I am finding it difficult to live with out (deep breath) our Roomba.  For the last several years, we have

Annika the Swiss Mtn Dog and Buddy the Pug

had one or two of the little robot devils running around our house picking up dog hair, primarily.  The monsters, as we affectionately call our dogs, shed black dog hair all year long and it is impossible to keep up with… Well, at least until we bought our first iRobot Roomba.  It was a $50 close out at Home Depot, about five years ago, and it was the best money we ever spent.

Every morning, we start it and let it run around the house.  And at the end of the cycle, the bin would be full of hair and dander.  One time, I collected a week’s worth in a gallon ziplock bag – it was gross the amount of schmutz it picked up.  But better picked up, than rolling about the house in fist-sized, dog-hair tumbleweeds.

Recently, as the warranty expired on our most recent Roomba, it stopped moving forward.  (note: all of our Roombas have died under warranty, and all of our Roombas were quickly replaced by iRobot.  A little patience, and remembering to register your unit are important!)  It tries to move, but dies.  Luckily, there are a couple of places on the internet who do repairs, so I am going to take my chances and send it out.

As with many of my blogs, what does this have to do with Home Staging?  If I can get both of our units up and running, we will begin offering them out as part of our Staging services for Occupied homes that rent furnishings, especially if they have cats or dogs.  As long as the homeowner is willing to start it, then pick it up and empty it daily.  Our Discovery dies away from its base quite often, but I ask: What is better for a buyer to see?  A Roomba in the living room, signaling that you care to keep your house clean?  Or the aforementioned fist-sized, dog-hair tumbleweeds?

Thanks for stopping.