autonomous floor-cleaning robots

[mack_turtle]

We're looking into doing a better job of keeping the floors in our 1400 sq-ft, tile-floor, single-storey house clean. we have a big clunky vacuum cleaner, an ancient Dustbuster (the battery for which works for about 30 seconds, but useful for quickly cleaning up a swept pile of dust), and a plain old Swiffer wet mop. cleaning the tiles and a few area rugs is a chore we don't want to take an hour anymore. We have pets but no kids, so dirt is minimal, but it adds up.

My opinion is that the Roomba type options cost too much to be worth the hassle and time waiting for them to roam around. I am watching some reviews and watching them in action and all I can think is—we are going to look at this $400-1000 robot in less than 5 years and think "my god, what a joke. these robots are so weak, slow, and dumb!" I'd rather spend less on a smaller more versatile upright vac-mop and do the work in a few minutes each week.

anyone have experiences with any of these robots? do you find yourself needing to follow it around to get the spots that it missed? do you think the expense was worth it?

[CBaron]

I do and I love mine.  My family thinks its odd the subtle affection I have for this little fella.

I'm a consummate cheapskate; and I also dislike dirty floors.  Our downstairs is all tile and we have (had) 2 big dogs that shed lots of hair.  So what am I going to do?   I did a bunch of research, read reviews from industry experts along with user reviews, saved some of my 'birthday money' and invested in a middle grade option.  I've not been disappointed.  In fact, i've been fairly impressed.  The amount of dog hair and stuff that it picks up is astounding.  It navigates over our area rugs without issues, it doesn't knock over water from the dog's bowl, its fairly unobtrusive and quiet.  

If I have nit-picks:  
1) it does seem to drag along a pile of dog hair under it and once it crosses a rug it will deposit that small accumulation on the leading edge of the rug.  Thus the rooms is swept, but there's a little evidence of hair deposited on a spot.  I either pick up the clump or kick it back into motion to be swept up by the device later.

2) I did have to adjust a few things in the house to make it work effectively.  Our TV console was 1/2" too low so I had to elevate it slightly.  If the wife or kids leave cords plug and dangling it will suck them up and get stuck-error out.  About 50% of the time it will get 'lost' in our small downstairs guest bathroom.  There's just something about the shape of that room that confuses it.  Most of the time, I just shut that door.

3) I bought it 2 yrs ago this month and I think I can tell the battery is beginning to get weaker.  It seems to not quite run as long and as fervently as before.  But it still works fine and I'm not disappointed yet. I'd buy it again when needed.

Here is the one I purchased.  I waited around and found it discounted (on Amazon) for $220
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NBVY14Q/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Later,
CJB

[CBaron]

Ok given more thought,  I will add this too...

Its powered by 2 big wheels.  The middle (front) wheel is just a roller and pivots around based on the direction the driving wheels are taking the machine.  Occasionally, this middle front folder wheel gets clogged up with 'stuff' that gets accumulated from its regular cleaning duties.  Thus, I have to pop the wheel off and thoroughly clean it with a pick and knife.  Its a little PIA and I can tell its needing to get done because the machine looks to be confused in its regular patterns.  If its really bad, then sometimes it will just sit there and stutter (because the roller-wheel is no longer rolling)

Another thing that could be bothersome to people is that the spinning brush and twirling sweepers do get filled up with stuff that its picked up over time.  This is largely a factor of the condition of your floors.  But none-the-less, in order for me to get optimum sweeping power, I do have to clean this up regularly.  I personally don't mind it, but you have to unsnap the pieces and pick out the accumulation.  When it run regularly then this is less frequent because the unit is keeping the floors cleaner more regularly.  But if we delay for a week or something, the accumulation is notable.  It will still work ok in this condition, but its just not at most optimal.  I'm not sure if this is unique to my brand or robot vacuums in general.

I just now walked over to our vacuum and turned it over.  You can see the accumulation around the sweeper brush that ideally needs to be cleaned out.

[jcarneytx]

I bought a Eufy BoostIQ robovac: https://www.amazon.com/eufy-BoostIQ-Super-Thin-Self-Charging-Medium-Pile/dp/B079QYYGF1/ref=pd_lpo_201_t_2/142-3345246-1287750?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B079QYYGF1&pd_rd_r=c7ea2fed-0ee0-43e3-8015-0f3a3ee3b03a&pd_rd_w=dnhkm&pd_rd_wg=y3VC0&pf_rd_p=7b36d496-f366-4631-94d3-61b87b52511b&pf_rd_r=C4061F9PBX1KXXDFPARC&psc=1&refRID=C4061F9PBX1KXXDFPARC

Not as expensive or fully featured as the more expensive brands/models, but works pretty nicely. Been using it for a little over a month or so. New house is still a bit cluttered from move, but I just run it in main living area/kitchen/hallways. Still need to straighten up rooms so as to not get it hung up on something.

Edited June 22, 2020 by jcarneytx

[ATXZJ]

Bought one of these little devils for my wife last christmas. We chose this brand because we have wood floors and pets and they offered the best value for that specific need. Oh, and she freaking loves that thing.

https://www.ecovacs.com/us/deebot-robotic-vacuum-cleaner

[CBaron]

13 hours ago, jcarneytx said:

I bought a Eufy BoostIQ robovac: https://www.amazon.com/eufy-BoostIQ-Super-Thin-Self-Charging-Medium-Pile/dp/B079QYYGF1/ref=pd_lpo_201_t_2/142-3345246-1287750?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B079QYYGF1&pd_rd_r=c7ea2fed-0ee0-43e3-8015-0f3a3ee3b03a&pd_rd_w=dnhkm&pd_rd_wg=y3VC0&pf_rd_p=7b36d496-f366-4631-94d3-61b87b52511b&pf_rd_r=C4061F9PBX1KXXDFPARC&psc=1&refRID=C4061F9PBX1KXXDFPARC

Not as expensive or fully featured as the more expensive brands/models, but works pretty nicely. Been using it for a little over a month or so. New house is still a bit cluttered from move, but I just run it in main living area/kitchen/hallways. Still need to straighten up rooms so as to not get it hung up on something.

I was first looking at that one (or at least the brand) and almost pulled the trigger until I ran across the comparison reviews of it vs the one I purchased above.  You can see how similar they look and I suspect perform fairly equally.  I *think* I may have chosen mine because of the option to use a "digital fence" that came included....of which I've NEVER USED!

Later,
CJB