Roomba - my house elf that does all the floors
Written: Jun 24 '03 (Updated Jun 25 '03)
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Pros: Picks up cat hair and cat litter very well, entertaining to watch.
Cons: Long time to charge. Spinny brush breaks. My cats aren't sure what to think.
The Bottom Line: If you've got pets who shed, this little guy should be your new best friend.
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| ponyg496's Full Review: iRobot Roomba 3000 Robotic Vacuum |
First, a Roomba is a little robotic vacuum. You simply turn it on, put it on the floor you want to clean, press a button on the top for a small, medium or large room, and then let him clean up the floor for you. I had to own one as soon as I saw it was available since I've got serious cat fur problems in my house.
This little guy is my house elf. He cleans up all the cat hair that my cats leave behind better than I can. I once swept the floor and Swiffered it, then set him out. He still filled his little trash bin with hair/fur/dust/paper. So he got the job permanently.
He is great for the bathroom where I keep my cats' litter. They tend to track it all over the room and he can clean it all up in just a couple minutes.
He's very easy to use in other areas of the house. I just roll up my area rugs (after shaking them out), then set him loose. If you have small things or cords around the room you should pick them up as well. He'll pick up everything from Cheerios to coins to paperclips. I come back later, empty his bin and put him in another room. I unroll the rugs, put small items back on the floor and the room is clean.
He's too noisy for you to watch tv over, but you can read a book or listen to the radio (a bit loud) with him in the room. I tend to dust while he's doing his job, so that I can rescue him if he gets in trouble. I highly recommend this, as he can get caught or knock things over in rare instances.
Cleaning a Roomba is a bit more work than I'd like in that you have to empty the dust bin after every room and clean out the areas where stuff is pulled in from, but it's pretty easy and you get used to it. You do have to do it, or he'll stop picking things up off the floor.
You do have to charge him after every couple of rooms. I do my condo in two passes. One day I'll do my bedroom, the hallway and the living room. The next I'll do the porch, dining room and kitchen. The bathroom gets cleaned anytime it needs it because of the cat litter problem.
You also have to somehow lock it in whichever room you want it to clean. They give you a little infrared light that you can set up in a doorway. I've found it much easier to block my Roomba from leaving the room with a pair of shoes or a large book. He might move it a little but he won't get out. I find this much easier than setting up the invisible "wall" that they suggest with the light.
The Roomba cleans rooms by going around in spirals for a while, then essentially wandering around the room, somewhat at random, following walls and then criss-crossing the floor. It is entertaining to watch for a while. You don't want to watch for too long though, because you will notice that one thing that he keeps missing and will wonder if he'll ever pick it up. He will, eventually. But it's better if you don't watch him go past it 20 times first.
There is a little spinning brush on the front side of the Roomba, this cleans baseboards as well as pushes dust in front so that it'll be picked up. This piece does seem to have a tendency to break as it is made a a thin strip of rubber. That is the only problem I have had so far.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 200
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Epinions.com ID:
ponyg496
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Reviews written: 6
Trusted by: 0 members
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