My Dolphin: Now I'm getting rid of it

[The Pool Newbie]

Wow...I had the EXACT problem... Use to have a Dynamic...This time I bought a diagnostic because I never used the remote control anyway... First few times I started it, it would climb and clean, then back up the other side and then back and forth about 12-15 ft and that was it... I called Smartpool and got a nice tech that asked me to start it in a different section of the pool... The software maps your pool each time it is turned on... If it thinks it is 10 x 10 that is all it will do I guess... So I started it in my shallow end pointed long ways versus in the deep in... Like a charm... From that point on I drop it in at night and in the morning... Clean pool! I was really worried at first though... They should put something in the manual regarding this...

Scott

Now I am ROYALLY ticked off!

The Dolphin was returned yesterday from SmartPool where they allegedly found NOTHING wrong.

I guess they didn't look, or they have a 9'x9' pool. That's because in the first few minutes my Dolphin went to a couple of walls, climbed one, didn't climb the others, then went to the deep end hopper. This is a flat-bottomed rectangular area about 10.5'x14' that is 5.5' deep. It has ramps on all 4 sides.

The Dolphin then proceeded to patrol a 9'x7' box for the next 8 hours. It would go to the base of one ramp, then go back across, stop in the MIDDLE of the flat, and return.

All d*** night. I started it at 8:30, checked it at 11, at 1:35 (don't ask), 2:10 (ditto) and at 6:30, when it had stopped--guess where.

I guess Dolphin can now be counted as another take-your-money-and-run company. Put it with HTH, BioGard and Nature2. I can kiss $1250.-- good--bye. Like one of those cartoons of a bill with wings on it.

I will call them again today, and I will try to escalate it, but I can see I'm going to get nowhere. It's clear they have no intention of diagnosing or fixing it, but intend to use the "Bigger Sucker Theorem".

The "Bigger Sucker Theorem" is this: There's always another and a bigger sucker around the next corner so don't worry about the repercussions from the one you just conned.

The remedy is this:

In my PERSONAL and HUMBLE opinion, buying any Dolphin product is A MISTAKE! I will NEVER buy any Dolphin or SmartPool product again. I will NEVER recommend and Dolphin or SmartPool product again. I APOLOGIZE to anyone who bought a Dolphin product on my say-so. I say to anyone who is considering buying a Dolphin,
DON'T--BUY SOMETHING ELSE INSTEAD!

If you have a Dolphin and still have a window in which to return it, it is my opinion that you should try.

That is my personal opinion. It is not the policy of this forum and it is not opinion of this forum. It is not the opinion of the administration or of the other moderators. It is solely my own personal opinion and reflects my own experience and exasperation.

If, somehow, magically, against all logic, they reverse this and actually fix it, I will let you know. Even so, they will have STILL made me ship it to them twice and put me through all this nonsense.

Meantime, I still have my Polaris 165 and PoolBuster to take care of cleaning duties. Both those have given me trouble in the past, but in both cases, THOSE companies responded as I would expect and hope, and both units now function perfectly--without any run-around.

Carl

[JohnT]

I called Smartpool and got a nice tech that asked me to start it in a different section of the pool... The software maps your pool each time it is turned on... If it thinks it is 10 x 10 that is all it will do I guess... So I started it in my shallow end pointed long ways versus in the deep in... Like a charm... From that point on I drop it in at night and in the morning... Clean pool! I was really worried at first though... They should put something in the manual regarding this...

Scott

Scott, that is an interesting point. How does the cleaner know how big the pool is? Does it use a sound pulse to determine the dimensions? A problem with the size detection would cause a lot of issues, and would explain why cycling the power helps in some cases. I've never used one, but I've been following this thread, because a robot is at the top of my wish list.

[JohnT]

Went to Maytronics' website and found this thing: , which is a diagnostic tester for the unit. Makes me wonder if Carl's unit was just plugged in on the bench to see if it passed this test. Carl, did they tell you it was pool tested?

[brent.roberts]

Scott, that is an interesting point. How does the cleaner know how big the pool is? Does it use a sound pulse to determine the dimensions? A problem with the size detection would cause a lot of issues, and would explain why cycling the power helps in some cases. I've never used one, but I've been following this thread, because a robot is at the top of my wish list.

I "think" it has a level detection switch the tilts when it hits a wall and that causes a reverse and it times itself till it tilts on the other wall. After it sort of figures out that there is a long and short run to the pool, it "knows" how big it is. Not brilliant. The pattern is not efficient or it would finish the job faster ...
but with all our *****ing, I still have not tried my nice new Rainbow vac head that I just got from Poolsolutions. Not the old one either since I got the Dolphin.
It does work for me, in my pool, if I stand on my left foot, push the start button with my right pinky, and whistle yankee doodle. Your mileage may vary.