I purchased the Aquabot Mamba as my pool vacuum. It works great, however, How do I get it to go forwards and not backwards? Going backwards makes the hose tangle so I need to know how I make it move frontwards!!
mamba aquabot
- Thread starter LilBit27
- Start date
Only how to put it together. Maybe it is only supposed to travel backwards.. trying to figure it out still.
jwhop3
0
- Jun 9, 2014
- 146
- Pool Size
- 14000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Autopilot Digital Nano+ PPC2
First thing to note is that the instructions, beyond assembly, flat out suck. You can learn more by watching the youtube reviews and doing a little trial-and-error on your part.
The direction is pretty much random. It depends more on the tension of the hose as it coils up or forms an s-shape in the water. I read where someone recommended lubing the hose sections with vaseline to allow them to rotate, but I haven't tried this. Also, the return jets can divert the vacuum head.
The fine line is just how much hose to have out, where to position the clip-on float, how much pressure is sent to the skimmer vs. the floor drain, and the flow rate on the valve. This is my second season using mine, and I'm still trying to find the sweet spot. I've found that it can get jammed on small sticks and leaves pretty easy, but for the money, it works okay. I try to operate it when I can check on it every two hours or so. With my 14,000 lagoon, 2 hours will cover most of the floor, assuming it doesn't get caught in the stair cove. I usually tie up a pool noodle between the stair rails to bump the hose before the head can get trapped.
jwhop3
0
- Jun 9, 2014
- 146
- Pool Size
- 14000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Autopilot Digital Nano+ PPC2
Okay, one thing to add for the Mamba. Most of the youtube clips show it attached to your skimmer with the universal adapter, then one section of hose, then the flow regulator feeding the rest of the hose to the vacuum head. Doing this allows two things. It gives the flow valve the chance to rotate and get too much air, which can stall the Mamba. What it also does, and I think this has more to do than anything with whether or not the vacuum works without supervision. Being just below the surface, there's not enough water pressure on the valve. Careful study of the overly dumber-down instructions show the connection being the universal adapter connected directly to the flow valve, then all of the hose to the vacuum head. This puts the flow valve deep in your skimmer. Now, based on your skimmer, it may or not fit. I had to tighten down the flow valve all the way to get it down in the skimmer, then back out the valve until it would operate. Once I did this, I discovered I had more pressure on the vacuum head without having to starve the drain in the deep end. My diverter was about 60/40 favoring the skimmer, which is about what I would use for the old vacuum. The best thing was that it ran all night without stalling or having to sit and watch it.
jwhop3
0
- Jun 9, 2014
- 146
- Pool Size
- 14000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Autopilot Digital Nano+ PPC2
Update on the Mamba...
Being fed up with the cleaner getting stuck in the stair cove or the backside of the ladder, I searched for, you know, how to stop that. I found this little gizmo called the Pool Twister, with is a wormgear that connects inline in between sections of hose, and the water flowing through it rotates the hose three times every hour. The cleaner still gets stuck in the same places, but after a few minutes (FYI, sometimes few means 59) it will rotate out.
Being fed up with the cleaner getting stuck in the stair cove or the backside of the ladder, I searched for, you know, how to stop that. I found this little gizmo called the Pool Twister, with is a wormgear that connects inline in between sections of hose, and the water flowing through it rotates the hose three times every hour. The cleaner still gets stuck in the same places, but after a few minutes (FYI, sometimes few means 59) it will rotate out.
