New build - Plano Texas

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I would love to hear why you (or anyone else here) prefers one over the other! I'm leaning toward the 280 for a couple reasons: less upfront cost, and simpler design that seems more robust and easy to repair myself when needed. Basically, I think it will last longer between replacements and cost less when it does need to be replaced. That being said, I haven't given this nearly as much thought as I have other equipment, so perhaps I should reconsider. What robot are you using? Do you still have to sweep the walls, or does it do a good enough job to skip that?
 
I haven't been able to put mine in the pool yet since we're still in the start-up but all of my research here heavily pointed to the advantage of the robot. If you do a search you'll find a lot of information. I think there is even a section in my build thread when I was asking about them. My understanding is that my robot will go up the walls and has a remote if I want to direct it. We're getting the Dolphin S300i.


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Don't forget to make sure the PB installs a good surge protector right at the pad to protect your VS pump. My guess it will go inside your automation system.

Most PB will not do this until you request it..

Jim R.
 
Hi, pool design looks great. Just wondering if the pool is swap enough for diving off the side. I get the benefit of using more of the pool without a deal end, but my kids and some adults still jump and dive and I don't think 5 feet would be deep enough. Thought I was share.

Best of luck with your new pool!
 
No, it is certainly not deep enough for diving. This will be a sport/play pool. I would love to do a proper diving pool if we had the budget and space to devote to it, but with the size of our pool we would have to devote nearly half of it to the deep end which would seriously limit our social space and make volleyball pretty much impossible. If we could add on a deep diving section as an additional area (like a free form version of an "L" shaped pool), I'd be all for it, but unfortunately I don't think we can do it.
 
SunnyInTexas said:
Thanks Jim, that hadn't occurred to me and I will definitely ask about it!
I see in your signature that you also have a Dolphin robotic cleaner. How is that working for you?
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I actually have three robots. I have two very old Dolphins in use at two rent house and I have a newer Dolphin Premier at my house. I will never have anything but robots in the future.

One advantage the water/pump powered cleaners have, is that they are generally a little less expensive and can be left in the pool indefinitely. This is why some people like them. Just stick them in and forget them.

This is exactly the reason I dislike them. I don't want to see any cleaner in my pool when they are not in use. Since they (and their hoses) are somewhat clumsy, it is much easier to just leave them in the pool. I would be like everyone else, to lazy to remove them. My robots, on the other hand are pretty easy to put in and take out whenever we are done swimming. I generally throw it in the water when we are done for the day and let it run. Depending on the time, I take it out when it is done cleaning or I just wait until the next day. Depending on what blows into my pool, I'll run it about three times a week.

If one of mine goes bad and I can't fix it, I'll just buy a new one. My next one will be the Active 30 Style unit. It has a much larger basket and has a better drain which makes taking it out of the pool a little easier. I sweep the steps, but the robot takes care of the rest. My pool does have a dedicated suction line into the side of the pool in case it might be needed in the future.

Suction and Pressure side cleaners are like old rotary dial phone, robots are more like cell phones, technology wise.

Jim R.
 
Thanks for your input Jim, I really appreciate it. Seems a good sign that you have two very old ones still in use. Maybe the higher up front and replacement costs are not as big an issue in that case. I'll check out the Active 30.
 
Dolphin makes several look-alike cleaners with different names to be sold by different outlets/stores and dealers. When I said I wanted the Active 30, I was talking about that "style" of cleaner, not necessarily that exact cleaner. Since I'm not in the market right now I have done little research on which one would be the best deal for me.

Here is a link to a video... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BWouABfXBY

Jim R.
 

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The consensus recently seems to recommend the S300i or the M500. Reviews were good on both! I just finished researching them. We decided on the S300i but I'm certain we would be just as satisfied with the M500. My build thread has the discussion on the last page or maybe one just before it if you want to see. Some links were posted for me to look at.


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Twinkies, I have a couple of questions for you.

We are trying to decide what depth we want our sun shelf. I know you said you like yours at 9", and my wife and I agree that would probably be great. But I also notice you have a small step on top of yours, and I don't think we will have one. If you did not have the step, would the big step (around 15 inches I guess) in and out of your pool be an issue? I know it would certainly not be insurmountable, but would it be awkward?

Also, what size and thickness is your travertine coping and spa and firepit top? I love it! Travertine is really beautiful and timeless. My PB is trying to dissuade me from using it for the coping. His opinion is that with a freeform pool it requires to many cuts and grout lines and doesn't form smooth curves, and doesn't end up looking good. I disagree, and think yours and Suz's, and others I've seen on this forum are gorgeous. Do you have any problems with the way it goes around your curves? We are also doing our decking in herringbone pattern travertine and we don't think we want a lot of contrast between the decking and coping color. Sorry if these were discussed in your build thread. I read through it, but at nearly 50 pages long, I'm sure I missed some things:)

I know I singled out Twinkies, but if anyone else out there has opinions on this I would love to hear from you too!


Thanks!!
 
Jimrahbe said:
Suction and Pressure side cleaners are like old rotary dial phone, robots are more like cell phones, technology wise.
Jim R.
Click to expand...

I guess that why i have the pressure side cleaner, goes great with my rotary, I don't have a cell phone.

I am happy with its performance, 5 years old now, stays in the pool all the time, there is never any leaves but that is also due to the auto cover. I only take it out is there are a lot of people.
 
Thank you for your thoughts Bank and Bobby, I appreciate your input! Everyone seems pretty happy with their robots, but like Bobby, I could see myself leaving it in the pool for long stretches. I don't think I'd leave it in all the time, but I could definitely see my self leaving it in overnight or for a few days at a time. Not necessarily intentionally, but if I drop it in at the end of a day in the pool, I'm highly likely to forget to pull it back out until the next day or the next time I get in the pool. From what I've read it sounds like that isn't good for longevity. I could try really hard not to forget it, or I could just go with the Polaris and not have to worry about it. I'm still really on the fence about this one.
 
Stenner update - It seems the Stenner request really has my PB scratching their heads. They have never seen anything like that in a residential application. They seem open to it though and seem to be trying to figure it out rather than just telling me "no", so they get points for that in my book. My designer spoke with their Jandy rep about it, and he seems pretty clueless too. He said the Jandy automation won't support anything like that, and that Jandy tried chemical automation in the past with mixed results, so they discontinued it. I didn't get to talk to the rep, but I think he may have misunderstood and thought I was wanting a system with an ORP sensor to measure chlorine in the pool and dose accordingly, rather than just simply using an open relay to turn the Stenner pump on and off on a set schedule. I assumed any automation system would be able to handle that, provided there is an unused relay, but I know very little about pool automation or wiring, and I don't know exactly what Aqualink model I'm getting yet so I can't refer to the manual. The Jandy rep also told my designer that CYA would still build up and require periodic draining even if we used liquid chlorine. I wish I had gotten to talk to him and ask him how that would happen. Not sure if he thinks CYA falls from the sky or what. I just told my designer I disagreed with that and still want to pursue the Stenner, and that a separate timer can be used if the Aqualink can't handle it. I told him I'd take care of it myself if need be, but he said they'd keep looking into it and try to figure something out. I'm definitely going the Stenner route whether or not the PB does it. I think I'll document all my water testing and keep a log book of events like adding chemicals, Stenner run time and refills, significant rains, and if I ever have to SLAM or drain or have algae over the first year or more so I can share that with my PB (and anyone else who is interested). There seems to be a real lack of knowledge of water chemistry in the pool industry, which is VERY surprising to me since water is the whole point of the industry. Maybe I can make a difference with one PB at least. Or, they'll just think I'm psycho :crazy:
 

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