Well, there is no easy answer to this question. Roomba can scratch your laminate floor if not used properly. You can use Roomba vacuum for your laminate floors if they are specially designed for sensitive floors like laminate, vinyl, or engineered hardwood floors.
Roombas can absolutely help you maintain your laminate floor, but buying a cheap Roomba would make things more critical and leave marks and scratches on your floor. Even purchasing a high functional Roomba that is not suitable for the laminate floor will damage the floor furthermore.
Sand grains, dirt, or plastic birts can get stuck at the side brushes if you don’t maintain and clean your Roomba regularly. That small debris can create scratches on your laminate floor.
Some of the Roombas have hard plastic spinning side brushes that can create circular marks on your laminate floor. But in recent times, the latest versions of Roomba have softer rubber brushes so they can adapt to the type of floor.
Why Are Some Roomba Vacuum Damage Laminating Floors?
Roomba vacuums damage the floor if they are:
- Most Roomba vacuums available in the market are not compatible with sensitive floors like laminating or vinyl floors.
- The market is filled with units coming out of China; most of them won’t live up to your expectation. A total waste of money.
- Laminate flooring is solid and durable, but they are very much prone to scratch. Cheap Roombas are not reliable for this.
- Most of the cheap Roomba vacuum is suitable for concrete or marble floors; that is why you need to be very cautious while buying a Roomba for laminating the floor.
- Sometimes, roomba keeps going over the same area repeatedly and makes the laminate floor scratch. It can happen due to many reasons such as floor obstacles, dirty sensors, a dirty camera, and more.
Robot Vacuum For Laminate Floors?
There are several reasons to consider a robot vacuum as a cleaning option for your laminate floor. If you ask us, some of the best Roombas are made by iRobot. Even though it is hard to find fault in their products in terms of functionality and features, not all of their products offer the same service and result in a laminate floor.
When choosing a Robot vacuum, aka Roomba, for your laminate floor, make sure they are lightweight. Because heavier units will create dents and distort the harmony of your flat floor. A good robot vacuum cleaner will make you a lot happier if you are on an intense cleaning application.
Most of the iRobot models feature cleaning heads with automated adjustment functions to adapt the soft brushes to sensitive surfaces like vinyl, laminate, or low-pile carpets.
Roomba 960
The Roomba 960 model is the best one in the market from iRobot that specializes in laminate floors. It is suitable for all types of sensitive floors. It has a very low tendency to damage your laminate floor in addition to cleaning your floor thoroughly. It uses soft rubber rollers to clean your floors, and the side brush doesn’t create circular scratches.
Let’s take a look at other functions of this Roomba.
- It has a premium 3 stage cleaning regime. This works then times better when compared to other Older Roomba models.
- The rubber brush and the soft side brushes minimize the chances of damaging your laminate floor.
- It is compatible with Google Home, Alexa, and Siri.
- It has a vSLAM navigation function that helps the Roomba to learn the entire layout of your house. So it doesn’t require your assistance every time making a cleaning project.
- Self-charging capability.
What To Consider While Buying A Roomba?
If your Roomba is safe to use on a hardwood floor, that means it is also safe for both laminate and vinyl floors. We recommend you use the iRobot Roomba 960 vacuum because of its unique functions favoring sensitive floors. If you have pets in your house, they will obviously sit on the Roomba, thinking of it as a toy, and the navigation system might not work at that time.
Can Roomba Be Used On Vinyl Flooring?
If you have vinyl floors in your house, you can also consider Roombas to clean them. Roombas that have Rubber rollers for catching the dirt and debris will work just fine on vinyl floors.
FAQs
Do Roombas have bitter bars?
The iRobot Roombas has changed the fundamentals of the cleaning robot. They don’t have bitter bars or traditional bristle brushes anymore, instead, they use new aerospace extractors that have no bristles at all. This won’t damage or scratch your laminate floors.
Does Roomba scratch hardwood floors?
It is possible for a Roomba to damage your Hardwood floors if not cleaned in a proper way. Sand grains or bits of plastic could get stuck if you keep your Roomba unattended for a long time. We recommend you consult with the floor manufacturer and ask if the floor is designed to be compatible with the rubber beater bar as most Roombas for hardwood floors are designed this way.
How to protect Roomba and furniture from scratches?
Go through your room with your Roomba and look for narrow corners or any place where your Roomba could get scratched. We think most scratches on your Roomba can come from two to three places. Two ways to make your Roomba safe from any damage-
- You can place a barrier in front of those places.
- Get some tapes that will prevent scratches. Do not use rubber tapes, this will create friction. If you use rubber tapes, Roombas will stick there because they are diagonal.
Conclusion
We have seen mixed experiences from Roomba users; many say Roomba scratches laminate floors. We agree with these complaints, but we have to keep in mind that older versions of Roomba have so many drawbacks. New ones, especially the units from iRobot work so much better compared to the older ones.
We can’t guarantee you for all the Roombas; it would be better of you to check with your flooring manufacturer first. If Roomba is not suitable for your floor, then no need to worry. There are other options available as well.
