There’s a lot more to keeping your Roomba clean than simply emptying its bin now and then. Take a closer look at your Roomba’s brushes, for example, and you’ll probably see they’re tangled in hair.
A Roomba’s cliff sensors, which help to keep it from tumbling down the stairs, can likewise become blocked by a layer of grime, while its dust filter will gradually become clogged with debris.
If you give your Roomba the occasional deep clean, you’ll not only extend its life, you’ll also boost the quality of its cleanings.
This feature is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best robot vacuums.
How to completely clean your Roomba
Our Roomba cleaning guide will take you through four primary areas when it comes to keeping a Roomba clean: cleaning its brushes, cleaning its wheels, scrubbing its sensors and charging contacts, and cleaning its dust bin.
If that sounds like a lot of work, don’t worry. The process won’t be that time consuming provided you give your Roomba a once-over on a regular basis, and if you tackle different cleaning chores on different days.
Cleaning your Roomba’s brushes
You probably had no idea how much hair was on your floors until you got a Roomba. I’m constantly amazed by how much hair I pull out of my Roomba’s bin after each cleaning, and we don’t even have pets.
You’d be surprised by how much hair can get wrapped around your Roomba’s brushes.
You’d be surprised by how much hair can get wrapped around your Roomba’s brushes.
Ben Patterson/Foundry
You’d be surprised by how much hair can get wrapped around your Roomba’s brushes.
Ben Patterson/Foundry
Ben Patterson/Foundry
Given the amount of hair a Roomba can sweep off the floor, it’s no wonder that its brushes can get tangled so quickly. Luckily, you can detach a Roomba’s brushes quickly and easily, allowing you to get busy pulling all that hair off.
Let us show you how to clean your Roomba’s brushes.
Cleaning your Roomba’s wheels
Brushes aren’t the only things that get hairy on a Roomba. Your robot’s wheels can get tangled with hair, as well, while the wheel wells are havens for dust and dirt.
Your Roomba’s front caster wheel probably has a little ring of hair wrapped around its axle.
Your Roomba’s front caster wheel probably has a little ring of hair wrapped around its axle.
Your Roomba’s front caster wheel probably has a little ring of hair wrapped around its axle.
iRobot recommends cleaning your Roomba’s wheels once every couple of weeks, but luckily the job isn’t that difficult. The front caster wheel pops right out, and (depending on the Roomba model) the spring-loaded side wheels can be pushed aside, revealing trapped hair, dust, and dirt.
Let us show you how to clean your Roomba’s wheels.
Cleaning your Roomba’s dust filter
If you only ever dump the dust out of your Roomba before sliding its bin back in, you’re doing it wrong.
Once you’ve removed the dust filter for a newer Roomba, you can tap it on the insde of a garbage can or use a hand vacuum to clean off the excess debris.
Once you’ve removed the dust filter for a newer Roomba, you can tap it on the insde of a garbage can or use a hand vacuum to clean off the excess debris.
Ben Patterson/Foundry
Once you’ve removed the dust filter for a newer Roomba, you can tap it on the insde of a garbage can or use a hand vacuum to clean off the excess debris.
Ben Patterson/Foundry
Ben Patterson/Foundry
Depending on the model Roomba you own, there’s either a filter sitting in the bin compartment or a filter cartridge that fits in the bin itself.
Over time, these filters can get caked with thick layers of dust and dirt, and if you don’t clean them regularly, your Roomba will become less and less efficient at vacuuming up debris.
Luckily, cleaning your Roomba’s filter is easy; the real trick is remembering to do it (think once a week or so).
We’ll also show you how to clean the bin itself, as well as how to dust off your Roomba’s “full-bin” sensors.
Let us show you how to clean your Roomba’s dust bin and filter.
Clearing your Roomba’s cliff sensors and charging contacts
Ever notice your Roomba stopping and starting as it cruises around your floor? One possible reason for such strange behavior is that your Roomba’s cliff sensors are covered in dust.
When that happens, your Roomba might constantly think it’s about to tumble down the stairs, hence all the cautious stopping and starting.
Your Roomba might think it’s constantly on the verge of falling down the stairs if its cliff sensors are covered in dust.
Your Roomba might think it’s constantly on the verge of falling down the stairs if its cliff sensors are covered in dust.
Your Roomba might think it’s constantly on the verge of falling down the stairs if its cliff sensors are covered in dust.
Here’s another possible issue: a Roomba that takes forever to charge. If that’s happening to your robotic buddy, it could be that its charging contacts are coated in grime.
You can clean your Roomba’s cliff sensors and charging contacts using a combination of soft clothes and damp melamine foam.
Let us show you how to clean your Roomba’s cliff sensors and charging contacts.
