FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
The following questions confront almost all new pool and spa owners. But furthermore, there are some questions that many long-time pool owners still don’t know the clear answer for. Hence we have written these FAQs to help you get the most out of your pool, with certainty.
How can we help you?
A pool cleaner has no definite life span. If it is looked after well it can last up to 15 years. A Zodiac Pool Cleaner is made of top-quality material, however, it works in an incredibly harsh environment! Keeping your pool chemistry correct is the best way to ensure your product lasts as long as possible.
Check if any debris is stuck in the diaphragm, hose, or weir basket. Place your hand at the last hose outlet and ensure you can feel a strong suction. Check hoses for leaks and splits.
This is caused by your suction being too high. Reduce the setting on your Zodiac Auto Weir Valve to setting 2(Medium) or Setting 1(Low).
This means your suction is not high enough. First, try changing the setting on your Zodiac Auto Weir Valve to setting 2(Medium) or setting 3(High). If the pool cleaner continues to only cover the floor, check your filtration system is working correctly and does not have a leak. A leak is evident if you have bubbles coming out of your return flow/aim flow or if the water level drops in your weir when you plug the pool cleaner in. Speak to a pool specialist if this is the case.
Change the order of hose lengths around. For example, move the first hose to the middle of your line of hoses and vise versa. Aim any return lines/aim flows downward to point at the pool floor. Confirm the correct amount of hoses are being used (refer to instruction manual) and if need be add an extra length or two. Please ensure you use a genuine Zodiac pool hose for optimal coverage. If the above steps do not assist, try adding your 1.2m hose lengths to a warm bath of water for a few minutes. This should help relax the memory they have developed.
All suction pool cleaners move backward as they follow the hoses. The Zodiac MX8 is different as it uses its own drive system to move in any direction. Remember the direction your pool cleaner travels when you purchase spare parts as what you may think is the front of the machine will actually be the back and vise versa.
The diaphragm is the “engine” of your Zodiac disc-based cleaner. If this is stretched or torn, the cleaner will not move. MX8 uses its own mechanical drive system to move. There are 3 types of diaphragms that will suite your machine depending on the model. Check the Technical Sheet on your product page to identify which diaphragm you require or speak to a pool professional.
No, the unit is easy to dismantle with not many moving parts, therefore chances of breaking any part are almost none unless you obviously use an extreme force. Remember the plastic is made from an incredibly durable material.
We strongly advise against this. Please remember non-Zodiac branded products use a lower grade of material to cut costs. This often means more maintenance on your behalf when the part does last as long. If a Zodiac product uses a generic part, your warranty will immediately be void.
Air bubbles should not continuously stream out of your return line/aim flow. If this happens you may have a suction leak in your filtration system. Speak to your pool specialist about advice on getting it fixed.
The hose which connects to your disc-based cleaner has buoyancy which sometimes causes your pool cleaner to lift at the front (Remember which side is the front of your pool cleaner). You should receive a C-Clip hose weight with your pool cleaner which will assist you in getting the balance 100% correct. Refer to any disc-based pool cleaner instruction manual to see how this should be adjusted. If this doesn’t help, check the float and weight in your pool cleaner are still intact. i.e The float should not be filled with water and the weight should not have fallen out.
During Summer it is best to run your filtration system for 12 hours per day and in Winter 8 hours per day. In order to receive optimal coverage on your Pool Cleaner, it is ideal to run 2 or 3 separate cycles per day.
You are welcome to call our Customer Care Line (0860 887 665) weekdays 8 am – 5 pm and Saturdays 9 am – 2 pm (during Summer only), and one of our customer care agents will try to help you as much as possible over the phone. If this does not help and your cleaner is still under warranty, a Zodiac Technician will be booked to come out to your premises in the first year only. If your warranty has expired, the customer care agent can advise you on who in your area will be able to assist you.
Pool Chemistry is a key element to ensuring your pool cleaner lasts as long as possible. Refer to any Zodiac Pool Cleaner instruction manual to understand what is best practice. It is advisable to disconnect the cleaner from the weir before cleaning or backwashing the pool filter. Remove the cleaner from the pool before chemical or shock treatments. Wait at least 4 hours after super chlorination before re-installing. Remember to keep your weir basket, pump basket clear of debris when operating for optimal performance.
Warranties on all Zodiac Pool Cleaners are a “2 Year Manufacturing Defects Warranty”. This obviously does not cover things like general wear and tear or discolouration. Hose warranties are 2 years.
Most cases of corrosion can be explained more by an incorrect water balance than by the presence of salt. Stainless steel is better adapted to resist salt. 3.16 steel is not damaged by salt, 3.04 steel which was used in the past will be damaged over time. Galvanised steel is strongly affected by salt. If corrosion appears in one year it can be explained by a water balance problem, not by the presence of salt alone.
Salt for swimming pools is readily available in 25kg bags and should contain coarse food grade salt. Iodised salt is not recommended as it could cause staining.
No. A pool treated by salt water chlorination is a chlorinated pool in which the chlorine is produced automatically. The salt, under the effect of electrolysis, is transformed into sodium hypochlorite, a powerful disinfectant. The pool water does however still need to be maintained and kept in balance.
Chlorine: 1 to 3 ppm pH: between 7.0 and 7.6 ACL 8" to 15" (80 to – 150 ppm) Stabiliser: threshold not to exceed = 75 ppm
Obtain a chlorine level of 8 to 10 ppm and maintain for 3 days. Operate the filtering for 3 days
Sometimes referred to as self cleaning or more accurately as a low maintenance system, the cell electrodes will change the direction of the current regularly, usually every 5 hours, in order to eliminate the layers of scale that deposit on the electrode plates. This action maintains the cell. For very hard water some chlorinators can shorten the polarity inversion time (e.g. 2.5 hours instead of 5 hours) so that the electrodes are cleaned more often. Warning: shortening the polarity inversion time can wear the electrodes more than is considered normal. This is why changing this parameter is reserved for the pool professional. In hard water areas even reverse polarity chlorinators will benefit from manual cleaning.
The chlorinator "low salt" warning light will indicate when the salinity is too low. A routine adding of salt every two to three months is however advisable, particularly during high rainfall periods.
Put the salt directly into the pool and never in the weir. The entire bag is simply placed in the pool. The bag will float to the surface when all the salt has dissolved.
Please contact your usual reseller directly, he has the technical details needed to answer your question.
Either the pH is too high or there is too much stabiliser: -Adjust the pH to between 7.2 and 7.4 -Check that the electrodes are clean -Check the level of stabiliser (cyanuric acid)
The chlorine level is too low: -Super chlorinate or shock chlorinate the pool.
There is not enough free chlorine present in the pool: -Super chlorinate or shock chlorinate the pool.
The pH level is wrong or there are chloramines in the water: -adjust the pH to between 7.2 and 7.4 -shock chlorinate if there is no improvement
The pH is wrong and the the water is hard or the total base level is too high: -adjust the pH to between 7.2 and 7.4 – or lower the hardness level (10 to 30 °fi)
All Zodiac Salt Water Chlorinators are covered by a 3 year manufucaturing defects warranty. Please note that the first year is unconditional and a technician will come out to your premises for any repairs. In your secound and third year, you will need to take your unit into your pool specialist / installer and our technicians will repair the product there.
No. Our Heat Pumps have a digital control thermostat, which allows you to set the exact pool temperature required. It also has a flow switch that allows the heat pump to start and stop according to the filtration cycle.
No, it is perfectly possible to heat an “open air” pool without a cover or a shelter. The power to be supplied will however be slightly greater as if you were heating a house with the windows open! This is why we recommend the use of an insulating cover to limit heat loss to the air when the pool is being heated, in order to reduce the power needed and the running costs.
For the last 20 years, Zodiac has been using a patented technology associating polyamides and titanium, both of which are totally free from the effects corrosion. Today over 120 000 appliances have been installed without any corrosion defects.
Call your installer or qualified pool specialist. Your circuit-breaker, cable supply or voltage may be incorrect
The Powerfirst range uses the best quality materials. The range also offers the best COP and a 3 year manufacturing defects warranty.
Check the power supply. Check unit is switched on. Check ambient/outside temperature is above 5 degrees. Check water flow rate. Check the difference between the target temperature and current water temperature.
Pools have many unique variables. For example size, position, altitude, whether or not you use a solar cover and how many water features you may have. We therefore suggest you contact our customer care team to get an accurate measurement of the heat pump size you require.
COP stands for Coefficient of performance and indicates the energy efficiency of the heat pump.
A Heat Line is a multi-tube exchanger whereas a Uranus is a plate exchanger. The Heat Line is perfectly adapted to pool heating due to its easy in-line assembly. Uranus is a modular industry product, available with high power and which can be adapted to low temperature primary circuits of the geothermal type.
Provided your installation is completed by a qualified pool professional, the warranty is 2 year manufacturing defects on the POWER range, 3 years manufacturing defects on the Powerfirst range and a life time warranty on the condensor in both units.
Please contact your usual installer or reseller directly, he has the technical details needed to answer your question.
Via an electronic control module the Flo Pro ePump can run at different speeds which in turn results in different performance.
The principle is the same, but beware of certain pumps on the market which claim to be variable speed, but have only three specific speeds at which they can run. These are not true variable speed.
By running at lower speeds, when the higher speed is not required, the FloPro ePump uses less energy and so saves on electricity consumption.
Absolutely, as it reduces energy consumption. The technology utilised in the FloPro ePump make it the greenest pool pump on the market today.
If your FloPro pump runs dry it can do damage to the internals of the pump. Under normal operation it should never lose prime and run dry, but if you have a leak in your pools plumbing this could happen. The pump should be primed before running it again.
Unfortunately the time and programmes will be lost and so will need to be reprogrammed.
This is to help protect against pump damage, the controller monitors the temperature inside the pump. If enabled, pump freeze protect will start the pump when the temperature approaches freezing
The FloPro range is covered by a 3 year manufacturing defects warranty (2 years on the mechanical seal)