How well do self cleaning robot vacuums actually work?

[AshaiRey]

Oke, i understand your intentions. Having a workshop too where i do from time to time woodwork i think this will not turn out good. Sawdust and wood curls have a high volume and the containers of these cleaners are more for dust and small particles like sand. Collecting saw dusk will fill the litter bin very rapidly. The vacu will be spending more time finding its docking station to empty its bin and going back then doing cleaning. The Roomba type will follow a random cleaning patron so they won't go back to the place they where cleaning. About parts and battery life. I have a roomba and the battery went bad after 2 years. It could clean less then before. After 3 years i had to replace it because it couldn't do a single room any more. I've found a replacement battery online that has much more capacity for the price lower then the original. The part that wears out most is the frontwheel. This is a small swivle wheel made of hard plastic.

[kennesaw10]

Not a Roomba Fan

I'm guessing the reason no one has answered is no one has one of these units that self empty. I'm on my second Roomba and love it. The first one is still working it just got loud. These Roomba's work really well on hardwood floor and do OK on carpet they just do not do the deep cleaning.

I have owned about 4 Roomba vacuums before throwing in the towel. For about $280 a pop, I got tired of them dying in about a year (usually immediately after the warranty expired.) Roomba customer service always offered to give me $50 off a new one but I stopped biting. I still use my Scooba floor washer but my model is no longer sold by Roomba and replacement parts are getting scarce.

I have never had a robotic vac which empties itself, but I never needed that. About a year ago, I got one of the Neato Robotics units. This vacuum comes off the charging base, scans the room and then systematically cleans in a grid pattern; going room-to-room without the need for "invisible walls" or such garbage utilized by Roomba. No bumbling around and bumping things in a random pattern like the Roomba. It cleans much more deeply and more quietly. It also has a larger dirt cup than the Roomba. The Neato is my new favorite with the only drawback being that they have not introduced a floor-washing robot.

I have a Yellow Lab who drops hair all over the place. The Neato unit allows me to keep the floors, rugs and carpet quite clean. I run it daily (overnight while I sleep) and usually have a full cup of dirt and hair each morning.

I like the fact I can have a clean floor without much labor of my own. Just be aware of the limitations of these units and you can adapt to them. As to a dirty shop floor, I don't think a robot vacuum is practical.

[Richel]

For what it's worth, I have a Neato Robotics and I think its cleaning algorithm is likely superior to that of the Roomba, which I have never owned. However, like the Roomba, Neato's die frequently. My first died within 1 year and I got a warranty replacement, which died in about 1 year off warranty. So, I sent that in for repair and it is back working fine.

Elliott

[zimmer62]

For what it's worth, I have a Neato Robotics and I think its cleaning algorithm is likely superior to that of the Roomba, which I have never owned. However, like the Roomba, Neato's die frequently. My first died within 1 year and I got a warranty replacement, which died in about 1 year off warranty. So, I sent that in for repair and it is back working fine.

Elliott

+2 (I have two of the Neato's, one for each floor, the work way better than the 4 or 5 various roombas I've tried over the years)

I still wish they were a little smarter, or wirelessly connected. Adding bluetooth or wifi, or at the very least a backup battery on the clock, so if it does get stuck and runs out of battery you don't have to reprogram the clock. All in all, I really like mine. They do not clean themselves however, which is what this thread is about.

[Olbrit]

...I have a roomba and the battery went bad... I've found a replacement battery online that has much more capacity for the price lower then the original...

Hi AshaiRey, would you mind please sharing where you get your replacement Roomba battery from? I've tried several aftermarket batteries, but they've all died within 3-6 months (or invariably 1 day after whatever the warranty period was). Thanks.

[NeverDie]

Hi AshaiRey, would you mind please sharing where you get your replacement Roomba battery from? I've tried several aftermarket batteries, but they've all died within 3-6 months (or invariably 1 day after whatever the warranty period was). Thanks.

Just a thought: does it make any difference whether you charge them with Romba's regular charger or Roomba's fast charger? Which one have you been using?

If 3-6 months is typical for a Roomba, then I'd say there's Roomba for improvement.

[Olbrit]

Aww geez. No more coffee for NeverDie please.

Nah, I meant the replacement cheapo batteries I got only last 3-6 months; the original factory battery seems to last 2 -3 years. I just use the regular docking station charger it comes with.

[Rupp]

For what it's worth, I have a Neato Robotics and I think its cleaning algorithm is likely superior to that of the Roomba, which I have never owned. However, like the Roomba, Neato's die frequently. My first died within 1 year and I got a warranty replacement, which died in about 1 year off warranty. So, I sent that in for repair and it is back working fine.

Elliott

Wow. My first Roomba is still running going on 7 years it's just loud as heck. My new one is ten times quieter. The original battery for my "first" Roomba lasted ~2.5 years before it would only run about 30 minutes. I've replaced the battery twice and it's still in service up stairs where we can't hear it as much.

[NeverDie]

My first Roomba is still running going on 7 years it's just loud as heck.

Was it loud as heck from Day 1, or did it (like your new one) start out 10x quieter and then got louder with age?

Just trying to piece together what sort of wear is easily fixed (e.g. beater brushes) versus what, if anything, is not easily fixed.

The newer generation roomba's seem a lot more expensive (seems like 2-3x) than the older (but still relatively recent) generations. i.e., it's not like PC's, where you pay about the same from one generation to the next and get more power and features. Not sure if the newer Roomba's last any longer or whether iRobot is mostly price skimming the market with a few incremental features. For instance, the Dirt Dog (discontinued) sold new for just $150, whereas a Roomba 880 sells new now for $700.

[AshaiRey]

Hi AshaiRey, would you mind please sharing where you get your replacement Roomba battery from? I've tried several aftermarket batteries, but they've all died within 3-6 months (or invariably 1 day after whatever the warranty period was). Thanks.

I got them from this site http://www.ibatteries.eu/index.php?action=home&lang=EN

[AshaiRey]

Over here in The Netherlands we have a few very large groccery shops that stunt with noncomform items. From time to time they have robot vacu cleaners like the Roomba for about Euro 100,-. For that price you can try them out, have a battery replacement and still have money left over.

[Olbrit]

I got them from this site http://www.ibatteries.eu/index.php?action=home&lang=EN

Thank you. Looks like there's no shipping to US and I'm guessing the price would be quite high. I'll email them just in case.
Anyone in US have success with Roomba and /or Scooba aftermarket batteries?

[NeverDie]

I just use the regular docking station charger it comes with.

FWIW, it looks as though some of the docking stations can be powered by either charger. Speculating here, but maybe the cheap batteries you tried lack a charging circuit (e.g. to sense battery temperature), so they overheat while fast charging, in which case connecting a slow charger to your docking station would likely help. I realize there are a lot of if's in this suggestion, but maybe worth the gamble to possibly save you $$$'s over the long term.

Regardless, I hope someone here can refer you to an aftermarket battery that's equivalent to iRobot's.

[Olbrit]

I'm using the docking station and charger that the Roomba came with in the box, so I'm not sure how to tell if it's a slow charger or a fast charger...

[NeverDie]

I don't know what model you have, but, for instance, iRobot is selling this docking station with what is obviously a fast charger to plug into it:




In the above instance, I'm making an educated guess that plugging in the regular charger in place of the fast charger would also work.