best Pool Cleaner

Keeping your pool clean can be a monotonous chore—everyone knows that. However, it’s a task that has to be done to keep the pool in good working condition and to prevent dangerous bacteria and algae from building up in the water. After all, a clean pool is a healthy pool. Sure, that idea might not make it easier for you to go out and clean your pool but it’s a fact of life.

Fortunately, there is something that will make it easier for you to clean your pool and that something is a good pool vacuum cleaner. These nifty tools might not be able to eliminate all of the cleanings that have to be done by you but it can reduce it quite a lot. A good pool cleaner vacuum can really cut your cleaning chores down to a more manageable routine.

Which leaves only one question to be answered: How do you find the best pool vacuum available? Answering that particular question isn’t always easy but I’ll attempt to do just that in this article. Before I do that though, I would like to take a few moments to look at what I consider are some of the better pool vacuum cleaner models that are currently available. After we take a look at those, I’ll then go over what to look for in these tools and then provide you with a few tips for using them. So without further adieu, let’s start off with some of the models that I currently like.

Choosing the Right Pool Cleaner

1Dolphin Nautilus Plus Robotic Cleaner

best automatic robotic pool cleaner

buy

The Dolphin Nautilus Plus is a robotic cleaner for your pool that works independently of your pool’s filter and pump setup. This easy-to-use cleaner scrubs and vacuums all of the surfaces of most pools in under 3-hours. This unit has PVC bristle brushes and special climbing rings that enable it to climb up the side of just about any pool.

It will clean your waterline, floor, and walls of your pool, saving you the backbreaking chore of having to use a brush on it. This model can handle pools that are up to 50-feet long without much trouble at all.

2Zodiac Polaris Vac-Sweep 280

buy

The Polaris Vac-Sweep side pool cleaner is a unit that’s made to connect to a Polaris booster pump and is designed to work in all in-ground pools. When properly installed, this unit is powered by dual jets that provide vacuuming power and can clean a pool in 3-hours or less.

This model will scrub, sweep and vacuum all of your pool’s surfaces, which will leave you with extra time for doing other things around the house. And since its filter bag takes debris out of the water before it can get to your filter or pump basket, then it will also act to prolong the life of your filtering system.

3Dolphin Nautilus Robotic Cleaner With 60-Foot Swivel Cable

buy

This robotic cleaner is designed to make short work out of cleaning your pool. It’s designed for pools up to 50-feet long and will scrub, vacuum and filter all of your pool’s surface in under three hours. This unit also has a 60-foot swivel cable that is tangle-resistant.

This plug-n-play unit doesn’t need to be installed and there are no connections that need to be made to the pump or filter system. It’s a lightweight unit that should help you get your pool cleaning done faster so you can do other things with your time.

4Hayward Poolvergnuegen Automatic Cleaner

buy

The Hayward Poolvergnuegen is a suction cleaner which comes in two distinct models—either as a 2-wheel or a 4-wheel system. This unit is designed to make cleaning the pool less time consuming by picking up the major debris in the pool. It features self-adjusting turbine vanes that maximize the water flow and tire treads that provide greater obstacle management and wall climbing.

This model is also designed with a number of preprogrammed internal steering sequences which make sure that it covers the entirety of your pool. All of these features combine to give this suction cleaner the ability to clean pools up to sixteen feet by thirty-two feet.

5Zodiac Baracuda G3 Advanced Automatic Cleaner

buy

This small pool vacuum cleaner is designed to make short work out of the cleaning of most in-ground swimming pools. This quiet yet fairly powerful cleaner can be used on just about any single, variable or 2-speed pumps and can maintain maximum power even with lower horsepower pumps.

It has a thirty-six fin disc which helps keep it adhered to the surface of the pool and which prevents it from getting tangled up with lights or drain covers. This unit also has a wheel deflector which allows it to move around tight corners. It’s a good little cleaner that simply gets the job done without a whole lot of bells and whistles.

6Zodiac Baracuda MX6 In-Ground Swimming Pool Suction Cleaner

buy

This small yet powerful automatic pool vacuum cleaner is designed to take all of the work out of cleaning your pool and save you some trouble in the process. This model vacuums using cyclonic suction and its articulating turbine blades give it the ability to scale your pool walls.

It also has quick-connect hoses that work on a swivel and a flow regulator that allows the water flow to be adjusted at the unit and not at the skimmer. These features make it a good model for pools which have variable or two-speed pumps and for pool owners who want to spend a little less time cleaning their pool.

7Pentair Kreepy Krauly EZ Suction-Side Vacuum

buy

This Kreepy Krauly EZ Vac might have an odd sounding name but it also offers a convenient way to clean your pool. It’s designed for powerful suctioning and also to be quite reliable. It works on just about any above-ground pool—no matter what type it is: oval, round or flat bottomed.

This model uses a truly random pattern coverage that ensures your pool floors are thoroughly vacuumed, thereby saving you from having to go out there and vacuum it or using a pool brush on it. It’s the easy way to make sure that your pool stays clean all through swimming season.

8Xtremepower US Automatic Vacuum Cleaner

buy

This nifty automatic pool vacuum cleaner is designed to make cleaning your pool as easy as it can be. It features a design that doesn’t require any tools and doesn’t require it’s own source of electricity. It will clean the pool as long as the pool is running a 3/4 horsepower swimming pool pump.

This particular model can clean up to an in-ground 16-foot by 32-foot pool in no time flat, leaving you time to do other chores. And once it’s setup and running, it will continue to do its job day in and day out.

9Hayward Navigator Pro Suction Cleaner

buy

This automatic suction cleaner is designed to be operated with little human interaction. This unit is powered by hooking it up to your current filtration system and maintains a quiet and smooth operation. Programmed steering guides this unit around the pool and the hose is designed to be tangle-resistant.

Once set up in your pool, it will keep it nice and sparkling clean and will cover the complete floor of the pool, preventing you from having to vacuum it yourself. It seems like a cleaner that was designed for those individuals who like to maintain a hands-off approach as far as pool cleaning is concerned.

10Water Tech Battery Powered Rechargeable Cleaner for Spas & Pools

buy

Unlike automatic units which run all of the time to keep your pool clean, this model is designed to be used by hand. It can either be literally held in the hand or attached to an optional telescopic pole. Unfortunately, the pole has to be purchased separately. This unit operates on rechargeable batteries and will run up to 35-minutes on a single charge.

This particular unit is also lightweight and easy-to-use. Once you are finished vacuuming your pool, this unit easily stores away for next time. It’s not as convenient as an automatic model but it’s easy enough to use anyway.

 

Can’t Find What You’re Looking For? Check these suggestions:

 

What To Look For In a Cleaner For Your Pool

pool cleaningSome people only use pool cleaner reviews to decide which cleaner is right for their pool and other people take a more cavalier approach. I, on the other hand, believe that the best way to choose a cleaner that will work for your pool is by considering the type of pool you have and contrasting that with the amount of work you want to do. Once you do that, you can find the cleaner that will fit your needs.

When it comes to pool cleaning devices, there are basically four different models to consider. There are suction-side cleaners, pressure-side cleaners, automatic robotic ones, and handheld ones. Let’s examine each of these three and see what their pros and cons are.

Suction-Side Cleaners

What’s exactly a suction-side cleaner? Well, it’s a model that attaches directly to the plumbing system of your pool. They use suction to pick up debris from the walls and floor, and then takes this debris and pushes it through your skimmer and finally, through the filtration system of your pool. Which means that they aren’t exactly high-tech but they do get the job done on smaller pools.

[wc_row] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”first”]

Pros:

  • Fairly inexpensive
  • Less chance of breaking due to less moving parts
  • Works best on small to medium pools
[/wc_column] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”last”]

Cons:

  • Not great for big pools
  • Adds more work to your pool’s pump
[/wc_column] [/wc_row]
Pressure-Side Cleaners

These cleaners don’t attach to the pump that you already have in your pool. No, they require a secondary pump, or at least a dedicated booster, to give them the power they need to move around your pool and clean it.

All of this debris is then collected in a bag. Once it has cleaned your pool, the bag is removed and emptied out. They require a little additional setup than suction-side units but they do a good job on medium to large-sized pools.

[wc_row] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”first”]

Pros:

  • Doesn’t tax your normal pump
  • Great for larger pools
  • Parts are usually easy to replace
[/wc_column] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”last”]

Cons:

  • Additional expense of adding a booster or second pump
[/wc_column] [/wc_row]
Robotic Cleaners

The final choice available are robotic cleaners. These units are not only high-tech but have a number of advantages to them. They are easy to setup and use, they don’t require an additional pump or a booster and they’ll often impress your neighbors.

These units are plugged in, submerged and then the cleaner takes over from there. Some of the best automatic pool cleaner models will not only clean the floor of your pool but will also clean its walls. And once they’ve collected their fill, you simply empty them out.

[wc_row] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”first”]

Pros:

  • Cleans well
  • Energy efficient
  • Easy-to-use
  • Usually quiet
[/wc_column] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”last”]

Cons:

  • More expensive than comparable models
[/wc_column] [/wc_row]
Handheld Vacuums

Handheld vacuums are either plugged in or require batteries to operate and are held by the user to vacuum the floor of the pool. The flaw of this unit is obvious, it requires more work by the pool owner to clean the pool.

However, these units also have a few advantages, one of them being that they are usually not that expensive. Sure, they aren’t as inexpensive as suction-side models but they are cheaper than robotic ones.

[wc_row] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”first”]

Pros:

  • Not expensive
  • Cleans well
  • You determine how the pool should be cleaned
[/wc_column] [wc_column size=”one-half” position=”last”]

Cons:

  • Battery-powered models have to be recharged
  • Requires user to operate
[/wc_column] [/wc_row]

Some Final Thoughts

Now that we’ve gone over some of the more highly rated cleaners and have talked a bit about what to look for when purchasing one of these units, I hope that you have the information and the confidence you need to buy the perfect model for your particular pool.

After all, when you buy a cleaner that is perfect for your size pool and operates with as much user input as you want it to operate with, then you’ll end up with a unit that you’ll be pleased with and will do a good job at cleaning your pool.