Aquabot Vac stops intermittently

[JCASR]

I was reading a post from July 2011 on this site where the poster said their Aquabot would start and stop intermittently. Our Aquabot Turbo is doing this too, though mostly stopping. The poster stated they ended up fixing the problem rather easily - it was likely caused by the constant twisting of the wire while in operation leaving it broken or frayed. The fix was to cut out a portion of the wire and rewire. Question, how was this done? The wiring is waterproofed/sealed; where the larger cord is connected to the smaller cord that enters the unit, there is a rubber connector of sorts. Was this where they opened up the cord, rewired? And how did they reseal the line?

I'd like to try this resolution myself but was hoping for a more detailed explanation of this process if possible.

Thank you!!

[PoolDoc]

I haven't read they thread you're referring to, but I'd guess it wasn't too hard to make the repair, but that it didn't last long. And, people usually don't come back and post when their great ideas don't work out so well.

The fact is, it would be very hard to make a successful temporary repair in the power cord on an electric pool vac. A full cord replacement is likely the only durable repair.

[kelemvor]

Not to mention that a mistake which compromises the insulation here could be deadly.

[TomC]

Hi JCASR,

When the aquabot stops moving, does it still pump water? If it does, take it out of the water, turn it over so that you can view the drive gears, turn it on for a second or two, just long enough to see if the drive gears are turning. If they are turning, then you just need to replace the drive belts. There are two of them, they are amber in color and cost about 20 bucks. This is an easy repair and is part of the routine maintenance an aquabot requires.

If the pump motor is not working, then it is not a drive belt issue. The most likely place for the cord to go bad is where it plugs into the power supply. With the aquabot in shallow water close to you, jiggle the plug where it is attached to the power supply and see if you can recreate the intermittent problem. If you can, then you need to replace that plug connector. A shop will charge you about 75 bucks for this repair.

Good Luck,

Tom

[JCASR]

First, thanks to all that replied. Yes, I was hoping for a good, quick (and inexpensive) fix, but your points are all totally valid. Per Tom's suggestion, will take a look to see if the issue is at the plug connector and if not, will go with replacing with a new cord.

Thanks again for your input!
Joe