If, like me, you have a mixture of carpets, rugs, and hard flooring in your home, you might find maintaining them all difficult. I used to have the same problem – until I started using the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra in my home.
Many robot vacuums nowadays have built-in vacuuming and mopping features, and take care of their mop heads with self-cleaning bases. These models tend to be on the higher end of the price point – and this model is no exception. I was excited to give it a try, as Eureka is known for its high-performance vacuums.
I’ve been putting the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra robot vacuum through its paces in my two-story home for over four months. Here, I delve into how it performs in terms of vacuuming, mopping, and overall maintenance, and see how it compares to the best robot vacuums that we’ve tested.
Eureka J15 Pro Ultra: Specifications
|
Control |
App, button, and voice control |
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Dust capacity |
3 liters (dust cup) |
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Suction |
16,200 Pa |
|
Filter |
Cartridge |
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Cleaning path width |
5.5 inches |
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Noise level |
72 to 80 decibels |
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Weight |
32.8 pounds |
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Dimensions |
18.3L x 16.1W x 18.4H inches |
Eureka J15 Pro Ultra: Unboxing and setup
Assembly took around five minutes in total.
(Image credit: Future / Eve Smallman)
It came out of cardboard packaging and had plastic covers on the base and the vacuum itself. While I understand that this was to prevent scratches, the cardboard packaging inside was robust enough to prevent any damage in my opinion.
The base is large and heavy, so I had to get my partner’s help in carrying and setting up the docking station. I recommend measuring up your space and making sure you have an area big enough for it before purchasing it. I luckily had a space that was already ideal, but those living in smaller homes might struggle to find a home for it.
Assembling it all together took around five minutes – including filling the water tank. I did appreciate that there weren’t too many pieces that needed slotting together. Once it was all plugged in, it took around an hour to get charged up and ready to use.
I actually didn’t pair the app up for a month, as I wanted to see how it functioned without this. However, once I did set it up it was super quick to do, taking just a few minutes to download and pair up the robot with the app. All you have to do is press a button on the vacuum and add the Wi-Fi password. Once I’d done this, the initial mapping process of my lower floor (entryway, dining room/living room, and kitchen) took five minutes.
Eureka J15 Pro Ultra: Design and features
The rounded-straight body allows it to reach edges of the room easily, so it doesn’t need to be used alongside the best vacuums or the best handheld vacuums. This pairs up with the ScrubEdge swing arm, which cleans up hard-to-reach spots. It also allows it to move under furniture and gaps, making hard cleaning tasks like going under these simple.
While the base is heavy and big, this does come with the benefit of it having a large capacity. It can go for 75 days with hands-free maintenance. The 8-in-1 system automatically empties debris, automatically refills water, and cleans the mop with hot water before drying it, in order to prevent mold and mildew building.
The vacuum itself is a little heavy, but it does have a powerful 16,200 Pa suction and an aluminum fan which boosts motor performance. This means it’s able to effectively tackle both hard and soft surfaces.
It has a LiDAR+RGB camera, which allows it to map out the different rooms and navigate obstacles. This can also be accessed on the app and viewed live as it cleans which makes for very interesting viewing – especially in those gaps of the house I don’t normally see!
I don’t have pets, but I do have long hair that seems to get absolutely everywhere. The Flexirazor Anti-Hair Brushroll Technology cuts hair, stopping it from wrapping around the robot vacuum’s arms, which is one of the reasons why pet hair is so hard to vacuum. I’ve only had to cut hair from it a couple of times, which I found impressive considering I usually have to cut hair from regular vacuums every couple of weeks. It’s certainly a contender for the best robot vacuums for pet hair.
It also has Intelligent Dirt Detection, meaning it can accurately detect dry and wet messes. This allows it to switch between the mop and the side brush by itself while cleaning.
The app allows you to create schedules for the robot to go around and change how deep a clean it does. You can also edit maps, name rooms, and even add furniture. Plus, you can also switch between a 2D and a 3D map. As well as this, the app allows you to adjust the suction power, when you want it to vacuum, and how much water it uses. This is especially handy for those who are eco-conscious.
What is the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra like to use?
While it’s cleaning, the robot is a breeze to manage. Although usually you must keep floors clear with a robot vacuum, I have never had to move any obstacles out of the way, which is surprising as my floor often has boxes or bags lying around. I only ever have to move it on the corners of my dining room rug, which is a low pile rug. However, it has no issues mounting onto my higher-pile living room rug.
It also crosses thresholds easily. I have an open-plan living room and dining room, and the kitchen and entryway are on either side of this and both have thresholds that the robot vacuum easily moves on top of, thanks to the Intelligent Mop-Lifting technology.
It normally takes 50 minutes to clean my whole downstairs area, which is impressively speedy. After cleaning, it auto-washes and dries its mop head itself. The only maintenance I have to do is emptying the dirty water tank and topping up the normal water tank – both of which I only have had to do after 60 days. Both tanks have a handle which makes for easy transportation.
As I mentioned, I didn’t pair it up with the app for a month because I wanted to see how well it functioned without this. If you really don’t want to bother with the app, you can just press the power button on the vacuum and let it go around. Its Intelligent Dirt Detection system means that it uses its vacuum or mop function depending on the debris at hand automatically.
However, I highly recommend using it with the app. You can change the suction level, adjust the mopping preferences, and adjust whether it vacuums and mops, or vacuums and then mops. The map shows you where the vacuum is at all times and prompts you if the vacuum gets stuck. It also allows you to view the camera of the vacuum, so you can see exactly what it is cleaning whenever you want.
Eureka J15 Pro Ultra: Vacuuming tests
In addition to using the robot vacuum for everyday cleaning, I put it to the test with Homes & Gardens’ vacuum testing criteria. First I poured a cup of flour on my carpet and my vinyl flooring (one cup in each space) to see how well it picked up fine debris. I adjusted the power to turbo (averaged 80.1 db) before it started, due to the amount of flour it was due to suck up.
Unfortunately, it just dragged residue around my downstairs living space, as it tends to go back and forth between the different rooms while cleaning. It did the same thing in the kitchen. I then cleaned up and tried it with two tablespoons of flour, and it still struggled to fully clean everything up. For a robot vacuum of this price, I did expect it to be able to gather thick pieces of dirt better. That being said, it did a good job of mopping up after itself afterwards.
I then sprinkled cereal and lentils on the same carpet and vinyl flooring areas. It did a thorough job of gathering up the different-sized, hard granules, working in a methodical pattern to pick them all up. It did sprinkle a few to the edges on quick mode, but when I changed it to daily mode, it picked these up. This took under two minutes to do.
That being said, on its way back to the base station, it did drop little pieces of lentil and cereal, which I then had to clean up myself. This issue is something that was easily resolved with the eufy 3-in-1 E20, as it has a detachable handheld vacuum built into the robot for cleaning up those messes left behind.
It handles hair incredibly well, with its Flexirazor Anti-Hair Brushroll technology gathering hair and then cutting it within the base station. I have only had to cut hair wrapped around it twice, and that was when I had used it to clean the carpet upstairs. It gathered hair brilliantly from this, and seems like its anti-hair wrap properties help to avoid falling victim to the most common faults found in robot vacuums.
While I don’t have pets, I do a lot of gardening, and I often end up with dirt outside my backyard door. When the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra went around the first time, I was amazed at how well it picked up dirt that had got in the cracks in my vinyl flooring.
Eureka J15 Pro Ultra: Mopping tests
I put a tablespoon of ketchup and a tablespoon of mustard onto my vinyl kitchen floor to test how well it can handle stain removal. It detected that there was a stain there, pausing when it saw it (it’s alive!), and then methodically working its way through it.
While it did clean up the majority of the stain, I did have to send it back round again to finish the job after it gave its mops a wash. Thankfully, it didn’t drag any saucy residue back into the living room with it.
I have been using it to mop my home which has rugs downstairs, and it always leaves them looking pristine. One of these is white, which used to be a nightmare to maintain until I started using the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra robot vacuum. Sending the vacuum around daily means that it stays pristine.
Eureka J15 Pro Ultra: Cleaning and maintenance
After four months of testing, I only had to cut hair out of the brushroll two times.
(Image credit: Future / Eve Smallman)
One of my favorite things about this vacuum has to be the lack of daily maintenance. You don’t have to fill up the mop or empty the dustbin itself, as it does it all for you. Unlike other robot vacuums, it washes and dries the mop heads too.
In the past four months of testing, I have only had to cut hair from it twice, which is impressive considering I know how much hair I shed and how long it is. Every couple of months the dirty water tank needs emptying and the clean water tank needs refilling, but thanks to the handles on these, they don’t take long at all to sort out.
I do recommend wiping down the base and the vacuum with disinfectant and a microfiber cloth every week, just so dust doesn’t gather up. Knowing how to clean your robot vacuum will keep it running at its best.
How does the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra compare?
The Eureka J15 Pro Ultra costs $999.99 at full price from Eureka and Amazon. It matches Homes & Gardens’ top robot vacuum the eufy S1 Pro Omni on easy set-up, power, and emptying abilities. Its app functions and camera are also more advanced. Plus, it is more affordable, with the eufy being $1,499.99 normally. However, it is noisier than the eufy, which averages under 60db in standard mode, compared to the Eureka’s 74db in standard mode. It also doesn’t clean up residue and stains as quickly, needing to go around a couple of times to fully finish the job.
The iRobot Roomba Combo J9+ also has a hefty price point like the Eureka, with it being normally $1,399 (although I have seen it on sale on Amazon regularly). Like the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra it’s brilliant at cleaning and mopping, but it isn’t as self-sufficient, as it doesn’t clean or dry its own mopping pad. It also requires replacement bags and filters which can add up long-term. The iRobot does have a much chicer design though and the cleaning station doubles up as a side table, for those who are more conscious about aesthetics.
If you’re looking for a less expensive model, the Shark PowerDetect 2-in-1 Robot Vacuum and Mop is often on sale on Amazon around $749.99 (although off-sale it’s $999.99, which is the same as the Eureka). However, its app features aren’t as advanced as the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra, and it doesn’t have a built-in camera, but the Shark has stain-detection abilities, which the Eureka doesn’t.
Should you buy the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra?
With excellent mapping, app control, day-to-day cleaning and obstacle avoidance, the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra is a stand-out choice at this price range.
(Image credit: Future / Eve Smallman)
If you’re looking for a robot vacuum that will allow you to customize your cleaning and control it completely, the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra is a brilliant choice. It maps out every room and identifies obstacles. You can also choose whether you want it to vacuum, mop, or do both at the same time. The built-in camera is also very fun to watch. Plus, it makes light work of smaller stains, debris, and hair.
However, it does have a few shortcomings in its cleaning capabilities considering its hefty price tag. For example, it struggled to clean up flour and sugar and had to be sent around twice to fully clean up a large sauce stain. That being said, it does well cleaning daily dirt and debris.
I live in a two-bedroom, two-story house, and it’s just the right size for me – although the base station may be a little too big for those living in smaller homes or apartments. It’s worth measuring up the space you want to put it in before purchasing it.
As someone with asthma, having a robot vacuum that requires little ongoing maintenance allows me to breathe a lot easier. All I have to do is press the button on the app and let it do its thing.
How I tested the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra
I tested the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra for over four months in my home, using it as my go-to household vacuum. This meant I could experience using it day-to-day and see how it tackled a variety of different messes. It also meant I could assess long-term performance.
As well as this, I put the Eureka J15 Pro Ultra to the test with Homes & Gardens’ rigorous vacuum testing guidelines. I got it to clean flour and sugar, lentils and cereal, and ketchup and mustard. Plus, I measured how loud it was on the DecibelX app.
Not for you? I recommend learning how to choose a robot vacuum cleaner to find a better model for your needs.
