I LOVE my Robots and I hope to help others to learn how to safely buy and love there robots too.

 July 18, 2007 I just spoke with iRobot and they informed me that they will no longer accept Warranty claims or returns on any iRobot product purchased from a third party vendor including ebay.  They further informed me that none of the ebay sellers were authorized to sell their products  and all Manufactures Warranties are invalid. 

BUYERS BEWARE

Most of the sellers were offering a full manufactures warranty.  According to iRobot, NO EBAY SELLERS are authorized by iRobot to sell their products, so at this point the only warranty for Scooba that should be offered by the seller is a personal one. 

The sellers are buying the units at places like SamsClub and reselling them to you asking you to register your Scooba with irobot as a gift or from a major retail store.  Although tempting, iRobot apparently  has the ability to track their units by original point of sale.  Buying a Scooba here on ebay is considered a third party vendor sale and iRobot will no longer accept an in warranty claim  should something go wrong with your Scooba.   If the problem is something small like a wheel, then iRobot might send you the part.  But if something is to go wrong with the main part of the unit, iRobot will not cover it under warranty and it could cost around $200. to get the main unit replaced.  Buying the main unit second hand is not a good option unless the seller offers a personal warranty because again NO SELLERS ON EBAY ARE AUTHORIZED BY iRobot to sell any product including parts.

There is Hope

All this being said, there are a few very nice, very honest sellers of irobot products on ebay that sell their iRobot items at a reasonable cost.  They buy bulk lots of returned iRobot products, go through them very carefully repairing and parting out the robots appropriately.  You can begin to sort these folks out by seeing what they sell.  The folks Im referring to sell mostly iRobot products and they dont offer any manufacture warranty only there own personal warranty.  These good folks have made iRobot products there lifes passion and do an excellent job going through these units.     

SCOOBA SCAMS

Because there is a very high demand for the Scooba and is a is a high dollar item, there are less than honest sellers on ebay taking advantage of this phenomenon by selling Scooba that do not exist. 

What to watch for

Use only stock or stollen photos.

Seller sells low dollar items then suddenly high dollar items combined with low feedback rating.

Look at the sellers completed items note how many Scooba seller has sold in last month. 

Look for feedback from buyers that have purchased a Scooba from the seller you are considering.

 What Happens Next  

The seller will post a tracking as though they have shipped the item but the item never arrives.  Just exactly how this is being accomplished is under investigation.  The sad part is, even though the item was purchased through Paypal under the buyer protection plan, because the seller was able to produce tracking records, Paypal will not refund the money.  So, your good deal goes sour.    If you see anything suspicious report it via the link at the bottom of the page where you found the Scooba.

Remanufactured and Refurbished

Watch for sellers who will list the item as NEW then,  hidden at the bottom or in the fine print or both, admit the Scooba is Remanufactured.  READ THE FINE PRINT. 

 I have bought many items remanufactured and they were in like new condition.  I have now experienced two Remanufactured Scooba, they both were clean but obviously used and they both had serious issues rendering them useless within the first week.  One, the tread of the tire came off, the other had multiple issues including wheel malfunctions, weak vacuum suction, malfunctioning sensors.  These problems are difficult to detect by the non experienced person.  A less than honest seller can look the other way and pretend the problems dont exist hoping the buyer will not know how the machine is supposed to work.   

Finally

Ok, now to get down to buying your Scooba.  The least expensive of the Scooba's retail for nearly $300.00.    I dont know to many people that can afford to be out $300.00.  So buying a Scooba on ebay is very tempting.  Scooba are a very technically advanced and sensitive item meaning they do not do well unless handled very carefully and manufactures recommendations followed very carefully.  The results of not following the precautions and regular maintenance are very costly.  So it is very important to not let anyone handle your Scooba that may handle it in an inappropriate manner.  It is equally important to pick up all objects from the area to be cleaned simply because if your Scooba picks up something beyond the size of  a grain of kitty litter, it can potentially cause numerous malfunctions and eventually render your Scooba useless not to mention void the warranty for not following recommendations.   Plan on spending $100 to $200 for  parts and repairs the first year so you want to find a brand new scooba for under $175 otherwise you may have been better off to buy it new at an authorized retail store.       

Understanding the difference between the Scoobas. 

 5900 model is the older of the two Scooba's I have experienced.  It is a great advantage to the busy persons who like a clean floor but do not have the time or inclination to keep them clean.  

 5800 is the newest model with many onboard upgrades.that make it operate more efficiently and longer. 

Both will do a very good job of cleaning an area of about 100 to 125sf on a single tank.  You can run your Scooba twice on a single charge of the battery and thus clean a 200sf area on a single charge having to  empty the dirty tank and refill the clean tank once during the cleaning.  It is very important to throughly clean your Scooba after each cleaning session.  Follow the directions on the iRobot website and you cant go wrong.   

One major upgrade on the 5800 is the ability to use plain water in the clean solution tank.  This is a great option to use around pets and children in between a heavy duty clean with the Scooba Clorox solution.  When I use the Clorox Solution in my Scooba, I gather up my pets and keep them in a room away from the Solution.  Even though the bottle says it is safe in a household with pets it clearly states that if you get it on your skin you should rinse it off immediately.  Can you imagine what would happen to your pet if it walked in the solution got it on its feet then licked it off? 

Another major upgrade is the pump, it is much stronger and heartier which means it picks up more of the solution and should last longer.

God Grant Me Patience

Get to know your robot.  Each robot has a personality of its own.   Have patience with them and get to know them like you would a child or new pet, keep them clean and replace parts when they get worn and you too will love your robots.    The iRobot website has a wealth of information about there robots and I strongly encourage all who own or consider owning a Scooba to visit the iRobot website. 

Tip for keeping your Scooba in tip top condition and cutting down pet allergens.

Both my husband and I have pet allergies and we love our pets.   I have found that if I set my Roomba's loose twice each day they keep the pet hair and dander to a minimum.  Then when I go to run the Scooba at night, the Scooba is much easier to clean because there isnt a ton of hair caught around the wheels and brushes.  Its much easier to clean the Roomba than it is to get the pet hair from around the wheels, brushes and gears of the Scooba.