Pool Cleaner Blog

Aquabot X4: A High Tech Pool Cleaning Robot Companion

UPDATED: Nov 01, 2019.

There are any number of ways to clean a pool. The simplest is to drain the pool and climb in with some cleaning pads and supplies and just scrub it down. This wastes all the water that was in your pool and is going to take you quite a bit of time. It may be a consideration for the end of the season cleaning, but it is not the best way to maintain your pool, either above ground or in ground. So you’ll want to look at other methods.

Simply by running the filter and making sure your chemicals are in the proper alignment, you’ll be able to keep a pool in fairly clean condition. But if you don’t run the filter constantly you can still end up with some build up in your pool. There are a number of pool cleaning gadgets on the market that make taking care of your pool simpler, giving you more time to relax and enjoy your pool.

Types of Pool Cleaners

Overall pool cleaning devices can be broken down into four major categories. We’ll take a brief look at each of them here.

Hand Held Implements

The simplest and often least expensive option is the handheld. This can be the simple pool skimmer which can be used to pull leaves and the like out of a pool. You will also find in the category pool vacuums that attach to the pools filtration system and allow you to spot clean areas of the pool. While these save you money you are still using your time to clean the pool instead of enjoying it. This can become quite tiresome if you have a larger pool, especially one that has deeper areas in it.

Suction Side Pool Cleaners

One option to moving to a device that you can hook up and forget is the suction side pool cleaner style device. As you would gather from the name, this style uses the suction side of your pool’s pump to clean your pool. You hook the tubing it comes with to your pool’s filtration system and the cleaner will suck up various items, so ever those pieces that sink to the bottom of your pool will get pulled out without you having to scoop them up.

These devices generally don’t have a lot of moving parts, so there isn’t much that will break on them. This also makes them available at lower costs than some other options. You are still relying on running your pool’s filter and asking it to do more than it normally does by adding this other thing onto it.

Pressure Side Pool Cleaners

This device works on the opposite side of your pool’s filter. The water that is being pumped through the filter and returning to the pool is what drives it to move about the pool cleaning things up. The downside of this approach is that depending on how much power that water has you may have to run an additional pump to get the water at enough velocity to keep the cleaner moving. A plus for this model is that it doesn’t use the pool’s filter to clean things out, it has its own filter bag.

Robotic Pool Cleaner

The last major group is robotic. This type of cleaner is the most expensive, however, it may save you in the long run. Since it is self-contained there is no need to run the pool’s filter to have the device clean the pool. Additionally, some models will not only clean the floor but can take on steps as well. These are simple to set up, often times merely plug and play is all that is required. One note though is that you will need to clean out the robot’s filter from time to time with the debris that it has collected.

The Aquabot X4

Product Specifications

  • Max Pool Size: 60 Ft.
  • Pool Type: Above Ground or In Ground.
  • Cleaner Type: Cleaner Type.
  • Power: 120V Plug In.
  • Warranty: 3 Years.
  • Weight: 35 Pounds.

After looking at the different types of pool cleaner, the natural choice is to go with the robotic style of cleaner to keep that beautiful pool of yours in top shape. While there are less expensive styles of cleaner out there, you have to factor in the additional strain that they are putting on your filtration system.

The Aquabot X4 doesn’t come in in the same category as some of the highest end pool cleaners which can find their price going into the four digit range. At the same time, it isn’t priced to compete with the low-end entry models. This robot is a mid-range offering with a corresponding price tag. It might lack some of the high-end features, but it is a solid unit that will perform well in cleaning any pool that is 60 foot or smaller.

This little robot is packed with features that will keep your pool crystal clear. For starters, the device has two filtration baskets that can collect up to 190 cubic inches of dirt, gunk, and debris. This means that you will be able to let the Aquabot go for quite a while and let it clean your pool without having to empty it out.

And don’t worry about it only getting the biggest stuff, it has been designed remove debris and algae all the way down to 2 microns large. Nothing will get past this robotic defender of your pool. It also sports an alarm to let you know when it is full and needs to be emptied.

While the device does a good job with sticks, leaves, and algae, at times it has trouble picking up some dirt and sand. This cleaner only sports a single brush system for pushing material into the intake. Often times a dual brush system provides a much higher level of cleaning.

Some pool cleaners have a hard time getting into certain areas of the pool to keep them clean. This is not a concern when you select the X4. The wheels are designed to grip any surface, though you might need to swap to a different wheel kit for tile and fiberglass, and with four-wheel drive, it can go anywhere. The cleaner has been designed to take the 90-degree turn to go from cleaning the floor to the climbing up the wall.

The result is that ever surface under the waterline will be on the robot’s cleaning list. You won’t have to worry about wiping the walls so your cleaner can suck up gunk off the floor. An important feature to consider when looking at all this maneuvering is the cable itself. Sometimes you will find that the cable gets tangled, but with its swivel mount that is not the case here.

When you compare the energy used by this device with others, you will find that that the Aquabot uses less. It requires about 15 times less power than comparable cleaners. This will save you money in the long run while using it.

The robot is also flexible in when you want it to run. You can program not only the length of the cleaning cycle but also how frequently it runs. You can pick if it should clean every two days or wait for a full 4 days between cleaning sessions.

This lets you save some money by changing the frequency of cleaning with the season and the amount of use that the pool sees. It also means that you don’t need to worry about when the last time you cleaned the pool or if you remembered to turn on the cleaner and then remember to turn it back off. You are free to let the robot worry about cleaning and sit back and enjoy your pool.

Pros:

  • Cleans all the way to the water line
  • Allows for programming cleaning times
  • Alert for when the baskets are full
  • Holds 190 cubic inches of debris

Cons:

  • No Remote
  • Trouble with sand and dirt
  • Only certain programmable choices available

Wrapping it Up

Overall you will find the Aquabot X4 to be a high-quality middle of the road robotic pool cleaner. It will offer you solid performance and with a three-year warranty should provide years of service to you. While it does have a few areas that it could be improved upon, at this price point you will have a hard time finding a better performing unit.

We’d love to hear from you as well. If you have experience with this cleaner please tell us what you think in the comment section below.