There is a reason why people love automatic pool cleaners. Nobody wants to spend hours each day brushing and sweeping an inground swimming pool. Automatic pool cleaners promise to do most of the hard work for you. In that case, which is the best automatic pool cleaner for inground pools?
Introduction
Residential inground swimming pools come in all shapes, sizes, and surfaces. For that reason, it is not easy to recommend a robotic pool cleaner that is going to be perfect for your specific swimming pool. Nevertheless, it is possible to recommend the best automatic pool cleaners that will work well in most inground swimming pools. You may continue reading to discover what I think is the best suction, pressure, and robotic pool cleaner for residential inground swimming pools.
Best Suction Pool Cleaner For Inground Pools
I choose the Zodiac Baracuda G3 as the best automatic inground pool vacuum. It is a fairly simple suction-side pool cleaner that installs quickly and easily.
The Zodiac G3 is easy to assemble: attach the 36-fin disc and the wheel deflector (for handling corners). Next, you attach the hoses (a total of 39 feet of hose are included) and connect it to the skimmer or a 1.5-inch dedicated vacuum suction line.
The diaphragm is its only moving part. There are no gears or belts that can grind down or break apart. This reduces maintenance costs because the diaphragm is the only part that needs regular replacement. A patented quick-release cassette system makes it easy to inspect or replace the diaphragm.
There is only one model number: W03000. It cleans all types of inground swimming pools. It is safe to use for the following pool surfaces: fiberglass, gunite, vinyl and tile.
In brief, the Zodiac G3 suction-side automatic pool cleaner is easy to assemble, simple to maintain (no wheels or gears), and does a good cleaning job. However, it might infrequently get stuck on a pool ladder, in a corner, on a step, in the deep end or the main drain. Be that as it may, you might not get a better inground pool vacuum cleaner at this price point. You may learn more about it by reading my review of the Zodiac G3.
Best Pressure Pool Cleaner For Inground Pools
The Polaris Vac-Sweep 280 is my choice for the best pressure-side inground pool cleaner, because it is probably the most popular Polaris automatic pressure pool cleaner. For the most part, this automatic pool cleaner is easy to install, has good suction power, and provides good value for your money.
The Polaris Vac-Sweep 280 cleans the floor and walls of inground swimming pools. It is safe to use on pools with surfaces such as fiberglass, gunite, pebble, tile and vinyl.
This pressure-side automatic pool cleaner is connected to a dedicated pressure return line, but it requires the installation of a booster pump to provide enough water pressure for its two venturi water jets. It does not work without the booster pump.
The Polaris 280 catches leaves and other debris in its own single chamber zipper filter bag. This reduces the amount of stuff that ends up in the pool filter. It also has a unique sweep hose tail that sweeps across pool surfaces.
As decided, the Polaris Vac-Sweep 280 is a very popular pressure-side pool cleaner for inground pools. Although, it costs more to install and run compared to a suction-side pool cleaner, because it requires a booster pump. If you are interested, then you can read my review of the Polaris Vac-Sweep pressure pool cleaners.
Best Robotic Pool Cleaner For Inground Pools
Initially, I decided to recommend the Dolphin Nautilus Plus as the best robotic inground pool cleaner. Subsequently, the Nautilus Plus was replaced with an updated model called the Nautilus CC Plus.
The Dolphin Nautilus CC Plus is a best-selling robotic pool cleaner for inground pools with a maximum size of up to 50 feet. This pool robot has a 60-foot tangle-free cable, and its cleaning coverage includes both the floor and the walls of the swimming pool, even though it is unable to brush the waterline.
The Nautilus CC Plus has easy-to-reach top-load filter cartridges for capturing dirt and debris. It has a power supply unit with a 2-hour cleaning cycle and a weekly schedule function for cleaning the swimming pool every day, every second day, or every third day. However, this model has neither Wi-Fi connectivity nor smartphone capabilities.
If you want a robotic inground pool cleaner with waterline cleaning, Wi-Fi and smartphone capabilites, then you should consider spending a few hundred dollars more to get the Dolphin Nautilus CC Supreme.
All things considered, the Dolphin Nautilus CC Plus is an easy-to-use pool robot that does a good job cleaning an inground pool. It climbs up and scrubs most pool walls, even though stairs and steps will defeat it. The filter cartridges are also easy to clean. This robotic pool cleaner might be on the expensive side, but it is probably worth the money. Click here to read my review of the Dolphin Nautilus robotic pool cleaners.
Conclusion
Some people might not agree with my choices for the best automatic pool cleaners for inground pools. Of course, there are other products that are also worth considering such as the Hayward Aquanaut suction pool cleaner, the Pentair Kreepy Krauly Legend pressure pool cleaner, and the Dolphin Sigma robotic pool cleaner.
The Hayward Aquanaut suction pool cleaners are available in either two-wheeled or four-wheeled models. The wheels have rugged tire treads that provide good traction on most pool surfaces. The Aquanaut also uses variable vane turbine technology that are flexible enough to adjust according to changes in water flow and large debris. The variable vanes should reduce suction and clogging problems to a minimum. To learn more, I suggest you read my Hayward Aquanaut review.
The Dolphin Sigma is an expensive robotic inground pool cleaner with Bluetooth and smartphone capabilities. It has an anti-tangle swivel cable and is suitable for cleaning inground swimming pools up to a maximum size of 50 feet. It has scrubbing brushes and top-loading filter cartridges for removing and capturing dirt, algae and bacteria. Its cleaning coverage includes the waterline of the swimming pool. For more information, please read my Dolphin Sigma review.
At the present time, the automatic pool cleaners mentioned in the article above are my choices. Thank you for reading my guide to the best automatic pool cleaners for inground pools.