It’s arrived

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Katodude

Katodude

Silver Supporter
Aug 22, 2017
2,623
West Palm Beach/Florida
Pool Size
15000
Surface
Plaster
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
So it takes exactly one week to ship a Solar Breeze from Arizona to south Florida. The NX2 is a little taller but basically looks the same. The new shell definitely feels stronger and better made. Supposed to be improved batteries and solar panels too. I just put it in the pool to charge ( slowly since it is foggy this morning). I will post more once I turn it on later today.226765B8-8C53-4744-A1E5-6068BE9C6414.jpegD478EFAF-807D-4A6D-8C9D-64557A7F74F3.jpeg
 

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So impressions after 24 hours.

The NX2 is quieter than the two previous models. The motor seems stronger and it seems to move faster than previous models. It also senses when it gets stuck in a corner much faster and reverses out. The reverse speed is also faster. This is an important feature to me since my pool has 6 corners and the old on got stuck a lot. This one spends much more time cleaning. The solar panel are definitely stronger and had the battery fully charged by mid day and by the time I went to bed it was still going around. It also does not get stuck at the skimmers which the old one had tendencies to do.

We had a short rainstorm yesterday with a lot of wind that dumped a bunch of leaves into the pool and it managed to get almost all of them. Below is a picture of the filter that I cleaned out this morning, just under 24 hours of skimmering.

All in all, I am very impressed with this new model. I hate all flotie things on my pool and this thing gets them. When I figure out how to prop my phone up I will take some time lapse videos to share.

Longevity of these is an issue, as this is now my 3rd Solar Breeze and they are not cheap. The company is pretty good about giving you a discount for being a legacy customer but I would much prefer not to have to buy new ones. However, this time with 2 year warranty and an extra year with the credit card I am hoping I don’t have to buy a new one in 2.5 years. The build quality seems better. But having a device that sits in pool water 24/7/365 in a southern exposure in south Florida typically does not make for a long life.

F18A6BB9-B871-4F56-89D9-74A69B1AE259.jpeg
 
BowserB said:
Kato, this is your third one, you say. What were the symptoms connected with the first two failures?
Click to expand...

It does not fail all at once. The batteries start to fail after 2 -3 years, but you can buy replacements batteries. Also the gears or motors also failed as well. The manufacturer has a refurbishment program where you can send it in and they will fix all the items and that was an option for me. I just chose to get a new one since there are a lot of improvements in this new model. Also now with 3 years of coverage (including the credit card extra year) I think I should be set (that could be wishful thinking).

But for now, it skims really well, much better than my skimmers do in the pool and I am happy with it. Is it expensive? Yes, and it is probably not for everyone but maybe I can offset some of the cost by reducing the time on my pump. Maybe it saves me some time from cleaning my filter as often as I have to, but that remains to be seen.
 
The NX2 is a huge upgrade,imo, from the original. my pool surface area is over 800sf and this robot has saved me hours and hours of hand skimming which I had to do even with running the pump at high speed for long periods of time to try to increase the skimmer suction. Now I can run my pump at much lower speed which saves a ton on my electric bill. during the summer with the pool in full sun into the late afternoon/early evening, this thing runs practically 24/7.
 
It definitely runs a lot longer than the older models. When I left the house at 5:30 this morning it was still going. So the obvious benefit of it skimmering for 20-24 hours instead of the 6 when my pool pump is on.
 
Hey, users of the skimmer, new version especially, does it have a timer option? Say run for 4 hours then shut off. I read here that people are leaving it running 24/7, and the battery almost makes it. If you are running a lithium ion battery all the way down day after day, you are treating that battery in a way contrary to what I've always read. Lithum ion batteries are not good deep cycle batteries and have the longest life if topped off after a partial discharge. Like someone else here, or maybe almost everyone here, this device looks wonderful, but not at $628 plus tax every 2 1/2 to 3 years. Ouch. So, does it have a timer option? There's no mention of it on the website.

Update. Amazon has 117 reviews of this product. 59% are five star, 6% are four star, and 21% are one star. Reading through the 1-star reviews, I see the prevailing issue is failures after just a few months. A couple buyers had failed units replaced and then the replacement failed in a couple more months. A couple more had difficulties getting warranties honored. I don't know...
 
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There is no timer option. Also this new unit seems like it has better construction than the previous models did. So I actually expect it to live longer, but only time will tell. As for draining the battery all the way down, I think it has logic in it that does not let the battery go all the way down before it shuts off. Also I think a new battery is about $50 so its not the end of the world if I have to change one every 3 years or so.
 
Kato,
In your picture above, it looks like the catch on the skimmer has a bunch of diamond grid things to catch large leaves. Looks like they are about 1/2" to 3/4" in width. I think it would be great if they offered some sort of screen or add-on filter for finer things like dog hair or the light cotton from the cottonwood trees that tends to stay on top for a while. I have my Dolphin M500 with the standard filter and that seems to get a lot of small stuff. Too bad the holes on this catch basin are just so big. Seems like a missed opportunity.

That being said, if I had a lot of trees near the pool or if I had neighbors anywhere close to me with trees it would almost pay for itself in the fall when the trees shed or the wind kicks everything into the pool! I hope it lasts 3+ years for you man!
 

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