I'm getting a Dolphin Z5. Can the caddy, robot and power supply stay outside all summer? The instructions say to keep it in a cool/dry area, out of direct sunlight and excessive heat. I was hoping to keep it outdoors next to my pool equipment but wonder if some sun and rain will damage it? I don't have much room in my shed, its a little far from the pool and I think it would be hotter in there than being outside. Where do you keep yours?
where do you store your robot?
- Thread starter abfab
- Start date
I keep mine on my covered patio. I don't think I'd keep it anywhere that doesn't protect it from direct rain and sunlight.
ETA: just saw this thread - http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/83685-Dolphin-DX4-Power-Supplies?referrerid=29361
See RobbieH's post - it might be a good option to get some sort of cover for it if you plan to leave it by your pool equipment.
ETA: just saw this thread - http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/83685-Dolphin-DX4-Power-Supplies?referrerid=29361
See RobbieH's post - it might be a good option to get some sort of cover for it if you plan to leave it by your pool equipment.
Mike59
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I have an older Dolphin which also states not to keep it in direct sunlight. I keep mine inside the basement. Being all plastic I think keeping it outside would lessen the life of it. I would not do it.
Thanks for link. I assumed that they were made handle the elements like other pool equipment. I was looking online for a cover but didn't see one. I guess I'll have to make one myself or get a small shed to house it.
During the summer, mine goes in the screened porch. I have a few small tiles I use to keep the brushes off the ground by supporting the side treads of the unit rather than the brushes resting on the ground. Other than that, full time shade but open air storage. Winter, goes in the basement. I would keep it covered at least when not in use. Ideally out of the sun such as in a shed, garage or under a deck area.
As you may have seen in a post I made earlier today, it appears to me that the Dolphin robots should be temporarily stored under cover when not in use. The third power supply for my DX4 failed a few days ago, and it's stored next to the north side of the house, but not under cover, when idle. Apparently, the power supplies for these units are not to be exposed to rain.
(And I'm referring to "in between cleaning" storage...not off-season storage, as I keep mine in the garage during winter).
(And I'm referring to "in between cleaning" storage...not off-season storage, as I keep mine in the garage during winter).
When not in my pool,my M5 lives in my humidity controlled crawl space. Now, the name crawl space really doesn't fit as for most of it is over 10 feet tall. All of my pool equipment is down there also,
During the swim season my Polaris 280 lives in the pool unless I have a pool party then I take it out.
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I keep my dolphin on my covered patio.
Not good for the plastic to be exposed to sun all day long every day.
I keep my dolphin on my covered patio.
Not good for the plastic to be exposed to sun all day long every day.
I keep my aquabot in the shed when not in use during the pool season, and in my basement in the winter.
Maybe you could buy something like this if you want to keep it outdoors.
http://www.amazon.com/Suncast-SSW12...id=1407972365&sr=1-1&keywords=outdoor+storage
Tom
Maybe you could buy something like this if you want to keep it outdoors.
http://www.amazon.com/Suncast-SSW12...id=1407972365&sr=1-1&keywords=outdoor+storage
Tom
For three years I had my old Dolphin 4 out in the sun and in the pool. It never got put away. It still works just fine, but needs new flap doors on the bottom. But, I will tell you the sun takes its toll. The power button is very cracked and I fear it may break soon. The Dolphin itself is extremely faded. The mount for the power supply broke off and the power supply won't stay mounted to the caddy anymore. In another thread, I mentioned testing the cover for my Weber kettle to see if it covers effectively. I plan on finally doing that tonight.
I have a 7 year old Dolphin that sits on a caddy. We keep it on our small deck in a corner that has a 4 foot roof overhang. We also have 2 tarps on it, and use a bungie cord wrapped around it. In the winter we keep it stored in the basement.
If it isn't in the water, I would keep it in a climate controlled area. The powersupplies are weatherproof, but if you leave them out, the heat will eventually destroy them. More importantly, my blue diamond was going in for service like every 3 months. Finally I dropped the thing in the pool and it worked for like 2 years without a problem. I can only surmise that the heat of the sun was causing the seals to expand and thats why the motors kept going out.
I received word from my pool supply store that Maytronics will not replace my third failed power supply under warranty. Even though the failed power supply is only 6 months old, Maytronics is saying (according to the pool store service tech) that my cleaner is out of warranty and, because of that, they won't warranty the power supply.
The service tech agrees with me that the most likely cause of three failed power supplies is that I keep the cleaner, caddy, and power supply, next to the house, but not under roof or cover....and that it must be water infiltrating the power supply that's causing them to fail. I don't know if I have any recourse at this point but to either buy a replacement power supply or a new robot cleaner. Won't be an easy decision, as the power supply cost is about 1/3 the cost of a new robot.
What I'm most upset about is that Maytronics doesn't warn the user to cover up the power supply or offer a cover for it. Those of us that don't have a covered area to store the cleaner are left to find out the hard way (in my case, through these forums) that their power supplies don't like constant exposure to the elements during the swim season.
I keep my Dolphin and the caddy poolside all the time. I use a Weber bbq cover over it and seems to protect it nicely. The cleaner typically stays in the pool unless we're planning on swimming.
I think covering it loosely so it can dry out and is protected form the UV rays of the sun are the key issue.
I know this is an old thread but it feels like the right place for this question..
Can we use our robots in the rain or are we best to avoid that if possible
Can we use our robots in the rain or are we best to avoid that if possible