Installing a Polaris 280 is fairly straight forward, with a little patience, you will have a clean swimming pool. Before you even purchase this cleaner, you need to make sure that your swimming pool is set up to accept it. There are a few things that you will need. The most important is a dedicated pressure line which must already be installed. The other parts required will be a timer, electrical, and a booster pump.
Inside the box you will find the cleaner, hose and fittings, bag, instructions and warranty card. There is a fitting at the end of the hose, this attaches to the side of your swimming pool. It is 2 pieces, one is threaded and the other has a quick disconnect with pressure relief valve. Separate the 2 and thread the cuff into the wall until snug, don’t tighten too much or you will crack the fitting inside the pool wall which is a big problem, now push in and turn the quick disconnect valve into the wall cuff.
Now you will need to adjust the length of the hose to properly fit your pool. If it is too short, the cleaner cannot reach the entire pool, if the hose is too long it can tangle up much easier. To determine the length needed, put the Polaris 280 pool cleaner in the pool at the furthest point away from the wall fitting. If you have enough extra length, you can simply remove a hose section and swivel joint and keep for spare parts. If you need to cut some length off, split it up evenly between the hose sections, don’t just remove from one section unless it is just a small amount, also be sure not to cut off too much. If you need extra length you will have to purchase another section and swivel joint. Once you have determined the correct hose length you need to attach it to the pool cleaner. Place the hose nut onto the stem with the threads facing the hose, then push hose onto stem and screw nut on, the nuts are left hand thread.
Now that the pool cleaner is ready, turn both pumps on and let it run for a few minutes. You want the wheel speed to be approximately 30 RPM (Revolutions Per Minute) for optimum performance. The speed is adjusted by the pressure valve at the pool wall. To slow the speed down, unscrew the pressure cap until desired speed is achieved. To increase the pressure, screw in the cap, if this is still not enough, remove the restrictor plate from the wall cuff to increase water flow.
After you have set the proper wheel speed, it is time to adjust the settings. The normal operation of the Polaris 280 is forward motion for a few minutes then it reverses for around thirty seconds, it does this so that the pool cleaner does not get stuck. Adjust the hose floats evenly so that the hose stays at the top of the pool surface and one next to the backup valve. There is a thrust jet at the rear which can be adjusted to change the cleaning pattern; this is something you have to go by trial and error. Set the timer so that it starts at least 15 minutes after main pump and the duration for however long it takes to completely cover the bottom pool surface. Now all you have to do is sit back, relax and enjoy you swimming pool.