Is Roomba any good for us (quilters)?
 

I am so tempted to get one. Imagine the little guy sweeping up threads and small pieces of fabric!
But I am unsure because I've tried a Shark sweeper before, and the "rollers" get entangled by the threads! I know they are different, but I just want to hear more.
Anyone with a Roomba can share his/her experience?
Thanks:)

I havent tried a roomba in my sewing room, it did a good job just vaccuming the house tho. Because I have 2 long haired cats, I would have to clean the roller bar out after every use, and sometimes it needed to be done during use too.

I have one too and love it. It does a great job but haven't used it in the sewing room yet. I am worried about ruining the rollers from all the thread.

Same concern here!

I have about made up my mind to gat a Mint. It cleans and light washes too. Have read all the info on it and think I will go with this instead of the Rumba.

The Roomba comes with a tool that easily cuts the threads from the rollers. It's a plastic tool, with claws on one side and a hidden razor blade on the other. You slide the razor blade down the brushes once, and then use the claw side to make quick work of removing the threads. Of course, I've never used mine. My quilting room never has threads on the floor. (cough, cough... gasp, coughing more)

I don't have enough room for the roomba to work much, besides I love my $15 little Bissel 3 in 1 stick vac. It stays plugged in and I just run it around the room lickety split!

I think they are neat, BUT I already trip over our 3 cats who always seem to be no further than 3 feet from me all the time. Lol. I thought my kids were grown. ;)

My favorite part about the roomba when I had it...It sat in its little dock, and the cats apparently liked walking on it, including stepping on the on button on the top of the machine. It was always a nice surprise to come home and find that the cats had vaccumed. Of course the roomba always ended up in one of the back bedrooms, too lost to find its way back to the dock. And it always ran out of battery charge while it was way back under the bed.

I have too much junk on my floor! I have the Dyson Animal. Very powerful

A nice thing about the Roomba scheduler, you can set it to go off at 2 AM so it's done by the time you wake up! It has wall thingees you can put in doorways to keep it from going where you don't want it to go. Mine wore itself out, I need to buy a new one! They are faaabulous for a house with all wood floors and a cat!

I have all hard surface floors so I went with a Mint. You can use Swifter Sheets with it, but I cut up left over cotton batting and use that. I love it. It also mops. It does come with 2 cloths for sweeping and 1 cloth for mopping, but I can't seem to get them washed prior to when I want to use again. Well worth the investment.

Ah, another one to look into. Thanks! So this sweeps and mops, that is one up compared to Roomba:)

There is a 'new' one out that is being advertised on TV that uses a swifter pad, I think it is called Mint automatic floor cleaner and is being sold by Bed Bath and Beyond.....now that may be good for a sewing room, no rollers.

My husband gave me one a few years ago for Christmas. (Yes, you get that kind of gift after 50 years of marriage). It was really his toy. Mine didn't vacuum, it just swept up like the old fashioned carpet sweepers. My sewing room floor space is so small that it really didn't have much area to go and do it's thing. We stopped using it when the battery died and the replacement ones were so very expensive.

I loved mine, but like Lucio when the battery went dead, I have not replaced it. They are very expensive. Although I can say it did last a long time. Maybe one of these days I will break down and get another.

The Roomba is fantastic! I use it in my sewing room all the time. Threads clean off great with the little tool Roomba has.

I don't have anything on my floor. Am I the only one? I have the little pin cushions with bags bags hanging on my cutting table and sewing machine table. As I make a mess I put the threads and scraps in there. The biggest problem I had was pins but now I use the bigger ones with heads and I can find them if I drop them.

I don't have anything on my floor. Am I the only one? I have the little pin cushions with bags hanging on my cutting table and sewing machine table. As I make a mess I put the threads and scraps in there. The biggest problem I had was pins but now I use the bigger ones with heads and I can find them if I drop them.

Me too. A Roomba wouldn't touch it. It would run under the nearest piece of furniture and hide!

Hope we get more opinions on this. I have been looking at the Mint and the Roomba also. I trust the opinions on this board.

I'd rather be a jeannie and just blink to get my housework done! lol!

Love, love, love my roomba! I just got a new one for a great price at Costco.
My old one last 3 years on one battery. New battery was about $60 with coupon so $20 a year, but right after I got the new battery the brushes stopped turning so a new one was needed. I don't have any carpets so I think that makes it easier on the machine. If anyone comes out with a machine that will clean itself, that will be the one to buy!
I've never checked out the mint.

I had one I have to get a new battery for it but I loved it! It was great with dog hair since I have 2 dogs. I didn't try it with threads but i'm sure it would be fine

Hahaha.. I would love for my husband to buy me a roomba!
I can get the clothes/fabrics/fancy stuff I want myself (just charge to his card)!

Like snipforfun, I'll stick with my Dyson, and I have considered a Roomba; but fear my cats would freak out big time!

Me too... I can't imagine the path the Roomba would have to take to get around everything. Also, I always seem to drop pins on the floor - the reason there is an "always wear shoes" rule in my studio - and I'm not sure what that would do to a Roomba. I too have a Dyson Animal vac and a Dyson stick vac, both of which work like a charm in getting all those nasty little threads picked up.

Under the Bed!! That's where mine ends up too!! BUT I LOVE IT!! Works great in the sewing room. Does get tangled with threads, but the equipment that comes with the Roomba cuts it out in no time. I make it a a part of the routine. Grabbed a bobbin once, and made enough racket that I fixed it right a way, but it did pick it up. (Didn't realize I had dropped one!) I have a Black Lab that sheds everywhere!! Roomba can handle that!!

I have bought three this last year. Two as gifts!! Go for it!!

There is a tool that contractors use that has a magnetic bottom. I bought mine at Lowe's or Home Depot. You just run it around where you dropped it and it picks up pens great. I keep one beside me at all times. (I got a pin in my foot and had to have the doctor remove it>)

Wait wait wait. You quilters clean?

Good thread... I have been looking at these too... 2 dogs and 2 cats...
Thanks to all for your input...

Do you all have sparcely furnished homes without things laying around on the floor like tv trays, dog beds, floor lamps and wires under the TV cabinet? My DH says one of those won't work in our house because of that stuff. How does it work around the dining room table and chair legs? Most of our floors are hard wood except one bedroom and an area rug in the living room.
I can't vacuum because of my neck and shoulder injury and dh waits too long between times of sweeping up dog hair to make me happy. LOL...

OOOhhhh watch out - your nose is growing!

I have bought three this last year. Two as gifts!! Go for it!![/QUOTE]

How much are they, generally? Also, does anyone know offhand about how much the Mint runs? Thanks in advance.

Are you ladies per chance "Breaking Bad" fans? This past week's episode prominently featured a Roomba. Now I really want one!!! But I'm afraid it would scare my doggy too bad. Does it scare your pets?

Depending on the model. they run $300 and up. Those with HEPA filters and all the bells and whistles are a lot pricier.

I am not sure if it scares pets. But I do see youtube videos of cats dancing around it, some even sitting on it like a kiddie ride!

Well, I hate to rain on everyone's parade, but I don't think I'll be getting a Roomba or anything like it. A friend sent me a picture of a home with a Roomba and a "bad" dog. Apparently, while the owner was at work, the dog pooped on a rug and the Roomba tried to clean it up. The owner came home to a house with brown smears criss-crossing everywhere, and I mean EVERYWHERE! If you don't have inside animals, or if your animals are perfect angels and never make a mess, then no problem. But I think I'll keep my furbabies and stick to the old fashioned vacuum cleaner.

my dh bought me a childs rake and this what i use to rake my strings and pieces; it works great ::::::::::

OMG!!! That must be a nightmare to clean, and the smell!
No, I don't have any animals.... erm..do kids count as animals?

I miss my roomba :(

We had one and loved it!!!!!! although we had it set to only work
in the living room.

One day we (hubs & I) came home from work to find roomba was
MIA as in not on the charging base. We hunted and hunted for it. We
finally found it in the bedroom stuck under the bed. Couldn't figure out
"how" it got there.

So we pick roomba up take it back to charging base, next day same thing
happened. This went on for a WEEK before we discovered how roomba
was escaping and getting stuck under the bed.

It was Kiko my then kitten (who is almost 6 yrs old now). She discovered
how to "turn on" roomba and was playing "chase" with it. We laughed so
hard, but we debated about putting it up higher but feared she would stick
try to play with it, so we finally just turn the power off. But one day we forgot
to do that and came home found roomba dead again. This time though roomba
would not charge so we ended up taking Kiko's "chase toy away.