Roomba power problem?

Help & Support Domestic Robots
1

Hello
I have a Roomba 540. Bought it used and fixed it with a new bumper sensor. It was working fine, but now sometimes when I plug the charge code in directly to the roomba. There is no connection. But if I wiggle the cord at the connector and hit the start button it starts to charge. In addition to the problem it will be working fine then just stop and makes a chirp noise like its trying to do the little song when it is ready to go but doesnt make it paste the first sec of sound. But if I move it and tap the top it sometime comes back to life and works fine. Just wondering if it is a mother board problem or just a problem of connectivity between the battery and mother board.

2

Thanks for the suggestions. I have dissassembled the whole vacuum and cleaned every nook and cranny. I thought the same thing with the battery contacts so I buffed them up with sand paper. So maybe that was a bad idea on my part. Is there a specific way to clean up the batter contacts on both the roomba and the battery.

thanks for the reply

Abswany

3

I dont have a home base. So I just charge direct. I will try a finer sand paper as I prebably pitted the surfaces.

thanks
abswany

4

Hi abswany,

The first thing that we think it could be is a loose battery. Remove the side brush and bottom cover of your robot and make sure the battery is well in place, and that the terminals on the battery and on the Roomba aren’t damaged or dirty. If so, please try to clean them. Also check that your bottom cover is tightened down properly; if it’s loose in any way, all the robot needs is a good bump and the battery could disconnect.

If the battery is loose it can certainly cause this kind of intermittent charging, but if the battery is not suspect, then you may have a problem with the Roomba itself. If you’re using a home base too, when you place the Roomba on the home base does it give you the same kind of intermittent behavior? Or do you really only see this problem when you use the charger directly?

Let us know if you have more info, and what you find out about that battery. Right now it sounds like something is loose.

Thanks,

5

Hi abswany,

Occasionally we’ll see dirty contacts on the battery and/or robot. Sandpaper may work for some of the very stiff residue, but it really does scratch up the contacts regardless; if you must use sandpaper try to use sandpaper that is fine; if it’s too coarse it will pit the metal contacts. Otherwise we recommend a clean rag or a small brush to clean the contacts, and some contact cleaner.

Also you can check the spring metal contacts for the battery that are on the robot; make sure they’re not flattened down too much; if they are, then VERY carefully pry them back up so the battery is held tightly in place and there is no up/down play.

Let us know if you can determine if the power cord issue is present when using the home base or not. It could also be that some dirt got on the contacts for the charger and you may have to use perhaps a cotton swab/Q-tip with contact cleaner to remove any dirt there.

Please let us know if anything helps or if you have any new information about the problem.

Thanks,