Robot vacuum

[LGBirmingham]

Does anyone have any experience with Robot Vacuum cleaners? Are they actually any good? Any recommendations?

I got a roomba 18 years ago, I'm onto my 3rd, wouldn't be without it.

They are fantastic, actually do a great job hoovering because they go over the same bit again and again and don't t get bored! Obviously they don't do corners or stairs so you still need to vaccum occasionally.

Downsides - you've got to look after them, must not be left standing discharged otherwise the battery will give up quickly. They need emptying every time and if you have long hair or pets the rollers will need taking out and cleaning every few uses.

I didn't look after my first 2 but this last one is about 7 years old and used several times a week and still going strong. Non branded spares like new rollers/brushes are pretty cheap.

If I was buying today I'd go for a Eufy, I think as good as a roomba.

On my last one I got all the bells and whistles - docking station, scheduling, etc. Not needed at all imo.

I’m onto my 5th over many years. I now have a Roborock , it’s probably the best out of them all. It goes on 3 times every day, so it’s gets a pretty hard life here.

I have been considering a purchase until I read a post on a thread about chores for teens, that one child’s chores included “putting all the dining chairs and kitchen stools onto the table/kitchen counter for the robot hoover“

This has put me right off

Also what will the robot do when it meets the slightly curled up edge of my rug - will it “climb” onto it?

can anyone comment?

Mine only gets used in times of emergency, eg when the proper vac stops working or if I have an injury and can’t use it . For me the robot vac is just a little too needy , gets itself wedged in odd places , can’t get right to the edges of rooms or under tables etc unless you have cleared chairs away first .

The other day it got itself shut in a room as it hoovered behind the door and managed to close the door on itself . Can’t be trusted at the top of stairs , so we block the top before we start it up there . OK for quick once overs but honestly you still have to do the job yourself to get the bits it misses and the stairs anyway.

To be fair to it , it is quite cute , redocks well and talks to me !

Wouldn’t be without mine.

have a eufy upstairs and a hoover/mop downstairs (empties itself).

I have an Aldi mop/hoover which is fine, but I still have to steam mop every week to get corners and a proper clean but it's handy for a quick going over most evenings

Love mine I've had a neato for years,it's our main hoover. He hoovers every day and downstairs and once a week upstairs (we have large dogs who are not allowed upstairs).
We have a handheld for the stairs.

I find mine great. Turn it on before I leave the house in the morning, floor swept by the time I get home. Also great to have on while you're doing a full clean or ironing, two jobs done at once!

Mines climbs onto the edges of my wonky rug. The back wheels have a bit of suspension so it can get over shallow obstacles. I don’t move the chairs either in the kitchen the hoover finds it’s way between the legs. I do have stools in the kitchen with a circular base as well. Sadly the robot hoover tends to mount these and keep bopping away at the central pole. Like a small horny dog humping a leg.

I have a Eufy and love it. It's set to go off automatically every day so I don't have to think about it. Occasionally it gets stuck under the settee or shuts itself in a room but it doesn't take two minutes to sort it out. I just clean it out once a week and it's job done 😁

We have Eufy and we're quite fond of him but rarely use him now as he needs constant supervision or he gets himself into trouble; getting stuck under pieces of furniture or tangled up in cables. He also irritates the fuck out of the cats.

I love mine (Eufy).

When it broke a few months ago DP took it away to investigate, said the motor was buggered and he'd look at fitting a replacement. When he returned it 2 weeks later I'd already brought an updated model as I hated not having it.
The old one is now "Upstairs Eufy".

Downstairs Eufy runs every day at 1am and does almost my entire house (not the utility room - the dog is in there with the door shut). See map attached.

Upstairs Eufy goes twice a week while I'm at work (dog not allowed upstairs so less to do).

I periodically get the manual vacuum out, for things like the stairs, vacuuming cobwebs round the ceiling. I also vacuum out the Eufy filter when I empty the dustbox.

Presumably it must be different standards, but my experience is definitely not that the house still needs a weekly manual vacuum - as I've seen people post.

Old Eufy cleaned by a basic bumble about - cycling through different cleaning modes (random lines, spot, edges).

New Eufy is methodical and does lines then finishes with edges, and provides a map of where its been. It doesn't learn the house though and you can't send it to clean certain rooms.

Have a basic Eufy downstairs, which trundles around every morning. My phone app alerts me if it gets stuck so I go and rescue it.

It gets let loose upstairs couple of times a week once recharged.

I don't move chairs to accommodate it, because the chairs are in different positions day to day so that tiny bit of floor will get vacuumed eventually.

Also once you've had it a few days you'll have rearranged cables etc so it doesn't snag them.

I'm constantly amazed at how much dust it picks up.

Watching with interest. I've been looking at the vacuum/mop combos, but seems they are still better as separate machines.

So the general verdict is that they are good then? I don't think ours could just be switched on whist we're not there as we have steps down into most rooms downstairs. But I don't think it would matter needing to be there while it works.

Most people seem to mention a Eufy. Are they the best? And what is this about mopping, do some of them do that too?

Mines mops. Well it sprays water and then drags around a microfibre cloth. With my one you change the dust tank for a water tank with a cloth. It was about £20. It doesn’t suck up any water so leaves the floor a bit wet. I leave it to mop kitchen, utility and conservatory when I go out and then it dries nicely for coming back. I use method spray and mop , squirt directly on the floor.

I’ve found it similar to using a steam mop where any proper grime is pushed to the edges but it’s easy enough to run a damp cloth round the bottom of the room.

We have an Eufy. We only use it in the living room and hall but love. Set her to go each morning when we take the dog out and she just gets on with it. Very occasionally she gets stuck in a corner, but not often enough to be annoying.

Fantastic if you have pets
I only need to use a couple times per week (on the days I work from home to supervise !!)
Still use the main vacuum occasionally but takes a lot of work/ thought away

I wouldn't say Eufy is the best (it's what I have and nothing to compare against, but others are better rated by Which?), but it is an entry level reasonably priced machine and I'm happy with mine.

You can get all singing all dancing ones, but they are a lot more expensive.

I've got a separate iRobot mop, which needs more overseeing than the eufy - you have to fill it up, set it going, but the battery back on to charge afterwards. I like it, but don't love it like the robovac. Having said that it stopped working due to a flood issue (burst pipe, not the mop) last winter and I missed it more than I thought I would. It was replaced under warranty. I use it much more in wet weather when the dog is tracking footprints in.

I've got a roborock s5 named Betsy. She is set as we leave for school run and can do whichever room you want doing. I find her hoovering is good but you do have to make sure the floor is clear of kids toys and clutter.

Not convinced on her ability to mop, to be honest but she does enough to keep the floor looking respectable so I can do a full proper clean once a week.

I'm tempted for one upstairs as well but not sure where I would keep it.

I have a Eufy - which I bought after reading a MN thread. I’ve had it a couple of years. Their customer service is great and they replaced it when it broke. It’s fantastic.

I couldn’t remember the name of my mop and hoover combo as it’s a recent buy.

it’s this one:roborock S7 Pro Ultra Robot Vacuum Cleaner 5100 Pa Suction with Empty Wash Fill Dock, Mop Self-Washing, Self-Emptying, Self-Refilling, Alexa/APP Connected Robot Vacuum (Upgrade of Roborock S7) https://amzn.eu/d/hUhjKSx

does everything I need. Once you have given your floors a proper manual clean this just maintains it. This is enough for me.

We have a Eufy (£200 from amazon) and I have mixed feelings. It does work brilliantly- picks everything up and leaves nice carpet lines so you can see it's been done.

However... we don't use it that often because it gets stuck under the tv unit every.damn.time and also can't climb onto our thick rug. So it's a shame as it is a great little thing. We used it every day (turned it on when going on a dog walk) til we got the rug.

Dont get a cheap eufy as they need ose annoying barrier strips to set up a No Go zone (ask me how I know). The more expensive ones, like the roborock, mean you can just draw a line on your phone. The roborock has twice the suction power as well.

The roborock has never fallen down the stairs.