How often do you manual vacuum your pool?

[Toad_stools]

This is my first full year with my pool and learning as I go here. Basic question: how often do you vacuum? Right now, I’m getting a lot of bird Crud in the pool. There’s a nest of starlings nearby and they carry the poo out of the nest and drop it in to my pool! This morning there were about 20 craps in the bottom. I skim them out as best I can but it’s impossible to get it all everyday. I have a kreepy krawler I put in but I find it doesn’t do as good a job as manual vacuuming, which I have been doing about once a week for the last three weeks. Should I do it more frequently? I think the bird Crud might be affecting the water chemistry a bit as well. Thoughts?

 

[the_sphynx]

I have a Maytronics Dolphin robot that runs automatically 5 times a week. I only clean it out maybe 2x/week.
I do manually vacuum my hot tub about 2x/month or as needed depending on weather or whatever might have blown in the hot tub.

 

[Shirker]

I have a Dolphin too. Huge time saver. Without it, I would feel like I need to vacuum twice a week or more. I throw the dolphin in every other day or so. I didn't realize how big of a pain it was until after I got a good robot.

I get a lot of red clay dust that settles in the pool. The dirt is very obvious on the steps. Plus some (what I think is) frog poo that collects on the steps. I usually try to spend about 5 minutes a day to brush everything to the deep-end where it is easier for the robot to grab it.

 

[wayner]

I have a Dolphin as well which I have had for about 2-3 years. I used to have a Kreepy Krauly for 12 years. I only manually vacuum when the pool opens and once or twice per year. I imagine this may be highly dependent on how many trees that you have or other things to pollute your pool - I don't have a lot of trees around.

When I had the Kreepy Krauly I would often dive in with snorkelling gear and manually vacuum with the Kreepy Krauly hose as there were a few areas that it never seemed to clean.

I often keep the Dolphin in the pool and I believe that it runs once per day when it is in the pool and powered on.

 

[Oly]

A bot will change your pool experience. If you can swing the $ investment you will save loads of time and frustration.

 

[Toad_stools]

Hmm. Thanks guys sounds like these robots are the way to go. Will def see if the budget will allow for next year. I don’t want to be spending all my time vacuuming. These birds are really starting to p^*s me off!

 

[Pete.Spencer]

Hmm. Thanks guys sounds like these robots are the way to go. Will def see if the budget will allow for next year. I don’t want to be spending all my time vacuuming. These birds are really starting to p^*s me off!

We vaccum essentially when we open...and we have a Polaris 280 (I think that is the model)... and we keep that plugged in all the time, it runs while the pump is running... really the only time when we take it out is if we have a party or more that a few people in the pool... does a really good job, but can’t compare it to the dolphin or others suggested...

 

[cledee]

4-5 times a week with Maytronics Active 20. Marina pools in Lakewood, Colorado sells this model and similar Robots for $700-$750. At the pool store or elsewhere it will probably cost $900-$950. A lot of people on this website have gotten their robots through them. They typically ship same day and it takes 1-3 days for the robot to arrive.

 

[setsailsoon]

I'm another satisfied Marina Pools fan. There are several different brands and they're all the same internally. I got the Pentair Warrior SE. Marina will find you the one that has the best deal and that seems to change every month or so. Only additional advice I have is to be sure to get a model that has automation mode. This way you can use a smart plug and set it to run every day at a certain time for a certain period of time. Once you set it all you need to do is clean the basket weekly. If you don't do this you'll need to press the start button every 5 days. Not a big ask but I just wanted mine to be as easy as can be. You'll still need to clean the basket every week but I just found this convenient. I also added a cord cover to keep it from being a potential trip hazard.

As far as impact to your water chemistry goes I doubt it will have a huge impact but wouldn't hurt to run the full set of tests a little more often. A very smart scientist once told me "the solution to pollution is dilution". I didn't really agree with this but in your bird poop case it may be true.

I hope this helps.

Chris

 

[Mdragger88]

I haven’t manually vac’d at all this year thanks to my dolphin nautilus cc.
The hose is still in the shed!
Before i got the dolphin I had the intex automatic pool cleaner so i still rarely manually vac’d w/ the hose but i still used my little cordless vac alot. This year i have only used it once to get under my steps (it fits in the hole where the weight goes).

 

[bmoreswim]

Never owned one. Owned a pressure vac for a few years and became dissatisfied. I've been a very satisfied Dolphin Active 20 owner for several years now.

 

[Geebot]

My first season with the pool it took about 4 weeks of manual vacuuming to finally break me. I purchased a used Maytronics Dolphin from a friend who upgraded to a newer model and never looked back. The following season I upgraded to a new model myself. The absolute #1 essential accessory for any pool owner. It literally creates time. The hour 1 used to spend every Saturday morning fussing with the hose and manual vacuum is now time i have to enjoy my precious weekend hours.

 

[Palpatine]

That was the one dreaded activity of pool maintenance for me... vacuuming. I don't mind skimming leaves/pollen... or brushing for that matter, but I always put off vacuuming until I absolutely had to.

I just purchased a Polaris VRX IQ+ and have used it twice. Absolutely amazing results.

I still brush my steps first, only takes a few minutes. And I'm being a bit more particular than most, as it was quite an expense, and rinse the basket and robot off after every use. So far I let it got for like 2+ hours each cleaning (I forget which mode that is... smart mode I think).

But yeah, pool was trashed after 4th of July party and is absolutely sparkling clean now. Best investment you can make.

 

[Wobblerlorri]

I have a WaterTech Leaf Blaster, battery operated, and I have my son vacuum at least every other day, due to the massive oak in the front yard dropping leaves, twigs, catkins, and tiny acorns all the dang time. If we don't keep on top of it, it would be a hot mess out there.

I never minded vac'ing myself, but since I broke my ankle my son has been doing it, and he hates it. I thought it was fun, myself, but then I love everything about my pool, even the maintenance...

Luckily we have that oak set to come down sometime this summer (it's rotten), so that will alleviate some of the vac'ing.

 

[suzook]

Whats this manual thing you are talking about? LOL. My robot does it all, even spring opening.

 

[jonahex2099]

I don’t have a fancy setup - just an intex ultraframe pool, but I run my “cheap” robot every other day or so and then spot vac with the pool blaster to hit corners that the Qomotop can’t quite get due to the curve of the walls every third or forth time.

 

[an1vrsy]

Because of the heat and blazing sun here in Las Vegas, I manually vacuum from inside the pool. I can set the pole, hose and vacuum head down and cool off in the pool. Swim a lap then get back to it.

I do have the Pentair Warrior SI that does the vacuuming the majority of the time but my excuse for going in the pool without the rest of the family is I must vacuum. hehehe