When it comes to the furry chaos left behind by our four-legged friends, robot vacuums like Roomba’s are like unsung heroes. They’re like little cleaning sidekicks that excel at tackling pet hair and other pesky debris.
Now, here’s the interesting part: Roomba’s have a special knack for handling pet hair, but they sometimes stumble when it comes to long human hair. You see, pet hair often clumps together, making it an easy target for these robotic cleaners. Human hair, on the other hand, loves to twist and twirl around the brushes, creating a bit of a hassle.
But here’s a friendly tip for fellow pet parents: those air filters in your robot vacuum can get clogged with pet hair and dander. If you happen to be an allergy sufferer, like yours truly, it’s crucial to keep a watchful eye on those filters and be ready to replace them a bit more often. Trust me, your nose and lungs will appreciate the effort! So, let your Roomba be your pet hair superhero, just don’t forget to give it a filter sidekick.
Why Is Dog Hair So Tricky To Clean Off Floors?
It’s not just dog hair, but all hair that is tricky to clean from floors and carpets. What makes dog hair the worst is that they shed so much more and it clumps up.
Since robot vacuums don’t have a lot of suction, they rely on the spinning brushes to do most of the cleaning. When these brushes get clogged, they lose their cleaning power.
With the right robot vacuum, and they make them, you can find a perfect match for all the hair problems you run into.
What If It’s A Lot Of Dog Hair!?
A Roomba can handle a fair amount of dog hair before it becomes overwhelmed and needs to be emptied.
I find the Roomba can hold more dog hair than other debris your robot vacuum will suck up because the hair can compress.
The hair clumps do affect suction, but robot vacuums tend to use their beater brushes more to clean, so it’s not a huge effect. Though, you will need to empty your robot vacuum out more if you have a dog that sheds a lot.
Without a dog, I can go a week without having to empty my dustbin, but with a dog, it’s 2 or 3 times a week depending on the year. This is why self-emptying robot vacuums are a must!
The Best Option For Dog Hair
The best type of robot vacuum for dog hair will be any model with rotating brushes and a self-emptying option.
I, personally, think the iRobot Roomba S9+ (Amazon Link Ad) is the best robot vacuum for dog hair. The way it handles pet hair, and its self-emptying feature, is just a must for any pet owner.
It also has a side brush that helps get all the pet hair in corners and along baseboards where pets like to lay.
The self-emptying feature is also great because you don’t have to constantly be emptying your robot vacuum, and here is a tip, use a shop vacuum to clean out the bags to save yourself money.
Carpet Vs. Hardwood
A Roomba does quite well on both carpets and hardwood floors, but I say they work a little better on hard floors.
Roomba does have the dual brushes to help with cleaning carpets that many robot vacuums lack, this is a huge feature which makes Roomba’s work so well.
The trick is to let the Roomba, or any robot vacuum, work until it’s done, especially if your robot vacuum uses random navigation.
Sometimes the robot vacuum may miss a spot, but that doesn’t mean it’s not coming back to it. You need to let them work no matter the floor you have, and you’ll see how effective they can be.
The Perks Of Robot Vacuums For Cleaning Up All The Pet Hair
Pet hair can get everywhere, most often in places you miss with your normal vacuum cleaner.
The biggest perk when it comes to robot vacuums and pet hair is that they can reach places you can’t. Like under furniture, and they clean in a different pattern than you, so they’ll get things you simply miss on your cleanings.
How To Clean Dog Hair From Roomba
You’ll need to maintain your Roomba just like any other vacuum you own by cleaning it out and replacing parts when needed.
Cleaning the dog hair from your Roomba is simple, most models have a self-cleaning feature where the brushes will spin in reverse and push all the hair clumps off.
You can also use a toothbrush or small brush to help remove stubborn hair clumps.
Sometimes scissors are needed to cut the hair free, some robot vacuums come with a cleaning tool that looks like a mail opener that can be used to clean the hair from the brushes.
I recommend doing this once a week or at least once a month, to keep your Roomba running smoothly and prevent any issues with pet hair down the road.
What To Do If Roomba Is Not Picking Up Pet Hair?
If you find your Roomba isn’t picking up dog hair as well as it used too, there could be several reasons for this.
- Check the brushes and make sure they are spinning freely and not tangled with hair.
- Second, check the dustbin to make sure it’s not full and restricting suction.
- Third, check the filters to make sure they’re not clogged or need to be replaced.
- And forth, if you have a self-emptying Roomba, check the bags and make sure they aren’t full or need to be replaced.
The dustbin and filter get dirty quickly with the pet hair and dander, so make sure they’re clean if your robot vacuum is not picking up as well as it used to.
Keep In Mind, Some Dogs Don’t Like Robot Vacuums
Some dogs may be frightened of the noise Roomba’s make, but for the most part, they don’t mind them. In fact, some dogs even think Roomba’s are toys.
You may find your dog playing with the Roomba, especially if it bumps into one of its toys.
Cats seem to love them, and we have plenty of YouTube videos of them riding them.
Roomba’s and other robot vacuums don’t nearly get as loud as other vacuum cleaners, so pets tend not to be afraid of them. To them, it’s no more scary than you having the TV on loudly.