Aiper EcoSurfer S2 review: Mostly hands-off pool cleaning that works

Best Prices Today: Aiper EcoSurfer S2

Roving pool surface skimmers are a surprisingly consistent category in the aquatic robotics space, typically featuring solar-powered, fully autonomous operation that you can drop in the pool and forget about for weeks.

With its EcoSurfer S2, Aiper refreshes its skimmer design, boosts battery life, and improves intelligence. And while most pool owners can probably get by without a surface skimmer, it’s a strong candidate for purchase if the surface of your pool is prone to collecting a lot of floating debris.

Most users will almost never have to resort to manually charging the EcoSurfer once it’s in the water.

Aiper EcoSurfer S2: Specifications

Like most skimmers, the EcoSurfer S2 is a simple device. The 13-pound robot is powered by two rear-mounted propellers, recessed into the chassis in a way that evokes the look of a tiny jet engine. Compared to many other skimmers on the market, the overall design is quite modern and fetching.

Two small horizontal wheels on the front of the skimmer are passive and are used to help redirect the robot when it encounters a wall or other obstacle. There are also two ultrasonic sensors on the front of the robot that help the EcoSurfer slow and turn when it approaches a wall.

The EcoSurfer S2 collects all its debris in a basket that is accessed through the front of the robot. This basket is sealed with a fine mesh filter on the bottom, preventing very small bits of debris from escaping. It’s a thoughtful feature, but less important on a skimmer than on a standard pool robot because very fine debris tends to sink to the bottom of the pool quickly. The debris basket also includes an optional compartment for a chlorine tablet, if you prefer to dispense chlorine from a floating device instead of your pump.

The 5200mAh battery on the EcoSurfer S2 is only half the capacity of that on the Beatbot iSkim Ultra, but Aiper still says it will provide over 30 hours of sustained operation on a full charge — provided either by the 24-watt solar panel or the included A/C adapter.

Tiny anti-stranding bars can be extended from the bottom of the robot if you find it prone to getting stuck on shallow ledges. As well, a small piece of foam is included in the box that can be used to partially block wall skimmer portals if the robot wanders into them.

Aiper EcoSurfer S2: Installation and setup

Aiper recommends initially charging the EcoSurfer via an A/C outlet, which takes about six hours for a full charge. You can also just leave the unit in sunlight for a bit; the device doesn’t need a full charge to get started.

You may however want to charge it inside after unboxing to help with app setup. The unit supports both Bluetooth and 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connections, and the onboarding process took only a few minutes to complete, followed by a quick firmware update — the primary reason you’ll need Wi-Fi for the device.

Aiper EcoSurfer S2: Performance

In the pool, the EcoSurfer S2 got right to work puttering around in search of debris. Actually, it doesn’t so much search for debris as it does encounter it semi-randomly: The EcoSurfer’s sensors aren’t cameras, so it can’t tell when there are leaves directly in front of it.

To test its effectiveness, I covered the surface of my pool with synthetic leaves and let a fully-charged EcoSurfer S2 get to work. Results were quite good. After about 3.5 hours, the pool surface was clean of debris. About 80 percent of that had been consumed by the robot, with the remainder largely sunk to the floor, and with a couple of leaves stuck to the tile on the waterline. That’s a good result, though the robot isn’t particularly fast about getting there, and tests with heavier debris would likely be less impressive, as larger items would be more likely to sink before the robot encounters them.

A lot of this is due to the EcoSurfer’s rather slow operating speed, though that may not actually be a wholly bad thing, because faster robots often create a wake that inadvertently pushes debris in front of them out of the way before it can be collected. On the other hand, slow movement also means it takes longer to clean the pool.

In general, the EcoSurfer was mostly effective at avoiding hard wall collisions thanks to its front-mounted sensors. Aiper’s battery life claims held up well, too. Even throughout weeks of rain and overcast weather, the EcoSurfer never quit running on a 10-hour-a-day schedule.

I also ran it nonstop for 24 hours, including overnight, and it only lost about 25 percent of battery. That suggests that while the EcoSurfer may shut down for part of the night, it should be able to operate for most of each day indefinitely. While the solar recharging system means there’s no easy way to provide a canonical battery life metric, it’s safe to say that most users will almost never have to resort to manually charging the EcoSurfer once it’s in the water.

Still, you’ll have to clean it periodically.

I did find that the EcoSurfer S2 could get bogged down once its basket approached capacity. Notably, when it was getting full of leaves, the robot was prone to getting stuck near the wall skimmer portals due to the current they create. I found no great solution for this except to use these moments to remind myself to clean the basket. (The app doesn’t tell you when it’s full, but it does send push notifications if the robot gets stuck.) Cleaning the basket is easy enough with a hose, but taking it out of the robot is surprisingly hard, as it fits tightly in the chassis.

Speaking of the app, it’s a simple affair that lets you manually start and stop the robot, a robust scheduling system if you don’t want it running 24/7, and a remote control menu that was surprisingly responsive in my testing. All operating time is logged in Aiper’s app, too, in case you’re curious about the unit’s longevity.

Aiper EcoSurfer S2: Conclusion

With a sale price of $360, the EcoSurfer S2 is a solid bargain compared to the Beatbot iSkim Ultra (now just $649, down from its $1,499 launch price). It may not be as speedy or powerful, but it’s effective in day-to-day cleaning and its epic battery life only seals the deal further.