Aquabot Neptuno – Automatic Pool Cleaner Revised
An automatic pool cleaner is a must when you have a pool and we have two! Unfortunately (or so it seemed), an above ground pool with a PVC liner is notoriously hard to come by with an automatic pool cleaner, as most will climb up the pool wall, thereby tearing through the liner. We talked to several local pool supply stores and it seemed like it would be impossible to find an automatic pool cleaner for our pools.
An internet search found the Aquabot Neptune made by a UK company called Kaltech. It seemed ideal but (particularly given the price) we wanted to be sure, so we asked to speak to a technician who kindly placed an overseas call on our cell phone. He spoke at length about the Aquabot Neptuno and was confident that it would not damage our pool liner.
We took the plunge and ordered a machine. It arrived a few days later and we unpacked it carefully to remove the transparent film that protects the rollers. Essentially, the Aquabot Neptuno is a pump with a filter mounted on rubber tracks and two large rigid sponge rollers at the front for cleaning. Inside there is a bag that collects debris from the bottom of the pool. The power supply is 12 V DC from a 230/240 V transformer (supplied). The cable is dragged along the surface of the water, so the Aquabot Neptuno must not become entangled in its own power cable.
We started the machine and waited the required 20 minutes while the rollers soaked up the water. If you don’t do this then there may be a build up of friction and your lining or rollers may be damaged.
The machine set off across the bottom of the pool traveling much faster than we expected, almost at the fastest pace one could have walked through the water. Unfortunately after a few minutes it stopped and we had to restart it (wait 45 seconds and turn it back on). This kept happening and we soon concluded that it was faulty, even though we agreed that what it had cleaned, it had cleaned effectively and gently.
Kaltech listened to our complaint, did not argue, and arranged for a replacement to be tested and shipped to us. We pack up the old one and take it to our local courier (the arrangement is that we pay the courier to the UK, they pay the courier to us).
A few days later a new Aquabot Neptuno arrived and we finally tested it last night. It worked perfectly, turning off like it’s supposed to after about 3 hours. The main pool, an elongated octagon, is now much cleaner. We only have two complaints.
Firstly, there were two patches that the automatic pool cleaner did not find, both of which were adjacent to our ‘Roman’ steps. Probably one of those patches was too small for the machine, but the other was missed for no apparent reason. Next time, we’ll boot the machine from there and see if it ignores a different area.
Secondly, there was a clerical error whereby someone wrote the delivery address as the one on file on our credit card and it was only because the courier ignored that in favor of their local knowledge of where we live that caused the Aquabot Neptune arrived.
With that being said, Kaltech was very helpful, from the original call from the technician to the many emails they sent me, providing tracking details for packages and generally keeping me informed of progress. My contact there was a lady named Lucy and she went out of her way to help me. My particular thanks go to her.
This was an expensive purchase, our blue and yellow submarine, but, to date, we’ve been delighted with our Aquabot Neptuno Automatic Pool Cleaner.
Leave a Reply