iRobot Roomba cleaning basics 101 - Part 2

Today we take about the cleaning head module (CHM) of the roomba and give it a clean out.

[@aptlyvenus]

This video is so clear and helpful! I took the gearbox apart and it had six years of cat hair inside. I took each gear off separately because I was afraid I would forget how they went back on. This fixed a persistent thimping and "clean brushes" error (even with new brushes). I want my Roomba to live forever!

[@drroomba5045]

Fantastic!! Well done

[@reddiamond1453]

The gears in the gearbox, especially the ones that drive the two brush bars, do you know if there are brass replacements available?

[@Patricia-kb5qv]

Still need cleaning

[@minmo2288]

770 Getting error 2 after a few minutes but only on carpet, works fine on hard floor, changed the brushes and cleaned everything out including opening the gear box cleaning and regreasing and zero difference, brushes seem to be making a clunking noise on carpet

[@drroomba5045]

clunking will be the brushes reversing direction because the roomba has seen a high motor current and thinks something is jammed. Question: did problem happen with old brushes? did problem just start happening or after thew new brushes? if you are tech savy, you can make up a cable and connect to the roomba and run built in tests to see what the motor current is doing.... could be motor issue or issue on motherboard. Where are you located? other idea is to look on marketplace and pick up cheap 2nd hand one and swap out the bush module. If you were in Melbourne, Australia, I could help you out. See this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/o2iyeGh_gtean7Msi=ZRidvpa5VI3RW44z

[@Patricia-kb5qv]

Thanks, took mine apart and cleaned it. Runs quietly!

[@kevinwells4086]

Righty-O

[@christinafoerst5867]

I found your video very informative (thank you) and I followed your advice and cleaned everything yet, I am still getting the error 2 message after 1.5 minutes of running time. I have a 650. It was working fine until I needed a new battery and now I am having this problem. This happened right after installing the new battery. Any idea what I can try next? I do worry that the brushes get stuck. I greased the gears and I can’t be sure this is the problem cause I can not see the brushes running unfortunately.

[@drroomba5045]

Hi Can u remove both brushes and run. Then run 1 brush at a time. Report back. Ta

[@christinafoerst5867]

Yes, I tried that and it ran fine with one brush at a time. Either one ran it for 10 minutes.

[@christinafoerst5867]

And then I stopped it!

[@drroomba5045]

I’m curious, Can u put back old battery and see ?

[@christinafoerst5867]

@@drroomba5045 Unfortunately I got rid of it.

[@elenapatriciu9517]

Hello. What else can we do for error number 2? Roomba is only 11 months old and I ve tried everything showing in these 2 videos. It only works 2 minutes and again error. Thank you!

[@drroomba5045]

Hi, what is model number of your Roomba ? Also remove brushes and run. Does it stop with fault 2 ? Remove each brush in turn and repeat. Report back

[@elenapatriciu9517]

Good afternoon and thank you for your answer. Yes, it stopped with error / fault 2: clean brushes. I did what you said. With no brushes it worked 5 minutes then stopped. With the main brush only, it worked 2 minutes then stopped. With the flexibile brush only, it worked 5 minutes then stopped. I replaced the new brushes with the old brushes too, it worked 5 minutes then stopped. The same error/ fault clean brushes ☹

[@elenapatriciu9517]

Ohh I forgot to mention, the model is 605.

[@drroomba5045]

@@elenapatriciu9517 Hi Elena, the error is because the roomba computer thinks the motor which turns the brushes is drawing to much current. You could try spraying 'electical contact cleaner' inside the openings/holes in the motor to try and clean inside the motor. If I was you I would look for a 2nd hand roomba on facebook marketplace or similar 2nd hand selling place and swap the cleaning head module. Best to buy a 2nd hand roomba instead of buying a new cleaning head module as there is also the chance the roomba computer is faulty. You say you only have for 11 months...was it new when you got it? motor should last alot longer than that. Could be the roomba computer...try and get a cheap 2nd hand CHM.

[@elenapatriciu9517]

Ohh more harder than i thought. I bought it new and because he is still in warranty i just decided to send him in service as fast as I can. This is my first robot 😊. Thank you very much for your help ❤

[@jeannettemacaluso2462]

Looking for a video or instructions on how to clean an 805 gear box.

[@ryanbundy9939]

Great video, super helpful and brought our Roomba back to life.

[@gregatwell4095]

Good to watch a guy who knows his stuff and I can understand what he is about. The Roomba is running like a riddle as I type this.

[@NewbergUSA]

Good video thanks! Righty-O makes me smile.

[@madscientisthut]

Good info. I have not taken my Roomba down that far yet. like+

[@MartinKubaS5]

Great video!

[@cathyjones4702]

At 4:40 you say to use white lithium grease - but I have always heard never to use white lithium grease on plastic as it will just break it down over time. Any thoughts?

[@drroomba5045]

Hey Alex, that is interesting about lithium grease. I followed advice from website www.robotreviews.com/ where the guru's lurk.

[@fionianews1799]

Thank you, very helpfull. Cheers from Denmark

[@makemoneyrelax]

this roomba is so dirty, do you use it in barn?

[@pkey2043]

I can tell youve done this many times

[@plakcanius4069]

Nu graag in het Nederlands 🤓

[@kimschaub3041]

After I put it back together the brushes don’t turn at all now.. what do you recommend? I did not put oil on the gears but the brushes turn manually

[@drroomba5045]

I would put the roomba into its 'built in test' mode and run the test which turns on the brush motor. I would remove the brushes and see if the motor turns to try and narrow down where the problem is. Built in test mode is the best because you can run just the brush motor and turn roomba upside down and it keeps running. I have another video which explains how to get into built in test mode. See here kzbin.info/www/bejne/o2iyeGh_gtean7M you dont need a laptop though.

[@JasonLianneMac]

Very helpful thanks!

[@natajohn]

I dont think i can put it back together if i did that.😂

[@stevejordan2575]

I have to replace the gear box! The owner before did not take care of it. one of the gear pins got so hot ,it made a oval shape hole! The gear that rotate everything else did not even make contact with other gears!

[@drroomba5045]

where u located ?

[@AdrianWoodfield]

Well done mate! Could you also do a video on how to clean the left/right driving wheels please? (Thanks all the way from the UK) :)

[@drroomba5045]

Hello Adrian, I guess you are getting lots of hair getting wound inside the slot near the tire. It is possible to pull apart the wheel assembly, so you can remove the hair, however it is difficult and I would not recommend it as you can cause more damage putting it back together. This guy gives another option which i tried and although it requires drilling some holes, it worked well. Check out techforpassion.blogspot.com/2013/01/teardown-roomba-wheel-assembly-taken.html

[@vincecapaldi7691]

Will this help reduce the suction/vacuum noise?

[@drroomba5045]

No.

[@gordongoodyear5607]

Thanks for the video! I followed your directions and my Roomba 690 runs like a champ now!

[@brainsold]

Many Thanks to share! greetings from Portugal. regards

[@souhairbreu4387]

thank you so much, great instructional video love it.

[@Dzordzikk]

Hi, in our Roomba it looks similar like in your gearbox, but last 2 gears was damaged teeths. Is possible to buy a new gearbox or set of new gears somewheere for cheap price?

[@drroomba5045]

best thing is to look on places like facebook marketplace for a cheap second hand roomba. In Australia, you can sometime get them for $50 or free if broken. You can then take the parts from that one. If you were near me, i would send them to you !

[@Dzordzikk]

@@drroomba5045 Hi, I´m from Czech Republic, so on exactly oposite side of Earth :D

[@Dzordzikk]

Please, how to activate on series 600 service mode to test brushes motor and gearbox when robot is on bottom side?

[@drroomba5045]

@@Dzordzikk see kzbin.info/www/bejne/o2iyeGh_gtean7Msi=0qfsTcshiVfOH9Vz&t=92 please like and subscribe

[@digisekce]

Saved my Roomba, thanks!

[@BetaoMB]

Hello, I performed all the clean possible following your directions however the error 2 persisted. I realized that the machine is either receiving wrong information from some sensor then giving the error; or the computer has a malfunction. I even put the dirty text sensor apart, inspected the cable harness, and gave a good clean to the copper disk. Anyway, your directions were very helpful, otherwise I couldn't perform the disassembly and cleaning.

[@drroomba5045]

Did you try removing both brushes ? Still error 2? Remove gearbox - still error ?

[@waksina]

Hello and thank you for this video! I have a problem with the the main brush motor: it spins only when the roomba is upside-down (tested with diagnosis mode). As soon as I return the roomba and put it on its wheels, the main brushes motor stops working. Is there any chance that the cable/dot you talk about in the beginning of the video have anything to do with this issue ? Thank you!

[@drroomba5045]

It seems when the motor is put under any load it stops. Does it stop when placed on a smooth surface (not carpet?). The cable does adjust the height of the motor however i think the issue would most likely be with your motor. Does it pass the motor test in diag mode? (whilst under no load - i.e lifted) If you connect a laptop to the roomba you can get alot more info (see my other videos). You can se the motor current on laptop. I have had this problem and it was the motor. Have you cleaned the gearbox like in my video? you can also try cleaning out the motor like suggested in my video. Remove one brush and see if it stops. Dont forget to subscribe !

[@revy1063]

Mine is only 7 months old, took mine apart fully and saw no problem what so ever, I will try WD40 in the motor and some new grease.

[@drroomba5045]

Don’t use WD40 inside motor (ie. where motor windings are). Use electrical contact cleaner.

[@joshuabarach5516]

Very helpful!

[@yuchong1704]

how about Roomba 890? Is it very different?

[@drroomba5045]

Yes, very different!

[@srgentry51]

Thank you for your video. Very detailed and informative. I have another question though. My virtual walls are not stopping the roomba from propelling through them. I have already put fresh batteries in and I am getting the 5 blinking lights when I turn on the virtual wall, but then the roomba still drives through it. Is there another way to sync up the walls? I have a roomba 805 with the two virtual walls that came with it.

[@drroomba5045]

Hi, some questions for you: 1) I assume you have the switch in the UP position on the virtual wall ? 2) has it ever worked 3) If you place the roomba 50cm in front of the home base and press the DOCK button does it find home? 4) If roomba is on home base and you press CLEAN, does it reverse backwards? Regards The Doctor

[@doyletronic]

I work on my Roomba about 20 minutes and it runs for about 2 minutes. wondering if I will ever figure out the puzzle.

[@drroomba5045]

How old is battery ?

[@doyletronic]

@@drroomba5045 about a month old. After watching your video I cleaned it out again and it ran until I turned it off, I think the sensor was blocked. thanks

[@AlessandroBoggiano]

Awesome video! My 650 fails to charging: it docks, led red is blinking but it's not charging! I clean the metal contacts (base + roomba), changed battery. It fails but not all the time: something it wait 30 minutes then starts to charge! Can you tell me if I can do something about it ?

[@drroomba5045]

Can you try to charge it from side port instead of using home base as a test?

[@AlessandroBoggiano]

@@drroomba5045 Orange light is blinking but it doesn't recharge. To be honest, right now,it started Fully recharging after about 50 minutes" (from the side port)

[@drroomba5045]

Alessandro Boggiano when u remove battery you will see 4 metal springy looking prongs. The bigger ones make contact with the voltage and other smaller ones are for battery temp. Try slightly bending them up so they make better contact with battery. Sometimes they get pushed down too far. Try this simple thing first

[@AlessandroBoggiano]

@@drroomba5045 thanks! I tried but it doesn't change! It stays on the base doing nothing than it starts charging after a couple of hours.

[@drroomba5045]

@@AlessandroBoggianoIt may be time to try plugging a laptop into the roomba and check out the charging logs. I did a video kzbin.info/www/bejne/o2iyeGh_gtean7M