Wanda the Pool Cleaning Whale

by Felicia A. Williams

I received Wanda the Whale and I’ve got to tell you, it’s one of the best pool-related purchases I’ve ever made. Actually it’s the second best right behind my Hayward DE pool filter. Wanda When I received the box I realized that Wanda was manufactured by Hayward. Once I saw the brand name I expected nothing but good things.

Setting up the Vacuum

I think it took about 15 minutes to get the whole thing up and running. About 5 minutes to review the directions and the other 10 minutes to get the whale going. Set up involved sticking the whale in the water and attaching the hoses from the whale to the skimmer. Well, it involved a little more than that. You see the hoses that connect the whale to the skimmer come in sections. There are 10 or so sections that get inserted one inside of the other until the hose is the correct length for the pool (diameter plus 3 hose sections). Hayward provides 32 feet of hose.

On the last hose, I inserted the cone shaped attachment which fits into the skimmer. Cone

Take the lid off of the skimmer, remove the skimmer basket and plug the cone shaped end into the hole at the bottom of the skimmer. Skimmer Hose

Removing the Air

What I liked best about the setup is Hayward makes it easy to remove the air from the hose line. Anyone who has ever manually vacuumed a pool knows how much of a pain in the neck it is to remove the air from the hose line. Air in the hose line disrupts the vacuum environment in the pool filter. When that happens, the pool filter starts acting funky. To get the air out you have to turn off the pool filter, open the filter housing air valve, ensure there is no more air in the hose line, check that there’s water in the pool pump basket and then turn the filter back on. Once things are running properly, you can get back to vacuuming (remember to close the air valve). Since Wanda the Whale’s hose comes in sections, it’s easy to make sure all the air is out of the hose line. If you suspect air along the hose line, take that section apart and submerge it under water until the air is out. Once you've checked the hose for air all that is left to do is turn on the filter and let Wanda do her job.

Set It and Forget It

When the filter was running properly, Wanda suctions all of the leaves and debris from the bottom of the pool. I do make it a habit of checking periodically to make sure everything is running smoothly. Wanda at Work

Once when I checked on Wanda, it looked like someone was dragging her from the top of her head and her rear end wasn't suctioning the bottom of the pool. Somehow Wanda turned onto her side and the hose was pretty much dragging her around. The fact that a frog jumped into the pool and onto hose may or may not have had something to do with it. Once I removed the frog and set Wanda right side up, I had no further problems.

Check Vacuuming Off of the To Do List

Now that I have Wanda the Whale, vacuuming the pool is no longer a hassle. I used to try to only vacuum the pool once a week because I just hated standing out there with my long pole vacuuming back in forth. Now I can set Wanda up in 10 minutes or so and allow her to do the job. Once the job is done, I pull her out of the pool, dismantle the hose put her away and go on about my business. My pool floor has never been so clean. Wanda has significantly reduced my pool maintenance chores. For that, she has a special place in my heart.

About the Author: Felicia Williams is a wife, mother and grandmother who likes to write about a host of topics.

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Last Modified: 24 March 2020