Africa Invented Pool Cleaners
Many suburban homes and complexes in Africa have swimming pools. This was even more true years ago. The combination of large gardens, hot summers and a low crime rate in the ‘burbs meant that a lot of entertaining took place outdoors. No wonder Africa invented pool cleaners!
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Lapas, braai areas and swimming pools were as common as the shady leaf shedding trees that they were built beneath. A pool that was sparkling clean became a matter of personal pride, much like a neatly clipped lawn.
Given these facts, it is quite easy to understand why Africa invented pool cleaners and why the rest of the world readily imported them.
A brief history of when Africa invented pool cleaners
1971/2 was the start of things. John Raubenheimer got the idea to mechanise the cleaning of swimming pools. His work produced The Pool Bug Automatic Pool Cleaner
1974 was the year that the Kreepy Krawly hit the market. Ferdinand Chauvier, a 1951 immigrant to SA from the then Belgian Congo was responsible for this pool cleaner that became a household name throughout the world. The Kreepy Krawly was very successful & highly viable, using the pool’s own pump to power the device. Later, the licence to make & sell this iconic pool cleaner was sold to an American company
1975 saw Helga Schmeider invent the Pool Ranger, another pool cleaning machine.
1980 heralded heydays of big business. A court patent battle was resolved between Kreep Krauly & Baracuda
1995 brought another option to the market. HP Spradbury and GW Sutton of Johannesburg designed Poolskim. This device skimmed floating debris from the surface of the pool water
1997 introduced the invention by Gustav Lutz, Maynard La Codi and Bennie de Lange of Jo’burg. The PoolCop Automated Pool Management System entered the market.
2002 was the year of the Baracuda Pool Cleaner invented by Henk Van Der Meijde, Michael Moore, Peter Harrison, Paul Lambourn, Alexis Wadman and William Blake of Halfway House, Gauteng. Our model was lazy, & was often found sitting on the pool steps! Later models were more efficient.
There have been many improvements and refinements since then, but South Africa was instrumental in making pool cleaners the everyday necessity that they are today. These machines caught on quickly especially in the USA, and were readily accepted and welcomed by pool owners worldwide.
Reference source
http://mg.co.za/article/1994-09-16-cleaning-up-the-pool-business
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