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Anyone own a Roomba vacuum?
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yhelothar
Lifer
I got a roomba for my mom a while back. She ended up putting it back in the box and giving it back to me after a few uses - she also has arthritis and back problems.
It sucks if your carpet is quite thick since it the vacuuming strength ain't that strong, or your floor has stuff on it other than your furniture since it gets stuck easily.
It works perfectly if you have a shallow carpet though.
It sucks if your carpet is quite thick since it the vacuuming strength ain't that strong, or your floor has stuff on it other than your furniture since it gets stuck easily.
It works perfectly if you have a shallow carpet though.
If it's hardwood with no rugs, it's pretty good. Just keep in mind it is more of a general dust and dirt cleaner than a thorough vacuum.
It will notoriously miss/push dirt into corners.
I bought a refurbished one as a gift for my mom - initially it was alright, and then it got progressively worse. The batteries on them (and especially on the refurbished ones), notoriously die after a while depending on use. In my experience and from what I've read, a refurb will last 6 months to a year - new it will go about twice that.
It's good for the "that's neat" factor. Then that fades away and you just end up with a mediocre automated duster.
Also, from what I've read and seen, definitely avoid the "mopping" ones - they are apparently only good at leaving puddles around your house.
I own one and love it. I have hardwood floors so the roomba cleans it up quite nicely. If you have a pet or woman that sheds a lot, you'll find that you'll need to clean the rollers each time it vacuums, which can get a bit tedious. But I'd rather do that than vacuum/sweep myself.
yhelothar
Lifer
I haven't tried my roomba on hardwood, so I can't tell you. But you generally don't want a vacuum with a brush for hardwood, since the brush will just end up scattering dirt everywhere rather than letting the vacuum suck it up.
You can take out the brush on a roomba though.
But then again, you won't be able to remove any stains from the floor.
Why not get one of those clorox mops, and perhaps one with a vacuum built in. Those are pretty light weight and cleans really easily.
You can take out the brush on a roomba though.
But then again, you won't be able to remove any stains from the floor.
Why not get one of those clorox mops, and perhaps one with a vacuum built in. Those are pretty light weight and cleans really easily.
runzwithsizorz
Diamond Member
We have two , and never really use them. On carpet they only pick up some surface debris, but not the dirt down in the fibers. They do a fairly decent job on hard wood, or tile floors, however by the time I get though removing obstacles,(throw rugs with fringe, phone/elec. cords, etc.), and putting them back, I could have done a better job,-- faster. Kind of like owning a Prius, you can't get the job done better, or faster, but your really hip if you have one. When friends, and family walk across my dirty floors, they can't help but notice the Roomba sitting in the corner with a blinking light indicating that it is charging, (has been since May 08), they will exclaim, Oh you have one of those, kooooool.
One shining light for them though, they do an excellent job of annoying, teasing, and pestering my wife's precious cat.:evil:
One shining light for them though, they do an excellent job of annoying, teasing, and pestering my wife's precious cat.:evil:
coolVariable
Diamond Member
The costco Roomba is AWESOME.
This thing gets stuff out of carpets that won't go out even if you vacuum 5 times with a normal vacuum.
Anyone here have a scooba?
This thing gets stuff out of carpets that won't go out even if you vacuum 5 times with a normal vacuum.
Anyone here have a scooba?
Like others said, you have to clean the thing a lot more often than you would a regular vacuum. Depending on how often you run it and the area you are cleaning, you need to empty the dirt chamber after every use. Though it's not that difficult. The rollers need to be cleaned as well, but they are fairly easy to get out - a lot easier than a normal vacuum (which you should be cleaning regularly also).
So in general I think it would be good for her, assuming her house is kind of tidy to begin with and she doesn't have to move stuff out of the way for the roomba.
To answer coolVariable - I have a scooba too (which I actually got in a bag of crap from Woot a couple years ago, woot!). I used to be in an apartment with sealed hardwood, and it worked really well, I liked it a lot. I since moved and now have nowhere to actually use it, so it sits in a box, heh.
So in general I think it would be good for her, assuming her house is kind of tidy to begin with and she doesn't have to move stuff out of the way for the roomba.
To answer coolVariable - I have a scooba too (which I actually got in a bag of crap from Woot a couple years ago, woot!). I used to be in an apartment with sealed hardwood, and it worked really well, I liked it a lot. I since moved and now have nowhere to actually use it, so it sits in a box, heh.
Kaido
Elite Member & Kitchen Overlord
I have a small army of them. Tips:
1. Pull out all your furniture and do a full vacuuming first and really deep-clean your carpets. The Roomba is a surface sucker, stronger than one of those hand-held Dirt Devils, but not as powerful as a real vacuum. It does a good job, if you use a full-sized vacuum on the carpet before you get it, then just run the Roomba every few days. I only break out my full-sized vac a few times a year now.
2. Watch the first couple of runs in each room to see where it gets stuck. You can put up pieces of wood, re-arrange furniture, etc. It gets stuck on cords, socks, etc. For me, it gives me incentive to keep my house clean, because I don't like to vacuum and it's way more fun to have a robot do it for me 😀
3. Empty the dust bin at least once a month, and make sure to clean out the brushes every couple of months (hair and stuff gets tangled in them & reduces performance).
4. The dust filters can be washed & re-used like up to 4 or 5 times. Just rinse them off in your sink.
That's pretty much it - do a good vacuuming before they arrive, then just run them every few days so that you only have to vacuum like once every 6 months or so. My house is "Roomba-proofed" so I can just set & forget them. They do take like 40 minutes per room, but heck, YOU don't have to do it 😀
1. Pull out all your furniture and do a full vacuuming first and really deep-clean your carpets. The Roomba is a surface sucker, stronger than one of those hand-held Dirt Devils, but not as powerful as a real vacuum. It does a good job, if you use a full-sized vacuum on the carpet before you get it, then just run the Roomba every few days. I only break out my full-sized vac a few times a year now.
2. Watch the first couple of runs in each room to see where it gets stuck. You can put up pieces of wood, re-arrange furniture, etc. It gets stuck on cords, socks, etc. For me, it gives me incentive to keep my house clean, because I don't like to vacuum and it's way more fun to have a robot do it for me 😀
3. Empty the dust bin at least once a month, and make sure to clean out the brushes every couple of months (hair and stuff gets tangled in them & reduces performance).
4. The dust filters can be washed & re-used like up to 4 or 5 times. Just rinse them off in your sink.
That's pretty much it - do a good vacuuming before they arrive, then just run them every few days so that you only have to vacuum like once every 6 months or so. My house is "Roomba-proofed" so I can just set & forget them. They do take like 40 minutes per room, but heck, YOU don't have to do it 😀
Bringing up this old thread, but thought I'd put my review in. I have 2 Roombas and a Dirt Dog for the garage. I live in Colorado, and have 3 cats and 2 dogs, and they all shed like crazy. The Dogs live in the garage and backyard, while the cats are in the house (and go outside). I also have 3 kids (11, 9, and 6), there is plenty of stuff tracking into the house. I have a 4400 sq foot house (3000 sq ft house + 1400 finished basement) with hardwood and medium carpet.
First, the Dirt Dog is pretty awesome. It is very low maintenace compared to the Roombas, and does a great job in the garage. I have a large garage, and the Dirt Dog can clean just about everywhere. Its nice going into your garage with bare feet and feeling a clean floor. Does a good job of picking up all the dog hair as well. Highly recommended.
The Roombas also do a good job, but they are more maintenance. My cats shed so much, I have to use the Roomba every 2 days in our main family room, where everyone hangs out. I have to empty the bin and clean out the filter every run. I found the easiest way to clean the Roombas is to use a regular vacuum to suck out all the hair from the brushes and ends. I use needle-nose pliers to quickly rip out the hair that gets coiled around the ends of the brushes (this is the fastest method - believe me) and under the yellow bearings. To make this whole process fast, I keep my shop-vac all set up in the garage, so I can quickly clean the dirt bin and filter chambers. The shopvac is also great for cleaning out the brushes. This whole prcess takes about 2 minutes per Roomba. While it is work, I still think the Roombas are well worth it. Every few weeks, I'll give them a more thorough cleaning, such as cleaning under the side brush, and under all wheels.
I've been using the Roomba for about a year now without any problems, or having to replace any parts or filters. I think that using the Shop-vac to clean them out every run has kept them running strong.
I find that they work as well as a normal vacuum on carpet, and even better than my other vaccums on area rugs. I can vacuum a room with our Hoover upright, and then send the Roomba in, and it will still find plenty of dust and debris. I have a pretty clean house, all things considered, and I'm always amazed at how much stuff the Roomba pick up. I hardly use a normal vacuum at all - just for stairs and in places the Roombas can't reach, and that's only every few months
As a poster above said, the Roomba also gives you a good excuse to keep your house generally in order. After I start the Roombas, I spend about a minute picking things off the floor. I would have to do this with a normal vacuum, so no big deal.
So, overall the Roombas do a great job of picking up dust, debris, and cat hair. However they do have to be cleaned up every run (at least that's what I do) and they are not maintenance-free. I've set up a small Roomba cleaning station in my garage so I can get them all cleaned out and ready to go as quickly as possible, with the help of athe shop-vac. If you spend too much time cleaning them, then it gets counter-productive.
I'll soon be getting a third Roomba so I can have one on each level of the house, and can spread the work around. The upstairs and basement only need to be vacuumed once a week, but the main floor needs it every 2 days.
First, the Dirt Dog is pretty awesome. It is very low maintenace compared to the Roombas, and does a great job in the garage. I have a large garage, and the Dirt Dog can clean just about everywhere. Its nice going into your garage with bare feet and feeling a clean floor. Does a good job of picking up all the dog hair as well. Highly recommended.
The Roombas also do a good job, but they are more maintenance. My cats shed so much, I have to use the Roomba every 2 days in our main family room, where everyone hangs out. I have to empty the bin and clean out the filter every run. I found the easiest way to clean the Roombas is to use a regular vacuum to suck out all the hair from the brushes and ends. I use needle-nose pliers to quickly rip out the hair that gets coiled around the ends of the brushes (this is the fastest method - believe me) and under the yellow bearings. To make this whole process fast, I keep my shop-vac all set up in the garage, so I can quickly clean the dirt bin and filter chambers. The shopvac is also great for cleaning out the brushes. This whole prcess takes about 2 minutes per Roomba. While it is work, I still think the Roombas are well worth it. Every few weeks, I'll give them a more thorough cleaning, such as cleaning under the side brush, and under all wheels.
I've been using the Roomba for about a year now without any problems, or having to replace any parts or filters. I think that using the Shop-vac to clean them out every run has kept them running strong.
I find that they work as well as a normal vacuum on carpet, and even better than my other vaccums on area rugs. I can vacuum a room with our Hoover upright, and then send the Roomba in, and it will still find plenty of dust and debris. I have a pretty clean house, all things considered, and I'm always amazed at how much stuff the Roomba pick up. I hardly use a normal vacuum at all - just for stairs and in places the Roombas can't reach, and that's only every few months
As a poster above said, the Roomba also gives you a good excuse to keep your house generally in order. After I start the Roombas, I spend about a minute picking things off the floor. I would have to do this with a normal vacuum, so no big deal.
So, overall the Roombas do a great job of picking up dust, debris, and cat hair. However they do have to be cleaned up every run (at least that's what I do) and they are not maintenance-free. I've set up a small Roomba cleaning station in my garage so I can get them all cleaned out and ready to go as quickly as possible, with the help of athe shop-vac. If you spend too much time cleaning them, then it gets counter-productive.
I'll soon be getting a third Roomba so I can have one on each level of the house, and can spread the work around. The upstairs and basement only need to be vacuumed once a week, but the main floor needs it every 2 days.
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coolVariable
Diamond Member
The money you could save with a roomba vs. a maid (that probably doesn't even vacuum every time) ...
Pretty sure who the sucker is here.