If you are a loyal visitor to our YouTube channel, the title of our latest video may surprise you. “Luba issues? You guys always talk about how great that mower is? What gives?!?!?!”
Well, we like to use an analogy to show our thinking. Growing up, our moms always pointed out how great we are. However, they also loved us enough to point out a few flaws so that we could improve. For example, they would say that we were too handsome, and it made others jealous. And trust us: if we ever brought home someone we were dating, our moms were sure to teach them what to do with us if we ever gave them trouble.
So it is with the Mammotion Luba robotic mower. Do we still believe it is one of the best robotic mowers on the market? Absolutely. The robot mower’s AWD technology and dual cutting blades help it tackle the toughest properties.
However, the Luba isn’t perfect. We tend to hear about a few issues more often than others, and we wanted to share them with you so you know what to do. Check out the video below or read the recap under that!
Luba Issue #1: Lost Position
This is the most common issue we hear from Luba owners. The owner will look on the Mammotion app, and they keep seeing an error that says “Poor positioning status.”
Before giving the solution, we need to explain how this mower works, so that the hack makes sense. Basically, the Luba and the reference station are both connecting to satellites. So if the Luba goes under an overhang or under a tree, it might lose connection with the satellites. When that happens, it stops until it regains position.
However, even if the robot has a full view of the sky, this error can still occur. That’s because for the Luba and the reference station to coordinate well, they need to be seeing at least 20 of the same satellites. And if the reference station is on one side of a building, and the robot mower is on the other, the mower and the reference station might not be finding common satellites. After all, the reference station may be blocked from a good signal except to the west while the mower’s best signal is east.
Solutions
In this situation, the best solution is to avoid this issue. Yes, that may seem like a smart-ass response. But it’s true. If you are having this issue with the Luba on your property, it can be challenging to correct. Instead, try to plan ahead of time. Check the Luba on your property to make sure that it’s the right robotic mower for your yard.
Keep in mind that the further North you go, the harder it will be for any robotic lawn mower to see satellites. In that case, you might want to consider a product with a boundary wire as a better fit. Similarly, if your property has a lot of trees or large overhangs, a wired robot mower might be best. Even the time of day can impact the Luba’s mowing capability. So again, test all of these variables as you research the product.
One other potential solution is to move the reference station. The reference station needs about 160° of open air around it to be effective.
Luba Issue #2: Backing Up at Random
If you are using the Mammotion Luba to mow your lawn, you might notice it stop, back up, and change direction. Of course, if the mower is coming up to a building, a tree, or some other obstacle, this makes sense. But what about when this happens in the middle of the yard?
Well, there are a few reasons this might be happening. First, the Luba has very sensitive obstacle-detection sensors. So sometimes one long blade of grass or a wayward weed can trip the sensor, making the Luba think an obstacle is in front of it.
The second main reason that your Luba might be backing up has to do with the bumper. The bumper is crucial on a Luba. Indeed, the robotic mower won’t run if the bumper is detached. It’s a safety feature to protect anything the Luba might run into (including people, pets, yard animals, your son’s favorite stuffed animal that you have told him to put away a million times….. etc.) If the bumper gets hit, the Luba knows it needs to go in a different direction rather than subject what it just hit to the dual-blade cutting system.
The kicker is that these bumpers are extremely difficult to attach properly and can sometimes get moisture in the contacts. And if things aren’t quite right, the Luba can, as U2 said, move in mysterious ways.
Solutions
Of course, these two different causes require different solutions. If the issue is being caused by the object avoidance detection sensors, the easiest fix is to clean the sensors. Dusty or dirty sensors can cause the robot to see obstacles where none exist.
If that doesn’t work, you can also adjust the object avoidance settings. In fact, the simplest solution might be to shut the sensors off completely. As long as your property is mapped accurately, shutting off these sensors won’t cause any damage.
Another Luba hack here is to check the bumper. If you can pull it off easily, it is not installed correctly. Try reinstalling the bumper and see if that helps resolve the random back-ups.
And if this has you yearning for more learning about bumpers, you’re in luck. Because if you have followed all of our other steps, and the Luba is still moving crazier than us on the dance floor, we have one final step.
As we mentioned above, one other potential cause for the Luba backing up when it doesn’t need to is moisture on the bumper contacts. To fix that, you can dry off the contacts with a dry cloth, compressed air, or a hair dryer. If needed, you can also leave the Luba and disconnected bumper in a warm, dry area for 1-2 days.
Luba Issue #3: Not Connecting to Bluetooth
You can control the Mammotion Luba robotic lawn mower via the buttons on the machine itself. However, most people prefer to control the robot mower through the app. To do so, you need to connect your phone to the mower via Bluetooth.
However, another common concern we hear from Luba owners is that they are unable to connect to their mower. Luckily, as always, your Luba superheroes have some troubleshooting tips you can try.
Solutions
Most of our troubleshooting if the Luba won’t connect to Bluetooth are admittedly fairly simple. They aren’t quite like telling you to make sure that your TV is plugged in if you say that the screen won’t turn on, but they are close. But in our experience, they are the most common fixes when your Luba isn’t connecting to Bluetooth.
First, make sure the Luba is broadcasting a signal. You know that this is happening if the Luba isn’t even showing up on your list of potential devices for connection. Second, try disconnecting other Bluetooth devices from your phone. In our experience, a lot of customers’ phones are simply prioritizing connecting to something else (a Bluetooth speaker, a smart watch, etc.) over the mower.
Another easy fix to the bluetooth connection conundrum is an absolute classic for any electronics. Yep, that’s right: power off the Luba and power it back on. To do so, hold the power button on the mower and remove the key on the back. After about 30 seconds, put the key back in and hold the power button on the Luba to start it back up.
If none of this has worked, the last thing you can try on your own is a factory reset. We save this for a last resort because it will wipe out all the saved maps of your property. (We would advise you to see if a different device can connect with the Luba first.) However, if you need to do so, hold the Home, Start, Mow, and Power buttons down together for 5 seconds.
Luba Issue #4: Not Connecting to Wifi
Obviously, this issue is similar to the last. However, we should note one key difference: You use Bluetooth all the time with the Luba robotic mower. However, you mostly use wifi during initial setup (especially for registration, which keeps your Luba from ever getting stolen.) You also might need it for any software updates.
So, in some ways, this Luba issue is more rare and not quite as impactful as the others on our list. Still, if you are missing a wifi connection during those key times, you are going to want a solution. If so, we’ve got you covered!
Solutions
The first thing to check is that the Luba is connecting to the 2.4 GHz band and not the 5 GHz band of your router. If you aren’t sure what that means, you can check out this great article on the subject. If you aren’t sure how to connect to one or the other, the iRobot site has a great how-to article that mirrors what you need to do with the Luba.
Another potential reason the Luba can’t connect to your wifi is because your router and/or modem’s security settings are blocking it. If you know how to fix this to add the Luba as a trusted device, excellent. However, you may need help from your wireless company. Or, if you work from home, and your company has installed security precautions, you may need to check with your IT department.
However, to be honest, the easiest solution is simply to use your phone as a wireless hotspot for the few times the Luba needs wifi. Again, if you don’t know how to do that, we’ve got you covered with a great resource to walk you through it.
Another simple fix is—you guessed it—turning off the power to the Luba and turning it back on. You can also try a factory reset if needed.
One other note on this issue. As a safety precaution, during initial setup, Luba binds itself to an account and can’t connect to another. If your robotic mower is saying that it is already bound to another account (because you bought it secondhand or because another family member already bound it), you have to reverse that process before you can move forward.
Still Experiencing Luba Issues?
Of course, we know that our list isn’t fully comprehensive. You might be experiencing other Luba issues than the ones we presented.
For that matter, we have only given the most common solutions here in this video and in this article. If you have tried our suggestions and they haven’t worked, contact Autmow’s service specialists today. We can give a few more uncommon solutions that need a bit more explanation than we had time/space for here.
We can also let you know if it seems like your problem is caused by malfunctioning equipment. The warranty covers those Luba issues, so we can walk you through the next steps.
The Mammotion Luba is an excellent robotic mower. But no one is perfect. (Shockingly, not even us!) And with a little extra TLC, you can be sitting back and watching the Luba conquer your lawn in no time.
And yes, Mom, we will continue to work on the whole “too handsome” thing.
