Are you thinking of buying one of those robot vacuum cleaners and wondering if it’s going to be useful or just a waste of money? In this post, I’m going to share with you my experience of using robot vacuum cleaner in my HDB flat.

Why Robot Vacuum Cleaner?

To be completely honest, the very reason why I decided to get robot vacuum cleaner is because I hate vacuuming. I hate bending my back and my shoulder. Even though I still prefer vacuuming than the traditional sweeping method when it comes to cleaning the floor, I still don’t feel 100% happy doing it. And that is a problem because I generally love cleaning my home and I always try to find the best solution for every chore I have to make cleaning more enjoyable.

I’ve been using robot vacuum for about 10 months now. I use it every other day and if you just straight want to know my overall opinion about it is that… I LOVE IT. It saves me a lot of time and effort. I personally feel that robot vacuum cleaner is one of the best investments I made in my cleaning journey. There isn’t a day goes by that I’m not grateful for having one around in apartment.

BUT, that is based on my own personal experience. You might like it just as much as I do or you might hate it too. So please consider carefully before you make a decision of buying one.

So, is robot vacuum cleaner worth it?

The short answer is… it depends on your living habit.

Robot vacuum is for you if…

• You are a busy/lazy bee
• You or anyone in the house drops hair here and there
• You have pets
• You hate vacuuming (and you care about the health of your shoulder and back!)

If you are a busy person that has little time to deal with housekeeping, having a cleaning robot that cleans while you are working makes the most sense. There will be time when you are not exactly busy too, you are just… eh, lazy not motivated. And that is when you wish you have a robot that will clean for you.

A robot vacuum will be a great help if you or anyone in the house constantly drops something on the floor, including your pet’s hair. Even though your pets don’t shed a lot, robot vacuum also helps pick up pet dander or other nasty particles your pets leave behind. My dog, Momo, doesn’t really shed, but I do drop hair everyday and it’s very annoying to see it laying around the whole house. Now ever since I got a robot vacuum, it can efficiently pick up the hair (and other dust) off the floor whenever I want it to and I do it almost effortlessly.

And the best thing about using a robot instead of conventional vacuum cleaner is that… I don’t have to bend ever again! Well, unless to clear out the dustbin from the robot when it’s full but that’s it!

However, robot vacuum may not be suitable for you if…

• You like to leave things on the floor
• You have many tight and narrow floor areas
• The flooring in your home has many different levels

Robot vacuum will not work great if you have a lot of obstacles around the floor. It tends to suck up small and lightweight items pretty brutally. One time I unintentionally left my Christmas lights string laying on the floor and the robot suck it up and it tangled inside the wiper mouth. It was such a horror! So now I always make sure I lift up what I can lift up off the floor (such as floor mats, shoes or door stopper) before the robot starts cleaning.

Also, since it doesn’t come with a variety of nozzle like old-fashioned vacuum cleaner does, you can’t expect them to clean narrow area such as the space between wall and cabinet. So if you have a lot of stuff in your house that create narrow spaces such as vases, shelves, statues or ornaments on the floor, you may need to still clean most of the places yourself.

Another thing to note is that even if the robot can go through a carpet or rug (mine is up to 2cm barrier height), but if you have many different flooring levels around your home, the robot will not ‘climb’ through it and you have to carry it manually in each level. If you have staircase in your home, the robot vacuum obviously will not be able to clean each step (unless you get a cleaning robot that can climb up the stairs – did they invent that yet?). In this case, using the conventional vacuum cleaner might just works better.

What do you think about robot vacuum cleaner? If you have one, do you think it is useful or just a waste of money?