Dolphin Nautilus Robotic Pool Cleaner Review

Robotic pool cleaners are seen as the way forward by many pool owners that want to make the job as easy as possible and get a great result. The Dolphin Nautilus Robot immediately catches consumers’ eyes for the fact that it is a top seller in that category and there are important phrases in the specification like “plug and play” and “lightweight” that raise the appeal further. This device comes with the recommendation to be used in in ground pools that are no more than 50ft in length and a great rating so the aim of this Dolphin Nautilus robotic pool cleaner review is to see why it has earned so many stars and if it is an effective tool in these large pools.

What's Good About the Dolphin Nautilus

The Dolphin Nautilus CC Plus is “smart”. While this label is applied to everything from factories that operate with almost no human presence to clock radios with a light sensor, this pool cleaner actually is intelligent and adaptable. You can set a weekly schedule for cleaning. You could have it run every day, every other day or every third day. Unfortunately, you can’t use it with a separate timer.
It is smart enough to ensure complete coverage of the bottom of the swimming pool. However, it may take two or three passes to get everything.
The unit has powerful brushes that sweep up fine and mid-sized debris. Better yet, it will clean both the floor and walls of your swimming pool.
The power cord is almost impossible to tangle. The floaters attached to the power cord prevent the pool cleaner from running over and damaging the cord or stopping when it encounters it, too.
The top loading filter is a plus. You don’t have to flip over the pool cleaner to get the filter out, and there is no risk the dirt will spill back into the pool as you lift the pool cleaner out of the pool. Cleaning the filters is a breeze.
It covers swimming pools up to fifty feet long. It can work rather quickly. It will clean most pools in two to three hours. However, it will move at random, so realize there will be some untouched areas in a large pool if the pool cleaner isn’t left to run for a long time. It doesn’t have a remote to let you send it to specific trouble spots.

What's Lacking in the Dolphin Nautilus

This model isn’t as reliable as you’d expect given the price tag. When it suffers electrical problems, it typically just dies. The company offers decent service under the warranty, but getting it to the few approved service centers is a hassle, since you may have to pay to ship it there if you can’t drive it there. The rate of mechanical and electrical failures accelerates after the warranty period. You can even see both in one failure such as when the power connector leaks and shorts out or when the power supply (which isn’t waterproof) gets wet. Don’t expect it to last more than a year or two. This is mostly because of how hard it is to get replacement parts.
If there are issues with the power cord, replacement cords often interfere with its ability to clean stairs or retain its balance on an incline.

Observations

Literally watch the pool cleaner as it goes on its rounds. If it suffers a software glitch and only travels a loop on the edge of the pool, it can start eating into the liner of the pool. If you don’t stop and send it back immediately, the company may give you a choice between a claim for the pool liner repairs or a replacement pool cleaner but not both. This is a serious issue with vinyl and plaster pools. It can also leave dark marks on the bottom of a plaster pool on the first run. Test it as soon as you get it, too, in order to return it and get work or a replacement under the warranty.

If the tracks on the wheels get stuck on the rough bottom of the pool, you can’t adjust their tension. You can either try to buy new wheel tread at your own expense or send the unit back.

While the pool cleaner’s top loading prevents the filter from spilling its contents into the newly cleaned pool, it takes several steps to remove the filter to empty it. The clips aren’t as durable as they could be, so be careful with them.

Suction is middling. It will pick up sand and light leaves. It may struggle to pick up pieces of wood and pebbles. You have to clean the filter regularly to maintain suction. The brushes are not strong enough to scrub algae off the bottom or sides of your pool.

When the pool cleaner hits a breach entry to a pool, it is generally smart enough to recognize that it is hitting air and return to deeper water. However, it sometimes tips or even flips over. Then it stops working until you recover it.

Be careful lifting the pool cleaner out of the water by the hose. Use the lift handle so you don’t damage the hose.

Should You Buy the Dolphin Nautilus?

This Dolphin robot may not be as perfect as its #1 award makes it seem as there are some questions over its intelligence and whether or not it could be even more convenient in its design, but it does far more and delivers better performance than many cheaper rivals. Despite these quirks, this is still a highly recommendable option for the ease of use that is provided, the quality of the clean on multiple surfaces and some of the little features that improve its performance.