Most people would rather avoid household chores, especially vacuuming.
And if you’re reading this, chances are you’ve either purchased a robot vacuum or are considering purchasing one to make this task automatic, more efficient, and less time-consuming so you can focus on the things that really matter.
However, because most robot vacuums can be set to run on a schedule, you may be wondering how often you need to use them to keep your home clean.
How often you should use a robot vacuum depends on several factors, such as your lifestyle. Generally, if you have children or pets, you’ll want to use your robot vacuum more frequently. On the other hand, if you live alone and are rarely home, less often should suffice.
As you can see, answering the question about how frequently you should use your robot vacuum is dependent on factors having to do with your lifestyle, your personal cleaning goals, and your living area.
You’ll want to learn more about automatic vacuums so that you can keep your personal space clean; keep reading to get a better understanding of how often you should be using your robot vacuum with these factors in mind!
How Often Should You Run Your Robot Vacuum?
Whether you already have a robot vacuum or are considering purchasing one, you’ve most likely been or started educating yourself on how they operate, how they can save you time, and how easy they are to program and use.
But how frequently should you be using one?
Generally speaking, if you have children or pets, you’ll want to run your robot vacuum more often.
The same can be said if you have seasonal allergies. However, if you live alone, you can get away with running your robot vacuum less often.
How to Determine Vacuum Frequency
As you can see, your lifestyle will significantly influence how often you run your robot vacuum.
With that said, let’s take a look at the factors that will have the most effect on how often you vacuum your floors:
- Pets that shed will be a significant factor that will influence how frequently you’ll run your robot vacuum. If pet hair is a concern, frequent scheduling in the major areas where your pets hang out will go a long way in keeping your entire house pet hair (and pet dander) free.
- Environmental conditions around your home can be a factor, especially if there is construction nearby, or it’s allergy season, the pollen count is high, and you’ve got your windows open. Running your robotic vacuum will remove dust and allergens that can build up on your floors and carpets and help to tamp down contaminants.
- Young children and their inherent messiness rank high on the list of reasons to use your robot vacuum often. It’s just the nature of having wee ones around; they’re messy, and you can’t change that, but you can stay ahead of the game with planned robot vacuuming.
Now that we’ve established what you’ll need to consider for how often you’ll scheduling robotic vacuuming, there are a few other things to think about before you decide when to run your vacuum:
- For the best performance, pick a time when the vacuum has full and unencumbered access to the area it’s cleaning.
- Consider the noise level of your robot vacuum. Just because they are much smaller than your traditional vacuum does not mean they are quieter; you may not want to schedule cleaning during Zoom meetings or nap times!
- Some smart navigation robots require that the lights map out the room it’s cleaning; you’ll need to keep this detail in mind when planning a schedule.
Based on all this information, let’s look at how you should go about scheduling when to run your robot vacuum:
- Without a doubt, pets that shed will be the most significant contributor to planning how often to vacuum year-round. The beauty of a robot vacuum is that you can program it to run seven days a week, focusing on the high-traffic areas. You can then follow up with regular vacuuming in hard-to-reach places like stairs, mudrooms, and entryways and keep pet hair and dander under control.
- Anyone with children or young adults will want to consider programming your vacuum for the kitchen and main living spaces that see heavy use every day. You can vacuum moderate use areas 2-4 times a week. Always follow-up at least once a week with mopping and cleaning of the non-carpeted regions and vacuuming.
- Another consideration for scheduling robotic vacuuming at least once a day is when environmental concerns like construction are happening nearby or during allergy season. Focus on rooms with open windows, near entryways, and high traffic. Thoroughly dust, mop, and vacuum twice a week to keep allergens at bay.
- If you don’t have children or pets and are not home most of the day, consider a schedule for your robot vacuum twice a week with general once-a-week cleaning.
There aren’t any set rules about programming when and how frequently you should use your robot vacuum; it’s a personal choice based on preferences and lifestyle.
Keep in mind that you control the robot vacuum scheduling and can modify it if your home needs more attention.
Is it Bad to Vacuum Every Day?
If you feel the need to run your robot vacuum daily, there’s no harm in doing that. Over time, especially if you have an active household, scheduling daily robot vacuuming is beneficial for you and the cleanliness of your home.
Here are a few of the many benefits of daily vacuuming:
- It’ll save you time with general floor cleaning.
- Creates a healthier home environment by cleaning dust, dander, and dirt.
- A robot vacuum will function without you being home, and you can make remote adjustments with many models.
Things to Keep in Mind In-Between Scheduled Vacuuming
There are some essential things to consider once you’ve programmed your robot vacuum; you’ll want to make sure you’ve attended to them so that your robot works efficiently and thoroughly with your desired schedule.
You may think you can just set it and let it do its job, but like any automated device, there are things to do to ensure it does its job correctly:
- If you do not have a model that empties itself, you’ll need to empty the robot vacuum. If you have a model that empties itself, you’ll need to remove the bag from the charging station when full. You can reference your user’s guide for help with this subject.
- Like your regular vacuum, robot vacuums have parts that you’ll need to clean. Read the manufacturer’s recommendations on how and when to clean your robot vacuum.
- Ensure the area you schedule for cleaning is free of items the vacuum could accidentally suck up; this could be cords, soft toys, or shoelaces. Anything that might jam up the robot should be placed out of the way.
- Move larger items like dining room chairs out of the way so the robot can get underneath the table and clean the floor.
- Do not let any vacuum clean up liquids unless approved for this task (most aren’t).
- Clean the area of any larger food items, they could stop the vacuum from working, or they could get dragged along as the vacuum moves and create more of a mess.
- Do a test run of your robot vacuum and make sure it’s appropriately programmed, and troubleshoot any issues during this time frame. Like any new process, a test run will give you confidence the vacuum will do its job on its first try!
Caring for your robot vacuum and ensuring that it can do its job correctly will save you a lot of time and headache in the long run.
Final Thoughts
In summary, how often you should schedule your robot vacuum to clean your home depends on how dirty your house gets.
Factors like having pets that shed, a very active household with children and young adults, or if you are single and never home will dictate how frequently you’ll want your robot vacuum running.