Refurbish My Pool Vac Ultra, or replace with something new?

[tb40]

Brand new pool owner here... we adopted a Hayward Pool Vac Ultra that worked well for a few weeks, but now seems to turn the same direction every few feet it travels. As a result, it seems to only clean 30% of the pool, a circular area around where the suction hose comes out of the water.

I've been doing some reading, and it seems like I can fix the problem by "refurbishing" the unit with a full rebuilt kit. But that's not exactly cheap, and by the time I buy that and a new hose (starting to wear, kink, etc), I'm at around $175. From what I can tell, I can get a more modern automatic cleaner for $400+.

So my question... should I rebuilt the Pool Vac Ultra? Or is that throwing good money at the bad? I've done some searching and get mixed opinions.

Thanks!

 

[mknauss]

Welcome to the forum!

Lots of folks here like their robots -- so much they name them!

Something to consider.

Lots less electric cost as you do not need to run the pump near as much when using a robot.

Take care.

 

[tucsontico]

Completely agree with mknauss. My Dolphin Nautilus Plus is named "Robbie". Had I known how well robotic cleaners worked, I would not have put the in-floor cleaning jets in my pool! I highly recommend discarding the Pool Vac Ultra and spending the $$ for a robotic cleaner.

 

[tb40]

Thanks very much for the quick replies.

You guys bring up some good points, but maybe I should provide some more details that might color in the picture a little better.

My pool is essentially a kidney/diamond shaped pool that is about 10-25 feet, so it's pretty small. Because of the size, the pool vac ultra with my 1HP pump can adequately clean the whole pool in about 3 hours (if working correctly), putting my energy consumption (assuming I ran my number correctly) at about $1 a day. I was also going to take advantage of a CA rebate, and replace my pump with a variable speed, taking the energy consumption even lower.

With all this in mind, between the high upfront cost of a robot vac, as well as the inconvenience of taking it in and out of the pool, charging, etc, I feel like I'm better off just sticking with an old fashion suction vac. Even if I cut my energy consumption in half, it would take forever to see the return on investment.

Having said all this, I don't really know what Im talking about, so feel free to correct me, shoot me down, etc.

Thanks!

 

[mknauss]

maybe I should provide some more details

Great! Please complete a signature -- see Pool School - Getting Started

I do not own a robot so will let those that do answer your specific questions --

Take care.

 

[YippeeSkippy]

My pool is essentially a kidney/diamond shaped pool that is about 10-25 feet, so it's pretty small. Because of the size, the pool vac ultra with my 1HP pump can adequately clean the whole pool in about 3 hours (if working correctly), putting my energy consumption (assuming I ran my number correctly) at about $1 a day. I was also going to take advantage of a CA rebate, and replace my pump with a variable speed, taking the energy consumption even lower.

Well, Maytronics states their cleaners run about $0.15 cents a cycle to run (2ish hours) and there is little to no difficulty taking it in and out of the pool when necessary, IMO.
It also helps avoid adding schmutz to your filter.
I'll never go another way after having "Sheldon" my trusty robot.

Maddie

 

[borjis]

I have a Hayward Navigator named Bob that came with my house.
Very similar and nearly identical to your suction cleaner. Also
had the same model I named Huey at my previous house.

They work great when they work, but often miss areas.
Sometimes the hoses need replacing.

This past may I got a refurbished Dolphin E10 I named Eten.
Dolphin E10 Review

This is the lowest cost robot with a brush.
$ 379
Dolphin E-10 - refurbished

I can't adequately describe how much better it is just dropping
that in and plugging it in. No hose setups, no frustration of missing
areas. No need to run the pump.

I did keep Bob just for old time's sake and in case Eten needs
service. But the money was very well spent in my opinion.