Front wheel UP on Polaris 380

[YO-EL]

Seems like there is no suction because the front wheel is not riding on the pool floor.
Any adjustment to get this thing to ride flat on all 3 wheels?

Thanks!

 

[polyvue]

Seems like there is no suction because the front wheel is not riding on the pool floor.
Any adjustment to get this thing to ride flat on all 3 wheels?

Hello YO-EL, and welcome to the forum. :-D

All of the 3-wheeled cleaners tend to ride on just 2 wheels some of the time, but if it happens most or all of the time there are several things you can adjust. Try just one at a time and give the cleaner a few minutes in the water to see what the effect is:

• 1. Adjust the head float by pushing it in or pulling it out from the stem -- a few millimeters at a time
  2. Tighten or loosen the sweep hose adjustment screw to modify tail movement
  3. Set the thrust jet to 11 o'clock or different orientation if it's already set to 11:00 (this can have a dramatic effect on operation)
  4. Check and adjust, if necessary, the revolutions per minute (RPM) of the unit (to 28-32 rpm)

For a slightly more detailed discussion of the last two items, see pages 5 & 6 in the Polaris 380 Owner's Manual

 

[Pool Clown]

In addition...
You could also have a clogged jet, which will give more pressure to the paddle wheel resulting in higher speed hence the wheelie. Also, when the bag gets too full it can act as a sail, in that, it will cause too much drag and will rotate the unit (wheel up).

 

[millerwd]

Struggled with the Front wheels up issue for several months. Finally removed the bag while running and checked the suction jets. Two were squirting up and out of the column, while the front jet was barely trickling. Disassembled and used a drinking straw and compressed air to back-flush the plugged jet, then removed the debris that appeared in the inlet plenum. Two hours later the pool was completely cleaned.

UPDATE: the front suction jet plugged again several weeks later. The debris was very hard & brittle and had the appearance of an acorn shell fragment. Several weeks later the Polaris had trouble moving and I found the outer bearing for the intermediate drive gear had failed. The ball-retainer was missing and a single ball remained in the bottom of the unit. I conclude that the bearing-retainer disintegrated and several pieces made their way to the suction jets (although I'm not sure how they could get there).