Need help picking a robotic cleaner

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May 14, 2016
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I have a 20x15 rectangle pool with a ladder. The floor meets the wall at a 90 degree angle.
I've had a old aqua bot pool jet which wasn't left by the owners. Cleaned the floors well. But always missed the corners were the flow meets the wall and had to manually brush it.

Now I'm looking for one that climbs walls so I rarely have to manually brush. My budget is 600 max. I'm having a hard time picking one as I want to assure it can climb my walls.

My options so far are the aqua bot breeze 4wd, aqua bot classic , dolphin nautilus cc, active 20.

Any other suggestions ? I would like one that will lay me a whole and is dependable.
 
Having done a lot of research on my own, Dolphin products are much more reliable. I would go with the Nautilus Plus instead of the nautilus. It is slightly more than the Nautilus but it is much stronger, filtering 4233 gal a hour instead of 3750 and has a larger filter than the base nautilus or active 20. It has also been a top rated machine for a couple of years. Most importantly, it comes with a 2 year warranty instead of the 1 year warranty of the base nautilus. Heres a link for it: https://www.poolsupplyunlimited.com/MaytronicsDolphin99996403PCNautilusPlusPoolCleaner/151643p1?gclid=CjwKEAjw4IjKBRDr6p752cCUm3kSJAC-eqRtP6Oz6PrZgYSe9SznF0x_BN1qVvVdrBxYSqX-iIKycRoCikvw_wcB

If you don't want to spend the extra $60, go with the active 20 and contact Marina Pool supply. They will have the best price. You can't order it on the internet from them, but you can call and order over the phone. Maytronics Dolphin Active 20 Robotic Pool Cleaner | Marina Pool Spa & Patio
 
Umpmanjoe said:
Having done a lot of research on my own, Dolphin products are much more reliable. I would go with the Nautilus Plus instead of the nautilus. It is slightly more than the Nautilus but it is much stronger, filtering 4233 gal a hour instead of 3750 and has a larger filter than the base nautilus or active 20. It has also been a top rated machine for a couple of years. Most importantly, it comes with a 2 year warranty instead of the 1 year warranty of the base nautilus. Heres a link for it: https://www.poolsupplyunlimited.com/MaytronicsDolphin99996403PCNautilusPlusPoolCleaner/151643p1?gclid=CjwKEAjw4IjKBRDr6p752cCUm3kSJAC-eqRtP6Oz6PrZgYSe9SznF0x_BN1qVvVdrBxYSqX-iIKycRoCikvw_wcB



If you don't want to spend the extra $60, go with the active 20 and contact Marina Pool supply. They will have the best price. You can't order it on the internet from them, but you can call and order over the phone. Maytronics Dolphin Active 20 Robotic Pool Cleaner | Marina Pool Spa & Patio
Click to expand...

Thanx, both will climb the walls all the way up?
 
Huge believer in the Maytronics Dolphin robot cleaners. 90degree angles are a bit tough on any cleaner - mine are more rolling angles than right angles. Climbs walls to waterline and brushes well. Saves 90% of the labor.
 
Yes both will do walls. Heres a review on the nautilus plus from this forum I found. Dolphin Nautilus Plus with CleverClean REVIEW

I have tested and demoed the active 20 and I own the Oasis Z5, which is the step up from the Nautilus plus. The active 20 is a decent machine that will climb the walls and get the job done. The Nautilus plus has the same pump as mine and is really good. It does the walls and has a bigger filter and the longer warranty. The nautilus plus also has dual drive motors so one motor is for jet pump and one is for propulsion. It also comes with the fine filters, similar to a cartridge filter. Those alone are $100, which would be extra with the base nautilus or active 20. I also forgot to mention, the Nautilus plus warranty is 2 year BUMPER TO BUMPER, so that means wearables like filters and tracks are covered. The filters are $50 to replace and the tracks are $40 for that machine, so that makes it worth it in itself.

If you can't afford it now, I would at some point try to invest in a caddy since neither unit comes with one. Not because they are heavy, but for storage. The caddy keeps the cords organized and more importantly, keeps the unit off the brushes, thus making them last longer since the machine isn't resting on them when stored. You can always buy one later. Poolzoom has the 2017 model including a caddy for $769, free shipping and no tax. Dolphin Nautilus Plus Pool Claner, Top Load Robotic Pool Cleaner It also wouldn't hurt to call Marinapool and ask them if they have the nautilus plus. Its not on their website, but they are a large dealer, so may be able to get it.

Here is a good comparison between the Nautilus and Nautilus plus. dolphin-nautilus-vs-nautilus-plus-vs-oasis
 
Not all of them. I just noticed you have an above ground pool. In that case, the Nautilus pro won't work for you. You want to dolphin e10, Dolphin E10 Series Robotic Cleaner | Doheny's Pool Supplies Fast There is also the s10, active 10, which are the same units but have a 2 year warranty. Dolphin says it doesn't climb walls, but people who have it say it does. Its counterpart is the Dolphin Echo, which I demoed and that unit definitely climbs walls.

I would contact Marina pool or maytronics themselves and ask if you can use the active 20 on an above ground pool. I can't imagine why not considering its got the same motor and brushes.
 
It's more of an ig. They dug into the grass mound put the pool in , packed around it with dirt and pebbles and layed pacers around it. For tax purposes it's considers Ag ;) because it's a bit higher than the rest of my back yard. Don't think the e 10 climbs walls
 

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I've decided on the Dolphin Active 20 myself. Getting ready to order it now. My local Pool Supply (which I've ben dealing with for years) claimed to be giving me a good deal at $900 bucks !! After lurking awhile on this forum, I've learned that Mariana Pool Sply will give it to me for $659 !!!!! Looks like I have found a new pool supply source !!!
 
I have an in-ground, 20,000 gallon pool. Looking to get my husband an automatic cleaner for Father's Day. I need help!!! Dolphin Premier, Active 30, or Oasis ZS?? Or, should I consider another kind? Wanted to stay in the 700-800 dollar range but not sure if the less expensive ones still have a high quality. Definitely want it to scrub floors, walls, and water lines..
 
All 3 are nice. What is your pool made of, plaster or vinyl liner?

I have the Oasis z5 and its an awesome machine. Doesn't have all the bells and whistles of setting a program or waterline only, but it is fast and has a strong pump. It also comes with a 3 year warranty. You can get it from epic pool supply for $1049 and use the coupon code poolreview25 for an extra $25 off. Then you get a $50 rebate as well. Ends up costing you $975. The Oasis comes with a caddy and remote.

As far as Active, I would get the Active 30i from Home | Marina Pool Spa & Patio They are selling it for $899 with caddy and it has bluetooth. Its a lighter unit and it filters a little less water. It has the bells and whistles like scheduling and telling the cleaner to do waterline only, floor only or floor and waterline. It has a 2 year warranty. When buying from Marina, you have to call them to order instead of ordering online. That unit can't be sold on the internet. Its a great price though. By me, that unit is $1300.

The premier is a nice unit but it doesn't come with a remote or caddy. Also, the filters are on the bottom, which can be a little annoying. There are also a lot of reviews that say because its on the bottom, some dirt comes back out when lifting it out of the water. The equivalent to that would be the M400 from marina pool. That unit has same motor, split brushes, caddy and remote and 3 year warranty. Difference between that and the premier is the split brushes and top loading filter. Marina pool supply is selling that one for $999 (its the 2016 model) so it doesn't have bluetooth, but a remote instead. (which I like better). The 2016 m400 is the same exact unit as the Oasis z5. So if you are thinking of this route, save the $25 and go with the Oasis

Personally for me, the warranty is worth the extra $75 between the active 30i and the Oasis. The Oasis is a strong unit as well. IMHO, the warranty is more important than the bells and whistles. I know people leave these units in the water all the time, and the manufacturer says you can, thus the programing feature, but I don't and don't suggest it. Ive spoken with a lot of owner and all the people who have issues with them, leave them in the water. You have a plastic unit in Chlorinated water. Eventually, the gaskets will break down and water will get into the unit. Probably right at the end of the warranty. Thats just my opinion and 2 cents though.
 
So I'm more confused than ever. Pretty much settled on a Dolphin but which one? There are so many different models. Do some of the same machines have different names depending on where they are sold? I went to a local pool supply store that had a demo available. It was the Dolphin 300. Did a pretty decent job but missed a few areas. The previous pool it used for a demo was a plain rectangle and that's what the memory had stored. After running it 3-4 cycles you could see it was learning my pool. I have a freeform, fiberglass with ledges, steps and seating areas. 17 X 37 rated at 17500 gals.

So I'm still on the ropes about a model. I've seen a Premier, Nautilas, Oasis, Active ***, dX***, to name a few. Surely these all can't be that much different! For example, I mentioned the dX5 to the pool supply store and they said they didnt know what it was and that it might be an online only model. The 300 and 300i were the only ones they handled. Thought that was strange.

I like some of the comments about bottom vs top filter, multiple filters, swivel cable, which ones do walls better, 3 yr vs 2 yr vs 1 yr warranties etc. Maybe I should try to contact Maytronics and speak to someone because it sure is confusing. If I'm going to spend this kind of money, I want it to be right the first time.
 
I'm the type that wants all the features on things I buy but thought about it for awhile before deciding on getting the A20/S200($659) instead of the A30i/S300i($899). My main reason? After the newness of the robot wears off, I'll rarely sit there and baby sit my cleaner and most likely only use the special features a few times. My first 2 weeks of ownership, I dropped the robot in, watched it for 5 min and forgot about it. If I cared about the 5-10% of the pool that isn't clean, I'll get it with my brush or rerun the 2hr cycle again (1 button). It does an amazing job on its own and I'm glad that I didn't spend extra on features I will rarely use. just my $.02
BTW, I have a rectangle pool with ledges on the deep end and it'll still cover the wall/waterlines with no problems.
I also didn't care for a caddy since I already have storage for the bot.
 
nismostate said:
I'm the type that wants all the features on things I buy but thought about it for awhile before deciding on getting the A20/S200($659) instead of the A30i/S300i($899). My main reason? After the newness of the robot wears off, I'll rarely sit there and baby sit my cleaner and most likely only use the special features a few times. My first 2 weeks of ownership, I dropped the robot in, watched it for 5 min and forgot about it. If I cared about the 5-10% of the pool that isn't clean, I'll get it with my brush or rerun the 2hr cycle again (1 button). It does an amazing job on its own and I'm glad that I didn't spend extra on features I will rarely use. just my $.02
BTW, I have a rectangle pool with ledges on the deep end and it'll still cover the wall/waterlines with no problems.
I also didn't care for a caddy since I already have storage for the bot.
Click to expand...

I'm more of a Honda guy but I could have written the above post.
 

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