Change of shift is up! The "Autumn Harvest" edition is ready for your perusal. Go check it out!
In other news, I am in mourning. My Roomba's motor has burned out, apparently, which sucks. (Or doesn't...hee ha ho...hee...ha...ok, not funny, whatever...) I've had it for three years, and I love my little trilobite-looking friend. It sucked up all the dust bunnies and dog-hair tumbleweeds it could find and never complained as long as I lovingly cleaned it from time to time. And now it's dead. Well, it still moves around but the brushes don't turn, which means it doesn't suck up the hair properly. I ran all the diagnostics and it definitely is the motor, and as geeky as I am, I am not so technically inclined that I can replace the motor myself if I bought one on E-Bay. I emailed them, and they suggested doing all the things I already did. I emailed them back with all my information, and they still haven't gotten back to me...probably because the Roomba is long out of warranty. I'll have to call them and yell a little, I think--I mean, I know it's a robot and is extra special, but it wasn't cheap, and my grandma is still using the same Electrolux she got for her wedding 45 years ago. I'm willing to pay for a repair if it's not crazy astronomically expensive, since a new Roomba is like $300.
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7 comments:
Oh, good lord. I can't believe I'm even leaving a comment about this. But could you keep us (okay, me?) posted?
I'm thinking of trading in my Dyson for a Roomba, and if they give you the runaround or the repair is $700 billion, I'll probably change my mind.
I love my Dyson, but am moving out of carpet hell and into Pergo heaven at the end of the month.
Good luck with the customer service department.
Passerby:
I totally still recommend the Roomba. And it would be perfect for Pergo heaven. Keep in mind:
You have to clean it. Seriously. Hair (people's and pets') gets wound around the brushes and can clog the bearings, and some of the sensors can get dirty and need to be cleaned. The newer ones are totally modular and can be taken completely apart to be cleaned, which is a big help. So if you're not a person who likes to clean your vacuum cleaner, Roomba might not be for you.
I still love mine, though. And here's a tip: if you buy yours through Hammacher Schlemmer, I BELIEVE you get a lifetime guarantee. It's more expensive, but I think you can always send it back and get it fixed gratis. But I'd doublecheck that if I were you.
I got mine at Bed Bath and Beyond with one of those 20% off coupons. And Roomba does give you a one-year warranty; they did send me out a new battery when the first one I had didn't last long. The second one is working great.
When I have time this week I'll give them a call and find out what the story is. I want my Roomba back! I love it so...
Oh wait! One more thing! I still have a regular stand-up vacuum. However, I use it more as an adjunct to the Roomba. For example the Roomba and I will tag-team the apartment: Roomba will do the bedrooms (and under the beds where I can't reach) while I do the living room rug (because the Roomba takes a long time to do our rug). Then the Roomba does the kitchen and wood floors in the living room while I watch TV and eat bonbons.
Check the shaft at the end of the brushes...sometimes hair gets coiled up around the shaft and it will bind up the action. You may have to remove a cover or a plate...lots of screws DON'T LOSE THEM. If thats the problem; you may be lucky and just have to cut all that snarled up hair off the shaft.
Steve
We got ours exchanged recently for the same problem. It seems to be the main cause of breakdown in the little things. But I still love them to bits (quite literally, apparently)!
;)
I wish I could send you some engineering and tinkering karma so you could source and replace the motor yourself. There's no way I could do what you do to help fix people so it'd be the least I could do to pay forward for the next time me or my wife end up in the ED.
I'd love a Roomba but I think my wife would put me in the ED if I got one...
The BedBathBeyond by my house let me exchange my Roomba after the battery crapped out. It was over a year old, but we still had the receipt. I was worried since they didn't have the same model anymore, but they just refunded the original purchase price and applied it to the new one. YMMV...
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