Best Robotic Pool Cleaner Help!!

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steelersguy

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May 3, 2012
2
I apologize as I am sure this has been asked multiple times, but I am stuck on what cleaner to get. I purchased a Dolphin DX4 last week and returned it within 3 days as it missed about half of my 16 X 34 inground pool. I have read a million reviews on all sorts of cleaners and have no idea what to get. I am not concerned with price, I just want one that works and cleans the entire pool. I have been using a Kreepy Krawly for years and it does a good job. I am just tired of baby sitting it and would rather have something that does not use my pump. I have a vinyl pool liner if that matters. I live in Minnesota so the pool is usually open from May through September.

Thoughts?

Thanks,
Chad
 
I don't think you can expect ANY cleaner to get every sq ft of surface area on the first cycle. I run my robot for two cycles (3 hrs total) and it get 95% of my floor area. The other 5% will have to wait for the next cleaning cycle.

So let me EXAGGERATE something for you. What you pay for in most cleaners is cleaning power.....the ability to get the most cleaning done in the least amount of time. So, if price is no object, a $6000 robot will probably clean your pool in 30 minutes but it STILL may miss a spot. A $1000 dollar robot will probably clean your pool in 60-90 minutes but it may ALSO miss a spot or two. The solution is to run it two cycles instead of one.

Unlike what the advertising would have you believe, these cleaners have no brain and just randomly crawl around your pool until the pool is clean. No matter how much you pay, you can still miss some surface area so you have to run it longer until it covers the entire surface.

FWIW, about a $1000 robot should be just about right for you pool.
 
I was in much the same situaiton a couple of years ago when my last Kreepy Krawly style cleaner fell apart and decided to try the robotic cleaner route, I ended up buying a used Dolphin Dynamics cleaner off ebay for a couple of hundred dollars just to try it out, and am still using it today. The model I bought has the handle that can be set to tend to circle left or tend to circle right, in my case it seems to always get stuck between the ladder and the corner going one way, but not the other, I suspect you may find similar problems with any robotic cleaner, depending on the individual pool shape, you just have to find one that works for you.

Ike.
 
duraleigh said:
I don't think you can expect ANY cleaner to get every sq ft of surface area on the first cycle. I run my robot for two cycles (3 hrs total) and it get 95% of my floor area. The other 5% will have to wait for the next cleaning cycle.

So let me EXAGGERATE something for you. What you pay for in most cleaners is cleaning power.....the ability to get the most cleaning done in the least amount of time. So, if price is no object, a $6000 robot will probably clean your pool in 30 minutes but it STILL may miss a spot. A $1000 dollar robot will probably clean your pool in 60-90 minutes but it may ALSO miss a spot or two. The solution is to run it two cycles instead of one.

Unlike what the advertising would have you believe, these cleaners have no brain and just randomly crawl around your pool until the pool is clean. No matter how much you pay, you can still miss some surface area so you have to run it longer until it covers the entire surface.

FWIW, about a $1000 robot should be just about right for you pool.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. I don't care if the cleaner takes a few hours, I just want something reliable that won't frustrate the heck out of me. I need to purchase one quick and just don't want to choose the wrong one. I have seen some decent reviews of the Smart Clean NC71RC, but nobody sells it locally so buying it online is about my only option and then returning it if it doesn't work properly is an issue...
 
Years ago I bought a Dolphin, and used it for about two weeks before returning it to Costco (no questions asked). It missed half the floor in my 20 by 40 in ground pool and at times would just go in a straight line about 20 feet and then reverse.

After much research I bought a Blue Pearl which is the baby version of the Blue Diamond. It has worked great for me for over five years. I just replaced the cleaning pads and tracks and it is working better than ever. I highly recommend it and you can find it online for around $600.
 
3 years ago I would have highly recommended the Aquabot T2.

And although I still LOVE this cleaner and think it is a life saver, it has cost me a fortune ever since.

2 years ago the main motor went bad. Cost me over $400 to fix.
This year the drive motor went bad and cost me close to $500 to fix.

Not to mention changing out a few parts here and there and the ridiculously overpriced bag a few times.

It does clean the pool extremely well when it works, but there is nothing worse than finding out you need to dump $500 into a pool cleaner in the late spring.

If I was going to dump this and go with something new, I would go as cheap as possible. They all work relatively the same and as people said above you need multiple passes to get the pool super clean. I usually run my bot for about 4 to 6 hours.
 
I've been through about 4 pool cleaners and have found my soul mate in the Aquabot Supreme. Last summer it cost me $725 from pool store. I see their price went up this year!!! I don't need to have my pool clean in 30 minutes. I pamper my pool in the morning, so I put it in and by mid morning/early afternoon, pool is clean. (3-4 hours). Love it, no problems so far. Only irritation is cleaning the bag. So I bought a spare and rotate them. Very happy with results and hassle free maintenance so far.

(I've been through 2 pressure side cleaners; Pool Buster Vac (what a bust!); and now the Aquabot).
 

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Just completed my 9th season with my Aquavac (now Hayward) Tigershark. Had to replace an impeller once, but no other problems.
 
I will say that the dolphin primal x3 I have now is a huge step down from my blue diamond remote. I didn't think there would be that much of a difference. Even my old dolphin diagnostic(first robot) was better than this. However, it depends on what you need it for. My next pool at the new house is basically kidney shaped so if the thing just bounces off the walls it will make it around fine, my current pool is basically rectangular with one part of the long sides going out a foot more in the center section. This makes it much tougher for a robot that can't turn on the bottom. Doesnt need to be a split wheel design that can turn on a dime on the bottom, my cobia could pulse the motors and still make almost 90 degree turns, I believe the blue diamond/pearl do this too.
 
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