Use Tape To Keep Roomba From Leaving Marks On Your Floors

There are several reasons why your Roomba may be leaving marks on your floor.

1. The most common reason is that something is stuck in the wheels or a wheel is stuck.
2. The front wheel can get clogged or have a flat spot which makes it drag across the floor, leaving black marks.
3. Dirty brushes or something stuck in the brushes can also leave marks on the floor.
4. Another possibility is that the Roomba has run over something like dog poop or mud and that is what is leaving the marks on your floor.
5. Finally, something is caught under your Roomba, and it’s dragging it across your home.

If the wheels of your robot vacuum keeps leaving marks, then wrap the wheels in blue painters tape.

This will help determine what is causing the markings and protect the floors.

How To Clean And Check Roomba Wheels

Flip your Roomba over and check the wheels.

You want to make sure the wheels spin freely and have nothing stuck in them. If the wheels have something stuck in them, you’ll need to remove them.

Here is how:

1. Unplug your Roomba from its charging base and turn it over.
2. Remove the dustbin and clean it out.
3. Take a look at the wheels and brushes to see if there is anything stuck in them.
4. If you see something stuck in the wheels, use a small object like a Q-tip to remove it. Be careful not to damage the wheels by using a blunt metal object like a screwdriver. The wheels are rubber, and something sharp can damage them and leave marks on your floor.
5. Feel free to use rubbing alcohol to clean any stuck on or wet items off the wheels.
6. If the wheels are damaged or not easy to fix, you can order new wheels for your Roomba. (Amazon Link Ad)

Check Front Wheel

If you think the issue is with the front wheel, you’ll need to check it to see if it’s stuck or something is caught under your Roomba.

Follow these steps:

1. Unplug your Roomba and turn it over.
2. Take a look at the front wheel to see if there is anything stuck in it or if it’s damaged or has a flat spot.
3. If there is something stuck in the wheel, use a small object like a Q-tip to remove it. You can use a flat head screwdriver on this wheel as it’s solid plastic.
4. Feel free to using rubbing alcohol to clean any wet or stuck debris off the wheels.
5. If the wheel is too damaged, you’ll need to replace it with a new front caster wheel. (Amazon Link Ad)

I’ve seen gum be an issue or anything sticky get on this front wheel and make it drag across the house which leaves marks on the floor.

Sometimes you’ll need to replace the front wheel if it’s bad enough, for example, if there is a flat spot in the wheel caster.

Roomba Dragging Items Under It

If your Roomba is dragging items under it, this can cause it to leave marks on your floor.

From kids and dog toys, to even dog poop, it can get stuck under your robot vacuum and leave marks on your floors as it cleans. Besides poop, the most crazy thing I’ve seen is a marker that got stuck under it and caused it to leak out and leave ink everywhere.

Here is how you clean debris from under your Roomba:

1. Unplug your Roomba and turn it over.
2. Take a look under your Roomba to see if there is anything caught or stuck in it.
3. If you see something, use a clean rag and rubbing alcohol to remove it. Remember, your Roomba sits low, so make sure to get anything that looks odd from it.
4. You can also use a can of compressed air to blow any stuck on debris out from under it.
5. Make sure it’s not your battery expanding and pushing the plastic to deform and that is what is leaving marks. Not super common on Roombas, but “cheaper” robot vacuums that used cheap LIPO batteries, it can be an issue.

After you’ve checked and cleaned under your robot vacuum, put it back together and give it a test run to see if it’s still leaving marks on your floor.