Active 30i - fatal flaws

[oodaddy]

I posted a lengthy review of my new Active 30i back on 7/9/16. Unforutnately, my enthusiasm has waned. In fact, I certainly would not buy this again & do not recommend it. Maybe they will develop a new version to correct its fatal flaws. In the mean time, buy an Aquabot

Really liked it when I first had it & it really cleans my pool well. The top loading basket design is great too.....BUT

1. Without a cord swivel, this robot has MAJOR issues with the electrical cord. It twists into knots very quickly, So much so, you can't just leave it in the pool on its scheduler/timer. It effectively twists itself into a robot with a cord that will not allow it to move very far. Every day I had to untwist it.
Called Dolphin who said to leave the cord straightened for a couple of days in warm weather. Actually did this for a solid week in hot SC summer weather. Immediately began to have the same issue with zero improvement. After this tried a plastic twist on device found on amazon meant to straighten out electrical cords (used about 20 ft) with no improvement.
Basically, this one issue makes the robot inconvenient and a pain to use.
Talked with my local Dolphin repair shop - he said he had heard that the swivel antitangle devices used on many Dolphin products has been very repair prone so they are going away from it. Not sure if this is true but certainly something different needs to be done for the Active 30i

2. Power supply went out 1 month after use. (I used GFCI, etc so I dont think there was an electrical issue on my end) It took Dolphin aka Maytronics well over 6 weeks get get a new one as they were being made in Israel I'm told and no units were available. Obviously there must be a consistent issue with their power supply so another fatal flaw IMHO. THankfully i had a backup robot (Blue Diamond) or else I would have had no robot as the leaves began to fall into my pool. Certainly not a big fan of Dolphin company at this point. All things considered I had better & longer trouble free days with better company support for parts when I was an Aquabot guy.

 

[JamesW]

Power supply is susceptible to water intrusion. Try to protect from rain.

 

[Geebot]

I posted a lengthy review of my new Active 30i back on 7/9/16. Unforutnately, my enthusiasm has waned. In fact, I certainly would not buy this again & do not recommend it. Maybe they will develop a new version to correct its fatal flaws. In the mean time, buy an Aquabot

Really liked it when I first had it & it really cleans my pool well. The top loading basket design is great too.....BUT

1. Without a cord swivel, this robot has MAJOR issues with the electrical cord. It twists into knots very quickly, So much so, you can't just leave it in the pool on its scheduler/timer. It effectively twists itself into a robot with a cord that will not allow it to move very far. Every day I had to untwist it.
Called Dolphin who said to leave the cord straightened for a couple of days in warm weather. Actually did this for a solid week in hot SC summer weather. Immediately began to have the same issue with zero improvement. After this tried a plastic twist on device found on amazon meant to straighten out electrical cords (used about 20 ft) with no improvement.
Basically, this one issue makes the robot inconvenient and a pain to use.
Talked with my local Dolphin repair shop - he said he had heard that the swivel antitangle devices used on many Dolphin products has been very repair prone so they are going away from it. Not sure if this is true but certainly something different needs to be done for the Active 30i

2. Power supply went out 1 month after use. (I used GFCI, etc so I dont think there was an electrical issue on my end) It took Dolphin aka Maytronics well over 6 weeks get get a new one as they were being made in Israel I'm told and no units were available. Obviously there must be a consistent issue with their power supply so another fatal flaw IMHO. THankfully i had a backup robot (Blue Diamond) or else I would have had no robot as the leaves began to fall into my pool. Certainly not a big fan of Dolphin company at this point. All things considered I had better & longer trouble free days with better company support for parts when I was an Aquabot guy.

The "fatal flaw" is the instruction manual suggesting you should leave it in the pool for scheduled cleanings. You really need to take it out after use and put it in a covered storage area. If you're leaving it in for days at a time or longer, then yes, you'll encounter problems like you describe.

 

[Killer95Stang]

I have the Dolphin Discovery ( same as active 20) which has the same cord and power supply. I typically leave the robot in the water overnight, because I drop it in before going to work. When I get home, I often run a second cycle if I feel it missed a few spots. Pool is 33 ft lengthwise and the outlet is 10 ft from the pool. I've never had a cord that was tangled to the point where it would limit travel to the end of the pool. I usually stretch the cord straight before winding it up to put in the deck box. That might help me a little. Most people do not use the daily timer function, since it contradicts the manuals directions which advise not to leave the robot in the pool for extended periods.

As far as the power supply goes, I had mine go out after a week or two. I called up Maytronics and was told they would ship one out that same dayand 5 or 6 days later the replacement was at my door. I was actually very satisfied with their service.

Since people generally don't make posts about how good a product is, I have to believe that a majority of the people who have purchased one of the newer style Dolphin robots are pretty satisfied.