How To Reset Shark ION Robot Vacuum
But this complex and automatic nature of the Shark ION can also lead to some issues sometimes. If you ask your tech savvy friend or contact Shark's customer service, they may suggest that you perform a factory reset.
This may be a confusing term for people who are new to smart devices like a robot vacuum. If you find yourself in the same situation, feel free to read on and find out how to reset a Shark ION robot vacuum and why a factory reset is a popular solution.
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What You Need To Know About Resetting Shark ION Robot
What is A Factory Reset?
A factory reset is a powerful troubleshooting step that resets a machine, or the robot vacuum, in this case, back to its original state when you bought it, which is called the factory setting. This is often used as a last resort to resolve many serious problems affecting the core functionality of a robot vacuum, such as Wi-Fi connectivity or mapping issues.
Shark ION Robot vacuum Via: Amazon
When the manufacturer makes a robot vacuum, the machine is loaded with default configurations. The user can then make some adjustments to their liking or according to their cleaning needs, including mapping the floors and obstacles in their home.
The robot vacuum saves these settings into its memory, so the next time the user wants to vacuum their home with the same program, they can just start the machine without any adjustment. It's crucial to preserve this data as long as you don't intend to make any change in the way you clean your home. Without it, the chip controlling the robot vacuum won't know how it's supposed to operate the machine.
However, sometimes these adjustments can result in errors or conflicts, especially when there are too many features running at the same time. The probability of issues also increases when you have saved a great amount of data on your robot vacuum, making it harder for the main chip to process it properly.
Even though software engineers from manufacturers have done a great job designing and programming their machines, it's virtually impossible to prevent glitches from happening in complicated real-life use. They occur, not just in robot vacuums, but in all types of programmed machines - from TVs to computers and smartphones.
One of the most common solutions that can be applied to all kinds of issues is performing a factory reset. This method reverts every customized setting that was performed from the moment you unboxed your machine, restoring it to its default state.
It erases all the personal data you have added. Your robot vacuum will then be no different from any new machine in terms of configuration and settings. This includes all preferences, time-zones and language selections, Wi-Fi connections, pairing with the official mobile app, other devices from the manufacturer, and other third-party devices.
You will have to choose every preference, re-enter the Wi-Fi password, and configure the scheduling functions again. All mapping data of your home will also be gone. The robot vacuum will have to go through the learning process again after the reset in order to get a clear picture of the floors it needs to clean.
Shark ION Robot’s cleaning schedule Via: Amazon
Traditionally, a factory reset can only be done on the machine itself. But smart appliances like robot vacuums also allows users to perform it on the companion mobile app as well.
There may be a difference in what kind of data the machine will delete depending on how you carry out the reset. It may proceed with a complete reversion, while a partial reset is also possible, which can retain some basic information like account association.
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When A Factory Reset is Needed
Before giving it to somebody else
It'd be a good idea to perform a factory reset when you plan to resell your robot vacuum or simply give it to your friend or family. This helps both you and the new owner of the machine.
While a robot vacuum is not a smartphone or a computer and usually doesn't contain any sensitive information, you should remove any data associated with you just in case. Other people connecting the vacuum to the mobile app can view your email address and the map of your home, for example.
It's also more convenient for the new owner to be able to start the machine right away with the default configuration. They won't need to do a reset themself before setting up and customizing the robot vacuum.
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When the Shark ION robot vacuum won't connect to Wi-Fi
As a smart device, Wi-Fi connections are among the most common problems for a robot vacuum. Users of a new robot vacuum may need to take many attempts before they can connect it to their home network properly. While this robotic vacuum should work out of the box, there are many reasons behind this issue.
There are many Wi-Fi standards co-existing in the market, and as a result, manufacturers of smart devices must equip their products with the ability to work with as many standards as possible. This may lead to some conflicting connections.
The best way to solve it is to try connecting your robot vacuum using the recommended frequency. You can also try resetting your network router first to see if the issue goes away. If every solution has failed, a factory reset might work as a last resort.
Shark ION Robot in action Via: Amazon
Software issues, such as Shark ION robot app not working
A robot vacuum is a complicated machine involving both mechanical parts and complex software. If you notice that your machine behaves in a usual way, such as just spinning around instead of vacuuming, the software might be the culprit.
Like the operating systems of smartphones and computers, that of a robot vacuum may have a few bugs that have not been detected and fixed yet, or it may also experience a drop in performance when there is no memory left.
If updating the firmware to the latest version doesn't solve the issue, you can try going back to the original version by doing a factory reset. Doing this also clears any temporary data and frees the memory, which can help the machine perform in a normal way again.
Other issues
On top of those common problems, users of robot vacuums may also run into a wide range of miscellaneous issues. For example, you can look at the Error Indicator Light and use the Shark ION robot error codes from the manual to learn which kind of problem your machine has.
As long as it's not a purely mechanical problem, you can always try a factory reset as your last resort. Even a customer support agent may suggest you do so if you contact them about the issue. This method has proved effective in a lot of Shark ION robot 720 troubleshooting situations.
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Other Methods You Could Try Before Performing A Factory Reset
Depending on the specific issue of your robot vacuum, there are alternative solutions you can try to make it perform normally again before performing a factory reset.
Shark ION robot schedule not working
If your robot starts vacuuming at unusual times, maybe there is something wrong with the scheduling function of the machine. This may be the root cause of the issue, which you must focus on when trying to solve it.
Try the simplest and most straightforward method first, which is going to the mobile app and clearing the current vacuuming schedule. Check the time and date of the machine to see if your robot vacuum has the right time and correct it if it's not the case.
Finally, re-enter the schedule from scratch. If the culprit is just the wrong time and date, your Shark ION Robot Vacuum R75 won't be triggered, and it could start vacuuming your room at 4AM in the morning again. And the best part is it won't need a lengthy factory reset process.
It leaves debris and dirt on your floor
This is more likely a mechanical issue instead of a software one. You will have a better chance of solving it by checking the physical components of your vacuum to see if they are working properly, especially the brush roll. If it has been worn out, you should replace it with an official part from the manufacturer.
Shark ION Robot error notifications Via: Amazon
It can't get back to the base station
If after vacuuming your home, the robot vacuum can't find its way back to the base station to charge itself, the most common reason is that it doesn’t recognize the station properly. Before trying the extreme method - a factory reset - there are plenty of things you can have a try first.
Check if the base station is in an easy-to-reach area for the vacuum. If you put it in the midst of obstacles or under furniture, for example, the robot may struggle to find the station, and even if it knows the location, planning a route back to the station may be too difficult for the machine. Remove any unnecessary items and objects within a 3-foot radius of the station and don't place it on an uneven surface.
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Shark ION robot not charging
It might be either a mechanical or a software issue. The first thing to check is the charging contact, which is usually located under a robot vacuum. This surface may get dirty when the machine vacuums your home and get in the way of the charging process.
Charging Shark ION Robot Via: Amazon
Simply dust them off with your hands or wipe them with a dry cloth. If the surface is too dirty, use a piece of steel wool or an abrasive pad. Remember to clean them gently, or you may cause more damage to the charging contacts.
If this doesn’t make your robot vacuum charge normally again, try turning it off and on. When there is a simple software glitch with the firmware of the machine, this method may make it go away quickly. If the issue still persists, a factory reset might be what you need.
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It's not moving in a normal way
This again may just be a hardware problem, so you should address the issue from this angle first. Turn off your robot vacuum and turn it upside down. Check if there is any damage to the wheels that can cause the machine to move in the wrong direction. Check if there is any hair, string, or other debris tangled in them too, which can hinder the machine. Rotate and dust off the drive wheels and clean the caster wheel with a brush.
Clean the bottom of the Shark ION Robot Via: Amazon
It keeps running in a circle
If there is nothing wrong with the wheels, the issue may sprout from the navigation part of the operating system. When the sensors on the machine get dirty, they can send the wrong information back to the processing chip, leading to weird behavior of the machine. You should turn it off and use a dry cloth to carefully clean the sensors.
How To Reset Shark ION Robot
Shark provides users with two ways of performing a reset with their ION robots. Even though a factory reset is a technical term and may sound too complicated for an ordinary user, both of those methods are actually easy to do.
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Reset Shark ION Robot With The Mobile App
This is the officially recommended way to reset a Shark ION robot. Before proceeding, you should keep in mind that performing a factory reset via the mobile app will delete the machine's cloud data, time zones, language selections, Wi-Fi passwords, schedules, map data, and other third-party device connections.
Shark ION Robot’s mobile app Via: Amazzon
Your robot vacuum must be connected to the mobile app in order to carry out this method. Open the official Shark ION app, then go to the Settings section. Find the 'Factory Reset' option, select and confirm it. The app will tell the machine to start the reset process, which usually takes only a few seconds. When everything is done, it will show you a success notification.
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Reset Shark ION Robot On The Machine Itself
If the machine can't connect to your home Wi-Fi network, Shark still leaves an option of manually resetting your machine. Compared to using the mobile app, not all data will be deleted. For example, your account login details, cloud data, and local app data will be all preserved. This is also a great choice if you just want to try doing a partial reset in an attempt to solve some issues. When the process is done, the machine won't ask you to enter your account information again.
Turn your machine upside down and find the power switch. Press it for 10 seconds, which triggers the factory reset process. Wait a few seconds before turning your Shark ION robot again.
Conclusion
With the above steps, I’m sure you now know how to reset Shark ION robot, one of the top rated vacuum cleaners. Just a few seconds and your machine will be in the default state like the moment you just bought it. But keep in mind, it's a solution of last resort, and you should treat it as such. Try other ways to make your machine operate normally again before completely resetting your vacuum.
