Automating Your Robot Vacuum with Schedules and Smart Actions
To keep your vacuum out of sight and out of mind (and out of hearing), we highly recommend creating a regular cleaning schedule or using Tapo’s smart actions to clean your home periodically.
- Robot Vacuums Benefit Most from Repeated Quick Cleaning Routes
- Longer Thorough Routes (On-Demand) Take Much Longer, and May Require Multiple Passes to See the Same Level of Cleanliness that can be achieved with periodic cleanings.
TIP: Enable “Ask Before Cleaning” in Your Schedule to receive a notification confirming that the vacuum should start its scheduled cleaning.
Use Shortcuts in the Tapo App
Shortcuts in the Tapo App will allow you to create preset cleans that you can trigger from a widget, your Homescreen, through a Smart Action, or even as a preset scene in Alexa or Google Home!
Use a Cleaning Schedule
- Create a Weekly Schedule to avoid needing to remember to start the Vacuum or having the robot vacuum disrupt your TV show, or so that you can always arrive to clean home.
- Break Up Your Schedules by Room to Clean the Most Used Rooms the Most Often
- Schedule Your Vacuum to Run While You Are Not Home or Use Geolocation Triggers
Use Smart Actions
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Available Triggers |
When the Robot Vacuum Starts Cleaning, When Something Goes Wrong |
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Available Conditions |
There are no Available Conditions for Robot Vacuums |
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Automation Actions |
Head Home (Dock); Start Cleaning:
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Always Arrive Home to a Clean Home with Location-Based Automations
With Tapo’s’ Geofencing option, you can set your vacuum to clean while you are away from home.
This has been a small but significant feature for my family, as returning home to a clean floor is always noticed. You can learn more about how to configure Tapo’s Geofencing Triggers in our article:
Location-Based Automations with Tapo
Recommended Conditions and Automation Ideas
Beyond vacuum automations, smart actions have already proven to be more than useful when paired with a contact or door sensor.
Clean Behind Closed Doors: For example, we have a storage room that has a closed door 90% of the time, meaning the vacuum cannot access the room to clean it during its typical cycles. To compensate, we created a Smart Action that will automatically send the vacuum to clean the storage room after the Door has been open for 2 minutes.
To Prevent the Vacuum from Cleaning: A sensor can help create flexible times when you don’t want the vacuum to run. (such as if a nursery door is closed, or you don’t want your vacuum to find its way to the great outdoors.
- Trigger: Time-based or event-based
- Condition: If the Door is Open
- Action: Start Cleaning
Lastly, this automation style can ensure your vacuum starts cleaning when it has full access to the house.
As a Final Tip – USE YOUR VOICE ASSISTANTS!
Even if you are not starting your vacuum with your Google Home or Alexa, knowing how to pause the cleaning cycle midway through, or end the clean entirely, will make your life much easier!
Button Presses: Power = Pause and Resume; Home Button will Send Vacuum Home once Paused
Clean with Your Voice – Starting Cleaning Routines for Amazon Alexa, Samsung SmartThings, and Google Home
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