Scooba (brand)

This article is about the floor washing robot. For the city, see Scooba, Mississippi.
Scooba
Manufacturer iRobot
Type floor-scrubbing robot
Retail availability 2006 to present
iRobot Scooba 380 floor washing robot

Scooba is a floor-scrubbing robot made by iRobot. It was released in limited numbers in December 2005 for the Christmas season, with full production starting in early 2006. The company introduced a lower-priced version, the Scooba 5800, in the second half of 2006.[1] It introduced a new Scooba 450 at CES 2014 in January 2014.

Operation

The Scooba uses either a special non-bleach cleaning solution named "Scooba juice" (made by the Clorox Company) formulated to clean the floors while discouraging rust or wheel slippage, or the newer Scooba Natural Enzyme cleaning solution. The robot prepares the floor by vacuuming loose debris, squirts clean solution, scrubs the floor, and then sucks up the dirty solution leaving a nearly dry floor behind. The robot is safe to use on sealed hardwood floors and most other hard household surfaces, but it cannot be used on rugs. Scooba avoids cleaning rugs and stairs, and can clean about 200 square feet (19 m2) on a single tank-load of solution.

Some models of the Scooba include an iRobot Virtual Wall accessory, which projects a beam of infrared light, setting a boundary which the robot will not cross.

The Scooba is the second major commercial product made by iRobot, which popularized vacuum robots with the Roomba. The Scooba is available in over 40 countries.

Systems

The Scooba uses approximately 2 US fluid ounces (59 ml) of cleaning solution per cycle, mixed with 32 US fluid ounces (950 ml) of water to fill the cleaning solution tank. The Scooba comes with four packets of the new "Natural Enzyme" cleaning solution, which is enough for about four washes. Additional Clorox cleaning solution comes in five- and nine-packs of 32 US fluid ounces (950 ml) bottles, which provide enough solution for about 16 washings per bottle. Polysorbate 20 and tetrapotassium EDTA are the primary ingredients. Some Scooba models can also use white vinegar or plain water in place of the proprietary solution.[2]

Recharge times may vary, but typically take 3 hours.

Models

iRobot Scooba 230 floor washing robot

The original Scooba

Scooba 5900 was the first Scooba, it could be used with the Scooba Cleaning Solution, or other suitably conductive solutions, but was discontinued in favor of the Scooba 5800 version (basic floor washing model) which could also use plain water in its cleaning tank. iRobot shed several of the 5900's premium features to produce the lower-priced 5800 model. There were no changes to the basic floor cleaning machinery.

The Scooba 5800 can clean about 250 square feet (23 m2) per battery charge.

Scooba 200 series

Introduced in 2011, the Scooba 230 is a smaller model, less than half the diameter but taller than the previous Scooba models. The reduced diameter allows the robot to clean more areas in small bathrooms, kitchens, and other tight spaces. In order to reduce the size, the clean water and dirty water tanks are replaced with a pair of internal bladders, allowing the dirty water storage to expand as the clean water is used up. Only Scooba cleaning solution and water are recommended. The initial vacuuming stage present in other Scooba models is also removed, requiring users to sweep up or vacuum loose debris ahead of time. The Scooba 230 can clean up to 150 square feet (14 m2) in one charge.

Scooba 300 series

The Scooba 300 series replaces the original 5000 series robots. They are similar in design and size to the original Scooba and can use Scooba cleaning solution, vinegar solution, or plain water. The robots in this series are differentiated by the size of the area they can clean on a single charge, and the accessories supplied.

Scooba 330 (basic US version) can clean 250 square feet (23 m2) per battery charge.
Scooba 350 (intermediate floor washing model, US version) can clean about 500 square feet (46 m2) per battery charge.
Scooba 380 (premium floor washing model, US version) can clean 850 square feet (79 m2) per battery charge. Also includes charging base, storage mat, and an extra Virtual Wall (for a total of two).
Scooba 385 (European version of US 380 model) doesn't include charging base, storage mat or extra Virtual Wall (only one included).
Scooba 390 (Longer battery life, new color scheme).

Scooba 450

The fourth generation Scooba 450 was introduced at the Consumer Electronics Show 2014. It can mop tile, wood, linoleum, and more.[3] It uses a three-cycle cleaning process. First, Scooba sweeps and pre-soaks the floor with cleaning solution, then it scrubs the floor and squeegees the dirty solution.

References

  1. ↑ iRobot Corporation
  2. ↑
  3. ↑ Zahnzinger, Matthew. "CES 2014: IRobot's Scooba cleans up CES". date=2014-01-07.

External links

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