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My Roomba 500: upgrade and repairs

I run my Roomba 500 just about every day, so you can say that I'm a heavy user.  I like the Roomba series because it works well, it's reliable, and it is easily repairable if it breaks down.  My Roomba 500 has been in operation for 8+ years and is still running strong.

My Early Robot Years:

I have owned four Roomba vacuums over the years.  My first robot was a 2nd generation "Sage 4110" that I bought in 2007 for $160.  It was great, but I ran it hard.  One day I foolishly ran it through mud and water and it broke down. I tried to repair it, but I was an idiot and botched the repair. I'm not sure what happened to it, but I moved in 2008 and I don't have it any more. My second Roomba was a 2nd generation "Red" model, likely a 4100, that I bought around 2010 for about $100.  I ended up leaving it to my roommate when I moved to another state.

Roomba 500 series Repairs and Upgrades

I bought my Roomba 500 in 2012, and it has been running strong since then.  It has been very effective, but I have made some necessary repairs over the years

  • Power jack.  My power jack went bad.  Most people likely use the docking station and not the power jack.  Me too. But my Roomba was sure it was always plugged in, even when it wasn't, and it made it seem crazy.  The problem was that the little switch inside the jack had failed, leading the Roomba to conclude that a cord was always plugged in.  I ended up buying a replacement jack and associated wiring for about $10.  A little surgery and I was back in action.
  • Cleaning head. My Roomba's original cleaning deck went bad with melted gears, likely because I had Roomba deal with a lot of fine dust that worked its way into the gearbox.  In short, the original-style gearbox was not so great at keeping dust out of it.  Happily, I bought a new "updated" 2012-era AeroVac head which is better in EVERY way.  Even if your classic cleaning deck doesn't go bad, I very highly recommend replacing the 500's original cleaning head with the AeroVac head.  It's an easy drop-in replacement.
  • Battery.  I've replaced the battery twice.  They seem to last about four years.
  • "Dirt-dog" style waste bin.   This is an optional accessory that I bought.  The bin is a large capacity but filter-less waste bin.  It has high capacity, but no vacuum motor.  They don't make this any more, and it's likely because it isn't that great.
  • Brushes and Filters.  These are "maintenance parts", and so I've replaced them several times. 

In all, I think my Roomba is still great, even after all these years.  I did have a couple problems, but the upgrade to the AeroVac system made my Roomba far better.  I imagine the power jack problem is an uncommon fluke, since I met a long-term iRobot Roomba engineer (a friend-of-a-friend), and he had never heard of the issue. And he seemed to know everything.

Roomba Replacement?

The latest addition to my Roomba collection is a Roomba 960.  My house that is under refurbishment will use the Roomba 500, and will be doing dirtier work.

Dirt is what the Roomba does, but it definitely takes its toll.  I suspect that eventually I will have to replace the wheel assemblies, and do a deep clean of the optical sensors.  But for now, Roomba continues on its cleaning duties.


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