New Pool Owner - Looking for suggestions on how to chose a pool cleaner

[tsar]

Hi folks, I am a new pool owner, and have been looking for suggestions for robotic vs vacuum (booster pump based) pool cleaners. We just bought a house with an inground pool, and while we have the previous owners booster pump - works fine, but the cleaner is missing. Based on reading a lot of forums it seems like the community largely tends to take robotic pool cleaners the pool guys at the local store seem to be very against them, and keep suggesting vacuum ones like polaris 380/quattro. I can't see much of a cost advantage to the vacuum ones especially if you add the cost of the booster pump (which is dated and might need to be replaced soon).

Wanted to get suggestions of robotic pool cleaners and understand the following:
- suggestions for which to buy - something that does it job and durable..
- do they also clean surface, or do you need to manually skim the surface regularly.
- are they really heavy to take out of the pool?
- how durable are they, how long do they last?
- do they have to be taken out of the pool after every use? (let's say we want a daily cleaning schedule - I don't know if that's what it should be)

how does all of this compare to vacuum cleaners?

Added as many details as I could discover in my signature

 

[HermanTX]

Hi folks, I am a new pool owner, and have been looking for suggestions for robotic vs vacuum (booster pump based) pool cleaners. We just bought a house with an inground pool, and while we have the previous owners booster pump - works fine, but the cleaner is missing. Based on reading a lot of forums it seems like the community largely tends to take robotic pool cleaners the pool guys at the local store seem to be very against them, and keep suggesting vacuum ones like polaris 380/quattro. I can't see much of a cost advantage to the vacuum ones especially if you add the cost of the booster pump (which is dated and might need to be replaced soon).

Wanted to get suggestions of robotic pool cleaners and understand the following:
- suggestions for which to buy - something that does it job and durable..
- do they also clean surface, or do you need to manually skim the surface regularly.
- are they really heavy to take out of the pool?
- how durable are they, how long do they last?
- do they have to be taken out of the pool after every use? (let's say we want a daily cleaning schedule - I don't know if that's what it should be)

how does all of this compare to vacuum cleaners?

Added as many details as I could discover in my signature

I can speak about the pressure side cleaner. Since you already have the booster pump and the related plumbing. I leave my 280 in the pool 24/7 other than if we have lots of people in the pool then I remove it. I find it very effective, and you can purchase different types of bags to pick up either fine dust or general debris or just large leaves. I know it is a tad more expensive to operate because of the single speed booster pump but I have been happy with the performance of the 280 cleaner. It is easy to operate, spare parts via 3 parties are plentiful and better quality at lower cost than Polaris parts. It is easy to remove from the pool to switch out the catch bags.

Others can speak of the robots, but the negative is a cable across your deck. If you have a new build I have seen where they have run a PVC conduit to house the cable under a deck to the pool edge. Also, from what I read on the forum and elsewhere, some of the high-tech features for controls are not up to par so if you get a robot, then a basic one is better because the cleaning performance is similar between high tech and basic robots. Also, it seems, the water tile cleaning feature is more marketing then actual performance.

It will be interesting to see the feedback your receive. For now, if my Polaris broke, I would get another one.

 

[rcs29]

Hi folks, I am a new pool owner, and have been looking for suggestions for robotic vs vacuum (booster pump based) pool cleaners. We just bought a house with an inground pool, and while we have the previous owners booster pump - works fine, but the cleaner is missing. Based on reading a lot of forums it seems like the community largely tends to take robotic pool cleaners the pool guys at the local store seem to be very against them, and keep suggesting vacuum ones like polaris 380/quattro. I can't see much of a cost advantage to the vacuum ones especially if you add the cost of the booster pump (which is dated and might need to be replaced soon).

Wanted to get suggestions of robotic pool cleaners and understand the following:
- suggestions for which to buy - something that does it job and durable..
- do they also clean surface, or do you need to manually skim the surface regularly.
- are they really heavy to take out of the pool?
- how durable are they, how long do they last?
- do they have to be taken out of the pool after every use? (let's say we want a daily cleaning schedule - I don't know if that's what it should be)

how does all of this compare to vacuum cleaners?

Added as many details as I could discover in my signature

Hi folks, I am a new pool owner, and have been looking for suggestions for robotic vs vacuum (booster pump based) pool cleaners. We just bought a house with an inground pool, and while we have the previous owners booster pump - works fine, but the cleaner is missing. Based on reading a lot of forums it seems like the community largely tends to take robotic pool cleaners the pool guys at the local store seem to be very against them, and keep suggesting vacuum ones like polaris 380/quattro. I can't see much of a cost advantage to the vacuum ones especially if you add the cost of the booster pump (which is dated and might need to be replaced soon).

Wanted to get suggestions of robotic pool cleaners and understand the following:
- suggestions for which to buy - something that does it job and durable..
- do they also clean surface, or do you need to manually skim the surface regularly.
- are they really heavy to take out of the pool?
- how durable are they, how long do they last?
- do they have to be taken out of the pool after every use? (let's say we want a daily cleaning schedule - I don't know if that's what it should be)

how does all of this compare to vacuum cleaners?

Added as many details as I could discover in my signature

I have Dolphin Advantage Plus. It does a great job on pool floor and walls. I have essentially 5 benches and a tanning ledge and it doesn't do well on the benches and not capable of getting onto ledge. Mine does not clean surface. They are rather heavy when full of water but you let it drain when taking out (do it by the skimmer). My wife takes it out with no trouble. No personal experience on longevity but many here say 3-5 years. They can stay in your pool but I assume it's better for them to be taken out??? I have an auto cover so it's not something I do. They also need removed to clean the filter assembly. You can run schedules for most if not all dolphins. Think I answered your questions from my POV.

 

[tsar]

I can speak about the pressure side cleaner. Since you already have the booster pump and the related plumbing. I leave my 280 in the pool 24/7 other than if we have lots of people in the pool then I remove it. I find it very effective, and you can purchase different types of bags to pick up either fine dust or general debris or just large leaves. I know it is a tad more expensive to operate because of the single speed booster pump but I have been happy with the performance of the 280 cleaner. It is easy to operate, spare parts via 3 parties are plentiful and better quality at lower cost than Polaris parts. It is easy to remove from the pool to switch out the catch bags.

Others can speak of the robots, but the negative is a cable across your deck. If you have a new build I have seen where they have run a PVC conduit to house the cable under a deck to the pool edge. Also, from what I read on the forum and elsewhere, some of the high-tech features for controls are not up to par so if you get a robot, then a basic one is better because the cleaning performance is similar between high tech and basic robots. Also, it seems, the water tile cleaning feature is more marketing then actual performance.

It will be interesting to see the feedback your receive. For now, if my Polaris broke, I would get another one.

Interesting, so ur robot and hose etc. stays in the pool. Do you have any idea how much is the cost of running a booster pump? I assume 2 hours everyday?

 

[HermanTX]

Interesting, so ur robot and hose etc. stays in the pool. Do you have any idea how much is the cost of running a booster pump? I assume 2 hours everyday?

My 280 cleaner (not a robot) stays in 24/7 other than for heavy swimmer activity which I remove on temporary basis. In summer, I run it 3 hrs a week on schedule (twice a week) and occasionally if it gets dirty due to a rainstorm (rarely these days in Texas). In autumn & spring I up it to either 3-4 times a week (every second day) for 60-90 minutes to clean the fall debris. I use to run it daily some years ago but figured I was that was over doing it. I have not figured out specific cost to run but the lack of use in summer is offset by higher AC use in the house and vice-versa on winter, my electrical costs decline because I have gas heating.

Also, I have been having the same 280 for over 12 years and have done 1 major overhaul (kit was $150 on Amazon), plus some additional replacement parts such backup valve and inline filter which I replace with Atie product on Amazon which are better and cheaper than Polaris replacement parts. I purchase tail scrubbers and wear rings as well as needed as those are clearly consumable parts. My cost to operate and maintain the 280 fits my needs rather than putting out $600-$1100 for a robot which has a wire across the deck.