Question on suction vs pressure pool cleaners

[waterbear]

With a suction system, like the Polaris 165, if I understand correctly I'd still have to monitor and clean out the pump basket regularly. With a pressure side cleaner like the 360, I'd have to check on the bag at the robot end, plus I'm not sure how well it would suck up algae since it wouldn't be filtered through the sand filter I have (I noticed with my manual vac, it does a decent job at removing algae).

Any thoughts? Suggestions?

Both the 165 and the 360 are boosterless presssure side cleaners. The 360 can climb walls, the 165 can't. The ONLY suction side cleaner that Zodiac makes under the Polaris brand is the ATV. Most of their suction side cleaners are under the Zodiac Barracuda brand. (Zodiac owns Polaris).

Pressure side cleaners generally can handle more stuff in the pool then suction side and put less strain on the filter since they have their own filtering. However, with a sand filter that could be a moot point since backwashing is so easy (UNLESS you get a lot of large debris in the pool like twigs and leaves, then you either have to use a "leaf catcher" canister in line with the cleaner. This are a pain to emply all the time since all the ones on the market have a very small capacity. If this is your pool you are better off going suction side or robotic.) They also act as a moving 'return" that travels around the pool so they help mix chemicals and eliminate filtration 'dead spots' much better than suction side cleaners. Both suction and pressure side cleaners really perform best with a dedicated cleaner line (which can be switched from suction to pressure or vice versa with just a bit of re-plumbing at the pump. If you do not have a dedicated line then, IMHO, a pressure side cleaner is the winner since you do not lose skimmer function while the cleaner is running like you do with a suction side cleaner plugged into the skimmer vacuum port.

There are automatic valves available (around $100 or so) to allow the skimmer to function while the cleaner is running but in my experience with them they are tricky to set up at best.

the Poolbuster is really a spot cleaning tool. NO cleaner is going to get rid of live algae. You need to kill the algae first and either filter it out (slow) or floc and vacuum to waste (much faster but more work).

As Janet said, it's better to keep your water up so you don't get algae in the first place. It's really MUCH easier to do.

Hope this helps!