Ready to buy a robotic cleaner - What does everyone have and like?

[Newdude]

You actually don’t NEED a robot but you ABSOLUTELY NEED chlorine

You don't 'need' chlorine by way of SWG, but you consider that disposable sooner based on the extended length of your season. The same as you should with the life of the robot.

Fair use” is debatable. I personally see nothing fair about a company actively keeping critical spare parts off the market.

Like new plates not being available for the SWG ? Or the electronics on the cell which are unreplacable ? Either way the cell fails when the time comes, you are replacing it.

Variable speed pumps and valve automation renders the “cleaners use a lot of energy” argument moot. My suction cleaner runs fine at the same speed I use to generate chlorine and skim. So if it runs at the same time as the POOL mode then there’s no cost penalty.

Not to you but many others do have a cost to run the main pump higher, and/or the booster pump, or the SS pump, so for them there is a cost to operate the cheaper cleaner, which also has a maintenance cost on top of buying it in the first place.

Just more food for thought because you liked me asking which overpriced cellphone that gets replaced every couple of years due to planned obsolescence you were responding with. (To the folks who weren't there, it was a trick question with no correct answer )

 

[bertschb]

I have to say I'm actually really impressed with my neighbor's suction cleaner. He's been gone for two months and has a pool company come once a week to clean his skimmer basket and add acid. I look over the fence every day just to make sure there aren't any dead animals floating in his pool. His pool is always clean and his suction hose is never tangled.

Now I'm heavily biased towards my in floor cleaning system but if I didn't have one and couldn't afford a robot, I sure wouldn't hesitate to use a suction cleaner. I have no idea what brand/model my neighbor's cleaner is. I just know it works and his pool is clean!

 

[kul]

Not sure if you already picked yet. I bought this one and the extended warranty from Amazon. I like it so far. It does a good job and is much easier to pull out of the pool than my zodiac mx6 and its hoses! I also like that I don’t have to have my pump on to run it.
Marina had a similar Pentair one with similar pricing, but I opted for the extended 3 year warranty.
DOLPHIN Proteus DX4 Automatic... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B083YWJ5PQ?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

 

[JoyfulNoise]

You don't 'need' chlorine by way of SWG, but you consider that disposable sooner based on the extended length of your season. The same as you should with the life of the robot.


Like new plates not being available for the SWG ? Or the electronics on the cell which are unreplacable ? Either way the cell fails when the time comes, you are replacing it.


Not to you but many others do have a cost to run the main pump higher, and/or the booster pump, or the SS pump, so for them there is a cost to operate the cheaper cleaner, which also has a maintenance cost on top of buying it in the first place.

Just more food for thought because you liked me asking which overpriced cellphone that gets replaced every couple of years due to planned obsolescence you were responding with. (To the folks who weren't there, it was a trick question with no correct answer )

My SWG lasted 8 years and I believe it prematurely died because of extended exposure to sulfates (it actually wasn't even truly dead, just not generating chlorine sporadically so I chose to preemptively replace it). I think I could have gotten 10 years if I had known better about sulfates. Pentair SWG's are probably the worst for DIY/Repairable situation. But there are plenty of manufacturers that took the alternate philosophy - Hayward designed their SWG's so the cells and electronics were separate so that a cell could be replaced without having to ditch the electronics and they made their electronics repairable for the most part (if you're good with a soldering iron). I believe Zodiac use to sell an SWG where the plates were replaceable and easily separated from the plumbing housing and electronics. I'm not sure about CircuPool, but I believe their cell is easily replaceable. The SWG plates are a consumable part because the coating wears out ... it analogous to a robots treads or wheel bushings. Maytronics at least makes their consumable parts available which is appropriate.

What they don't make available are critical internal parts to the motor assembly and power supply that could easily fix a robot's various drive issues. That would be analogous to Hayward making the varistor on their power supply that used to blow out constantly unavailable thus forcing the consumer to buy a completely new power supply when all that needs replacing is a $2 component. In the robots drive assembly, those cheap DC motors literally cost $30-$50 and they are easy to remove and replace ... yet Maytronics keeps them off the market so you are FORCED to buy a completely new assembly for $450 ... is that really comparable to how SWG's are sold ?? Not at all.

Every cleaner needs annual maintenance. For the suction cleaners, it's probably $20 to $50 worth of rubber and plastic parts, comparable to the wear on a robot's drive train. If you live in a high utility cost area, and I know you do, well that certainly is a factor. But it still costs nothing to run a suction cleaner if you automate it to run while the pump is running anyway. No matter what, moving water costs money and so you need to maximize/optimize the number of things you can do with that moving water to utilize the energy you're paying for efficiently. The old philosophy about suction cleaners costing more was only applicable when the world only had single speed pool pumps. It's no longer a valid argument with variable speed pumps ... even pumps that are run at very low speeds. Yes, there are some suction cleaners that won't work at low flow rates but there are others that do. So choose the cleaner that works best in a low flow rate scenario. Pressure cleaners I agree are old dogs ... they require a booster pump to run and are horribly energy inefficient. Pressure cleaners should be done away with unless they too can be re-engineered too work off of the flow provided by the pool's filter pump. But that's (mostly) not a choice yet.

I'm all about choice ... pro-choice you might say ;-P But what Maytronics does is take away choice. They have decided that YOU are not capable of repairing their motor assembly and they don't want you fooling around with it. Maybe that's because their concerned about liability or they don't want to be bothered by customers chewing their ear off about why the drive motor died for the 3rd time ... I dunno. But they have chosen to block a path that some of us (tinkerers) like to stroll down ... and for that, they have earned my condemnation and glaring-stink-eye . But I fully recognize there are lots of people out there without the time, energy or skill to do a repair and would just prefer to buy new or buy a new motor ... so why is that choice allowed but mine is not? Until I hear a good reason why, the JoyfulNoise Stink-Eye Seal of Disapproval will remain in effect ....

 

[Rescue30]

I think Maytronics are awesome robots. I spent $1150 on an M5 Supreme FOURTEEN years ago, it has never let me down. Suction cleaners have their share of problems and cost more on the electric bill than a robot. My M5 just got a little sluggish and I am looking at the E70. We'll see what happens. Boys moved out of the house and the girls are relying on me to be the Pool Boy. After my bout with a bad case of Covid pneumonia ,
I don't have the energy anymore. Throwing a cleaner in and using a schedule on the app seems like a real advantage to me these days. My pool is a luxury to me, spending energy and time to clean it takes away from the luxury. Nothing lasts forever, take care of your bot and it will take care of you. Maytronics is doing what all other manufacturers do, protect their pocket. Try to buy a GM or Ford part today to DIY , you'll see how well that will go , not every part is available aftermarket, especially the custom connectors and electronics.I suggest buying local is it's a good pool shop, so that they'll help your with repairs if needed. My .02

 

[Jsf721]

I am very happy with my dolphin nautilus plus CC. So much so that I’m on the lookout for a hood used one to back this up. I paid about 800 dollars in 2019 and it’s still going strong. Got the fine filters for after opening cleaning and it does everting I want it to do. The only things that would make it better are if it were cordless lol and if it cleaned itself !

 

[tcat]

I've had an Aquabot Rapids for 8 years with no issues. I just ordered this, basically same unit but has a swivel cord, my only complaint of the one I have. So I'll have backup baskets and power supply! And this was cheaper than the original. $30 less with 5% Target discounts.

 

[Newdude]

THEY MAKE A TARGET ROBOT ?????.

Why can't they put THESE on the endcaps so the Mrs comes home with one.

 

[tcat]

THEY MAKE A TARGET ROBOT ?????.

Why can't they put THESE on the endcaps so the Mrs comes home with one.

You probably can't buy in stores. Target and Walmart are trying to compete with Amazon using 3rd party sellers. Still takes 5% CC discount! I got "shipped" notice in 12 hours, coming from Las Vegas.

 

[kul]

Why can't they put THESE on the endcaps so the Mrs comes home with one.

Glad I’m not the only one! That’s where all the good stuff is!