Roomba Bin Full Sensor Location

Last updated Aug 4, 2024

This article is mainly about the location of the bin full sensor on the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner.

You are likely looking for its location because you want to clean it or perform some other maintenance on it. So, I will be providing a detailed guide on the location of the bin full sensor on a Roomba, as well as show you best practises on how to clean and maintain it in order to enjoy your Roomba for a long time to come.

Roomba S9, i7, I3 Bin Full Sensor Locations

Table of Contents

There are many iterations of the Roomba vacuum cleaner. I say iterations because most of the functionalities are the same across models. However, the s9, i7, i3 are among the most common among users, so I will be focusing on those.

When it comes to the location of components, they only vary very slightly across model series rather than across individual models. So, the bin full sensor location for all I series is the same, as is the bin full sensor location for all WIFI-connected series, and so on.

Therefore, in this guide, I will be providing the bin full sensor locations for the I, WIFI connected (including the S9), and the 700 series.

Roomba I Series Bin Full Sensor

To expose and locate the bin full sensor on the Roomba I series robot cleaner, you need to open the bottom side of the robot cleaner.

Pull out the bin to reveal the bin full sensors. It consists of 2 sensors on either end of the bin door as depicted in the illustrations below:

When you slide open the door as above, you will see 2 black sensors on either end. It looks like this:

But that’s not all. There are the sensor ports that also play a part in the optimal functioning of the bin full mechanism. They are divided into outer and inner sensor ports.

Inner Sensor Ports i7

These are tray-like in shape, and are revealed when you lift the bin full sensor, as illustrated below:

Outer Sensor Ports i7

They are the outer part of the sensor ports, and must also be clean for the optimal functioning of the bin full sensor. The outer sensor port is shown below:

Note that I have only shown one side of each sensor and sensor ports. The bin full sensors, inner sensor ports and outer sensor ports each have a left and right part, making it 6 bin full sensors in total.

Roomba WIFI Series Bin Full Sensor

The bin full sensor on the WIFI series Roomba, of which the S9 is a part, is slightly different from that of the I series detailed above.

But, just as with the I series, you would need to open the bottom of the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner to reveal the bin full sensor.

The bin full sensor on the WIFI connected series is as shown below:

Like the I series, it also has inner and outer sensor ports.

The inner sensor ports are illustrated below:

The outer sensor ports are illustrated below:

Roomba 700 Series Bin Full Sensor

The bin full sensor components on the 700 series are very similar to that of the WIFI connected series. There is only a slight difference in the outer appearance of the entire bin full sensor unit, as illustrated below:

Other than this, there is no difference. So, let’s move on to the other half of this article, which is how to clean the Roomba bin full sensor

How to Clean Roomba Bin full Sensor

Before going into details about how to clean the Roomba bin full sensor, I think that there are a few important details you should know.

You probably want to clean your Roomba because you got notification or indication that the bin needs cleaning. So, here’s how it works:

The Roomba bin full sensor determines when the bin is full. Depending on how quickly the bin gets filled up, you could decide to change the way the cleaning is done on the Roomba. You could choose one of the settings below:
Do not clean when full – This means that the Roomba will not start any new cleaning jobs if the bin is full, and it will pause any ongoing cleaning jobs if the bin is full.
Keep cleaning when full – This means that the Roomba will start and complete cleaning jobs, whether the bin is full or not.
You can select the setting that suits your needs by following the steps below:

Select Robot Settings on the iRobot Home app

Select Cleaning Preferences
Then, select Bin Full Behaviour to make your desired setting

Now, if you are using the I or E series, you will see the bin full indication in one of the ways below:

The bin symbol appears under the Clean button in the iROBOT Home app
For series E, the bin symbol will illuminate directly on the Roomba
For I series, the light ring around the Clean button on the Roomba will illuminate and flash red continuously on the robot
For WIFI connected series, the red bin symbol will illuminate or blink on the robot.

Cleaning the Bin Full Sensors

Get a soft, microfiber cloth
Pull out the dirt bin to reveal the bin full sensor as illustrated earlier in this article
Empty the bin and then gently wipe dirt, dust, and smudges from the bin full sensor as well as the outer and inner bin full sensor ports as in the images above.
Make sure to clean all the parts of the bin full sensor thoroughly, else you may continue to see the bin full indicator
Do not use a wet cloth to clean the sensors. However, you can use a damp cloth to clean around the sensors
For the bin itself, you can clean it with water. But make sure to dry it thoroughly before replacing it
After cleaning the sensors, it is best to reboot the Roomba to completely clear the error and prevent any glitches from occurring.