Post by countthestars on May 3, 2024 8:56:06 GMT -5
Our dog sheds so much that I think it's time we got a robot vacuum. We had one a few years ago that got caught on our high pile rugs, but we've since switched them out with Tumble (like Ruggable).
We have bar stools that I assume will get in the way. Do you move your bar stools before running the vacuum?
Would you buy open box if you're not sure you'll like it/use it much?
Any recommendations on which brands to buy? I think Eufy, Shark, Roomba?
I had a very basic eufy that worked really well. I got the basic model bc I didn't want to spend too much before I knew if I'd use it. I loved that thing.
When it died, I "upgraded" to an actual Roomba brand because I thought it would be better. Maybe I just got a lemon, but it stopped working within months, right after the return period closed. Even if the Roomba had worked, it's taller than the eufy so it doesn't fit under our couches. Which was a big bummer since a big plus to the robot vacuum was that I didn't need to move the couches to vacuum under them. It's also louder than the eufy was.
In summary: I'd recommend eufy brand. I'd measure the clearance under your couches and make sure the vacuum fits under them, and I recommend a vacuum with mapping so that you can direct it to certain rooms or restrict certain rooms as needed.
ETA: I didn't always move the bar stools, but would sometimes if it seemed especially crumb-y underneath them. Ours are rectangular though so technically the vacuum could run under them.
We have a pretty basic Eufy model. It just bumps around our chairs/barstools. We have some flat ruggable-type rugs and sometimes it rolls the corners of them up a bit. The only place it gets stuck is on our swivel recliner. It has a metal base (kind of like this one: www.westelm.com/products/clay-swivel-recliner-h7842/) and I think it drives up one of the 'arms' and gets stuck.
What is your budget? What features do you care about?
I recently bought the Narwal Freo X Ultra, which is probably more than you want if you aren't sold on the robot vac concept. They are coming out with a more intro-level version (I think it's called the Narwal Freo Plus?) that is only $400 but has a lot of higher end features. I'm very impressed with the Narwal. My floors have never been cleaner. The two biggest selling features for me are that it doesn't have an onboard camera (it uses a laser array for navigation/mapping) and it has a certified tangle-free brush. I have 2 dogs and no hair has been tangled in the brush yet! I'm also completely blown away by how much dirt this thing picks up on every run.
Narwal is a newer player in the robot vacuum market, but I've had my eye on them for a couple of years. There are a few compromises, but overall I'm very happy with my decision. As long as your bar stools are big enough for the robot to get into, the Narwal will be able to navigate in and around them.
One other thought, my previous robot vacuum was a shark and I kind of hated it. It did a decent job cleaning, but it took 3 weeks of running it daily to map my house. And then one day it moved it's saved location of the base to the other side of the room. So if I wanted it to clean a specific room, it couldn't find it because it would leave the base and turn in the opposite direction. As long as I just told it to run without a specific room to clean, it was fine.
By comparison, the Narwal mapped my house in about 10 minutes.
I've had a Roomba and an Eufy and prefer the Eufy. (But I had the Roomba years ago so maybe an unfair comparison if the technology improved.) Eufy just works more effectively; I felt like the Roomba would do the same spots over and over and miss areas.
The only thing I wish my Eufy had (and I haven't researched so maybe newer/better models do?) is the ability to use the magnetic strips the Roomba had to block it from going certain places. For instance, the Eufy gets stuck under my couch, so I'd love the ability to put the strips under my rug to prevent it from going under in the first place.
I have 2 Shark robot vac. One is more expensive and can map my house. The other one is a cheaper version and has no special features. The more expensive one is much quieter and follows a specific cleaning pattern. The cheaper one is louder and changes its cleaning pattern as soon as it encounters something. Overall, I love them. I run one every day and I am amazed at the amount of dirt it picks up everyday, especially dust.
I've had the expensive one for almost 6 years now. I replaced the battery last year and it's as good as new. I deep clean them every now and then.
I have an old Roomba that we bought refurb at the time (no unusual, we buy most electronics refurbished). It’s still going strong (in fact, it’s going right now!) but we do not have pets.
I have no experience with other robot vacuums,; this is my first. But I do prefer it to our regular Dyson (which I will still use every few weeks) bc it can get under furniture which makes a huge difference in dust imo.
I do move chairs for it though. It can kind of get confused bw all the legs occasionally
Post by SusanBAnthony on May 3, 2024 10:28:11 GMT -5
We have a basic Eufy that we have been happy with. We don't move chairs or any other furniture. We do have cords all organized/put up in some way, like with command hooks.
We don't have area rugs so can't comment on that.
We have had ours for 2-3 years and just replaced the battery (less than 20$).
Do you like the Tumble rugs? I have one Ruggable that I'm very meh on other than I can wash it.
I do! They seem to be pretty stain resistant - even when the dog got sick on it, I just sprayed with Folex and didn't put it in the washing machine. We have a little bit of curling on the most trafficked edge, but nothing as bad as my sister in law's Ruggable. Both of ours are the largest size and they barely fit in my machine - if I had to wash them again I'd probably go to a laundry mat (which isn't really the rug's fault, but it's not as easy as the ads make it seem for me to machine wash them from home!).
What is your budget? What features do you care about?
I recently bought the Narwal Freo X Ultra, which is probably more than you want if you aren't sold on the robot vac concept. They are coming out with a more intro-level version (I think it's called the Narwal Freo Plus?) that is only $400 but has a lot of higher end features. I'm very impressed with the Narwal. My floors have never been cleaner. The two biggest selling features for me are that it doesn't have an onboard camera (it uses a laser array for navigation/mapping) and it has a certified tangle-free brush. I have 2 dogs and no hair has been tangled in the brush yet! I'm also completely blown away by how much dirt this thing picks up on every run.
Narwal is a newer player in the robot vacuum market, but I've had my eye on them for a couple of years. There are a few compromises, but overall I'm very happy with my decision. As long as your bar stools are big enough for the robot to get into, the Narwal will be able to navigate in and around them.
The Narwal seems amazing! It's a bit out of my budget while we're still not completely sold, but definitely one I'd consider in the future.