Is a Roomba worth it and how much noise do they make?

[MrsBloomingTroll]

Is a Roomba vacuum cleaner worth it and how much noise do they make?

I'm not lazy, but the cat spends most of her time downstairs, where we have parquet and Pergo floors, and her fur just collects in clumps. Not to mention a messy toddler who drops food on the floor all the time. The kitchen/dining room floor is just constantly covered in crumbs, fur and all sorts and I can't keep up with it.

We have a (good) Bosch vacuum cleaner, but I'm wondering whether to ask DH for a Roomba as a Mother's Day present. I'm currently pregnant with DC2 and if DC2 is anything like DD1, I will be spending much of my time feeding on the sofa and doing nothing else after DC2 is born!

Neither the cat nor DD1 like the sound of the vacuum cleaner, which is why I'm worried about how noisy a Roomba is. But I love the idea of having nice clean floors all the time with zero effort.

Should I just make time in my day every day to brush the floors?

Thank you!

I think it's well worth it, but mine is a bit noisy tbh. Its not as noisy as an upright, you cant hear it upstairs iyswim, but I set him to go round when I'm not here, so come back and just empty his bin. Very good on hard floors, and amazing what it picks up from under the sofa.

You could programme it to clean when you have an hour out of the house?

Thank you SquirtedPerfume. The noise could be an issue then.

I mentioned it to DH and he thinks it's a daft idea. But then it's only the first time I've mentioned it to him. Give me a few months to work on him and he'll think it was his idea all along .

I think I've made it sound worse than it is. It makes about the same level of noise as if you were standing beside a blender, so it's easy enough to blank out. Plus your not standing beside it the whole time.

I like your thinking! I talked a lot about "robots" leaving out the "vacuum" part, and that seemed to work! Having a gadget robot was much cooler than new vacuum.

Thanks - good plan!

it is noisy, but my dd1 (severe ASD, and noise sensitive) can cope with the levelof noise, whereas she cannot cope with our Dyson.

it's fab, as is my Scooba. means I can get the hoovering done away form dd1, as she is scared. means I don't have to do the hoovering (double bonus!). easy to emprty/clean (by far the easist hoover ever ont his score, which is good as it does need doing frequently).

you can programme it to come on overnight, and set which rooms it does by way of the lighthouses. it will take itself off back to recharge.

whats not to like?

I love mine too! I have had to replace the battery once in 5 yrs which was quite expensive. You have to clean them out properly every now and again by unscrewing a few bits, but still beats me actually doing the hoovering!

Would they pick up bits of Lego and little Sylvannian pieces? I like the idea of them but I am worried they hoover up all the dcs little bits and pieces.

yes, they do pick up little bits and pieces. but it is very easy ot fish those back out as you empty it... (speaking form experience!)

I tend to do a 5 minute sweep - go around with a box and clear the floor of anythign and everyhtign, then let Herbie go.

I don't think we have ever lost any bits - and I have only picked out bits maybe 3/4 times? (hav had a roomba for 3 years now)

Thanks silverfrog - I am very tempted.

oh, go for it, definitely!

mine has been utterly fab.

on lazy days, it means I can Mn while the hooverign is doen. on busy days (ie just beofre PIL come ot visit) it means I can hoover 2 rooms at the same time - housework done in half the time!

the best bit is eg setting it off and then going out ot lunch, and arriving back to a nicely hoovered hallway/kitchen etc. lovely.

Where did you get it? What model would people recommend?

we brought ours back form the States... erm no idea what model it is - the top of the range one 3 years ago .

if I was buying again, with insider knowledge:

scheduler mildly useful, and interesting, but wouldn't pay more to be able to set it for 2pm MOnday, rather than just bunging it on as I go out of the door. (I am a sahm, though. it might be more useful to other people, I suppose)

lighthouse thingies are good (when I remember ot use them. again, I tend ot just shut it in one room, wait for it to finish, recharge, put it in the next room. again, because I am sahm, I can do this around school runs etc. if I were out at work, lighthouses would be more useful, as would do the trapping for me)

hth

Silverfrog, I am in the US at the moment, probably for a couple of years. I am very tempted by the Roomba (and the Scooba!) but did you have a problem with the voltage when you took yours to the UK? Are they dual voltage or have you had to use a transformer?

I am thick as pigshit didn't have a clue, so ordered a new power cable (saves on the faff with an adaptor anyway ), which sorted it all out.

Scooba I bought in the UK (form Costco probably). We were only on holiday when we bought the Roomba

Carrots I got mine in John Lewis, and paid extra for a 5 year warranty, as I wanted an actual shop to take it back to if something went wrong. Think mine is model 555, and it's great at picking up cat hair. It seems to collect more dust and dirt than my dyson. It came with a lighthouse thing, but I don't need that really, just let it go round all of downstairs.

It does pick up random bits of Lego and playmobil accessories, but they are easily retrieved.

Thanks a lot, Silverfrog, I am much more likely to persuade DH it's a worthwhile purchase if we can use it when we move back as well!!

Thanks everyone - I am now employing the aforementioned "robot" tactics on dh!

They are the premier brand in robot vacuums although quite expensive. You can programme them to turn on at certain times of day including when your out to advoid the noise. Look at smart Roombas like the 690, 960, 980 ad 890.
yoursmarthomeguide.com/smart-appliances/robot-vacuums/best-irobot-roomba-vacuums-2018