Customer Reviews

Roomba 500 Series Side Brush, 3-Pack

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Like most reviewers here, I love my Roomba 550 (to the extent that a man can love a Horseshoe Crab, that is), but feel disgusted by the poor durability of the spinning side brush. The first 'arm' of the side brush broke off after just two weeks of use. Within two months, my Roomba was completely 'armless'. So I ordered this 3-pack Roomba 500 Series Side Brush one month ago.

The new brush has only three 'arms' compared to six in the original design. This has alarmed some reviewers, who thought they have received counterfeit replacement parts. But according to the official iRobot web site, the three-arm version is indeed the new design. I was initially skeptical of whether three arms are better than six in terms of durability. But so far the new brush seems to be working just fine. At least there is no sign of any arms breaking off (yet).

Apparently, iRobot has received massive complaints about the series 500 Roomba side brush, and is offering a replacement brush to each owner. Just go to "irobot dot com slash support", select your Roomba's model, and enter "order spinning side brush" in the search bar. You will then be able to 'order' a side brush for free - after you complete the product registration page.

[Update on Dec 16, 2008]
I received a free side brush from iRobot 10 days after filling in the request online. The downside is that I started to receive 'special offer' emails from iRobot every single day! Luckily there is an option to unsubscribe to those offers.

[Update on Feb 20, 2009]
All three arms of the new side brush are still intact after three months of moderate usage (once every two days). So it looks like the new design is indeed better.

Helpful hint:
When installing the new spinning side brush, make sure to press it down hard until you hear a definite 'click'. The first two times I did not install it correctly, and the side brush kept falling off after a few days.

I have the older Roomba Scheduler and also a Discovery and those come with the two brush shorter side brushes, not this one which has three brushes on the rotator. The brushes are a bit longer in this product which I thought might be a problem with the placement of it so close to the wheel, but it appears the old brush was also smacking up against the wheel anyway. If it was a problem I would simply trim the bristles a bit, but didn't have to.

These little things seem to make my Roombas work even better than before even if they were not intended to be used on the older models!

Anyone remembers Orwell's Animal Farm? :)))

Like all good things in life, the helicopter Roomba brushes only last for so long. A time comes when they need to be replaced. In our case, there was in fact a transition period where our 5-arm helicopter became a 4-arm, then a 3-arm so we got the replacements. They were 3-arm brushes :). In all fairness, I can't say if they perform better or worse than the original, I'm just happy that our Roombas (got 2) are complete again in the way their maker wishes them to be.

From a prospective buyer's point of view, it's probably important to testify that the replacements do work. They do mount quite nicely to replace the old-style and the Roomba does not seem to mind.

We LOVE our Roomba (570). We have 2 dogs and a 10 month old so vacuuming is critical and also a luxury of time we don't have. The roomba is great but the side brush only survived a month before one of the "arms" broke off. It still works but now that I'd like to order one for replacement, they're on backorder everywhere. Get these early and store them.

First I would like to state that I am an embedded systems design engineer and must say that iRobot did their homework and job on the Roomba itself, but seem to have disregarded this level of craftsmanship when it came to the all-too-necessary side brushes. Mine, like everyone else has reported, breaks off in a matter of months. Regardless of whether this is a design flaw or a means for recurring profit, it matters not. It has caused me to resort to drastic measures which I have outlined below:

1. Take a side brush that has lost all or most of its arms. File the notches down with a razor blade or exacto. Be careful.

2. Use a 3/32 drill bit to drill five (or six on some models) evenly spaced holes into the side brush knob.

3. Use 80 grade (0.80) fishing wire and cut five (or six on some models, or if you feel like you need more arms) equal lengths (app. 4" is a great length).

4. Place a drop or two of super glue into each hole and insert each section of wire into each hole. Let dry preferably overnight before use.

5. I have used this personally and it works great. The side brushes do not move at the rotation speed a weed eater would and thus I have noticed no problems with ruined furniture; and I have very nice furniture.

6. Optionally if you are very dexterous you can try to "shred" the ends of the wires, but this is difficult and should only be attempted if you are extremely careful. The only purpose for this is to allow the side brush again to work on dust bunnies as well as heavier particles.

Hope this helps everyone as much as it has helped me. Long time running this option and no replacements YET! :)

I bought this to replace the original side brush. After several months, it has not broken off like the original.

Just received a letter from iRobot regarding the side brushes wearing down prematurely and they are offering a free replacement side brush. I am already on the 2nd side brush and I only use my roomba 550 one hour per week for 3 months!

Most of the Roomba 550 are still under warranty so why buy this kit?

We received only one side brush with our Roomba, so this 3-pack is great to have on hand. We set our Roomba to run on a daily basis (black dog, white carpeting!) so it's nice to have the spare brushes and things ready to go if one gets snagged or broken. We have small kids so sometimes toys are left out by accident and can tear the 'arms' on these brushes.

I love my Roomba and am glad that these spare parts are available seperately and cheaply!

First let's get this out of the way. I LOVE my Roomba 540 like there's no tomorrow. That little robot is so cute and does a great job. But the previous poster was right - the side brush doesn't last long, especially if you've got a lot of clutter that the Roomba has to maneuver around, or rugs with fringes that sometimes get caught (I have both). However, why on earth would you pay $[...] on something that is available on the Roomba website for $[...]? [...]

I've been using the Roomba for about six months and the side brush has falled apart so often I'm looking for my fourth brush already. And now I'm seeing prices for $39.95 for a package of three. I've purchased them for $14.95 elsewhere, so I'm feeling twice as ripped off now. How is it possible for Amazon to sell a product for more than twice what others sell it for?