10 Best Rated Robot Vacuum Tricks Experts Recommend

Best Rated Robot Vacuum Cleaner

Robot vacuums are fantastic to keep your floors clean but they are not a substitute for the regular vacuum. Even the most powerful robots struggle to get deep into carpets or rugs, and can often get tangled in cords and socks.

Your robot will last longer if you carry out regular maintenance. This includes replacing filters, removing hairs that have become tangled off brushes and emptying the dustbin.

Battery Life

Most robot vacuums are equipped to handle a couple of cleaning sessions without having to be charged. The runner-up of our overall selections is the Ecovacs Deebot Q30S Combo comes with a battery rated to last up to 180 minutes (3,230 square feet) of cleaning time on a single charge. That amount of runtime is enough to clean the majority of smaller homes that have the combination of hard floors and carpets with low pile or a larger house in which the rooms are about the same size.

A longer battery lifespan also means that the robot will spend more time cleaning, and less time charging on its dock. You should select one with a self cleaning vacuum cleaner-emptying bin. These models are more efficient at picking up debris and returning back to the dock to recharge. It is also essential to clean or replace the filter and wipe down sensors and cameras on a regular basis to ensure they can see your home clearly.

Smart mapping technology is a great feature to look for since it permits you to program your robot to only clean certain rooms or avoid areas that it's likely to crash into furniture or other obstacles. This feature is also useful to ensure that your robot can reach under and around furniture such as sofas, beds and other large objects. Some robovacs that are inexpensive have boundaries that you can place on the floor to block off areas while other high-end models make use of sensors and cameras to achieve this goal.

Even the most powerful robot vacuums can't replace a conventional vac for heavy-duty dirt and debris. It is recommended to keep a power robotic vacuum cleaner reviews on hand to tackle these tasks, and also schedule robot vacs to do light cleaning throughout the week.

Navigation

A robot should be capable of moving around your home without getting caught or running into objects like metal screws or pet hair, or sand. In our tests, a tracking device is used to follow the robot around the multi-room lab. It then tracks its surroundings. We also check how well the robot can avoid obstacles such as power cords, furniture leg, and pet waste.

The most advanced robots are able to map out multiple floors, and recognize landmarks such as doors and windows. The most advanced robots such as the Roborock S8 Pro Ultra have a dual sensor navigation system that uses a LIDAR to draw a room's layout and a structured-light camera at the front to detect objects in real-time. The S8 can evade obstacles such as power cords as well as legs of furniture. It also has the ability to store up to four floor maps.

The majority of the models that are affordable use bump sensors, which are not as accurate. In my tests they were able to detect dog poop through cords, as well as a pair of shoes placed in the middle. The most affordable choice the Dreametech D10+, is an exception to this. It has excellent carpet and hard floor pickup, excellent hair and tangle pickup and an almost perfect auto empty score.

A large onboard dustbin, that doesn't need to be emptying manually is another aspect that's crucial. If you have models that mop the floor, this water tank can provide enough water for several weeks of cleaning sessions. The Karcher RCV 5 comes with this feature and has a large enough footprint that it can go under furniture however, it's not so huge that it doesn't fit into the space between your bathtub and toilet.

Apps

Robot vacuums are a lot like upright vacuums, and it takes lots of technology to get them up to speed. There are many alternatives available in a marketplace that is mature. Even the best models require interaction from their customers, especially when it comes to schedule cleaning, make a the floor plan of your home and install virtual barriers.

Think about a model that has its own app that can recognize the layout of your home and save these settings for future use. This will let the robot vacuum start where it left off in subsequent runs, instead of having to restart the mapping process each time.

Also, look for models that provide zones or spot cleaning. You can instruct the robot vacuum cleaner to concentrate on a specific area, for example, under the table after a huge family meal. You can use the app or voice commands.

The ability to avoid objects is another feature that's included in several models. It lets the robot observe something in its path, like shoes, a crate of dog toys or a crate filled with dog toys, and guide itself around it. This will stop it from hitting objects which could harm its sensors or cause jams.

This feature is offered on some of the more expensive models we tried. However, they usually rely on bump sensors for this, and they weren't always able to stay clear of things in my test homes.

Pet Hair

When it comes to picking up pet hair, look for a model that's designed specifically to handle this type of debris. The most effective models will have the highest suction, a brush which keeps hair from tangling and an automated emptying mechanism. Some can also detect dirt levels and adjust the cleaning intensity according to the amount of dirt. They can also detect items that aren't part of your flooring like furniture, toys, food bowls, cords, and more.

Some robot vacuums include pet-friendly features, such as a water dispenser that can be used for mopping floors, and an HEPA filter that can help reduce allergens like pet dander. They might also offer an operation that is quieter, which can reduce the amount of noise generated during cleaning sessions.

Robot vacuums that have the ability to map are a great option for pet owners since they are designed to analyze your home and create plans of attack based on the layout and obstructions in every room. Shark Matrix Plus is a dual-purpose robot vacuum that can map a room, navigate around furniture, and other obstacles by using accelerometers and gyroscope smart robot sensors.

Other advanced models let you set no-go zones, which are areas that the robot is supposed to avoid--like fragile items or pet feeding spots--by adjusting settings through an app. This feature is especially beneficial for families with busy schedules, since you can schedule cleaning times without having to be in the space where the vacuum is. Spot cleaning is another great feature. You can instruct the vacuum cleaner to clean a space that is particularly filthy or is brimming with pet hair.

Dust Bin

Unless you're looking for something small, you'll want to choose a robot capable of holding at least a full bag of garbage from a single cleaning session. We recommend choosing the one with a large bin, or even a dustbin that self-empties. The former will allow you to keep up with emptying your bin often enough to maintain its performance. The second will save you time and effort by automatically dropping the contents into an inner container every few cleanings.

Find models that have smart mapping capabilities, which enable them to "learn" the layout of your house and plan more efficient routes. They can also sense and avoid objects that could block their paths (like shoelaces or tangled charging cables). Find models with smart mapping capabilities that permit them to "learn" the patterns of your house and plan more efficient routes, and ones that can sense and avoid objects that may hinder their routes (like shoelaces or the tangled charging cables).

Some models also provide spot cleaning, which allows you to manually target a particular area of your house for intensive cleaning. We've found that most of the top performers in our tests can pick up fine particles like sand and baking soda, as well as heavier particles like oatmeal, orzo pasta, metal screws, and pet hair.

According to the brand the company, robots can last for years and perform as well, so long as they're maintained. For example cleaning hair tangled of brushes and emptying dust bins after each use, and wiping cameras and sensors down when needed. The best-performing robots also tend to be more modular, which makes them easier and cheaper to repair or replace components like batteries and wheels when they get worn out.