Can a robot vacuum replace a cleaner?

[bathroomadviceneeded]

Im going back to full-time work and I have 3 very young DC. I trying to hire a cleaner (I’ve had one in the past) but I’m having a lot of trouble finding one that is reliable and worth the expense. I’ve been let down by cleaners not doing a thorough job, being unreliable with their hours/days, not working their contacted hours, etc. I found that the management of the cleaner was more stressful than just cleaning my house myself.

I’m thinking of purchasing a robot vacuum (with mop) and running it during the day while I’m at work. That would leave the kitchen, which I clean every evening, and the bathroom/toilets, which can be shared as a task between the household. I can do a bigger deep clean during school holidays.

Those who own a robot vacuum - do you think this is realistic? How much extra vacuuming/mopping do you need to do? Or has it completely eliminated the need to vacuum/mop?

No, but it helps. I couldn't have a cleaner during Covid so I bought Happy the robot vacuum cleaner.

He was fantastic on floors (except stairs) but obviously a cleaner does far more. I currently have a lady who works for herself but over the years I have had better luck with small companies who employ the cleaners and deal with any problems with not turning up etc.

Watching! 🙏🏼

I've never had a cleaner but do have a robot hoover / mop.
I have my robot set to come on at a specific time so I come home to a hoovered house, it is very helpful.
I dont see how this could replace a cleaner but it is doing one job that you won't have to. I wouldn't let it mop without me here and don't really use that function anyway.
With the robot the floor has to be clear of everything or it will get tangled in it, my kids are a nightmare for leaving wires around so make sure there's nothing loose or on the floor that the hoover gets caught in.
It's so hard trying to keep on top of everything and working so anything that will make it a bit easier is worth it

No.

I got a robot vacuum.

There was so much stuff on the floor it really struggled.

I had one (hoover only) that couldn't navigate the tiny incline from the kitchen vinyl flooring to the livingroom carpet. I then moved it upstairs where it did a good job in the bathroom except it kept bumping into one section of skirting board and left black marks on the paint work. In the bedroom, it found the wooden bed posts confusing and kept moving forwards then reversing and repeat until finally it found a way to get under the bed. My Black Labrador steadfastly refused to move for it when she was snoozing regardless of how many times it approached her. Finally, it had difficulty finding it's way back to its charging dock and had to be lifted up and carried there. Eventually, I gave up. But this was many years ago, they're probably much better now.

Obviously it doesn't replace a cleaner (but you already know that) but yes, I'd say it certainly makes it easier to manage without one. I'm perfectly happy with the quality of the mopping, but we a) don't have pets, b) have a floor that hides dirt and c) have fairly relaxed standards. You'll want a handheld for doing stairs and any bits it can't reach.

My other recommendation would be to have a small crate of appropriate supplies in every room that needs cleaning regularly - kitchen, bathrooms, laundry room, cloakroom etc. It makes it much easier to do spot cleaning. I've got brown glass spray bottles and nice neutral clothes so they look fine sat on counters and shelves and they are always to hand.

I adore my robot vacuum but my cat has started bringing it toys when it's hoovering so they tend to get tangled.
It doesn't compare to a cleaner, but it is nice to not have to hoover anywhere near as much

Theyre two different things really ..

I have a BRILLIANT robovac, but a cleaner dows loos/tidies/does skirting boards etc

Ive had amazing cleaners before and had issues with them too.

In your shoes i would pay £200 for a roborock q7 (on offer atm) then you can keep your cleaner search a little more casual and snap up an amazing one when they brcome free.

The robovac has changed my life tbf, it keeps the daily dirt at bay

I have a basic eufy, he only vacs but does a good enough job for me.

Yes it's a pain to have to pick up stuff it's likely to get tangled up in , they are especially fond things like usb cables , laces , head phone wires and other thin cable type things.
But it becomes a habit to check for things just before you go out / to bed

AFAIK, any that vac and mop have to have the dust collection tank and water tank swapped over for each job so it's not like you can set it to vac and mop while you are out.

You dont need to swap tanks on mine, there are 2

No, because obviously it can only do the hoovering and mopping. But let me tell you they are still a fucking game changer, I hate hoovering so I've now got one upstairs (Lawrence) and one downstairs (Susan) and it's amazing. I only have to occasionally hoover the stairs, and it's made the cleaning jobs I still have to do feel less annoying because I don't have to do the worst one. I love the future, bring on robot maids.

Ooh I didn't know that they made models like that. Tho tbf I haven't looked at the new models for a while.

We have a robot hoover, and a Labrador. It's good enough for little daily cleans, but in my experience it's not great at getting rugs and carpets really clean. Especially with dog hair. We have mostly laminate and tiles downstairs which is why generally it's okay for daily cleans, but we still need to use the main corded hoover for rugs etc.

Also they're shit at cleaning in corners!

Ours (a Eufy) gets stuck or loses the spinny brush bit so often that it's less effort to run the hoover round. Also the mopping function is very hit and miss. Wish I'd never bothered with ours tbh. Might look at upgrading when the technology comes on a bit.

I love this. Have you every introduced them to one another?!

I've got Moppy downstairs (mop and vac) and Vaccy upstairs (just vac).

Vaccy is a bit annoying as he gets stuck on everything.

Moppy is a newer model and has a camera, so if there's an obstacle he stops rather than eats it up. The mop is very good. We're all white floors downstairs so that makes a difference.

I still have a cleaner every fortnight though. I live in a house which seems to be a dust magnet and my cleaners keep on top of bathrooms, dusting, stairs.

For context we live in a big 5 bed detached with 3 bathrooms.

I think we're on our 4th or 5th robot hoovers now. We've had Horace, Gertrude and Reggie. All broke over time though they were all Neatos which are notorious for breaking (think they've gone bust now).

Current two are Eufys

No, but it is a godsend. We have raised our beds and furniture so the robot can get under everything. Goes round twice a day. Keeps up with my ridiculous husky shedding....

Forgot to add ours go out on a schedule. Upstairs one acts as our alarm clock ...as soon as we hear him start up we panic and move our phone charging cables out of the way 😂

I confess to once duct taping barbecue skewers to them and trying to incite them to joust after one too many wines.

I've got two, one upstairs and one down. They are great at hoovering, but the mopping function isn't worth bothering with in my opinion.

Very helpful everyone, thank you! My house is relatively small: 3 bed and 1 bath, but lots of stairs. I will probably need two of them.

Also good advice re. Keeping things off the floor. My DC are little (6, 2, 10 months) so this is the daily battle. DH does a big tidy up with them at the end of the day, so hopefully this motivates us to try to keep stuff off the floor. We also need to name the robots, the DC will love that!

We had the most amazing cleaner for 5 years at our previous apartment, but she wouldn’t come with us to our new house. She’s very in demand and told me that she ‘doesn’t do stairs’. Fair enough. Every other cleaner I’ve had has been more trouble than they are worth.

And yes, hurry up with the house cleaning robots please!!

It won't, but it forces you to tidy up a lot more than a normal vac that you can just shove stuff out the way with.

Our eufy fees stuck all the time and is irritating. Doesn't pick up all stuff. But does a semi reasonable job.

😀 ooh could we soon here the humm baby robot vacs ?
They would be great for doing the stairs !

We’ve got a Eufy, it does pick up a lot but misses bits and does make a beeline for any stray shoelace, charger cable etc, and quite often the roller needs untangling as there are three of us with long hair. I put it on when I’m doing other jobs around the house but certainly don’t trust it enough to run it when we’re out (also we have cats who don’t really like it). I am impressed by how well it gets in between table and chair legs though, it finds its way into gaps that look too small for it.