Robot vacuums have become increasingly common for households to free up the time normally associated with vacuuming. While the newest models offer handy features like a self-cleaning option and the ability to sense edges so it doesn’t fall down stairs, is it as good as a regular vacuum that you manually use?
There are a number of different types of vacuum styles available – upright, canister and central vac – and many different brands and levels of quality. So it’s difficult to make a one-size-fits-all answer to the question but one thing remains true.
A robot vacuum cannot 100% replace a regular vacuum. It doesn’t have strong enough suction to deep clean carpets nor can it access tight corners and spots that are smaller than the robot vac.
Below I’ll discuss my personal experience with our robot vac (it’s mostly good) but it isn’t exactly a 100% replacement for a regular, more powerful vacuum for most people.
Pros and cons of a robotic vacuum
First off, robot vacs have a small compact plastic container to collect dirt. It holds a fraction of the dirt that a regular-sized average vacuum cleaner can store. That’s your first hint that the quality of suction and cleaning with a robot vac isn’t as good as a regular vacuum.
Having said that, as long as your expectations are reasonable, a robot vac can still be a good choice for you home.
Here are the main pros and cons of a robot vac and what you should expect from it.
| Robot vac pros | Robot vac cons |
| Convenient and a time saver when it comes to basic vacuuming. | Doesn’t have the strong suction power of regular vacuums with various attachments to clean certain hard to reach spots. |
| Can clean some hard to reach places such as under a sofa or bed. | Can’t clean hard to reach places like corners of walls, tight places, around chairs and tables and on staircases. |
| Can be used on wood, tiles and carpeted floors. | Can’t be used to spot clean garages or basements that have clutter such as boxes or other items on the floor. |
| Can be used to supplement regular vacuuming i.e. run the robot in between full manual vacuuming to keep dust at bay. | If you have dust allergies or simply like a dust-free home, it’s likely only useful while also actually vacuuming your home. |
| Tends to be good at removing dust, pet fur, hair and other light debris on flat surfaces. | Not cheap. Better brands are $200 and up and although prices are coming down, you’re paying for convenience and not powerful suction. |
| Not loud when compared to regular vacuums. While a robot vac is about 55 dB, a vacuum cleaner is upwards of 80 dB in terms of its motor noise. | Can easily get stuck on small rises (ends of rugs) and clogged with the ends of curtains or other items on the floor. |
| Higher end models can be programmed to vacuum at convenient times i.e. when no one is in the home. | Over time the battery life will decrease and parts wear out so a decision needs to be made as to replacement or repair, possibly sooner when compared to a regular vacuum. |
| Comes with a sensor that you can place on the floor so that it avoids certain areas. | If your floors are cluttered, you may have to spend time cleaning up and picking things off the floor before turning the robot vac on. |
| Higher end models can “learn” your room layout to properly clean the entire area. | Robot vacs can run out of battery or get stuck under a bed or sofa which could make it difficult for some people to remove. |
| Bump sensors ensure that the vac doesn’t damage furniture that it runs into. | The charging unit sensors can become finicky if the robot vac isn’t actually sitting exactly on the base properly. |
My personal experience with a robotic vacuum
Overall I find that robotic vacuums are handy complements to regular vacuuming. We use ours several times per week and it’s convenient to set it loose on each level of the house to pick up noticeable dust and debris that has appeared since the vac was last used.
On flat floors made of wood or tiles, the robot vac works quite well. It easily moves around on its own and tends to cover the entire area and cleans it well of noticeable dirt.
On thicker carpets, the motor slows down as the brush can’t move as easily. I’ve had instances where I used the robot vac on carpeting and later that day vacuumed the same carpet with my regular upright vacuum and it filled the dust canister with significant dirt that the robot vac clearly missed.
Often the rotating brush can scatter small hard dust rather than sucking it up so it isn’t necessarily 100% accurate at vacuuming in that regard. Clumps of hair are often left on carpets and when vacuuming is done, you usually need to remove the brushes to pull out the accumulated hair.
I still have to manually sweep and clean stairs. I often find myself using a broom to collect dirt from tight fitting spots that the robot vac can’t get and then sweeping it in front of the robot to pick up.
Clearly, you also can’t use your robot vac to clean sofas or your car as you can with a regular vac.
Summary
A robot vac is often best used several days per week to get ahead of dirt and dust and keep your floors clean. So if you hate seeing noticeable dust, you can run it a few times per week to get rid of surface dirt.
Robot vacs do provide convenience at a cost i.e. lower suction. They can be a nice addition to your home vacuum and if you have a small space such as a condo with flat floors, you might find that it’s all you need.
Robot vacs work best on flat floors and can do tiles and wood quite well. Low carpets can have surface dirt removed as can higher pile ones but you will not get the same suction from a robot vac as with a traditional vacuum.