Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus Review - Buy? Or Avoid?

Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus Review - Buy? Or Avoid?

The Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus are more budget-friendly robotic pool cleaners than many models available on the market today. But, despite the lower price point, you may be wondering: are these machines worth investing in, or should I avoid them?

In this article we’ll talk about some positives and negatives of the Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus.

We’ll compare their cleaning performance, design, build quality, and included warranty coverage to other cleaners in order to help you decide if these models make the right choice for your pool.

Pros & Cons

Design

The Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus are full-sized robotic pool cleaners weighing approximately 9 kilograms when empty.

At this weight, some pool owners will struggle to lift this machine into and out of the pool, especially once it is full of water.

The Captura Plus cleaner comes with a caddy included. These machines have a cord length of 15 metres and are for pools no larger than 10 x 5 metres in area.

This machine has a diverse colour scheme, consisting of teal and grey components with bright orange and white accents on the top of the machine.

Designed for both inground and above ground pools, the Baracuda Captura units are compatible with most types of pool lining, except for tile. If you have a tiled pool, you will want to purchase the brushes that make this machine compatible with tile pools specifically.

Cleaning Performance

The Baracuda Captura cleaners come equipped with a filter rated for 200 microns, which is best suited for large to mid-sized debris. You are also able to purchase an extra filter with finer porosity mesh panels rated at 100 microns.

While this additional filter makes your cleaner better suited for dirt, dust, and sand, this filter upgrade can reduce the suction of your machine, so it may struggle to climb walls with this filter installed.

Most users of the Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus agree that the machine works great on large debris, specifically leaves and nuts from gum trees, which tend to be large and dense. This machine is capable of climbing walls and cleaning the waterline, but is unlikely to clean steps or ledges in your pool.

Some users report that the cleaner does manage to tackle these areas, however, since this is not an advertised capability of the machine we do not suggest that you count on the machine having this ability.

Power Specifications

The Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus consume 150 watts, giving their 2 hour cleaning cycle a total average power consumption of 300 watt hours.

This is somewhat more energy efficient compared to other models of machine that are the same size, but overall a fairly standard amount of power usage among similar machines.

Build Quality & Warranty

Problems

The biggest source of frustration for users of the Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus is that the machine has a haphazard cleaning pattern that does not seem to follow rhyme or reason.

This likely indicates issues with the machine’s mapping software, and is the reason why many owners who are happy with this machine run multiple cycles with it per day. It should be noted that running multiple cycles per day will decrease the lifespan of the machine.

Another issue with these models of robotic pool cleaner is that they tend to develop failures near the end of the warranty period.

Many users with machines of this age report that the machine suddenly stops working one day, and when they have issues diagnosed by a service professional, they are often faced with repair costs that are near the total cost of the original machine, which is a disappointment for many.

Warranty

The Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus come with a 2 year manufacturer warranty, which is fairly standard among most robotic pool cleaners regardless of brand.

You may want to read the fine print, as these warranties often make exclusions for parts that are considered ‘consumable’ (meaning Baracuda won’t cover to replace them)!

Many owners of this machine report major issues shortly after the end of the warranty period, which indicates that the build quality on these isn’t fantastic.

Price

The Baracuda Captura can be found at pool supply retailers for approximately $1,000.

Accordingly, the Captura Plus has a higher price point of around $1,300, which means you are paying $300 for the assembly-required caddy that is included with the Baracuda Captura Plus model.

Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus - FAQ

What’s The Difference Between The Baracuda Captura And Captura Plus?

The difference between the Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus models is that the Captura Plus comes with a caddy for easier transport and storage of the machine. This caddy requires assembly, and some users have reported that assembling the caddy can be fairly difficult.

Is Baracuda And Zodiac The Same?

Baracuda used to be an independent company, but their robotic pool cleaners are now made by the manufacturer Zodiac, who purchased the Baracuda business and subsequent product line from the original owners of the company in 1996.

Baracuda products are currently manufactured by Zodiac South Africa.

Final Thoughts - Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus Review

The Baracuda Captura & Captura Plus are decent machines for the price. Despite their downsides, if you are able to get one at a decent price, these machines still make a great alternative to manual vacuuming.

If you are able to increase your budget a bit, we suggest looking elsewhere (like the Dolphin S100), but if this is one of the only machines within your budget and you can accept the shortcomings, it makes a decent investment for the price.

Price Comparison - Baracuda Captura

Let's compare the top suppliers out there in Australia for the Baracuda Captura.