Pressure vs. robotic cleaners - for IG pool which gets lots of leaves in the fall

[pauster]

Hi everbody,

after 8 years or so our trusty Hayward Phantom Turbo (pressure side) cleaner is finally giving up the ghost - the outlet that propels water from the bottom of the cleaner does not turn on anymore, and it has a few other nagging issues - so I want to replace it wither with a new pressure side cleaner (our booster pump is only 3 years old) or a robotic cleaner.

Common wisdom seemed to be that robotic cleaners are better for smaller debris due to smaller filter capacity - pressure side cleaners were supposed to better handle larger leaves. We have deciduous trees around the pool so in the fall we get plenty in the pool. Large leaves as well such as maple and tulip poplar.

Two questions:

1) Are robots now handle heavier leaf loads in general? I'd much prefer the more efficient robot to a pressure cleaner but if they can't handle it I'll get a new pressure cleaner.

2) What model (robotic or pressure) would be ideal in this situation?

Thanks a lot!

 

[Geebot]

I have the same problem and suffered with an older Maytronics for the last couple of years. Did a great job of picking up leaves, but the filter bag clogged easily. I purchased a newer model, the S300, last month and it's a fantastic solution. Very large capacity top-loading basket. Did a great job with the neighbor's spring bounty of buds and blossoms. Holds a lot and works great. This video gives you an overview and shows the basket and simple cleaning at about the 1:35 mark:

Dolphin S-series - quick user guide - YouTube

It also does a fantastic job of cleaning the waterline, it's relatively light and cleans great.