Instapark Betta review

[Bam Bam]

Good thing I kept the box because it looks like my Betta 1 is suffering a functioning malfunction. It’s not even 2 months since it’s return from “repair”! Now I have to find where I put the box....

False alarm - restarted after a few attempts..

 

[Orion7319]

They had me WD-40 the propellers. They moved just fine on their own before, but I tried it anyway. No clue why it would be stuck in stranded mode. Didn’t do anything except get WD-40 in my pool. Plus, my on/off switch no longer works and won’t switch the unit off. They’re getting me a shipping label to return it for repair. Sigh.

I think with the WD-40 they are trying to get grit out of the motors and trying to lubricate them. Mine had rust coming out of them and they were completely locked up when I first did the WD-40 thing.

 

[grunky_peep]

I think with the WD-40 they are trying to get grit out of the motors and trying to lubricate them. Mine had rust coming out of them and they were completely locked up when I first did the WD-40 thing.

I had a bit of rust on my right motor, but it still turned fine. But now my on/off switch doesn’t work, so I have it sitting in my garage with a towel over it trying to drain the battery. But it’s taking forever because it’s not actually moving the motors since it’s in stranded mode. Every few hours it’ll kick the motors on for 5 minutes then return to stranded mode.

Don’t know whether I should just ship it while still on and hope nobody hears it if it decides to turn the motors on, haha.

 

[rjb1211]

Which models are having problems with the unit failing to turn off?

My Betta 2 had the prop binding issue and after I cleaned it up to return to them it started running and wouldn't stop. It took about 2 days to drain the battery with a towel over it.

 

[tcat]

Interesting these Bettas, and Smorobots have an issue of not shutting off after being turned off. I tried a Smorobot X10 had the same issue that I returned (for refund). Fortunately Betta2 only had the bad motor issue. Mechanical things don't like water!

Got to give cuddos to Aquabot, still no issues after 9 years! (although never has climbed walls well).

 

[grunky_peep]

Which models are having problems with the unit failing to turn off?

My Betta 2 had the prop binding issue and after I cleaned it up to return to them it started running and wouldn't stop. It took about 2 days to drain the battery with a towel over it.

Mine is the 2. After 3 days of sitting it in my garage with a towel over the solar panel, the battery finally died. Now I have to find the box and ship it back.

 

[Orion7319]

Yeah mine keeps locking up as well. Mines doing it because one motor isn’t spinning as freely as the other motor. Contacted them today, opted for them to send me a refurbished unit which means way less down time as my water Oak starts to drop its leaves in the pool. Got this one in early April, so it lasted almost 5 months. This is why we stress paying for the 3 year warranty. They are great when they work, but expect some break downs every now and then. The beta 2s do seem to go longer between breakdowns then the originals.

I got the replacement in today. They told me they were going to send me a refurbished unit, but they sent me a brand new one Not sure why, not going to argue… still love their customer service! Can’t see any difference between this one and the other one. It’s twice as fast as the one with the motor trouble even after I would spray it with WD-40.

 

[grunky_peep]

Still waiting on my repair to ship back to me. They definitely take their sweet time. They most not know that my oak is starting to dump its leaves, ha.

 

[DanF]

Well, my luck finally ran out (I think) with my Betta 1. She has a solid blue light which stays on (doesn't blink) and her props aren't turning, or only one turns.

She is 14 months old, so out of warranty. Anything I can do to troubleshoot/fix before sending her back for an upgrade to the Betta 2? I'm not thrilled about paying for the upgrade (and the 3 year warranty), but like most here I feel that she does a great job when she works.

Thanks.

 

[Orion7319]

Well, my luck finally ran out (I think) with my Betta 1. She has a solid blue light which stays on (doesn't blink) and her props aren't turning, or only one turns.

She is 14 months old, so out of warranty. Anything I can do to troubleshoot/fix before sending her back for an upgrade to the Betta 2? I'm not thrilled about paying for the upgrade (and the 3 year warranty), but like most here I feel that she does a great job when she works.

Thanks.

Unfortunately the beta 1s motors are completely unserviceable as they are completely sealed. I don’t thing there is a way to get into them, without breaking them apart. If you can pay for the upgrade from the 1 to the 2, instead of buying the 2 outright, that’s probably your best option. You do absolutely need that 3year warranty though as you’re finding out with the beta 1. Having to buy a new one every 3 years is about what you know you’re getting into with any other pool robot I guess. I look at it this way, all the money I’m saving in chemicals using TFP, will go towards replacing salt cells and robot’s eventually. If I had a pool that wasn’t anywhere near a tree, and had adequate skimmers, I wouldn’t go with any robots at all, just a suction side cleaner or something like that.

 

[grunky_peep]

Still waiting on my repair to ship back to me. They definitely take their sweet time. They most not know that my oak is starting to dump its leaves, ha.

Oy, still waiting. My claim was submitted August 31 and still hasn't shipped back to me...

 

[Orion7319]

Oy, still waiting. My claim was submitted August 31 and still hasn't shipped back to me...

That’s no good! I would call them.

 

[grunky_peep]

That’s no good! I would call them.

I emailed a few days ago and they said it should be "shipping very soon."

 

[Orion7319]

I emailed a few days ago and they said it should be "shipping very soon."

Yeah they did that to me as well on the refurbished unit. I guess they didn’t have any refurbished units so they sent me a new one???

 

[tcat]

I took the motors apart today to WD40 them. I can see why they have issues! The inner lining of v the housing has lumps of plastic or built up rust, not sure what. I scraped it a little and cleaned it up. Running as it should, but I certainly can't see it lasting 3 years (or 1 year). Glad I bought the warranty! These should be much smoother and sealed!

 

[tcat]

I also notice, after 5 months now, battery doesn't seem to last as long. It used to stay green until midnight, now it turns red at 6 or 7pm. Could be fall sun not as strong.

 

[Orion7319]

I also notice, after 5 months now, battery doesn't seem to last as long. It used to stay green until midnight, now it turns red at 6 or 7pm. Could be fall sun not as strong.

I think that’s the sun. My new one isn’t lasting all night either.

 

[grunky_peep]

Emailed them a couple weeks in a row now, and I'm just getting an exact copy/paste response back. Annoying. At this point, they've had my robot for longer than it was in my pool.

We sincerely apologize for the longer than expected processing and handling time.

Our warehouse is experiencing some unforeseen delays and they are working as fast as they can to get this shipment out to you.

The unit is expected to ship very soon. Again we sincerely apologize for the delay and thank you for your continued patience and understanding.

 

[Orion7319]

Emailed them a couple weeks in a row now, and I'm just getting an exact copy/paste response back. Annoying. At this point, they've had my robot for longer than it was in my pool.

If you call you want to speak with Vivian.

 

[tcat]

My solution to not enough sun. My pool is shaded by house until about 10am. I bungee Betta2 at this corner (1st corner to see sun) from 10am to noon or 1, then let it loose. This way it stays green until 9 or 10pm. By 3pm my pool is 75% shade from oak trees. If I don't do this it dies about 6 pm. Just hoping the motors last!