Do I NEED a robotic cleaner, or do I WANT one?

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kiv558

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Jun 14, 2016
45
Boston burbs, MA
Hiya,

New pool owner here... waiting impatiently for my test kit to arrive and reading all I can in the meantime. As of now, we have an old vacuum head and hose in the pool shed, but I have no idea how to use it (pool is pretty clean, so haven't felt like we've needed to). We've been brushing the pool manually with a metal brush -- daily since we had some algae, but I guess at least weekly is what we should be aiming for.

All that said, I'm not afraid of a little manual labor (and some great arms!) by brushing frequently/weekly. But am I missing something key by not having some sort of robotic/automatic cleaner? If I learn how to use the vacuum head that we have, will that suffice? And if I truly do need one, what direction do I go for a free-form shaped old gunite, that needs to be refinished?

We are trying to learn all we can and make our rookie mistakes this year, before we budget to refinish the pool next year.

Thanks!
 
You can certainly manually vacuum the pool using your hose and vacuum head, especially if you don't mind the manual labor. I did it this way for about 8 months or so and then I got tired of it because I like a clean pool, so I was doing it every couple of days. I decided to buy a robot and i haven't manually vacuumed it one time since then because the robot does such a good job. The kicker is I don't even brush anymore either, robot does that for me also.

The only thing a robot does not do is skim the surface, so I'm usually out there with my skimmer net every day or two and throwing the robot in to do the work.

I have a Dolphin Nautilus and love it. They are pricey, though. Suction side cleaners are certainly cheaper if you already have a booster pump you might look into those.
 
Hi kiv,
Welcome to TFP!

You posed a great question. Im sure you will get a lot of responses.

Do you NEED a robot? Probably not. People had pools for decades before robots were ever available. But you will eventaully NEED to be able to clean the bottom of the pool. Dirt, bugs and other things will eventually congregate there upon their demise. A manual vacuum does a great job of it, and if you dont mind doing it a couple days a week, then stick with a vac if it works for you. If in time you find that manual vacuuming isn't for you, then go get a robot at that time.

Robots are great for those of us who would rather spend out time doing something else or if like me, just plain ol' lazy. They are minimal effort to keep a very clean pool bottom.

The manual vacuum are easy to use. The trick is getting the hose primed. Here is a video on how to use it.
How to vacuum an Inground Pool Video - YouTube
 
I had a manual vacuum for a while and it works.

I installed a polaris pressure cleaner that ran off of a booster pump. I used it for about 5 years, but it constantly needed tweaking and at least once a year it needed replacement parts or servicing.. (backup values, sand clogging up jets, gears/bearings that need replacing). Sure most of it can be DIY and for relatively cheaply, but I am too lazy and don't have a lot of free time. My closest leslies would only charge for parts for Polaris, but I was tired of driving there (DC traffic sucks!)

I bought my first robot about 6 weeks ago and I love it! I bought mine via Amazon, although others have ordered from a dealer to get a better warranty. Dolphin Triton Plus Amazon.com : Maytronics 99991079-PC Dolphin Triton Plus Robotic Pool Cleaner : Patio, Lawn Garden

Here is a an article comparing various models so that you can see that robots are kinda like the mattress industry... same robot, different name/color: The Truth About Pool Cleaners: What Your Pool Store Isn’t Telling You | Sunplay
 
I wish I had spare funds for any sort of robotic cleaner.

With that said, I find vacuuming manually early on a weekend morning after my cup of joe rather cathartic. Being able to jump in doesn't hurt when it hot......like this week....in the 100's.
 
AimeeH said:
I wish I had spare funds for any sort of robotic cleaner.

With that said, I find vacuuming manually early on a weekend morning after my cup of joe rather cathartic. Being able to jump in doesn't hurt when it hot......like this week....in the 100's.
Click to expand...

+1 :goodpost:

When someone finds the magic money tree, let me know...I want a robot!!
 

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Just ordered the Doheny Discovery on sale for $649... hoping it was the right choice!

Thanks for chiming in everyone. As much as I'm enjoying the workout, I'm not able to reach every bit of the pool. At least that's what I'm telling myself. ?
 
I think the Doheny Discivery at $650 is a steal. One nice advantage is if you clean the pool on Saturday morning for the weekend and a storm that night messes it up, just throw the bot in. Like someone else said use your pool cleaning time to pursue other things.
 
Good Question!!! :confused:

Growing up with a much smaller pool, we did not have a robotic cleaner -- I brushed and vac'd as needed (it was one of my chores around the house).:salut: The pool I have now has one that seems to do a fair job:thumleft:, but I have the equipment for a manual back-up, and have used it a few times for spot cleans (lots of vegetation:flower: around the pool!). So, do you NEED one, probably not, but they are helpful and eliminate the need to vac significantly.:hammer:
 
Personally I won't own a pool without a robotic vacuum cleaner. Screw the manual labor and never ending sun burns. However I bought the Polaris 9450 AWD model last April (2015), and it's already giving me Error 03 which seems to be pretty serious and will not allow it to work. Luckily it has a 2 year warranty but messing up with light use after 1 year of ownership says a lot for a $1,100 robot.
 
nlindelldc said:
The only thing a robot does not do is skim the surface, so I'm usually out there with my skimmer net every day or two and throwing the robot in to do the work.
Click to expand...

Have you looked into the SolarBreeze NX? It's a solar powered pool surface skimmer. Works 23 hours a day using stored energy in the battery that's charged by the sun! I have one (actually I have two - one still in the box) and it works great!
 

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