The Best Robot Vacuum And Mop Hybrids: Our UK Review (2024)

You don’t want to dig too deep into your pocket for a robot vacuum mop combo?

No problem! Below, you can see cheap alternatives for the smaller purse.?

The Roborock S5 Max

The Roborock S5 Max convinced with powerful suction, an excellent mobile app (Wi-fi connection needed) and precise and seamless laser navigation in our test.

But what’s the mopping performance like?

The water tank has a capacity of 290 ml. According to the manufacturer, the robot can mop an area of 200 m² at a stretch with one water filling at the lowest water intensity level. The Roborock S5 Max is therefore also suitable for more extensive flats.

You can set the water intensity in 4 levels via app control. You can also choose the water intensity for each room individually, depending on the floor type or degree of contamination.

Now you have maximum flexibility so that you can adjust the mopping performance to individual needs.

There’s also a spring construction that creates a constant contact pressure on the mopping cloth to improve the mopping performance.

The mopping performance itself is convincing. The robot vacuum cleaner frees the floor from light dirt and dust and leaves a nice damp track behind it.

The delivery scope includes a transparent plastic mat. It protects the hardwood floors from the wet mop whenever the Roborock S5 Max docks at the charging station after mopping.

You get a complete package with the Roborock S5 Max that leaves almost nothing to be desired... and that at an acceptable price!

Roborock S5 Max*

Ecovacs Deebot OZMO 950

The Deebot OZMO 950 from Ecovacs is a great robot vacuum cleaner.

The mopping function also worked very well during the test. Especially on tiles and hardwood floors, the result was excellent.

It could easily clean our 80 m² flat at a stretch since it has a water tank with a 200 ml capacity.

The Deebot OZMO 950 has a patented electric water pump. You can set the water intensity via the mobile phone app in 4 levels (low, medium, high and very high) for each room.

Unfortunately, there’s no transparent waterproof pad in the delivery scope. That means that the floor is exposed to the wet mop when charging the battery.

But no worries. You can simply buy a suitable plastic mat on Amazon* UK or at a DIY store for little money.

What the OZMO 950 can offer is an active carpet detection function.

The robot reliably avoids carpets as soon as the water tank is attached. A great function!

Long story short: The Deebot OZMO 950 is a rock-solid robot vacuum mop hybrid at a very fair price.

Ecovacs Deebot OZMO 920*

Especially for allergy sufferers, a 2-in-1 device could be an exciting alternative.

A halfway decent robot vacuum cleans the flat very well and won’t leave much dirt behind, right?

That's what we thought, and we were wrong.

We were surprised how much dust and dirt our robotic vacuum with mop hybrid still mopped off the floor during our test.

This is what the mop looked like after it mopped the vacuumed bedroom.

The robot vacuum with a mopping feature works brilliantly on hardwood floors.

However, a carpet is still quite challenging for them.

After all, we don't want the robot to drag the dirty, wet mop across the beautiful white carpet.

The manufacturers acknowledged that problem and found a solution:

• Automatic carpet detection function: The robot avoids the carpets during mopping.

• Liftable mopping plate: The robot lifts the mopping plate whenever it drives onto a carpet.

The Dreame L10s Ultra lifts the mop pads when crossing carpets - it also lifts them when it returns to the base station to rinse the mops, meaning your floors aren't streaked with dirty water.

If the vacuum-mopping robot of your choice doesn’t have these features, you can also set up virtual boundaries.

This way, the robot vacuum avoids the carpet when it mops the floor. Problem solved!

Robot Vacuum:

A robot vacuum does what its name suggests: it vacuums your home. The iRobot Roomba S9 or iRobot Roomba i7+, for example, are robot vacuums that only vacuum.

You’ll have to mop the floors yourself or get a separate mopping robot for this task.

Mopping Robots:

Pure mopping robots only mop the floor in your home. (e.g. iRobot Braava Jet m6* from iRobot)

Disadvantage:

• You have to vacuum the floor yourself beforehand, or a robot vacuum does the work. Cleaning the entire flat will take quite a long time.

Advantage:

• A mopping robot has an optimized mopping function. Therefore, the mopping performance is usually slightly better than that of hybrid models.

Robot vacuum with mop Combos

You can also call a robot vacuum with a mop a hybrid model, a combo device or a 2-in-1 model.

This is because a robot combines both features (vacuuming and mopping) in one device.

The focus of these devices is clearly on vacuuming performance.

It also mops the floor and frees it from light dirt and dust.

This way, the mopping feature ensures more cleanliness in your home.

The mopping trace may look like this after a couple of cleaning trips:

That might happen because the nozzles on the water tank are clogged/calcified so that hardly any water gets from the water tank to the mop.

But don't worry, you can quickly fix the problem in two simple steps.

(1) Put a little vinegar into the full water tank and let the robot clean your home. That should dissolve any calcification.

(2) Carefully pierce the opening on the water tank and on the robot vacuum with a thin needle to remove possible "blockages".

That should do the job, so your robot vacuum will leave a nice mopping trace as usual ?.

We put together a few tips and tricks if you want to get a bit more out of the mopping function.

Create A Good Starting Point

Make sure that you clean the flat thoroughly before the first mopping.

Then your 2-in-1 robot vacuum and mop will have an optimal starting point.

Now it's time to let the robot keep up the level of cleanliness!

Let The Robot Mop Your Flat Regularly

Even the best vacuum-mopping robot doesn't stand a chance if the floor is super dirty.

The more often the robot mops the flat, the cleaner your home will be.

Use Water With Less Lime

Water with a high lime content not only leads to worse mopping results (stains/streaks on the floor), it could also clog the water outlet nozzles.

If your tap water has a very high lime content, it might be better to run the water through a filter first.

Put Some Detergent In The Water Tank

That trick is pretty apparent: Simply add some detergent to the water tank.

You’ll quickly see an improvement in the cleaning result.

But be careful...

...not all cleaning agents are suitable for a robot vacuum’s water tank.

The water tank is usually made of relatively thin plastic, which is why an aggressive floor cleaner could damage the water tank.

Furthermore, a highly chemical floor cleaner could clog the water nozzles. It could also invalidate the manufacturer’s warranty.

You must use a suitable floor cleaner*. You're able to find a lot of products on Amazon UK.

Please make sure that it is a compatible cleaning agent.

The following are safe to use:

• Special floor cleaners for robot vacuum cleaners* .

• with a mopping function: The manufacturers usually recommend these themselves. They are specially designed for this specific use.

• Organic cleaner: They are usually very suitable for robot vacuums, and they also don’t contain any harmful chemicals, which is good for the environment.

• Common all-purpose cleaners: Such floor cleaners are very gentle and shouldn’t cause any damage to your robot or the floor.

Finally, we recommend paying close attention to the ratio.

Please mix only a tiny amount of a compatible floor cleaner into the cold water in the water tank.

You can usually find the appropriate ratio in the product description of the cleaning agent.

Just follow these tips to be on the safe side, and your cleaning results will improve.

The flat just smells fresher and is a tad cleaner.

PS: If the manufacturer explicitly prohibits cleaning agents in the operating instructions, you should also comply with them.

The measures listed above aren’t a recommendation for action!

Add Detergent Directly Onto The Mop Or Floor

You don't want to add the floor cleaner to the water tank?

No problem!

Alternatively, you can put the cleaner onto the mop (or directly on the floor).

That’ll also improve the mopping result.

Dampen The Mop Before Cleaning

Sometimes, it takes a few minutes until the mop absorbs enough water to dampen the floor properly.

If you want to see a damp trace on the floor from the beginning, you should hold the mop briefly under running water.

Then the mop will be wet enough for optimal mopping results right from the start of the cleaning.

Wash The Mop Regularly

We were surprised at how much dirt and grime the mop collects over time...

And we thought our flat was already clean!

Therefore, it’s all the more important to clean the mop thoroughly.

We recommend washing the mop regularly in the washing machine at 40 degrees.

You can also thoroughly rinse the mop under hot water after each cleaning (or even during the trip).

Change The Mop After Each Cleaning

We recommend changing the mop after each cleaning run.

Thus, you should have several mops at home.

You can always buy a mop online* on Amazon UK.

Clean The Water Tank Regularly

Moisture can form inside the device if you leave the water tank attached to the robot all the time.

That’s not hygienic in the long run. It could even lead to mould in the water tank in extreme cases.

We surely don’t want that.

Then place the water tank upside down on the windowsill to dry.

You can reattach the water tank once it’s completely dry after approx. 2-3 hours.

Then everything’s clean, and the robot can get back to work. ?

Heavily Soiled Floors? Let The Robot Mop It Several Times.

This tip may sound obvious, but it helps.

It always does the trick for us.

The kitchen floor sometimes looks very dirty after we cooked dinner.

Then it takes the little housekeeper a few more times to clean it all up.

And indeed, if you mop a heavily soiled floor several times, the result improves.

Oh yes, and don’t forget to switch to the highest water intensity level to ensure a better result.

Insider Tip: Clamp An Extra Cloth Under The Mop

Now our insider tip.

You can use a microfibre cloth to increase the contact pressure...

... and tuck it under the mop.

You’ll see a significant improvement in the mopping result!

You can buy such a cloth* online for little money on Amazon UK.

Robot vacuum and mop hybrids become more and more popular. We’ve also reviewed many of them...

We can confirm: Hybrid models are very good at what they do.

They vacuum and mop ? your flat at the same time.

That gives your home a tad more cleanliness and ensures even more well-being. ?