The Fan on My Roomba Vacuum is Not Working

The fan on your Roomba, also known as the side brush, spins dirt and hair from hard-to-reach areas, such as corners, toward the device's vacuuming brushes. If it stops working, you can undertake a few maintenance measures to fix the problem.

Problems

The fan can malfunction in three ways: it turns slowly, rotates backward or does not move at all. These problems can be caused by hair jamming the fan's rotation, or poor reassembly.

Hair

Hair can tangle in the fan, blocking movement. To fix this problem, remove the screw on the center of the fan with a Phillips-head driver, pull the fan off the Roomba, then untangle the hair.

Proper Reassembly

If you've previously removed the fan, you may have overtightened the screw or not locked the fan into the axle. Use your Phillips-head screwdriver to loosen the screw from the Roomba, then push down on the fan until you feel it locking into the fan's axle. Tighten the screw while holding down the fan.

References

• "iRobot Roomba Vacuum Cleaning Robot 600/500 Series"; iRobot; 2010
• iRobot: How do I clean the spinning Side Brush on the Roomba 500 Series?
• iRobot: Roomba 500 Series Side Brush starts spinning backwards
• iRobot: Roomba 500 Series Brush Care Video

Resources

• iRobot: Where Robot Technology And Clean Homes Meet
• iRobot: Roomba