Why is Roomba Not Picking Up Hair? – Fix Guide

Wondering why Roomba not picking up hair? You’re not alone!

This is a frequently encountered problem with the Roomba cleaning robot, especially for users with fluffy pets.

Too much hair can prevent the proper operation of the Roomba’s brushes, leading to the inability of the robot to pick up any dust or fluffy debris.

When the Roomba robot is not picking up hair, users should dismount and clean the brushes before emptying the dustbin. The next step is to justify that the brushes are in a good condition and feel them while the robot is working to find out if they are spinning.

Why Roomba Not Picking Up Pet Hair?

In homes with heavy shedding pets, the Roomba robot bin will get filled up quickly and it’s likely to later redeposit the hair back on the floor.

This is normal as long as the environment is new for the robot since the cleaning machine reaches places where the vacuum can’t.

In case your Roomba is new, it would take a few runs to set the new baseline of “clean”.

In that regard, the Roomba robot will need a few cleaning sessions to condition the floor where only newly shredded pet hair would be left.

Only then the bin will start filling up slower and won’t require as frequent maintenance as during the very first few runs, thus will start picking the hair.

Let’s next take a look at what to do when a Roomba robot won’t pick up hair…

How To Fix When Roomba Not Picking Up Hair?

To solve the problem with the hair, we’ll start with solutions mainly including maintenance of your cleaning robot, and later shift our focus on developed mechanical glitches.

Let’s begin with inspecting the most important components:

Solution #1 Clean The Sensors

The sensors on your Roomba robot are what allow the machine to function so well.

When the bin sensors are obstructed, the robot would think that the bin is full, therefore not picking up more hair and debris.

Cleaning the bin sensors should be your first move and here’s how:

1. Take a clean cloth.
2. Remove and empty the dustbin.
3. Wipe the bin sensors clean.
4. Install the bin back into its place.

There are other sensors that you should clean while you’re still at it. The outer seniors and the inner sensors allow the robot to navigate and function normally.

Tip: There are a total of six sensors that should be cleaned.

Solution #2 Remove Hair From Brushes

While the robot is cleaning your home, sadly, it doesn’t clean itself.

The hair is one of the worst enemies of almost any brush, so your Roomba’s cleaning “tools” might not be working as well as they should be.

When you have pets in your home, it’s likely for the hair to be everywhere and the Roomba’s brushes will be facing it on a regular basis.

Here’s how to clean the brushes:

1. Flip the Roomba robot upside down.
2. Open the brush guard by lifting the hanging tabs.
3. Slightly pull to take out the brushes.
4. Remove the side brush cups.
5. Take out any hair that you see. Tip – use Scissors.
6. Make sure that there are no tangled hair strands on the brushes.
7. Install the brushes back on.
8. Don’t forget to close the brush guard.

The recommendation is to clean the brushes at least once per week for the Roomba robot to be able to collect hair from the floor.

Tip: When pets occupy the environment the dustbin should also be emptied more frequently.

Solution #3 Clean The Gearbox

Aside from the brushes, for the Roomba robot to be able to pick up fluffy debris and hair, the condition of the gears has to be maintained.

The torque of the brushes depends on the Cleaning Head Module (CHM) gearbox. They hold the gears of the Roomba robot.

Here’s how to clean the CHM gearbox on your Roomba robot:

1. Unscrew the CHM from the base to remove the gearbox.
2. Also, unscrew the six other screws holding the gearbox.
3. Lift off the gearbox plate and pull out dust, debris, and hair.
4. Install the gears back in and position the gears back in.
5. Close and screw the gearbox plate.

After the steps, make sure to empty the dustbin as well before performing a test and check whether the Roomba robot will not be able to pick up hair and fluffy debris.

Note: Roomba will have a hard time picking up hair on wet surfaces!

Solution #4 Dustbin Preservation

When the dustbin of your Roomba robot fills up, the Robot will not be able to continue picking up dust and hair.

With the presence of a pet, the dustbin will get full quicker than normal and that’s why regular maintenance would be necessary.

Here’s how to properly clean the dustbin:

1. Take out the bin by pressing the Release button.
2. Press the bin opener.
3. Empty the dustbin by shaking it off.
4. Remove the filter.
5. Wash the dustbin in warm water.
6. Let the Roomba bin dry.

Clean The Filter?

The filter of the dustbin is not designed to be washed. To clean the filter of your Roomba robot you’ll need to shake it off so the dust and dirt come out.

Also, make sure that the filter is not clogged by tangled hair and if so, use scissors to remove it.

Tip: The filter has to be properly placed for the filter door to open and close freely.

Solution #5 Replace Brushes

That would be the most drastic action against the hair problem with your Roomba robot.

The brushes are the main cleaning tool, which is engaging the hair directly.

You’ll need to inspect the brushes and in case they are warned out, the situation can be helped with fresh brushes.

You can discover replacement brushes for ALL Roomba robot series!

The price, however, varies:

• Roomba 600 series – $18
• Roomba 700 series – $17
• Roomba 800/900 series – $28

The replacement kit includes several pieces containing 3 x filters, 3 x side brushes, and 2 x flexible impact brushes.

That should be enough to restore the hair-picking functionality of your Roomba.

Tip: You can buy individual parts and only the 3 brushes for only $11.

Why Roomba Not Picking Up Dog Hair?

The dog hair could be more fluffy than regular hair and Roomba should be able to pick it up easily.

When the robot is unable to pick up dog hair, you’ll need to check whether the cleaning brushes are moving at all.

Stick your fingers under the robot when cleaning to feel whether the brushes are moving.

In case the brushes are not spinning, then you would need to clean them.

One of the most frequent reasons for Roomba brushes not to spin is the presence of a heavily shedding dog.

You’ll need to locate and remove tangled hair for the Roomba brushes to spin again.

Note: In case the brushes of your Roomba are worn out, they need to be replaced.

Quick Recap:

Hence, the Roomba robot will not pick up hair when the brushes are entangled with hair or the dustbin is full. Another reason for the robot not to pick up hair is when the sensors are covered, that would indicate a full bin and prevent the cleaning session of the robot.

Final Thoughts:

Now that we know why Roomba not picking up hair we know that the best solution is related to performing maintenance on the cleaning robot.

The mechanical components can’t clean themselves and for optimal performance, iRobot recommends cleaning the device once a week.

We hope that this post was helpful and that your Roomba is now picking up hair. For more Roomba guides and solutions make sure to check our online tech blog!