Of all the decisions we made when we built our house, whenever I was asked, "If you had to do it over again, what would you do differently?" My answer used to be, "I would choose different wood floors." Ours are so pretty, bamboo, and I love them when they are clean, but because they are super dark without much variation in the wood tone, and also very smooth, they show dirt, dust and footprints very easily.
The entire downstairs level of our home is hardwoods and we have to sweep and mop weekly. I used to use a broom to sweep or sometimes if I needed to sweep quickly, I'd use the vacuum, then when I finished sweeping, I used a mop with wood floor cleaner to get the floors shiny clean. It took forever and was not my favorite chore!
When I got the opportunity to review a Braava iRobot, I couldn't say yes fast enough. Have you heard of it? It has the ability to dry sweep and damp mop BY ITSELF! As in, you can be painting your nails or sitting on the couch drinking a latte while your floors are being cleaned. Yes, please!
When our iRobot Braava 380t Floor Mopping Robot arrived in the mail, my 3-year-old son was as excited as I was to open it up and use it. The iRobot is small and cute, super easy to assemble, but had to charge before the first use, so we waited until the next morning to try it out.
The iRobot cleans the floor by going up an down in rows until it finishes the entire area. It uses either disposable cleaning cloths, including Swiffer brand or Braava’s specially designed reusable microfiber cloths.
It uses a navigation system (like an indoor GPS) that keeps track of where it has been and where it needs to go. When Braava is done cleaning, it returns to the place where it started and powers down automatically. After the small area by our garage door, look at how much dirt it picked up. Ewww! But awesome!! You can change the pads mid-cleaning and the iRobot will remember where it was and where to start back up at.
The other cool thing is that it's super quiet. Because it's so small, it can get under sofas and tables where other cleaners can't reach. I love this! Have you ever moved your couch and been grossed out by all the dirt and dust trapped under there? It will get right up to the baseboards, walls and edges too, but won't damage them because it has a soft bumper.
Although we have hardwoods throughout the downstairs, I can also use it upstairs in the bathroom where we have tile floor because it works on tile, vinyl, hardwood and laminate.
I love a clean floor! The Braava 380t sells for $299.99. After using the iRobot, I'm happy to keep our bamboo hardwood floors because I don't have to clean then anymore! I'm letting my handy little helper do all the work. :) Sometimes I feel like we're living in the "Jetson's age" with these awesome gadgets that help make our lives easier.
Go HERE to learn more about the iRobot and how it can make your life easier too.
What would you rather be doing than cleaning your floors?
*Thank you to iRobot for sponsoring today's post.
