Robotic pool cleaner suggestions

[pixpicker]

Just received the bad news that my Aquabot Turbo will cost almost $700 to repair. It did serve me well for the past 5 seasons but my biggest complaint was cleaning the bag at the end of each session. Disgusting!!!! I’m looking for a robot that will clean the pool, pick up a few leaves and is easy to flush out afterwards. Any suggestions?

IG, 16x32, SWG, 20,000 gal

 

[BoDarville]

Welcome to TFP!

Among the robot cleaners, Dolphin, Blue Diamond, and Aquabots enjoy a pretty good reputation here on the forum.

 

[Divin Dave]

Just received the bad news that my Aquabot Turbo will cost almost $700 to repair. It did serve me well for the past 5 seasons but my biggest complaint was cleaning the bag at the end of each session. Disgusting!!!! I’m looking for a robot that will clean the pool, pick up a few leaves and is easy to flush out afterwards. Any suggestions?

IG, 16x32, SWG, 20,000 gal

I just bought a sharkvac a couple weeks ago. It's my first robot, so I don't have anything to judge it against. I will give you my preliminary thoughts about it so far though.

Have only used it a couple times for maybe an hour at a go. There were a couple of big leaves left but all in all it did very well. It got all of the dirt and small debris i could see and the bottom is pretty much spotless.

Cannot say yet about the long term dependability of it which is my main concern with all robots. I haven't read any really negative or numerous reviews about breakdowns, and I read a LOT of them, so...time will tell. I have my fingers crossed.

Very easy to clean. It has 2 filters similar to A/C filters that you pop out of the top, rinse off with a water hose and put them back in. No messy bag and you don't have to turn it upside down.

Hayward says it don't climbs the walls. Mine does to a large extent, but it isn't a tile line scrubber.

It won't do the steps.

The chord twists up like most robot chords do.

Comparatively speaking, it was reasonable price which is the main reason I bought it along with absence of numerous negative reviews. Best internet offer I found with free shipping.... with caddy.
http://www.poolsupply4less.com/Hayward- ... rc9742.htm

The RC9740 is without the caddy which is about 50 dollars less.

hope this helps,

 

[BoDarville]

pixpicker: Sorry about your bad experience with the Aquabot. Even though they and the others brands I mentioned have a generally good reputation based on other posts on the forum, any brand can suffer from a malfunction.

Cannot say yet about the long term dependability of it which is my main concern with all robots.

pixpicker & Divin Dave: Curious...Is using a pressure side cleaner out of the question for your pool's setup? Mine (Polaris 360) is about 15 years old and still works well. I have had it in for service only once since I have owned the house and the bill was rather minimal (less than $50). Since I inherited it from the previous owner, I cannot say what other service they may have had done in the past. But the fact that it is still working after all these years is something to consider. Plus, most pressure-side cleaners cost less than the robots.

 

[bzeller]

I've used an Aquabot T4, Blue Diamond Pro, and Polaris 9300xi. The Polaris is by FAR the easiest to clean as you just remove the tray and spray it out. Agree, the bag is a pain in Rear!

 

[Divin Dave]

Sorry about your bad experience with the Aquabot. Even though they and the others brands I mentioned have a generally good reputation based on other posts on the forum, any brand can suffer from a malfunction.

Cannot say yet about the long term dependability of it which is my main concern with all robots.

Curious...Is using a pressure side cleaner out of the question for your pool's setup?

Yeah, sort of. I don't have any place left in the breaker panel for powering a booster pump. Would have to upgrade the panel.

I suppose I probably could use my intelliflo and skip the breaker upgrade, but would need to do some re-plumbing and add a valve or 2. That would be easy enough to do I suppose. I will definitely consider one of these when this sharkvac gives it up or turns out to be a dud.

To be honest, when I read the OP, the Polaris didn't register in my mind as a robot. Don't know why it didn't. I guess my newness to these things got tracked on electric ones. Friend of mind has a 380 though and loves it.

 

[BoDarville]

To be honest, when I read the OP, the Polaris didn't register in my mind as a robot. Don't know why it didn't. I guess my newness to these things got tracked on electric ones. Friend of mind has a 380 though and loves it.

Actually, I think you have it right. The Polaris 380 is considered a pressure-side cleaner, meaning it runs off of the pressure side (return) of your pool pump. The Dolphin, Blue Diamond, and Aquabots are true "robot" cleaners that have a self-contained power/propulsion/vacuuming system that can be run independent of the pool's circulation system. Robots are either powered by an A/C power source (which will require an extension cord) or by self-contained rechargeable batteries.

 

[bzeller]

Polaris makes both. The 9300 and 9400 series are "robotic" cleaners.

 

[Patrick_B]

You're right bzeller.

I'm going with the Dolphin DX6 after a lot of thinking about it. I'll have a fair amount of leaves and a lot of dust/dirt blowing in.

 

[pixpicker]

First of all, I want to wish everyone a happy holiday weekend and thank you for the responses. I was thinking about this over the past few days and although I've owned the Aquabot for 6 seasons, it really only constitutes 24 months of use given our New England pool season. Seems like a short duty cycle given the price of the unit. I made an appeal to the manufacturer and I'll keep the group informed.

 

[danjaymor]

I'm pretty much in love with my Maytronics Dolphin Supreme M5 so far.....well in a purely platonic way!

 

[Patrick_B]

I'm pretty much in love with my Maytronics Dolphin Supreme M5 so far.....well in a purely platonic way!

I was going with one, but decided I want the bag option and dynamic mobility, remote and caddy included... hence the DX6.

 

[laprjns]

I love my Aquavac Tigersharck QC, but then again it's the only automatic pool cleaner I've ever owned. It climbs walls and cleans along the water line, but doesn't seems to climb my steps. Just completed my 8th season (got it as part of my pool package) with it and have had no problems other than occasionally getting hung up on my main drains, but solved that with two of theses: http://www.inyopools.com/Products/07501 ... OgodrRQAtg
Here's the owners manual ==> https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/908 ... Manual.pdf

Somewhere along the line Hayward bought out Aqauvac and now are offering the Tigershark line; can't tell you if they are any different than mine. I did find what appears to be old new stock on ebay. http://www.ebay.com/itm/AquaVac-TigerSh ... 0667508866

 

[pixpicker]

Just to follow up on this thread, I will never buy an Aquabot again as a result of my experience with their service department. If you buy this product then pray it never needs to be serviced. After doing some research I've discovered my experience was not an isolated incident. You buy it, you own it, period. Expect no customer support and anticipate being treated rudely if you do. Bottom line, there are much better choices to be made at this price point.

 

[bobodaclown]

If you haven't picked up another yet I purchased a Smart Kleen Nitro (the base model). I've been happy with it. I used my credit card, doubled the warranty and got a replacement after a sensor went bad 1.5 years into it.
Here's link to my reviews.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/thre...o-1-minute?highlight=smart+kleen+nitro+review

You can get it for about $300.
http://www.poolsuppliessuperstore.c...g&matchtype=&gclid=CPXVx9u90bwCFY1r7AodAmQA-Q
http://www.doheny.com/poolsupplies/...g&matchtype=&gclid=CPj4ydy90bwCFWxo7AodIQsAEg

 

[samiguy]

I have the TigerShark QC that has served me well. Same as above, pretty easy to maintain. Would buy it again. Hope this helps.
Good Luck!!
Sami

 

[dschribs]

Love my Tigershark!

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