Aquabot classic turbo no longer moving across waterline

[Tangled]

Hi, I’m a new member here, this is my first post. I’m glad I found this place!

I have an Aquabot Turbo Classic. I just had the drive belts replaced along with the treads (not sure what that is). The robot worked great for two days and it’s now developed a problem where it no longer moves laterally across the waterline like it’s supposed to. Instead of completing a set of 7 half laps and then moving elsewhere across the waterline it just stays in the same area moving back and forth, up the walls and back down. Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

[Njaneer]

Hi, I’m a new member here, this is my first post. I’m glad I found this place!

I have an Aquabot Turbo Classic. I just had the drive belts replaced along with the treads (not sure what that is). The robot worked great for two days and it’s now developed a problem where it no longer moves laterally across the waterline like it’s supposed to. Instead of completing a set of 7 half laps and then moving elsewhere across the waterline it just stays in the same area moving back and forth, up the walls and back down. Any advice would be much appreciated.

How is the float/handle adjusted to allow it to crawl along the water line? Is it on center or offset? Its adjustable for this reason.

Also check the handle/float for leakage, if it's not staying vertical when in the water (below the waterline) you have a leak issue which will also cause issues.

 

[Tangled]

How is the float/handle adjusted to allow it to crawl along the water line? Is it on center or offset? Its adjustable for this reason.

Also check the handle/float for leakage, if it's not staying vertical when in the water (below the waterline) you have a leak issue which will also cause issues.

The handle is indeed offset, thanks for suggesting that. The robot goes up and down and moves sideways a little bit each time it’s in the up position on a wall (the handle stays flat on the water) but it does not do the big lateral moves along the waterline anymore (every 7 half laps). It’s almost like a programming issue.

Do you know how it’s supposed to rotate to get sideways to make the big moves across the waterline?

 

[Njaneer]

The handle is indeed offset, thanks for suggesting that. The robot goes up and down and moves sideways a little bit each time it’s in the up position on a wall (the handle stays flat on the water) but it does not do the big lateral moves along the waterline anymore (every 7 half laps). It’s almost like a programming issue.

Do you know how it’s supposed to rotate to get sideways to make the big moves across the waterline?

That angle is adjustable to 3 positions, it serves dual purpose, cord tangling and waterline scrubbing speed movement. You might want to experiment with the angle to see if it helps. The cleaner should just reverse at the waterline, not turn on the wall.

Consult the manual here for more info:

Aquabot Turbo Manual - Aqua Products Support

Not sure if it's a programming issue but it could be a failing or rouge sensor issue?

 

[Tangled]

That angle is adjustable to 3 positions, it serves dual purpose, cord tangling and waterline scrubbing speed movement. You might want to experiment with the angle to see if it helps. The cleaner should just reverse at the waterline, not turn on the wall.

Consult the manual here for more info:

Aquabot Turbo Manual - Aqua Products Support

Not sure if it's a programming issue but it could be a failing or rouge sensor issue?

Yes, it does reverse at the water line and then it goes back down. Mine has a 2-position handle and therefore should follow the pattern at the top of page 12 in the manual. Mine does A-B in that pattern but does not do the long lateral movements (denoted C on page 12 of the manual you sent). It used to do those but does not anymore, so it just cleans the same area over and over again.

 

[Njaneer]

Yes, it does reverse at the water line and then it goes back down. Mine has a 2-position handle and therefore should follow the pattern at the top of page 12 in the manual. Mine does A-B in that pattern but does not do the long lateral movements (denoted C on page 12 of the manual you sent). It used to do those but does not anymore, so it just cleans the same area over and over again.

If you can get it checked at a repair center, it would be good to find out why it's doing that. Just curious how long does it stay at the waterline before reversing and is this consistent?

 

[Tangled]

If you can get it checked at a repair center, it would be good to find out why it's doing that. Just curious how long does it stay at the waterline before reversing and is this consistent?

I’m afraid you’re right and I will have to mail it in. It consistently spends about 25 seconds by the waterline.

 

[Njaneer]

I’m afraid you’re right and I will have to mail it in. It consistently spends about 25 seconds by the waterline.

I know Aquaproducts does not have as many service centers as Polaris, but that my change at some point, we (Zodiac/Polaris) mutually merged with Fluidra a few months ago and Aquaproducts is owned by Fluidra.

I think it will take some time, but hopefully service for Aquabots will at some point be more local, not requiring customers to have to ship their robots back.

Best of luck, hope you get it solved.

 

[Tangled]

Just wanted to post an update. I reached out to Aqua Products and got a call back from a knowledgeable tech. Unfortunately there is not an inexpensive part that I can replace to fix this. Rather, the pattern of 7 half laps followed by a long lateral move is written into the code that is carried by the motor, and given that everything works but the long lateral moves, the motor needs to be replaced. I will be in the market for a new robot in the spring.

 

[Njaneer]

Well that's too bad, how many years did you get out of it?

 

[Tangled]

It’s 10 years old, so it’s been a good run.