If you’re in a hurry and just want to find out what the best pressure side pool cleaner is then i’d recommend the Polaris Vac-Sweep 360 Pressure Side Pool Cleaner.
With the pool industry quickly evolving, more and more products are becoming available to help make keeping your pool clean more manageable all year round.
One of the fastest growing categories is automatic Pool cleaners, with 3 types to choose from they are Pressure, Suction and Robotic. We’ve decided to take a look at the best pressure side pool cleaners to see if they will work for you.
Here is a list of the cleaners we will be reviewing.
- Polaris Vac-Sweep 360 Pressure Side Pool Cleaner
- Hayward TriVac 500 Pressure Pool Vacuum
- Pentair Legend Kreepy Krauly Pressure-Side Pool Cleaner
- Polaris 280 Pressure Side Pool Cleaner
- Zodiac Turbo Turtle Pressure Side Pool Cleaner
1. Polaris Vac-Sweep 360 Pressure Side Pool Cleaner
The Polaris 360 easily connects to a dedicated pressure line, and is suitable for all in-ground pools. It runs without a seperate booster pump meaning that it doesn’t need to be attached to another pump in order to function. This is great because it’s one less expense to think about when purchasing a pressure side pool cleaner. The Polaris is designed to be able to clean any pool surface from fibreglass, concrete and vinyl.
The Polaris 360 Pool Cleaner has an automatic reverse feature which kicks in every couple of minutes to ensure that it doesn’t run into any trouble on corners, or stairs. Polaris 360 also has a large filter bag capable of handling debris like pebbles, sticks and piles of leaves. This is great because it takes some of the pressure of the pools internal filter system and helps prolong the life on your pump.
This 360 Pool Cleaner also comes in two different colours, white and black. We think this is cool because it gives you the choice to pick the design to best suit your pool.
Pros:
- No added booster pump required
- Great reverse Feature
- Large filter bag
- Fast
- Powerful suction
Cons:
- Expensive
2. Hayward TVP500C TriVac Pressure Pool Vacuum
The Hayward TriVac 500 is a good all round pressure side pool cleaner, and is designed to clean all areas of the pool, and any surface type. The TriVac 500 has some nice features to go with it to help make pool maintenance that much easier.
The TriVac 500 has a 40% wider suction inlet, this enables it to be able to handle larger bits of dirt and debris. To compliment it’s wider suction inlet the Hayward TriVac also has a 25% larger debris bag, this is highly convenient because it can go more than one cleaning cycle before needing to be emptied.
The TriVac 500 also uses its patented AquaDrive® Technology. This technology uses powerful jets to clean the pool easy and efficiently, while using its Unique short back-up sequence helps reduce cleaning time.
Even with all these features the Hayward TriVac does have a couple of downsides. The pump doesn’t have a very long life expectancy (sometimes only lasting a couple of seasons). It also has a tendency to get stuck in the deep end of the pool and can’t seem to get itself out.
Pros:
- Highly rate & reviewed on Amazon
- Wide suction inlet
- Large debris bag
- Powerful jets
- Cleans all areas of the pool
Cons:
- Doesn’t like stairs
- Gets stuck in deep water
3. Pentair LL505PMG Kreepy Krauly Pressure-Side Pool Vac
The Pentair Legend Kreepy Krauly uses a highly efficient booster pump (sold separately) for optimum power, and unimpeded surface skimming. The Kreepy Krauly operates with a front wheel drive system which gives it excellent traction on inclined surfaces allowing it to have uninterrupted pool coverage.
The Pentair kreepy Krauly has a large intake throat, and a well sized filter bag which is great for containing a wide variety of debris. The Pentair Pressure Side Pool Cleaner also uses a sweeping tail which travels behind it which helps with loosing stubborn dirt and debris.
However there are a couple of issues that the Pentair Kreepy Krauly can run into. It can struggle with with the handling of stairs, and can occasionally get itself tangled up in either its tail or connection hose. It can also have difficulty cleaning the deeper end of the pool due to its lack of weight over the back wheels.
Pros:
- Large intake throat
- Good traction
- Large filter bag
- Good suction power
Cons:
- Not great with stairs
- Floats in the deep end
- Doesn’t come with a booster pump
4. Polaris 280 pressure side pool cleaner
The Polaris Vac-Sweep 280 is a pressure side pool cleaner designed to work in in-ground pools of any surface. It is powered by two powerful double jets allowing it to efficiently clean a pool in roughly 3 hours or less.
It’s versatile pressure side pool cleaner when it comes to the areas of the pool it’s able to clean, The Polaris 280 is able to clean the pools floor, walls, and even up to the waterline however it’s start cleaning ability os debatable.
The Polaris 280 is able to clean a wide variety of debris like dirt, dust, pebbles and leaves. the Polaris 280 robotic pool cleaner has a 2 1/4 ” suction inlet that is complimented by a large and easy to clean single chamber filter bag. The Polaris 280 also comes with 31ft of feed hose. Unlike other Polaris models the 280 does not require a booster pump in order to operate.
The Polaris 280 is also available in the colour Black Max which is great for complimenting pools with a darker surface.
Pros:
- Large filter bag
- Easy to clean
- Handles large debris
- Sweeping tail for stubborn dirt or algae
- Cleans all areas of the pool
Cons:
- Parts of the cleaner can be quite flimsy
- Customer service can be hard to get a hold of
- Requires a booster pump
5. Zodiac Turbo Turtle Pressure Side Pool Cleaner
The Zodiac Polaris Turbo turtle is a happy combination of automatic pool cleaner, and pool decoration. It is suitable for pools up to 5-feet deep. The Polaris Turbo Turtle uses it patented sweeping jets to get into all those hard to reach places.
This vacuum is suitable for pools of any shape and material, and uses a unique filtration bag to to gather any debris before it has a chance to make it to your filter
However The Polaris doesn’t have a very strong suction and sometimes gathering the loose debris from hard to reach places can be an issue. Some users have also commented on the life span of the cleaner, and said it can sometimes just spin around in circles.
Pros:
- Affordable
- Suitable for all pool types
Cons:
- Average suction power
- Struggles in deep water
- Average lifespan
Things to consider when buying a pressure side pool cleaner
Pool Size
When choosing your pool cleaner you will need to make sure that it comes with the right length of hose to best suit your pool size. If the hose is to short your cleaner will not be able to reach all sides of the pool. Also make sure your hose isn’t to long as this as this can result in issues with tangling.
Does it need an added booster pump?
Not all pressure cleaners can run off the power of the pools pump alone, before purchasing make sure you check the requirements of the cleaner to see whether or not a booster pump is required for it to operate.
Is the cleaner right for my pools surface?
Not all pressure side pool cleaners are designed for every pool type. check the cleaners specifications to make sure to make sure it’s designed to handle your pools surface.
Best pressure side pool cleaner summary
For us, the best pressure side pool cleaner had to be able to do 3 things. Provide excellent suction power, perform well in both the shallow and deep end of the pool, and have a good reverse feature so it can get itself out of any tricky situation.
For us the clear winner in all three of these areas was the Polaris Vac-Sweep 360 Pressure Side Pool Cleaner. The Polaris 360 performs the best in deep water while having no problem staying flat on the pool floor, allowing for maximum removal of dirt, and debris. The Polaris 360 also rarely gets stuck due to it’s automatic reverse feature which allows for an efficient clean. As an added bonus it runs off the pools dedicated pressure line meaning no purchase of a booster pump is needed.
It’s for these reasons we feel like the Polaris 360 Pool Cleaner is the best pressure side pool cleaner, and is a great combination of value for money, quality, and performance.
Click here to get yours today.
