To answer that question it would be best to give a brief explanation of the difference between a pressure side pool cleaner and a suction side cleaner. A pressure cleaner uses the return water from a separate dedicated booster pump to propel the cleaner around the pool. A pressure cleaner has a bag on top of the cleaner and the pool’s debris is collected in the bag. A suction cleaner uses your main filtration pump to suck up debris which is then returned to your pump basket. To determine which cleaner is best for your pool let’s dig a little deeper.
Pressure Side Cleaners
Though I believe pressure side cleaners are the better of the two options not all pool’s are equipped with a booster pump or have room to add one. Most pressure cleaners require a dedicated booster pump be installed, so if your system was built with the plumbing for a pressure side cleaner then a pressure cleaner would be right for you. If your pool was not plumbed for a pressure cleaner then there is a special cleaner called the Polaris 360 which works off of the return water of your main pool pump. Unlike the name implies a pressure cleaner does not power blast your pool surface, the cleaner actually uses your pools return water to create a suction vortex to pull debris from the pool into a bag attached on top of the cleaner. As mentioned before the pressure side cleaner requires a dedicated booster pump to push water through the cleaner to create this jet stream. The pressure side cleaner is ideal for heavy debris because of its wide throat design. The large throat design allows for large clump of leaves, large acorns and twigs to be caught into the cleaner bag without fear of clogging.
Popular Pressure Side Cleaners: Polaris, Letro, PoolvergnuegenÂ
Suction Cleaners
A suction cleaner uses your main filtration pump to suck up debris which is then returned to your pump basket. Suction cleaners are susceptible to issues of low flow, so if your filter is ¾ horsepower or lower I would suggest contacting the manufacturer to determine that your system meets the required cleaner flow rate.
A suction side cleaner is essentially a vacuum cleaner that runs off the suction power of your main pool pump. The cleaner’s hose is connected to either a dedicated suction line or directly to your skimmer. Suction cleaners are powered by a turbine which is spun by the force of pump’s suction. Suction cleaners are ideal for screened in pools or ones which mainly face sand and dirt with light leaf traffic.
Popular Suction Side Cleaners: Poolvergnuegen, Hayward, Baracuda
Conclusion
Our recommendation would be to go with a Pressure Side Pool Cleaner if you already are plumbed for this type of cleaner, get large debris or get low flow from your main filter pump. We suggest a suction side pool cleaner if you are not plumbed for a pressure cleaner, have a main filter pump above ¾ HP or do not get very heavy debris. If you have any questions on which type of pool cleaner is right for you we would be happy to help, just leave a comment below.
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