Equipment field guide
Home-robot setup, cleaning, mapping, and recovery
Checked paths for Roomba charging, Wi-Fi setup, Smart Maps, docking, bins, brushes, AutoEmpty, sensors, bumper faults, and Combo-bin detection.
Start with the system
Identify before you change.
Record the exact robot and dock model, app and firmware, live error, battery state, LED or voice message, map state, floor location, and the last successful mission. Preserve logs, map evidence, and part orientation before resetting, deleting a map, or removing assemblies.
- 01Exact robot, dock, bin or Combo assembly, app, firmware, and consumable type
- 02Dock power, charging contacts, battery state, status light, and return path
- 03Wi-Fi band, app visibility, account state, map availability, and saved diagnostics
- 04Bin, filter, brushes, end caps, bumper, sensors, wheels, and vacuum path
- 05Controlled clean or mapping run, repeatable location, and service threshold
Ownership paths
Choose the job in front of you.
Each path states its model scope, diagnostic order, stop conditions, and the official material used to build it.
Set it up
How should it start?
Connect it
What works together?
Fix it
Why is it failing?
Fix a Roomba that will not charge on its dock
Separate outlet, dock, contact, temperature, battery, and robot faults using the charging error before replacing parts.
Home RobotsClear Roomba Error 9 without forcing the bumper
Separate trapped debris from a visibly dislodged bumper, then use the model-specific service boundary instead of repeatedly restarting the robot.
Home RobotsFix a Roomba AutoEmpty dock that will not empty the bin
Read dock lights, prove power and the evacuation bin, then isolate robot communication, bag, contact, and clog failures in the official order.
Home RobotsClear a Roomba full-bin light after emptying the bin
Clean the complete six-sensor path and reboot once before treating a persistent full-bin indicator as a service fault.
Home RobotsFix a Roomba Combo that detects the wrong bin
Restore bin detection on Combo i5 and j5 models by cleaning the dry optical path, clearing the vacuum path, and containing any dock moisture.
Home RobotsHelp a Roomba find and dock on its Home Base
Prove dock power, restore the infrared approach path, clean contacts, and run a six-foot return test before moving the base or blaming the battery.
Care for it
How does it last?
Common failure pattern
Avoid the shortcut that hides evidence.
- Factory-resetting or deleting a Smart Map before preserving the failure state
- Washing a dry-only filter or reinstalling a rinsed bin before it is fully dry
- Moving the dock or carrying the robot during a mapping or return-home test
- Replacing several parts at once instead of proving what the symptom follows