Automatic Pool Cleaner recommendation

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S

shugarhi

0
May 3, 2018
2
Albany
Hi guys,

I am looking for recommendations on a pool cleaner. My budget is $1000 or lower. Must be able to clean up to the water line and have a convenient way to clean the filter on it. Not sure what other features to look for. Here is a picture of my pool below, it's vinyl, saltwater and 8ft deep. There are also two returns on the floor deep-end that protrude above the vinyl liner, as well as a light on the wall. I also live in upstate NY and get some leaves and pine needles, and would only be using it 3-4 months out of the year.

IMG-2506.jpg


Thanks in advance,
Jeff
 

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First time pool owner here. Shopping for a Robotic Cleaner and the Pentair 920 / 930 was what was recommended by the builder. I have tried to read through the threads on this forum and do not see much on those models, but rather a ton on the Dolphin. They look almost the same - Are they made by the same manufacturer? Is one better than the other?

Also, trying to decide if I need the caddy and blue tooth capability. I believe that is the only difference between the 920 / 930
 
Yes, the Pentair 920/930 I believe are built by Maytronicsus.com. The Pentair 930 appears to be compatible with the Dolphin S300i/Active 30i. Maytronics manufactures private brand labels. I personally love my caddy for easy storage and transportation as I don't leave my cleaner in the pool.
 
I've had my cleaner for about a month and I have used it a couple of times. The Bluetooth Mydolphin App is the only way to change some of the cleaning modes (waterline only, floor only, etc). It will also allow you to schedule what time and day you want your timer to start on. If you use the Control Panel the timer is limited to every 24, 48, 72 hrs and it will start when you turn it on and repeat it as scheduled.
 
I opted for the S300 without all the bells and whistles. While the S300 does have the multi-day setting option I pull it out and clean the filter after every fun which is simple to do. I also like only pushing one button and it's done in two and 1/2 hours, simple and not much to go wrong. My biggest decision is which filters to install before I lower the robot into the pool, the micro screen or pleated type. I am using mine about once every 3-5 days depending on wind and debris load. No need for the caddie as it is very light and I store mine inside the pool house, upside down on top of a padded crate after I have rinsed it off. Fantastic pool maintenance tool.
 
Oly the S300 doesn't have all the bells and whistles its the S300i. One of the bells and whistles is that it brings the double basket so that you can you use both filters at once. It also has additional cleaning modes. I also believe the Dolphin Discovery is the S200.
 
The marketing of the Dolphin robots is unique and a bit confusing. I purchased mine through Doheny's and researched their units made by Dolphin which in this case are the Saturn, Discovery and Mercury, not certain but believe are the s200, s300 and s3001 respectively. I have read about the double filter system but could not find much info about that configuration and on these three units seem identical but not certain and using the compare option does not help much. The top load basket is a design improvement. I do know from experience that using the pleated filters will collect the finer particles like dust and fine dirt after big wind but reduces the flow rate through the filters. The micro screens are fine most of the time and the unit climbs the walls better and works along the tile line better as well. Small difference but a difference. The additional cleaning mode of the bluetooth version, all vs bottom only is a feature I would not use and I would not need to drive the unit manually. Most importantly I also do not use a "smart phone" and could not access the features anyway.
 
An update after Manny's post had me to do a little more research. Manny is correct, the Dolphin Discovery sold by Doheny's appears to be the Maytronics S200 with the only difference that it has a 2.5 hour run time. The double filter system is a feature of the s300i but the basket systems and pump capabilities are the same for each of the s-series models. It appears the screen mesh basket made to fit inside the pleated snap in filters can be purchased separately and will work in all the s-series models. I will confirm this after my order arrives. Maytronics has an interesting marketing strategy making it very difficult to compare the differences between their many models. There also seems to be some additional variation with the models branded in cooperation with their vendors. Hope this helps.
 

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