Monday, December 9, 2013

Review of the NEW Kreepy Krauly by Pentair


The all NEW Kreepy Krauly by Pentair (360040)
I will be the first to admit that I never thought Pentair would get around to updating their Kreepy Krauly cleaner. It looked outdated and kinda "old school" but worked like a beast so you could overlook the fact that it would never win a beauty contest, kind of "a cleaner only a Mother could love."

So I was a bit shocked when I saw the NEW Kreepy Krauly at my pool supply store. The redesign is so striking that if the box didn't say "New Kreepy Krauly" I wouldn't have recognized it. So let me go over in detail all the  great improvements Pentair has made on a cleaner that was already excellent.

UPDATED PLASTIC BODY: 10 out of 10 
The first thing you will notice is the plastic used is much stronger and durable. Other manufacturers have been using this plastic for a few years and I can vouch for it. It is very durable, chemical resistant and strong. The Kreepy Krauly already was a cleaner that would last forever so now when this one gets old you can pass it along to your Grand Kids. I give the updated plastic body a perfect 10.

NEW ADJUSTABLE DIVE FLOAT: 10 out of 10
Redesigned Dive Float
If you have a Kreepy Krauly you know that these cleaners work so well that they often will come out of the pool at the tile line and often get hung up on the canister or the hose coming out of your side port. I would use the:
 Kreepy Krauly Wall Climb Adjuster K12065

in all my pools with this cleaner to keep it from getting hung up. The NEW Kreepy Krauly comes with an adjustable Dive Float so you can easily set it so it won't get too high in your pool. This is a great idea and one that should have been done years ago.

Tabs used to set the Dive Float

These two little taps that you see in the photo to the left can be turned to adjust the Dive Float. So a problem that plagued the cleaner for years is solved for you. The Dive Float itself has been redesigned and is made of stronger plastic.It looks much more durable than the old version which tended to break off the cleaner. Another 10 out of 10 for the new Dive Float design.
Still picks up large size debris
CLEANING ABILITY: 9 out of 10

Essentially nothing has changed in the design of the cleaners mouth. It still has the same size opening under the cleaner and under the wings - which have also been redesigned and are made out of slightly harder plastic also. It still uses the Flapper to pick up debris and if you are familiar with the Kreepy Krauly you know the Hammer is the only moving part and made of extremely durable hard rubber. The Kreepy will pick up huge size debris no problem. You can watch my video review here and see for yourself.

NEW Kreepy Krauly review: http://youtu.be/NOvs5v668Dk

I give it 9 out of 10 since the Hammer is still just as loud as the previous model which can be annoying to some customers. If this thing ran silent that would be perfect ...

ABILITY TO GET OUT OF CORNERS: 10 out of 10

New and Improved Bumper
The new Roller Bumper works great. The shape and the new beads that are used gets the cleaner out of corners and steps is an excellent design and a definite improvement over the old version.  If you watch the video I made listed above you will see it maneuver out of a very difficult set of stairs in a pool. I know that one of the drawbacks of these bouncing type cleaners is that they can get stuck on the step area of the pool. The new Bumper has been designed to maximize the Kreepy Krauly's ability to works it's way out of tough areas in your pool. I give the new Bumper 10 out of 10.

DURABILITY OF THE CLEANER PARTS: 9 out of 10
Foot Pad & Seal are two parts that wear out
One of the things you need to consider before you purchase any cleaner is how durable it is and how much the replacement parts cost. The Kreepy Krauly is an extremely durable cleaner with very long lasting parts. The only parts that wear out on a regular basis is the Foot Pad and the rubber Seal. The Foot Pad will last you one to two years depending on how ruff your pool surface is. The Seal should last you at least 2-3 years. The other parts are very durable and should last anywhere from 4-8 years at least. I took off one point because the cost of the replacement parts can be expensive but of course it is cheaper to replace parts over the years then to purchase a new cleaner. Parts durability 9 out of 10.

The NEW Kreepy Krauly (Model #360040): 9.5 out of 10

So if you own a Kreepy Krauly Classic and are thinking of upgrading to the New Kreepy Krauly I wouldn't hesitate. If you are thinking about purchasing a new cleaner I would recommend you research the available cleaners out there and see how they compare to the NEW Kreepy Krauly by Pentiar. I am pretty confident that you will end up purchasing this cleaner after doing your do diligence.