To clean your train in Voidtrain, you can either manually wipe away grime using a crafted Mop equipped in a weapon slot or automate the process by assigning a Rofleemo to a Cleaner's Station. Keeping your train decks clean prevents dirty conditions from applying efficiency debuffs to your Rofleemo crew and allows you to gather recyclable debris.
Why Train Dirtiness Matters
As you travel through the Void, dirt builds up on your train floor through regular operations, combat, and wildlife encounters. The game tracks train dirtiness through specific events:
- Rofleemo soiling the deck, especially if proper toilet facilities are missing.
- Combat damage taken by the player or train cars.
- Attacks from the Void Shark damaging the train structure.
- Hostile encounters with jellyfish or hazards that harm the player.
When your train accumulates excessive dirt, your Rofleemo crew receives an efficiency debuff that slows down their output at assigned workstations. Keeping the decks clean removes this debuff. Additionally, manually clearing five mud spots unlocks the in-game achievement "Squeaky Clean."
Manual Cleaning: How to Unlock and Use the Mop
The Mop is your primary early-game cleaning tool. It occupies a standard weapon slot and allows you to sweep floor messes directly.
Unlocking the Mop
The Mop is unlocked through the Basic Cleaning technology in Research Phase 1.
- Obtain organic seeds from void-fish or loot containers.
- Plant the seeds in a garden bed and water them.
- Reach the 7th Depot along your route (or reach the very next depot if you have already passed cycle 7).
- Open your research tree and unlock Basic Cleaning for 2 Wood and 2 Bolts. This research unlocks both the Mop and the Rofleemo Toilet I.
Crafting and Using the Mop
Take copper wire to your Workbench to craft the Mop. Once built:
- Equip the Mop into one of your active weapon slots.
- Walk up to dirt piles, mud spots, or messes scattered across your wagons.
- Use the tool to clear the surface.
Cleaning floors produces pieces of trash and organic waste. Do not discard this waste; take it to your Recycler to crush it into useful crafting materials such as scrap metal.
Automating Deck Maintenance with the Cleaner's Station
Manual mopping takes away valuable time needed for resource gathering, steering, and combat. Once you advance deeper into your tech tree, you can fully automate sanitation.
Unlocking and Building the Cleaner's Station
The Cleaner's Station unlocks at Research Phase 18. Once unlocked in your research table, open the Crafting Book (B key) while aboard the train. Building the station requires advanced components, including pressure-treated wood, bolts, and brass pipes.
Place the station on an open deck tile and assign one of your Rofleemo companions to man the post.
Rofleemo Cleaner Perks and Upgrades
The assigned worker performs tasks based on their happiness level, which you can raise by feeding them mushrooms, maintaining train decor, and ensuring they have food in the Rofleemo Diner:
- Level 1 Happiness: The worker patrols your train cars with a mop, wiping up random messes and dirt accumulations automatically.
- Level 2 Happiness: The worker services the Rofleemo Toilet/Outhouse, clearing compost and replenishing chemicals. They also periodically inspect train axles to eliminate leech miasmas that cling to the wheels and halt movement.
Cleaning Methods and Station Progression
| Method | Unlock Requirement | Tool / Station | Primary Tasks & Benefits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manual Mopping | Basic Cleaning (Phase 1; costs 2 Wood, 2 Bolts) | Mop (Crafted at Workbench) | Clears mud spots by hand; yields trash for the Recycler; counters Rofleemo work debuffs. |
| Basic Automation | Research Phase 18 | Cleaner's Station (Level 1 Happiness) | Automatically sweeps all wagon floors; collects loose trash without player input. |
| Advanced Sanitation | Research Phase 18 + Happiness Upgrades | Cleaner's Station (Level 2 Happiness) | Empties toilets to produce compost for farming; clears wheel-blocking leech miasma. |
Setting Up the Farming and Fertilizer Loop
Automating your cleaning routine directly links to your train's food and seed production. Once you build a Rofleemo Toilet (requiring regular additions of chemicals), your crew uses it instead of soiling the floor.
When your Cleaner's Station operates at level 2 happiness:
- The cleaner empties compost from the toilet.
- A worker assigned to the Botanist's Station (Phase 15) takes that compost and applies it to your garden beds.
- Adding compost accelerates crop growth timers and guarantees that harvested plants return seeds, creating a self-sustaining farm loop.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if I ignore dirt on my train?
Ignoring dirt allows grime to accumulate until your Rofleemo crew suffers an efficiency penalty, slowing down crafting, maintenance, and harvesting across all assigned workstations.
Does the Mop wear out or require durability repairs?
No, the Mop functions as a permanent utility item in your weapon slot and does not break during regular floor cleaning.
Where do I process the trash collected from cleaning?
Deposit collected floor trash directly into the Recycler module on your train. The Recycler breaks the waste down into raw resources like scrap metal.
Why is my Cleaner Rofleemo not emptying the toilet?
A cleaner assigned to the Cleaner's Station only cleans floor messes at level 1 happiness. To make them collect compost from the outhouse, you must raise their happiness to level 2 by feeding them mushrooms and keeping them fed via the Diner.
