My very old vacuum may be in its way out. Thinking of buying a roomba. Love to hear what people’s experiences have been.
I had a different brand of remote vacuum. If you have a lot of animal hair and dust you might not be happy. My main problems were 1) the base has to be plugged in against the wall without other things too close to it. I had a hard time finding a good spot for this. 2. It would run out of battery before it got back to the base to charge. It seemed to get stuck a lot. If you have a lot of open empty space it will do better. This was at least 5 years ago and I’m sure they improve all the time. Most people I know with them like them.
I have an older model of robot vacuum which is a different brand than Roomba. I like it because I can vacuum while I am doing other things and I like it a lot because it goes under the furniture. For me, it supplements the regular vacuum as it doesn’t vacuum the corners well. I’ve heard that they’ve gotten better at corners. Mine got stuck a lot at first, but not much now that it has memorized the room.
Perfect timing. I used a Roomba for ages and loved the idea that it could scurry around cleaning the floor while I got on with other things. But a few weeks ago I got a Dyson V6 and I’ve been raving about it ever since.
It’s cordless so it can clean everywhere - tops of paintings, upholstery, under furniture, the mattress, pelmets, window ledges - just about any flat surface. I use it on the walls too to be sure that they are cobweb-free. I even use it outside on the balcony. And it’s great for pet hair.
It might not be suitable for a huge house because when it’s charged, it will work for only about 25 minutes but I find that ample time for the apartment.
Yep - I love it!
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We have a Roomba for our home. It’s about 6 years old. I used it (note the past-tense) regularly and it was fun to watch it “do it’s thing” at first. It is the animal model because we have a dog (golden lab). But even with that model I found that I had to constantly clean out the hair in order for it to work, so I couldn’t leave it to do its’ thing while I’m at work, but if I’m there to watch it, it does a half-ass job.
I wouldn’t recommend it if you need the carpet to look REALLY clean. It might work to use that first while you’re doing other cleaning and then go over the areas with a regular vacuum that don’t look great.
I like the concept and interested in checking out the Dyson version if that works better.
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Damn, Brother checked the vacuum and found it was just some string caught in the belt. I paid over $300 for it in 1997, goes to show you get what you pay for. Still would love to have a robot vacuuming.
The best laid plans, thwarted by a competent repair-person.
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I love mine (not that brand) but you also need a backup like a stick as sometimes they miss some areas or find spots difficult to access.
I put it on while I am doing the rest of the cleaning and then use the stick to follow up.
I stayed at a wedding venue property and they many of them for the venue and the rooms.
I would never have only a robot vac. So you can still get one. i have a Dyson Ball full size, the Dyson V6 stick and a Black and Decker hand vac. I use them all in different situations. The robot just doesn’t have enough cleaning power to replace a full size vac in a carpeted home. It’s great for keeping the dust bunnies and crumbs swept up and it leaves vacuum marks on your rugs and picks up surface debris. But I could vacuum after the roomba and pick up a lot from my deep pile carpet.
Once a week, we use our Roomba to clean the rental apartment instead of the regular vacuum because it can easily get under the bed and under the couch. It’s a good addition to our cleaning arsenal, but we wouldn’t replace the regular vacuum, primarily because it’s a lot slower.
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I only have small area rugs and runners, ceramic tile and laminate for all floors as I’m not a fan of carpets. I have a stick vac which is very effective, but it needs a human to push it about.
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I have hardwood throughout & have a chihuahua who sheds as much as I do!
The newer models are much better & “smarter”. Check out Costco for discounts.