Cleaner for spa

[InvaderZim]

Thanks to recommendations here, I replaced my aged Polaris 280 with a Dolphin robot. It's fantastic, and a great improvement -- no looking back.

Now another, admittedly smaller problem: my pool guy has been AWOL since April. That hasn't been a problem because I pay per weekly visit, and with the Dophin robot cleaning the bottom so much better than the Polaris ever did, I've eliminated one reason for the weekly visits.

However, with fall, my 8-person gunite spa is a mess with a bunch of silt and those little elm seeds at the bottom. It has a fountain in the middle so the Dolphin won't fit, plus I doubt it would do well anyway in the limited area. I used to drop the Polaris in there and it would scoot around and clean it enough to make the spa usable. But only the pool guy with his vacuum did a decent job.

I know there are vacuums with hoses that attach to the skimmer but I really don't want all that stuff going into my pump and filter.

There are also devices that attach to a garden hose, but I can't imagine there would be enough pressure -- the hose bibs are petty far away. If I'm wrong, this would be a decent solution.

I still have the Polaris booster pump and the outlet in the wall is in the pool right under the spa. Does someone make a manual vacuum that could plug into that and use the pressure from the booster pump to vaccuum up the silt? Something like a cheap mini-Polaris?

Failing that, I saw this on Amazon: Amazon.com : POOL BLASTER Catfish Ultra Rechargeable, Battery-Powered, Pool-Cleaner, Ideal for In-Ground Pools and Above Ground Pools for Cleaning Leaves, Dirt and Sand & Silt. : Swimming Pool Handheld Vacuums : Garden & Outdoor -- "POOL BLASTER Catfish Ultra Rechargeable, Battery-Powered, Pool-Cleaner, Ideal for In-Ground Pools and Above Ground Pools for Cleaning Leaves, Dirt and Sand & Silt.". It's $143 and while that might be worth it, I don't want to waste money on something that won't do the job.

Any suggestions for how I might clean the span before we start using it over the fall and winter would be most welcome.

 

[zea3]

I think the handheld vacuum may be your best bet. Maybe you can find a used Polaris hose and try the booster pump outlet to see how that works, but that will still take all the dirt to your filter.

 

[guinness]

I have the battery operated Aqua Broom which I bought for the same purpose and found I don't use it much, but it does pick up grit pretty well. The easiest method I've found is to use a handheld Leaf Skimmer to get debris from the bottom. It takes a little practice, but if you scrape it along the bottom slowly to avoid stirring everything up it does allow you to pick up small debris like seeds.

 

[Mdragger88]

Lots of people are really pleased with their catfish vacs . I have the cheaper intex version & it works well. There’s also a ryobi one but its a little pricey.

 

[InvaderZim]

Thanks! I ordered the pool blaster. A hand-held leaf skimmer does work but in the winter, 50 degree water is too cold to get into it before turning on the heater and jets which stir everything up. I'd rather clean it first from outside. This looks like it'll solve that problem and I'm happy to hear that it actually works.