Worked well at first, now it is frustrating

I purchased this vacuum in April 2018, and at first, I was really happy with it. I like that it is very straightforward in its functionality and I like that it has a bag so that the dust and dirt is contained and the vacuum is easy to empty. However, by December 2018, the vacuum was no longer working properly. I changed the bag frequently, I cleaned the brush, and I use it infrequently. But, the vacuum won't suck up most anything and it also dumps what it is tossing around the brush back on the floor when I change directions. There was also a period of a few hours where it just refused to turn back on and my husband got it going again after inspecting it, cleaning it, and then finally giving it a whack!

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