this setting is, and remember to not overuse it because it will completely kill your battery otherwise.
