Pool Cleaning

3 Common Types of Pool Cleaners

Properly maintaining a pool can be hard work and involve a substantial amount of time investment. Luckily, there are a variety of useful pool cleaning tools that can be utilized to help make the job a bit easier and less time intensive. Below we provide a quick pool cleaner comparison including a few automatic pool cleaners that just might be your ticket to more time in the pool.

Robotic Pool Cleaners: These computer-programmed automatic cleaners can save you a lot of time and back pain by handling manual cleaning and maintenance. Various types of robot pool cleaners exist - each with their own unique features and benefits including quick clean times, wall and step climbing abilities, and more. Generally however, robotic cleaners work by vacuuming up debris and storing it in a bag or housing unit. They don’t connect directly to your filter system but do vacuum, scrub, and clean your pool. Both in ground and above ground robotic pool cleaners exist.

Suction Cleaners: Considered to be the most basic form of automatic pool cleaner, standard suction cleaners work by attaching to your suction port or skimmer, just as a normal pool vacuum does. Unlike robotic pool cleaners, suction cleaners pull pool contaminants directly into your filter system. These cleaners often work great for new pool owners as they provide basic cleaning at a lower cost and require little maintenance.

 Pool Pressure Cleaners: By connecting to a pool return line, automatic pool pressure cleaners gather pool contaminants such as dirt and other debris into a mesh bag while distributing filtered water throughout the pool. These cleaners are popular as they can be used while you still perform surface skimming. Depending on the type and model, some pool pressure cleaners require extra pumps as well. Cost can be a bit prohibitive for some, but generally these reasonably priced cleaners can go along way to keeping your pool sparkling at a fair price.

Top Above Ground Pool Cleaners

Owning an above ground pool has become a more and more popular alternative to the traditional in ground pool. While generally cheaper to setup, run, and maintain, these pools can be tricky to handle at times – especially when it comes to daily maintenance. Fortunately, there are a variety of pool cleaners designed specifically for above ground swimming pools. A few of our favorites are covered below with details about each and how they’re unique.

Muck-Vac Pressure Pool Cleaner: While similar to a standard pool vacuum in that you’re required to provide the movement for the Muck-Vac, it’s unique design that utilizes your garden hose for power and a discharge hose for dumping debris makes a valuable tool for handling pool maintenance. Easier to maneuver than many pool vacuums, the Muck-Vac is a great option for maintaining small, hard to reach areas.

Auquabot Above Ground Pool Rover: While consider to be the “Jr.” model in the Auquabot Rover series, this automatic above ground pool cleaner leaves nothing to be desired. A customer favorite, the Pool Rover operates free of your filtration system (allowing for simultaneous surface skimming) and grabs everything from leaves and twigs to algae and other microscopic contaminants. It’s designed for flat-bottom above ground pools and has no problem crawling over odd indentations in your pool floor. It represents a great value for above ground pool owners looking to put their pool maintenance work on autopilot.

Leaf Canister: One of our favorite add-ons for an above ground pool; the leaf canister catches leaves and other larger debris before they hit your pool’s filter system. They allow for proper water flow to your pump while vacuuming and are a snap to empty out when filled. Leaf canisters and components represent yet another tool that can be used to help make your pool maintenance a bit easier.

E-Z Vac Above-Ground Suction Cleaner: By connecting directly to your skimmer just as any standard pool pressure cleaner would do, the E-Z Vac provides an effective way to pull dirt, debris, and other pool contaminants from your water. Due to its unique design, it works very well on both curved and flat-bottomed pools. The cleaner is also relatively automatic as it is pulled along the pool bottom via suction from the pools filtration system.

Best In-Ground Pool Cleaners

 When it comes to maintaining an in-ground swimming pool of almost any size, the simpler and more automatic the process, the better. If you’re new to cleaning a pool or are just looking to make the process easier, the products listed below should provide some good options for making the process a little less painful.

 Each of these in-ground pool cleaners offers unique features and benefits across various price points. If you’re new to pool cleaners, we recommend taking a look at this article on the three main types of pool cleaners before reading on.

 Polaris ATV Pool Cleaner: A great suction cleaner, the Polaris ATV functions directly inline with your current filtration system removing everything from algae to acorns and pebbles. It does not require a booster pump for power and can easily pass over, by, or around pool obstacles within its path. These cleaners offer a great tool at a reasonable price that can handle a variety of tricky pool shapes and situations.

Polaris Vac-Sweep 380 Pool Cleaner: The Polaris Vac-Sweep is a pool pressure cleaner that attaches directly to your pools return line or deck mount system and pulls all types of pool contaminants into its self-contained filter bag. It utilizes a 3/4 HP pump that allows it to function at full capacity while you can run your standard filter system to pull top-level contaminants out of your pool water. It’s known for quick, reliable, efficient cleaning of any size, shape, or style of in-ground pool.

Kreepy Krauly Classic: Known for structural reliability and consistent cleaning, this automatic pressure side cleaner connects directly to your pools filtration system. The Kreepy Krauly Classic can also disperse water and pool chemicals as it scrubs and vacuums your pool floor and walls. Unlike many other cleaners, the Kreepy Krauly Classic has a float and dive system that allows it to clean all the water in your pool from top to bottom – even under a solar pool cover.

Aquabot T4RC Robotic Pool Cleaner: A top of the line cleaner, the Auquabot T4RC epitomizes automated pool cleaning. With the ability to clean a pool from top to bottom in an hour, the T4RC is one of the fastest and most efficient cleaners around. The T4RC utilizes a variety of parts and filters to scrub, power wash, filter and vacuum your entire pool. It’s high-level of cleaning detail can help reduce chemical costs and it comes with a variety of different cleaning cycles. Drop it in, push a button, control it remotely and enjoy your lemonade while it cleans your pool.