I used to be unsuitable about robotic pool cleaners — 7 myths, busted

In my (new!) position because the editor of PCWorld’s rising dwelling robotics class, I used to be solely vaguely conscious of robotic pool cleaners. And once I did take into consideration them, I assumed they shared most of the identical limitations confronted by robotic vacuums.

However after reviewing our current protection and talking with consultants from Aiper, Mammotion, and WYBOTICS, these assumptions didn’t maintain up. Robotic pool cleaners are actually meant for a singular goal. They’re supposed to maintain an already wholesome pool clear.

Right here’s what most individuals (together with me) received unsuitable.

False impression: Robotic pool cleaners can deal with a swampy pool

Actuality: They’re constructed for day by day upkeep

Robotic pool cleaners are nice at common repairs. But when your pool has been sitting untouched for some time, that’s a distinct story.

In case your pool seems to be like a bowl of chunky inexperienced soup (sorry for that terrible visible), it’s going to wish much more TLC than a robotic pool cleaner is able to giving.

Crystal Liu, model supervisor at WYBOTICS, defined that if the pool has a large algae bloom, the robotic will battle to “obtain an ideal end in a single cleansing cycle.” It’ll most likely suck up some fallen leaves, but it surely received’t do diddly squat for the water high quality. That wants chemical intervention.

First, you’ll have to kill the algae with chlorine shock–this could take away that greenish tint. Subsequent, scrub the heck out of the partitions and ground to interrupt up the grime. When you’ve completed these issues, you’ll be able to plop the robotic within the water.

That was the disconnect for me. I used to be pondering of those as restoration instruments, after they’re actually simply upkeep instruments. As Richard Wang, CEO of Aiper, advised me, “Robotic cleaners are greatest used as a part of a broader restoration course of fairly than a standalone resolution” for closely uncared for swimming pools.

That additionally matches what we’ve seen in testing at PCWorld. The Polaris Freedom Plus, our high decide in testing, is nice at selecting up on a regular basis issues like leaves, bugs, and grime… however there’s no means it’s going to revive a severely uncared for pool. 

Right here’s a great rule of thumb: In the event you can’t see the underside of your pool, don’t drop the robotic in there.

False impression: The robots depend on the pool’s filtration system

Actuality: They’re completely impartial

I additionally assumed these cleaners tied into the pool’s pump and filtration system indirectly. Truth is, most fashionable fashions don’t.

Robotic pool cleaners are absolutely self-contained, and have their very own motors, consumption, and filters. All it’s a must to do is drop yours in, let it do its factor, after which pull it out when it’s completed. You don’t should hook it as much as a skimmer and there’s no additional pressure in your pump.

What they don’t do is substitute your pool’s filtration system or chemical therapy. They solely deal with bodily particles. It is a fairly widespread misunderstanding. As Wang places it, robotic pool cleaners “are designed primarily for bodily cleansing. Water chemistry administration and filtration system repairs nonetheless must be dealt with by way of different tools or routine upkeep.”

That stated, there are good water monitoring programs that use sensors to measure issues like temperature and pH. Sometimes, these are small units the place the sensor sits within the pool whereas the hub sits exterior. What they don’t do is add chemical compounds to your pool, so that they’re extra like diagnostic instruments than something. Generally people pair robotic cleaners with monitoring programs, however these function independently of one another.

Among the newer robotic designs attempt to clear up the retrieval course of, which generally is a little bit of a problem. Most robotic pool cleaners will solely climb to the waterline and park close to the floor. It’ll wait there till you attain it and take it out. This generally is a problem as a result of they will weigh wherever from 30 to 40 kilos when filled with water. Nevertheless, some high-end fashions (just like the Mammotion Spino S1 Professional) have an exterior docking mechanism that lifts it out of the water.

False impression: Pool cleansing robots should use lots of power

Actuality: They’re surprisingly environment friendly

I assumed these would run for hours and hours. Possibly even in a single day.

Not the case.

Most of them run for a few hours (usually lower than three) per cycle and that’s it. They’re low-voltage, so the shorter runtime is form of the entire level. They’re meant to wash effectively, not simply run endlessly. In addition they draw (roughly) about as a lot energy as a vacuum. 

In apply, that makes them extra environment friendly than I anticipated, particularly in comparison with programs that depend on your pool’s pump and filtration system (like a suction aspect cleaner, for instance). You’re cleansing what must be cleaned with out continually circulating your entire pool.

Even fashions constructed for bigger swimming pools don’t simply run indefinitely. The Fanttik Aero X runs longer than most (six hours!), which helps it cowl extra floor. That stated, it’s nonetheless working inside a set cycle. Our reviewer known as it “a demon on wheels underwater,” which feels about proper.

False impression: You possibly can run the pool robotic sometimes

Actuality: It relies on your pool’s atmosphere

One factor I hadn’t actually thought of is how usually you’re really presupposed to run a pool cleansing robotic. Is it as soon as weekly? Is it each different day?

Liu says it relies on how usually the pool is used and the way a lot particles it collects. Climate situations play a job right here, too. In case your pool is surrounded by timber or uncovered to wind, for instance, it might want extra frequent cleansing. Calmly used swimming pools, then again, might solely want a number of runs per week.

Gracy Bhardwaj, a consultant at Mammotion, recommends “working a full cleansing cycle roughly each 3 days.”

False impression: Wheels and treads are principally the identical

Actuality: Treads are higher for climbing

Some robotic cleaners keep on the ground of the pool. Others can climb partitions. The higher ones normally do each, however how they transfer issues greater than I anticipated.

I assumed wheels versus treads was a minor element. Properly, it isn’t.

Christopher Null/Foundry

Treads have extra contact with the floor, so that they’ve received higher grip. That is helpful for climbing up vertical partitions and cleansing the waterline. Wheels are extra vulnerable to slipping, which you’ll discover the primary time a cleaner tries to climb and goes sliding again down. 

In the event you care about wall cleansing, particularly across the waterline space, that element finally ends up being fairly necessary.

False impression: Suction is all that issues

Actuality: Brushes are simply as necessary

Suction is the obvious half. That’s the power that pulls particles in. It’s additionally the factor that I assumed was doing many of the work.

However that’s solely a part of the equation right here. “A better suction score alone doesn’t essentially translate into higher or extra environment friendly cleansing,” Wang stated.

The brushes are literally extra necessary than most individuals suppose. They assist scrub off the stuff that’s sticking to the partitions and ground of your pool, after which the robotic sucks it up. A robotic with solely suction will most likely miss the spots that want slightly extra love.

On the flip aspect, robust brushing with out good suction doesn’t assist a lot both! You’ll loosen particles, however not absolutely take away it.

That steadiness reveals up fairly clearly if you evaluate cheaper fashions to the costlier ones. Higher brush programs paired with stronger suction clear sooner and customarily depart much less particles behind.

False impression: A filter is only a filter

Actuality: Filter high quality makes an enormous distinction

I hadn’t actually thought of filters earlier than this. A filter is a filter, proper? It’s simply the factor that catches particles contained in the cleaner.

Not precisely.

Finer filters can catch smaller particles like mud and pollen, the form of stuff you won’t discover instantly, but it surely impacts how clear the water seems to be. It’s the distinction between “seems to be high-quality” and truly clear.

With higher filtration, you most likely don’t should step in as usually and clear issues up your self. You’re extra prone to get constant outcomes after every run, too.

Closing takeaways

Robotic pool cleaners aren’t as limiting as I had initially thought. They’ll really do some fairly cool issues, however they’re not magic both.

They make much more sense when you perceive what they’re really constructed for, and that’s constant, low-effort upkeep. It’s not going to save lots of a badly uncared for pool, however it would preserve it constantly clear in case you run it usually.