What automation features actually reduced cleaning work in your home?
I feel like robot vacuum companies and actual dog owners are using two different definitions of hands free. Because if I still have to rinse the mop, scrape hair out of the brush, wipe the tray, empty gross water, clean the dock corners, rescue it from a bath mat, and then sniff the mop like a Victorian doctor checking for plague, that is not hands free. That is just chores with an app. I have two dogs. One sheds soft little clouds, the other brings in dirt like he is doing field research. The problem is not just hair. It is wet paws, dried drool, kibble powder, dust under the couch, and that weird ring around the dog bowl that appears even when nobody admits responsibility. So when people say “just vacuum daily,” yeah, but what about the mop staying clean during the actual run? If the mop only washes after dragging through three rooms, I do not fully trust it. I’m starting to care about things I never thought about before: self-washing roller mops, dirty water separation, sealed dust paths, filters that do not cough fine dust back into the room.
Dog people, what is your honest standard for hands free? Like actually hands free, not “you only need to do disgusting maintenance twice a week” hands free