In case you every wondered...what a difference my robot has made!!!

[seismic wonder2]

UPDATE:

When I got home it was in the docking station full of crud.

The cats sit there and watch it. They rotate the "guard" so the other can eat, sleep, and poo.

DW thinks it's cute but creepy because it chased her across the room.

The floor is clean and "I" didn't have to lift a finger (except to empty and clean the brush)

I think I'll check out the computer interface and see what others have done with it.

***evil thoughts***

 

[luvarabhorses]

Your poor kitties!

Well I was disappointed yesterday. I got a message from Amazon that their deal of the day was a 550 for $179.00. I received the Dirt Dog on July 10th and while I love it, this came with two virtual walls,programmable cleaning. docking port, heavy duty battery, vaccuums as well as sweeps, extra filters and is normally $399. I called Roomba and asked if I could exchange mine plus some cash for a 550 from them. I'm told they don't make the 550, it is made for 3rd parties and the closest is the 560 (I think that was the number). I said that was fine. Anyway, long story short, it was like the scene in Monty Python Holy Grail where the French are telling the English they already have a Holy Grail.

First they could come down 20% with no exchange, then 35% with no exchange then they sent me over to warranty where they would only send me another model if there was a problem with this one. I told them I liked DD but wish I had one that vacuumed because of the pets in my house. We went around and around but basically unless I hang up the phone, smash my DD with a sledge hammer and call them back, they couldn't do anything.
Based on how nice they had been with my Mom, the $89 upgrade exchange they had sent me emails about, etc... I thought they might let me. Anyway, I guess they are a normal company, not an extraordinary company.
I still love DD and he does a great job. It is almost like when you buy a computer and are told but for this extra amount of money you can get this bell and whistle....just human nature I suppose.

 

[wegotchickens]

Wow, does Amazon still have the 550 deal available???

 

[seismic wonder2]

UPDATE:
I came home today to find the bot NOT in it's docking station and everything quiet.

I went looking, Found it in the kitchen choking on a dishtowell. It was dead laying in the floor. I pulled out the rag and pressed "dock" It wouldn't move until I cleaned the brushes...

After it's ordeal it staggared around the kitchen for a few and finally made it back into the docking station OK.

We'll see what happens tomorrow.

 

[luvarabhorses]

Wegot, no it ended when they sold out around 4pm, so my pleadings with Roomba were empty threats at that point-unbeknowenst to them!

Seismic, I like your description:

I went looking, Found it in the kitchen choking on a dishtowell. It was dead laying in the floor.

I have that sort of relationship with mine, not the total panic of if a pet was hurt-but not really thinking of it as an appliance either. The first time mine sucked up a sock, I got rather angry with my companion/partner/florange- the great Phil- because he hadn't completely closed his closet door. Fortunately, mine, i call him Hector, recovered, and I realized that Phil hadn't intentionally tried to injure him.
Does yours have a name yet? Praying for a speedy recovery!​

 

[AkTomboy]

Yall are awesome!!! I have been wanting one forever and ever. Now I can make the hubby read all 8 pages

I do have dogs with long hair so I guess we will have to see about that question. And now I want a scooba!! I never even knew they had one!

 

[ERnoleGuy]

My family and I (in various locations) own a total of 4 Roombas and one Scooba. I absolutely love them. The Roomba is absolutely essential if you have as many pets as we do. It's like someone swept the floor for me everyday magically. We have mainly tile everywhere, and with 5 dogs and 2 cats, it saves so much time and keeps the house nice and tidy. Granted, every now and then I still have to vacuum and do a deep cleaning, but for keeping the floors nice day to day, the Roomba does its job very well.

If you are going to buy one, splurge and get the one with the automatic docking station, virtual lighthouses (like the virtual walls, but will clean one room, then move on to the next too), and most importantly... the built in SCHEDULER. It goes off when no one is home. Like magic.

The Scooba is a good machine, but I recommend it only for certain settings. Its great at small rooms, with tile that is nice and smooth, and think grout lines. Our living room has textured tile and fairly large grout lines, and sometimes I have to clean up after it has cleaned already. But still, the Scooba is a super cool machine.

Now if only they'd perfect the one that cuts the lawn and make one affordable, I'd be in heaven. Oh, and one that can vacuum stairs. That'd be nice too.

My Two Cents

 

[wegotchickens]

Thanks, luvarabhorses. Will have to keep a closer eye on sales I guess.

But DH still insists this is just an expensive toy

 

[chicken stalker]

Quote:
I agree. One that is hockey puck size to do the stairs and a little scooba to do my counters......LOL It would be like a little robot family, Puckie (my 560) and Scooba and thier little bots.

 

[verlaj]

I discovered the first problem with my Dirt Dog yesterday. I took out the brushes to clean them and discovered that the little white plastic or Teflon piece that lines the recess where the square end of the small diameter brush is seated had been torn up. I think what happened is hair got wrapped around that end and the brush couldn't turn on the bearing, and the plastic liner in the recess then got damaged.

I am going to contact iROBOT about this - but has anyone else experienced this?