Okay so I was anti pool robot initially because our pool is not that big. But the vacuum that we have gets stuck all the time. The pool has a sun bathing ledge and the hose gets caught over that ledge so the vacuum gets stuck and stops moving because the hose can't go anywhere to drag the vacuum along. And the hose gets hung up on itself when the vacuum gets back around to the port where it all hooks in. Sooooo I'm starting to think a robot isn't a bad idea. Any recommendations?
Pool robots
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As a general rule the more you spend the better the robot cleanner, but also be aware than almost any robot can get hung up in any individual pool. For example I have an older model Dolphin Diagnostic that I bought used off ebay a year ago, the handle of top can be set to tend to circle left or circle right (the instructions say to switch circling direction each time you use it), however in my pool it sometimes gets hung up between the ladder and the corner at the shallow end when circling one way, but not the other. This is a model that was introduced a decade or so ago, and I suspect the dual track models would likely do better, but again there may be places where they will hang up. I can tell you that my next cleaner will be another robot when this one dies, and there is no way I will go back to suction side cleaners.
I inherited one with my pool, and so far just getting my pool ready it has been invaluable. It's an older aquabot turbo t-jet II, and for the shallow end, it's spotless, but it gets real confused coming back from the deep-end. If/when it dies I will invest in another, preferably the remote controlled kind!
I have a Dolphin DX3 - have been using it for about a month and so far it has been working great. I've never had a problem with it getting caught up on anything. If it ever did it would probably just reverse direction and go on its merry way. It doesn't have a remote - I'm not sure what the remote actually does for one of these so I don't miss not having one.
Mike -- A remote is like having a remote controlled car, for your pool, that cleans! Definitely not neccessary, but helps to force the bot to go to specific areas, plus it can be a little fun too 
Fooled said:Mike -- A remote is like having a remote controlled car, for your pool, that cleans! Definitely not neccessary, but helps to force the bot to go to specific areas, plus it can be a little fun too
Thanks! (sorry for taking the tread off-topic a little). This does sound cool, though one of the things that I love about the Dolphin is that I can drop it in and it trucks along all on its own. The remote would be a great way to get my kids more involved in the pool cleaning!
So complete pool newbie here.. are these automated? Like you can program a cleaning schedule in to them? Or do they run whenever the filter runs like the side suction vacuum does? And do they also have hoses attached to them? I'm asking that last question because if they have hoses attached to them also then we're likely to experience a similar situation I fear.. maybe not though. I know zilch about the robots other than they exist and my hubby wants one.
There's a lot of variance, but most the robots can run on a timer, and are self enclosed. Meaning they typically have a filter bag installed and collect the dirt and what-not, and then you pull the filter bag out, clean it off, and then re-insert.
and so what's typically the biggest problem with a pool robot? getting stuck or just stopping working? I'm comfortable doing minor fixes and what not (have a roomba I've kept going for 3 years now just breaking it down and cleaning all the sensors and gears every couple of months).
For my dolphin, I just drop it in, press a button and it runs for three hours. It goes in a random pattern - in the three hours it seems to cover pretty well. It has never gotten stuck. As Fooled said, it is self-contained. No hose, just a cord connected to the power supply. After each session I rinse out the filter bag. There are no sensors to worry about like there are with a roomba. The pool walls define its coverage area.
I would say it somewhat depends on the pool, for example some people have reported problems with getting acorns and other similar items in their pools that jam the gears or tracks on their robots. If you don't have that sort of debri than it should not be an issue for you.
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