Best robot for small pool on a budget

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Flbeachluvr

Flbeachluvr

Bronze Supporter
Mar 19, 2016
449
Port Orange, FL
We live in Florida and have an unscreened pool. We are in a new neighborhood with relatively few trees but do have issues with some leaves and pine needles from neighbor's trees, not a whole lot but enough. Netting is too time consuming and using our current Kreepy Krauly risks clogging the lines. Thinking about getting a robot but our pool is only 8800 gallons. We aren't able to spend $500+. Any recommendations on a basic robot? I admit I'm not sure how they actually work. You plug them in to an electrical outlet and put them into the pool? The debris goes into an internal chamber to be emptied later?

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Unfortunately there are no great inground robots I can recommend out there under $500. It's the kind of thing where you get what you pay for, and most decent cleaners start around $600.

Perhaps you can look at an above ground cleaner like a Dolphin E10/S50. We've dumped those in 20x40 rectangles and they do fine, it just won't get up the walls as well as its bigger counterparts. The short run time won't be an issue with the size of your pool.
 
Regardless of price, don't expect ANY robot to do a really good job on leaves and pine needles......you may be disappointed.

A GOOD leaf net is your best option in a pool that size
 
Would like to get some suggestions as welll. I saw the Aquabot S2-50 for under $300. Since then it has gone up. Is this worth it? Or should I hold out for a better machine? Seems like dolphin is very well rated.
 
Is there a reason you don't want to consider a $300 to $400 suction cleaner? Mine doesn't miss a thing. Fair to say it doesn't do any scrubbing - it just vacuums - so I brush the pool around once every two weeks (I know, it should be weekly, but that's all mine seems to need). Here's a couple that are reliable:
https://www.amazon.com/Poolvergnuegen-896584000013-PoolCleaner-Automatic-Concrete/dp/B004KSRJXO
https://www.amazon.com/Pentair-Warrior-Automatic-Swimming-Cleaner/dp/B01BQ4R9V6
These get plugged into the skimmer unless you have a dedicated vacuum port.
 
needsajet said:
Is there a reason you don't want to consider a $300 to $400 suction cleaner? Mine doesn't miss a thing. Fair to say it doesn't do any scrubbing - it just vacuums - so I brush the pool around once every two weeks (I know, it should be weekly, but that's all mine seems to need). Here's a couple that are reliable:
https://www.amazon.com/Poolvergnuegen-896584000013-PoolCleaner-Automatic-Concrete/dp/B004KSRJXO
https://www.amazon.com/Pentair-Warrior-Automatic-Swimming-Cleaner/dp/B01BQ4R9V6
These get plugged into the skimmer unless you have a dedicated vacuum port.
Click to expand...
Why would I spend $400 on a suction cleaner when I can get a Dolphin Robot Cleaner for just over $400? Seems like Robot would be better, no?

Biggest issue is leaves/fine debris at the bottom of the pool.
 

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I have had both and the robot far exceeds what a suction cleaner can do including scrubbing the walls plus does not require the main pump to run.
 
We just bought the Dolphin this year for our in ground pool and absolutely LOVE it! :) It cleans the deep end, the light, the walls, the bottom step, eats the leaves, the tree seeds, (helicopters), and algae. You can set up the app on your phone that you can use to 'drive it' over any areas again, that might need extra cleaning, or that it somehow has missed, and it also tells you when it is full and needs emptied. You can set it up to clean every day at a pre-set time on it's own. It also cleans well in it's own under the solar cover! Our pool is over 24 years old and this is our first robot. It was a large investment, but it IS one that I would consider purchasing again as we had zero cleaning of the pool manually this year, and to us that was worth the price, (if it does last for several years!) Ours cleans the walls, the waterline and the bottom of the pool, as well. It is so nice that you are able to remove the cover and find a sparkling clean pool after a week or so of no manual cleaning! (Perhaps purchasing a used robot might be the answer?) Best of luck with your decision. :)
 
Staying on track with the original poster, you mentioned that you're concerned about clogging your lines. That's only a concern with a dedicated suction port. But what you can do is add a leaf canister on the line from the cleaner to the port, which will protect the line from clogging.
I'll link one just as an example. Hayward Standard Leaf Canister - W560 - INYOPools.com
 
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