Featured Image Credit: Mlenny/Getty / KSDK News
Tech can help make boring tasks a whole lot easier - after all, who could be bothered vacuuming their house when a robot can do it instead?
That seems to be what one family in Fenton, Missouri, were thinking when they bought five robotic vacuums to keep their home neat and tidy.
However, a news report from KSDK News suggests they ran into a bit of strife - when one vacuum, which they bought in June 2022, apparently exploded.
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According to Fenton resident, Meagan Schmitz, the product started filling one of their rooms with black smoke, so with some quick thinking she threw it out onto the front porch and slammed the door shut.
What happened next was caught on the Ring doorbell camera - a sound like popping balloons with the vacuum, made by Eufy, seemingly exploding.
According to the KSDK report, the gadget reportedly caught fire after its lithium battery combusted, burning through the serial number on the bottom.
"We would have had really no idea that this was even a possibility," Schmitz said - and the report stated that while no one was hurt, her daughter was still having nightmares about the whole episode.
Last year, Eufy recalled some battery packs, saying: 'The team found that 0.07% of this batch of battery pack may exhibit signs of overheating such as smoking, melting, and/or igniting.'
However, the model owned by the Schmitz family wasn't included in the list of models for this recall.
At the time of the report, March 6, the Schmitz family had reported the incident to the manufacturer and were expecting a call back to talk through next steps. They had also reportedly filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and the Missouri attorney general.
So what should you do if you find yourself in a similar situation, and a robotic vacuum in your house starts smoking - or even catching fire?
While your first instinct might be to throw water over it, this might not be the best option. Instead, Peng Bai from the battery analytical group at Washington University told KSDK News to instead use a fire extinguisher or, if you can, pour sand over the device.
There are other ways to make sure your robot helper stays safe - these include only buying from reputable manufacturers, using the charger that comes with the product, and when charging, regularly checking the plug and socket for burn marks.
Eufy's parent company, Anker Innovations, has been contacted for comment.
