Every one has their “thing”.
For my friend Joy, her thing is having an empty sink and wiped down counter tops. You can go to Joy’s house any day and any time, and she will not have dirty dishes anywhere.
I know people whose thing is making beds. If they don’t make the bed, they feel off kilter all day.
My thing is my floors.
In fact, you probably know that already. I talk about cleaning my floors often.
And, I clean my floors often.
Yet…clearly we live in a den of filth because I swear to you my floors are STILL always really dirty.
I vacuum every. single. day.
I sweep every. single. day.
I don’t know what it is we do that brings in so much dirt and dust and crumbs and grime, but I’m beginning to believe we are real life Pig Pens.
See that? That’s us. Depositing filth everywhere we walk. With a smile.
I suppose four kids, two dogs, and the four chickens that sometimes wander in the kitchen (I swear I’m going to cook you for dinner if you come in my kitchen even one more time Snow White!) that can do it.
And then there’s the mopping.
I mop my kitchen floor about every 3 days. I really, truly should do it every day for as bad as it gets, but I just can’t. Even though it pains me to see the yuck on my floors. But I hate mopping. And the Porkchop just walks right over the wet floors anyway. Because he’s a Porkchop and he thinks its funny when I yell.
If you’ve been around a while, you know that I love my Roomba. I wrote a whole Ode of Love and Romanticalism to Sid (my Roomba).
And even way back in 2010, I wanted to get the mopping version. Because Den of Filth.
Could my fingers type fast enough to reply to the email asking if I’d like to review iRobot’s newest mopping robot the Braava?
No. No they could not.
I opened up that box faster than…I don’t know. Something really fast.
He’s so bitty. Like a mini DVD player all black with blue LED lights and such.
Here he is next to my Roomba 630. Seriously half the size.
The next morning, I wandered downstairs excited to get the little guy going.
If you’ve had a Roomba, you know that you set up little virtual walls to keep it in the space you want vacuumed. The Braava uses this little GPS Cube that you set up in the center of the room and somehow it tells the robot where to go.
I can’t even begin to understand this new-age fancy space technology. But it works. Braava stayed in the kitchen and never meandered into the dining room.
But as I put it together, and started him up, I was a bit deflated.
He was so little. And quiet. There were no whirring scrub brushes. No hot steam flaring out of its nostrils. No acid based chemical to burn away the grime on my floor.
Just this little black lunch box that was almost silent, with Knight Rideresque blue lights, gently gliding along my floors.
I sighed, and thought “Well, little man…you’re cute, all high tech and sleek looking, but I think you might be better for a house with no kids. Maybe a young professional’s house who spends 22 hours at their office. Or 87 year old Maude’s house who wears Isotoner slippers all day. Pretty sure I need the monster truck version of you.”
I shrugged, took my coffee and went upstairs and let it do it’s thing. Kinda bummed out.
I came back downstairs about an hour later for a coffee refill…and almost dropped my mug when I saw MY FLOORS WERE REALLY CLEAN.
No, seriously.
The caked on whoknowswhat that had dried on my tile? Gone.
The muddy toe prints? Vanished.
The applesauce splats? Nowehere to be found.
You guys.
I honestly have no idea how it did it.
It’s so itty bitty and quiet. There are no soaps or cleaners. No scrub brushes. No hot water.
Just a silent little black lunch box that glides around your floor.
AND ACTUALLY CLEANS IT.
Even Andy is completely perplexed by the little guy. When you watch it, it doesn’t look like it’s doing all that much. But you walk away, and come back, and it worked!
I even took video for you to hear how quiet it is. (And I never take video. So that says a lot.)
The Braava can also “sweep” for you, but not at the same time it mops (obviously).
It isn’t designed for carpets…just tile, wood and laminate. I love that it’s practically silent. My Roomba is awesome, but it’s fairly loud and I had to stop the pre-programming to go at 3 am because it was waking me up (granted, I’m a light sleeper). The Braava is so quiet, I can have it mop my floors right when I get up at 5am and not worry about it waking up the girls (who’s room is right above the kitchen).
And I get to come downstairs for my second cup of coffee every day…to clean floors.
For reals.
Christmas gift? Why yes please.
The only downside to it being so little?
Babies can’t ride around the kitchen on it.
Disclosure: I was provided the Braava for review and this post is compensated. All opinions are mine and honest. Also, iRobot does not endorse or recommend babies using their products as playthings. Obviously.
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…you forgot the part of your post where they gave you an extra for a blog giveaway! :) Or maybe I just read too many blogs and am greedy!!
I was thinking the same thing :)
Same here!
Oh girls! I wish I had one to give away to you! But that wasn’t a campaign option. Later this week I’ll have a few opportunities to win something. Hang tight!
I want one….. our floors are laminate and porcelain tile throughout. It is dust bunny hades over here… i was fantasizing about how my floors would be clean and swept every day.
Just saw an ad for this in a BB and B magazine….I want one too. Christmas wish list! My floors are my nemesis – but yeah, 2 kids, 4 pets, bleck – fighting a losing battle over here. Also – did Joy visit your kitchen for those pictures? Mine never looks like that!
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This made me laugh so hard! My friend came across your blog while looking up reviews for the Braava. I have both a Roomba and a Braava and LOVE them so much I named them, too! Rosie (for the robot maid on The Jetsons) and Irona (for the robot maid on Richie Rich) haha Fantastic review!
For hardwood floors, would you recommend the Braava or the Roomba? I think the Braava would be great…if my floors were cleaner to start with.
I like the Braava best on my wood floors because it sort of “dusts” as it goes. The Roomba is amazing on carpet though :) Would love to hear some compare the Braava and the Scooba though. I seriously want a Scooba bad!
When you watch it, it doesn’t look like it’s doing all that much. But you walk away, and come back, and it worked!
Such high hot water temperatures go a long way in dissolving tough, deeply embedded stains and residue.
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