"Ask Me Anything": Ten Responses To Your Questions About Best Self-Emptying Vacuum

Best Self-Empting Robot Vacuums and Mops

The Eufy 11S robot vacuum is among the cheapest self-emptying vacuums on the market. In our tests it was able clean up dry oats on hard floors as well as carpets with low pile. Its dust bin is simple to empty and openmuch easier than some other models in the same price range.

It charges at its base and then it resumes cleaning as soon as it's ready. But its obstacle-avoidance technology gets caught in socks and cords, and it's unable to operate under low thresholds.

1. iRobot Roomba 11S

The 11S is a less expensive self-emptying robotic vacuum cleaner that many people seem to love. It is great at maneuvering under furniture and seems to be a smart option for people with hard floors or who want to do light daily cleans. The suction might be less powerful than our top picks, however it still gets the job completed. It also has a large dirt bin and a battery that lasts for more than an hour. The app allows you to schedule your daily cleaning chores, or select a specific room. It's also possible to map out your home, which could help the device avoid areas you don't want to go to.

The app is simple to use and has a simple layout. It's not a feature-rich app, but it is easy to use and allows you to keep track of the robot vacuum mop self empty's activity. It comes with a tutorial that will walk you through the basics.

The cleaning pattern of Bounce Navigation isn't always intuitive. Sometimes it follows straight lines, and other times, it focuses on the edges of the space. But it cleans your entire floor. It's not the greatest at negotiating obstacles, though - it was unable to climb over our piano pedals and pet food bowls, and ended up getting caught in our 2.25-inch shag rug a few times.

While it is a good option for light daily cleanings however, we believe there are better robot vacuums than the 11S. The iRobot Roomba is much easier to maintain and maintain, with lower recurring costs and charges faster. It also has a bigger dustbin, and performs better on all surface types, and it can get over obstacles that are low (like electrical cords) more easily.

The eufy RoboVac 11S makes an excellent choice for everyday vacuuming. It is a close design to our top pick and is excellent in removing fine dust and larger debris from hard floors. It also does a great job on medium- and low-pile carpet. Like the iRobot Roomba it also comes with a large dirt compartment and uses BoostIQ to automatically adjust suction power. It also comes with a remote control that's easy to use and robot vacuums you can schedule daily cleanings using the app. Its battery lasts for about an hour and the dustbin is able to be cleaned without taking it from the dock.

2. Roborock S7 maxV Ultra

Roborock S7 MaxV Ultra robot mop and vacuum is an excellent robot with an impressive array of automated features. The Roborock S7 MaxV comes in three different versions of the basic S7 model as well as the S7 Plus model, and the S7 Ultra. The S7 MaxV Ultra is the only one with an Empty Wash Fillet Dock (or an alternate Auto-Empty Dock). These docks allow the robot to return to its base after cleaning, empty the collected debris into a dust collection bag or reservoir, drain its dirty water tank, and wash its mopping pad.

The S7's sensors work together to avoid obstacles and clean the floors. It can recognize floor types and save a map of rooms and zones. It can even detect dirt levels. It's also capable of scheduling and executing spot-cleaning sessions. It did well in our tests, though it couldn't exactly match the Roomba j7+ in our carpet deep clean test.

Using the companion app, you can program the S7 to perform a cleaning cycle based on your schedule. You can choose a cleaning mode like automatic or eco, and a weekday, day, or time. You can also decide whether the robot will stop if it runs out of energy or encounters an obstacle.

You can still make use of the S7 even if you don't have an iPhone by connecting the charging dock to a remote control. The controls can be confusing at first however they are very effective once you get used to them. The power button doubles as an all-purpose 'Clean' button and the "Spot Clean" button instructs the robot to clean a small area around itself. The "Spot Clean" button also triggers the child lock.

In addition to the new mapping features, Roborock improved its mobile app by adding live view features that lets you see what the S7 is up to at home. You can enable it by pressing a specific sequence of buttons on your S7 and then creating an unlock pattern within the mobile app, which you can use whenever you want to know what the S7 is doing.

3. Shark IQ XL

Shark isn't as well-known in the field of robot vacuums as iRobot and Roborock, but our hands-on testing of Shark has proven it to be among the most efficient self-emptying robot vacuums currently on the market. It is simple to set up, has a huge bin that is easy to empty (albeit slightly loudly) into a trash can when it is full and is easily programmed to do a complete home clean on a regular basis or as required.

The IQ XL is able to connect to your WiFi at home and allow you to track its progress in cleaning using the Shark app. The app lets you set a cleaning schedule, receive notifications by push regarding its current status as well as pause and resume cleaning, or set it to only one room. You can also control it using voice commands with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. The app can tell you which power mode it is currently in, namely Eco, Normal, or Max--but we didn't find that any of the modes made a huge difference to cleaning performance.

The IQ XL will automatically empty the dustbin at the end of a cleaning cycle into the base, which will then automatically empty itself. The bin can hold up to 60 days of debris, meaning you don't need to empty it more than once, unless your pets have long hair. If you do have to empty it, all you need to do is untie the side bin, hold it up to a trash can and press a button to eject the contents.

There isn't much to dislike about the Shark IQ XL, although it does feel slightly less well-built than the Roomba 694. It clears many messes on carpeted floors and does a decent job at maneuvering itself, but it doesn't come as close to achieving the same performance as the iRobot Roomba i7 in regards to performance on carpeted floors. The i7 is also built better, feels more durable and sturdy, has less maintenance requirements, has lower recurring costs, charges faster, while offering similar battery performance, and comes with much more advanced automation features like no-go zones as well as the ability to pick specific rooms to keep clean.

4. iRobot J7+

This robot vacuum and mop combination is a rare machine that can perform both tasks efficiently. iRobot Combo J7+ comes with all the smarts and features of its j7 equivalent, including LiDAR map and self-emptying. However, it also has additional features for vacuuming and mopping.

The new acoustic sensors help the j7+ identify floor types, so it can choose between vacuuming and mopping during the first time it passes through the room. It also makes use of this information to prioritize cleaning rooms with carpet and rug flooring over rooms with hard floors.

Like many robotic vacuums, the j7+ is relatively quiet when running and it's even less noisy when it's mopping. The maximum reading on our decibel meter was 64db which is comparable to the sound of normal office chatter.

You can easily set up a cleaning schedule and change the way that dust is cleaned when the canister is full. The j7+ can be controlled by voice assistants such as Alexa, Google Assistant and others. to make it hands-free. Additionally, the app lets you create and view maps of your home.

The j7+ did well in our tests of both carpeted and hard floors, getting rid of all the dirt we threw at it. It isn't the best at dealing with pet hair as well as large debris like sand, but it can remove these items with a little more effort. It has excellent navigational capabilities and two cliff sensors that keep it from falling down stairs or becoming caught on furniture legs.

We did find a couple of small niggles with the j7+. These include that it can get caught on rugs and cords and that it doesn't always shut off its mopping when it's finished vacuuming. This is a fantastic model that checks all the boxes.

iRobot j7+ has also one of the most efficient auto-emptying systems we've tested. It drops its 14oz/0.4-liter dust canister in the base station, where it automatically empties for you. This helps reduce the amount of garbage you must dispose of. It is only necessary to replace the dust disposal bag at the dock once every 60 days, depending on how frequently you use the J7+.