Pool Vacuum Cleaners: What Are The Different Types?

Pool maintenance is not the most pleasant aspect of pool ownership, but it is a necessary evil to provide a household or gym with a pleasant pool that can be enjoyed by all of its occupants. There are many different ways a pool can become dirty through use, which could include insect splatter or human shedding, but all of this must be cleaned out in order to provide swimmers with a healthy supply of water that can be enjoyed for swimming in. The use of pool vacuum cleaners have grown in popularity over recent years and various technologies have been introduced into the marketplace to help pool keepers with their cleaning efforts.
1. Manual cleaning

Depending on the size of a pool, manual cleaning could be a viable option over acquiring full sized pool vacuum cleaners. Smaller sized pools or waddling pools greatly benefit from surface skimming to rid the pool of surface borne dirt that quickly contaminates a pool’s water supply. This is usually best for home pools that do not receive continuous use or public pools that do not receive high volumes of swimmers across lengthy periods.

Manually cleaning a pool can be as easy as using a spaghetti strainer and skimming it through the water to collect dirt and debris that has settled on top of the water. Cleaners will quickly find that their strainers become full after a few moments of use, so frequently washing and rinsing the strainer will help accelerate cleaning efforts on behalf of the pool keeper. It is also use to alternate tools approximately half way through the cleaning job. This will help prevent the pool keeper from redepositing already collected debris back into the water despite cleaning efforts. However, surface skimming is not a complete solution and should not be relied upon for a pool’s entire lifetime. For larger and more used pools, then it is best to use an automatic solution.

2. Automatic swimming pool cleaners

Swimming pool vacuum cleaners are typically automatic solutions that do not require much intervention on behalf of the pool keeper beyond guiding a wand that sucks up debris like a common household vacuum cleaner. There are three types of automatic cleaning solutions that include automatic pressure-side vacuum cleaners, automatic suction-side vacuum cleaners, and automatic robotic vacuum cleaners.

2a. Automatic pressure-side vacuum cleaners

This type of vacuum cleaner depends on an external pump that creates water pressure in order to accomplish its cleaning functions and forces debris into an attached bag for later emptying as the cleaner makes his or her way around the pool. It is ideal for pools that are centrally located amongst trees as the set-up time is minimal and it forcefully propels organic matter into a bag that can later be emptied elsewhere away from the pool water. However, it is not necessarily appropriate for pools that require frequent cleaning of interior surfaces and the bottom of the pool. While it’s a great solution for daily cleaning, it is not one that should be depended on as the sole source of pool cleaning as micro organisms can easily pass through the bag when attempting to filter the water and this thus requires the use of additional chemicals to sanitize the swimming water.

2b. Automatic suction-side vacuum cleaners

Suction-side vacuum cleaners are another automatic solution for pool keepers. Unlike pressure-side vacuum cleaners, they create a strong suction against the surface of the pool and remove debris and living particles through a drain that recycles the water as it passes through a filter. Many suction-side vacuum cleaners are adept at cleaning walls as well, so can be relied on to disperse caked on grime in a matter of moments when typical pool filters have failed. However, suction-side vacuum cleaners are known to route debris through the pool’s main filter and this can cause clogging that later requires additional cleaning.

2c. Automatic robotic vacuum cleaners

Robotic vacuum cleaners are a relatively new invention in the world of pool cleaning. They are typically used as automatic above ground pool cleaners as the process propels itself along the surface of the water in aims of cleaning surface debris and matter that is suspended towards the top of the pool’s water supply. This is a great choice for pool owners who don’t find themselves able to clean their pool frequently enough or simply enjoy the convenience of having the process automated. However, they are not quite effective as standard pool vacuum cleaners as the robot’s collision detection is often adjusted to suit only standard pool designs and can forcefully terminate the cleaning process when it comes to an abrupt halt against a wall.

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