Roomba not charging: the four things to check

1. Clean the charging contacts

Turn the Roomba over and wipe the two metal charging contacts on its underside. Do the same with the two contacts on the Home Base. Use a dry cloth or a melamine sponge; a thin film is enough to stop charging.

2. Check the Home Base

• Make sure the base has power: on most models a light on the base turns on briefly when the robot docks.
• Try a different outlet, and check the cable is fully seated in the base.
• On Clean Base models, check the small contacts on the ramp, not only the robot.

3. Reset the robot

Hold CLEAN for 10 seconds (older series) or 20 seconds (j, s and i series) to reboot, then put it back on the base. A robot that charges after a reboot was stuck in software, not broken.

4. Battery

If it charges but dies in a few minutes, or the battery light flashes red, the battery is worn. Roomba batteries are a simple swap you can do at home on most models, and that is usually the right fix.

When it's a repair

Clean contacts, a working base and a new battery, and still no charge: the charging circuit on the main board has failed. That is a bench repair — worth it on a newer j, s or i series, often not on an old 600-series.