Is a pool cleaner necessary?

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L

lmleonard

0
Sep 28, 2010
12
Sacramento, CA
I have a relatively small (16' x 28') in-ground vinyl pool. I used to have a pressure side pool cleaner with an attached bag for debris, but it would always get stuck at the same spot by the stairs, no matter what adjustments I made. So I removed it over a year ago and now I just use a leaf rake and occasionally vacuum. I don't have too many trees dropping debris in the pool.

Is this OK? Are the chemicals getting dispersed enough by the 2 returns alone? Has anyone else out there had success without using a pool cleaner?

Thanks!
 
You're the best judge of that! Is the pool staying clear?

I don't have an automatic cleaner. I vacuum once or twice a week, not the whole pool, just the stuff I can see. It does get brushed a couple times a week, trying to loosen up scale, so I'm sure that helps mix things up.

If you're worried about it, buy a wall whale brush. A couple passes with that and your pool will be churning. That thing moves some water when it brushes.
 
People got by without automatic pool cleaners for years before somebody decided to make the first one.

Automatic pool cleaners are mainly to reduce the amount of time one has to spend labor wise on ones pool. Running your filter equipment the proper amount of hours based on outside temperature is what keeps your chemicals evenly dispersed and helps prevent algae.

You will of course have to weekly brush the walls and manually vacuum when needed.

Modern automatic pool cleaners have some added benefits besides the reduction of manual labor and the time it consumes to keep up a pool. The better units do actually filter 4 to 5 thousand gallon of the pool water an hour. They scrub the walls and water line. They obviously do the vacuuming. And they do bust up those clumps of Baking Soda on the bottom of the pool that you either have to wait to dissolve or hit with your brush and long pole.

I personally would rather put a pressure side cleaner in my pool then drag out the vac hose, pool vac , and heavy pole (and still have to brush the walls after doing all that). Have you tried not using the leaf canister? IOW, get the big stuff with the Leaf Rake then use the cleaner to do the rest. Have you thought of upgrading to one of the new robot cleaners. The 9300 Sport, Dolphin, Aquabot, Nitro NC51, and others are plug-in automatic pool cleaners. They use very little electricity and do a better job then the other vacs (pressure, suction, or booster) in my opinion.
 
Absolutely required? No
Very nice to have? Yes

Because your pool is on the smaller side, it would be pretty easy to hit it with a vacuum when needed. I think that you could go without a cleaner, save the money for beer and steaks, and run a vacuum when you need it.
 
I bought an Aquabot Rover a few years back and was all jazzed up about it. Got a good price and was ready to rock. All that excitment went right out the window when his wheels got hung up on the deep end. Went back to regular vacuuming. A vac pole in one hand and a cold one close by is working out just fine for me. As long as I'm in the pool I'm happy!
 
I have talked with several pool owners who find manually vacuuming somewhat theraputic.

However, having a "cold one" close by seems to always pop up in the details of exactly how this vacuuming is performed.
 
duraleigh said:
I have talked with several pool owners who find manually vacuuming somewhat theraputic.

However, having a "cold one" close by seems to always pop up in the details of exactly how this vacuuming is performed.
Click to expand...

I find it relaxing too.. and so does my wife.

I picked up the verro pool cleaner robot from i-robot and while it cleaned well, it was a pain to clean the filter and all and still left a few spots not super clean. I did not think that it was worth the 900 CDN or so I paid for it so I brought it back to costco.
 
duraleigh said:
I have talked with several pool owners who find manually vacuuming somewhat theraputic.

However, having a "cold one" close by seems to always pop up in the details of exactly how this vacuuming is performed.
Click to expand...



That's where the pool rim comes in handy! The deck works good too. Two years ago I bought a Pool Buster vac. For anyone not familiar with it, it is a cordless pool vac that you just charge up & put on the end of your telepole. Works great.
 
DebbieO said:
That's where the pool rim comes in handy! The deck works good too. Two years ago I bought a Pool Buster vac. For anyone not familiar with it, it is a cordless pool vac that you just charge up & put on the end of your telepole. Works great.
Click to expand...

What's a pool rim? No luck with google image search.. actually, I'll go rinse my eyes with bleach since "pool rim" did not really return what I expected even if safesearch was set to "moderate".. :shock: :lol:
 

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duraleigh said:
I have talked with several pool owners who find manually vacuuming somewhat theraputic.

However, having a "cold one" close by seems to always pop up in the details of exactly how this vacuuming is performed.
Click to expand...

Indeed, DH and I both enjoy brushing and vacuuming the pool; it is quiet and soothing. The previous owners left the Kreepy Krauley behind, but I never liked to swim with the thing and the hose in the water. Dragging out the manual vacuum and hose seems a tad easier than dealing with the KK. We haven't yet bothered to buy a new/better robotic cleaner.

Oh, and we often vacuum in the morning, so we enjoy a mug of French Roast with Baileys. :lol:

Lana
 
Yes, Vacuuming the pool is good exercise. Can be an excuse to have a cold one or Bailey's if one vacs in the morning. And I can even see doing it on a regular basis for a small pool. But for me its a 2 to 3 hour chore I can't see wasting my time on when I can plug the cleaner in and take it out in two hours or so. No cord to swim around as the robot goes in when we are done swimming just like when we had the Hayward Viper. The Viper sat on the pool decking under a Rubbermaid tub and all we had to do was connect the quick disconnect, drop it in, and turn the booster pump on. It shut off after 3 hours on a timer and we took it out the next morning before swimming. A 20 by 40 foot pool with a real deep end is no quick manual vacuuming job.

I hate losing the water and pool balance if one vacuums to waste. I also don't like putting dirt into my sand filter when one vacuums to filter.

As others have said, pool cleaners are not necessary as one can always manually vacuum.

But for certain pools and people as well, a good robotic pool cleaner is the only way to fly!
 
duraleigh said:
However, having a "cold one" close by seems to always pop up in the details of exactly how this vacuuming is performed.
Click to expand...
I have been kicking around the idea of a robot the past few months, but it seems they only make these things for people that have an oil field in the backyard :cry: I have a Kreepy Krauly, but all it seems to do is push the dirt out of it's way :evil: I guess I'll settle for the manual vac head, a long pole, and some Miller Lite :cheers: Sorry for the rant :rant:
 
You get no argument out of me of the advantages of manual vacuuming and brushing, expecially the beer. However I choose a pool cleaner to help with stagnat water issues in my pool as well as clean my pool. I could keep my Chlorine around 7.5 and run my pool 12 hours a day and I would still get algea growth. The only conclusion I could come up with was that the areas that I was having algea grow did not get efficient water movement. This is my personal theory and that and a .25 might buy you a cup of coffee. I will be able to let you know for sure after I go through a summer with my new pool cleaner.
 
jasonknox,

I know you didn't ask and I am hi-jacking the thread but it is very likely high CYA is the culprit if you are HOLDING your chlorine at that level and still get algae.

To keep this thread on track, PM me if you like or start a new thread with your test results and we'll explore. You shouldn't have any algae issues with you FC where it is......sorry to be a busybody.
 
duraleigh said:
jasonknox,

I know you didn't ask and I am hi-jacking the thread but it is very likely high CYA is the culprit if you are HOLDING your chlorine at that level and still get algae.

To keep this thread on track, PM me if you like or start a new thread with your test results and we'll explore. You shouldn't have any algae issues with you FC where it is......sorry to be a busybody.
Click to expand...

Thanks duraleigh I will keep you posted.
 
Thank you everyone for all the replies! I am seeing a correlation between pool ownership and regular drinking!

The pool still looks great and I only vacuum once every week or two. There is something rewarding about watching every last bit of debris get removed. And I just can't believe the prices for the robots! There are tons of things I would rather do with $1000.
 
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