Solar Skimmer robot - has anyone purchased this model - scam ?

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Psssst …. Chainsaw … just sayin’

chainsaw GIF
 
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If the tree is overhanging your property line, you can legally prune it. You just must be careful not to overprune and kill the tree. If it’s not on your property, we’ll then that’s more difficult. Requires having a conversation with said neighbor … assuming you like them.
 
We get enough pine needles that were getting past the skimmer and pump basket and getting wedged between the impeller housing and the impeller that they were wearing down the plastic on it and ruining the pump. I now use a skimmer sock.
 
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JoyfulNoise said:
If the tree is overhanging your property line, you can legally prune it. You just must be careful not to overprune and kill the tree. If it’s not on your property, we’ll then that’s more difficult. Requires having a conversation with said neighbor … assuming you like them.
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Too many trees. I think 10 of them. They don’t overhang directly but any wind event will send enough of them into the pool that it’s like someone took a bail of them and dumped them in. When it isn’t windy the instapark betta does a good job by itself. If I know a storm is coming or I leave for a few days I have one of these and it works to protect the pump very well. This with the betta pretty much takes care of it all and when used in tandem negates the skimmer all together
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Skimmer Wizard

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IceShadow said:
We get enough pine needles that were getting past the skimmer and pump basket and getting wedged between the impeller housing and the impeller that they were wearing down the plastic on it and ruining the pump. I now use a skimmer sock.
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We get too many needles too fast, and the issue isn’t really the needles getting into the pump, they fill the skimmer so full and so quickly the pump runs dry. Out of all the skimmer bots on the market, I chose the betta because it’s basket can hold about the same amount as your typical skimmer can. The other ones seem to just have a trey. 8D31033D-1CDE-4AD5-9EBF-0206F60F6771.jpeg
 

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IceShadow said:
Ours are the pine needles that are only 1" or so long. :(
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The pines are no joke down here! Lol! You should see how much pollen my pool gets in the spring. I guess I should refer to the needles as pine straw because it’s the same stuff you buy at the home centers.
 
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Yeah, but those are probably less likely to get stuck between the impeller housing and impeller, and grind down the innards of your pump :(
 
IceShadow said:
Yeah, but those are probably less likely to get stuck between the impeller housing and impeller, and grind down the innards of your pump :(
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Yes they don’t make it past the pump basket. So that’s good! Skimmer socks probably are about the only thing you can use to stop those I would imagine.
 
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Katodude said:
You should start bagging and selling that stuff. Getting pine straw is a big deal down here, and getting expensive.
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I know, it’s just so time consuming to do that and I hate raking and yard work in general. I just run over it with my mower so the bagger gets it. It’s all mulched at that point so not usable. I do get the stuff out of the pool and put it in one of our flower beds. A lot of my neighbors have more pines in their yards and they rake it up and use it.
 
That ad is a scam, but that's a picture of a solar breeze, as others have said. I had one for a while. My take is that it's a really good idea that was implemented poorly. It worked pretty well, not mind-blowing, but good enough, for several months. Then the battery failed and it would no longer charge. Their customer support was pretty responsive, sent me a new battery and instructions for installing it, but it still wouldn't charge or run. After that is where things went downhill for me. They basically threw their arms in the air and said that my only options were to ship it back to them at my cost both ways for them to look at it (over $100 IIRC and I would be on the hook for the repair costs), or they would give me a good deal on the newer model for about $300, but the new model would have been a refurb and at that point I'd be in $800 for a skimmer that I have no confidence in the longevity of.

I don't know if things have changed for newer models, but for those wondering, if you read the fine print of the older ones, they are not waterproof. Yes, something that is specifically designed to remain in a pool 24/7 was not made waterproof and is not guaranteed to withstand waves of water lapping over the sides or a bunch of water dumped on top. I can see how this might work in Arizona, where they are headquartered, but here in FL where we have strong winds creating waves even with nobody in the pool, and strong storms that can dump more than an inch of water in minutes dozens of times per year, it just doesn't last. For a $500 device, I expect more.
 
Newdude said:
Any reason you guys with VS pumps are spending $500+ on skimming robots when just running the dang pump 24/7 will cost you an extra $10 a month ?

replacing them every 3rd year is costing you close to double to not skim with the pump.
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I don’t have one, but in my case, pine needles plug everything up. I’d like to have one just for that. Skimmer socks work but if I get a huge dump of needles and don’t check my skimmer early enough, I’ll suck air. I could maybe even cut down on my pump wear and tear with a solar skimmer. I think it would pay for itself overtime. Idk.
 
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Selenap said:
Skimmer socks work but if I get a huge dump of needles and don’t check my skimmer early enough, I’ll suck air
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I had many oaks with stupid amounts of leaves and pollen. It didn’t matter that it wasn’t spring/fall, All. Season. Long. but in spring/fall I had to dump the skimmers several times a day instead of once a day or every other day.

So believe me I get it. :) it’s just not for me.
But I am 150% behind that it might be for you, @Orion7319 and anyone else. Thanks for sharing. (y)
 
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I have had every model they have built. I HATE floaties in my pool (except for me). Longevity is an issue for them, but they do skim very well. My NX2 is 2.5 years old, and had to have a warranty repair. But it is still working. My Ariel just getting a warranty repair.

For me just having the surface of the pool completely clear always is worth it. YMMV.
 
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