Any suggestions on keeping the kiddie pool from getting slimy? After a couple day's the bottom get's so slimy, but i hate to dump the water out? We do cover it after the kid's are done using it. My husband say's a cup of bleach might work? Would that be safe? He say's put it in the night before and it should be fine?
I should ad it is a pretty big kid pool. We keep it on our deck so we don't have to deal with the grass and dirt. Except for the slime it's pretty clean.I just was wondering if there was anything to put in the water so it doesn't get slimy as fast.
Thank you to everyone's response. I think i'll try the pool companys. I like that idea. I understand it makes sense to dump it out. It is a pretty big pool and the kid's love it. If i wen't any smaller, it wouldn't be fun for them. Even if i fill it in the morning, it's still pretty cold in the afternoon and then the kid's won't swim. As for the bleach, my husband only suggested it. If he thought it would harm the kid's he wouldn't brought it up. I quess some of his co-workers have suggested it. Again, thank you for your advice. God Bless.
Bleach!? So dangerous; Sorry, husband... I would NOT recommend putting bleach anywhere near Kids. Kids and Bleach should not even be in the same sentence together. It is a very unsafe and harmful chemical.
I would call a pool expert. Peterson Pools and Spas in Elk River are usually very helpful for us when we have pool questions.
No bleach. Very unsafe. If you need to put anything in the pool, I would suggest vinegar. It is a safe cleaning agent that is also eatable. If you do not mind the taste and smell. Otherwise you will have to dump it out and refill. That is what I do. Sucks though because the water is so cold with it being well water.
I wonder if vinegar would do the trick. I never tried it but I know
you can soak slimy/smelly wash rags in it and it does the trick.
And it may be safer than bleach.
I think I might try it myself.
I've experianced a few things in the last few summers..
Buy a good size pool but nothing to huge- you should add fresh water each day you use it, I've tried "saving" yesterday's water in hopes the next day I wouldn't have to add water again but it never worked. So if the pool isn't huge it won't drive you nuts to refill it everyday.
2nd I used a bleach spray once to scrub junk off our plastic pool and the bleach took off the clear plastic coating and the decorative "whales" on our pool are now distorted and I ruined the finish.
Every now and then when the pool needs a cleaning I fill up the pool with water and add dish soap. Lots and lots of bubbles and my daughter enjoys something differnet.
If your really wanting to have a pool ready each day without adding water your going to have to invest in a larger pool that requires a filter and chemicals to maintain the proper water. You can buy one these for like 50 bucks I think and you just take them down at the end of the season.
I think of it as a outdoor bathtub, and I having a few kids float all day and probaly urinate in it etc.. you need new water or a filtering system with chemicals.
With our kiddie pool I went to the pool store and gave them dimensions of the pool. They gave me some chroline that is kid safe for little pools and the correct amount. I would fill our pool the beginning of June and not empty it until the mid- Sept. Might want to try that...
Its just a kiddie pool size so dump it..like Sharon says think of it as watering the grass... Theres no chlorine in it and summer kids playing around in it around dirt and all that...just dump it!! No bleach..
Pool supply stores sell a small bottle that is called "shock" that keeps your pool from getting icky. I think we even found it at Walmart. Depending on your pools' size you should only be using a capfull to two capfulls of bleach at the most. I think a cup is way too much. You can find out the exact amount by using Google.
Dump it! I run a daycare and we were taught to never reuse the water (keeping overnight). Once the kids are done playing in it for the day you dump it. Then use bleach to clean it and let air dry. I wouldn't suggest reusing the water because most kids are going to potty in it. You can't use bleach in the water if your kids are going to be in it. It's not safe.
Hope this helps.
I would not put bleach in a kiddie pool. It's a pretty harsh chemical and if your kids are playing in it, it could accidentally be ingested or get in your kids' eyes. I would look into some of the other options people have posted.
I do daycare and we are told to empty it daily since they do not have any sort of filtering system.
I just empty it everyday, but before I do, I grab my watering can and I water all my plants and trees with it. That way, I can justify the water usage a little easier in my head. I've never need able to keep it overnight without lots of bugs, worms, slime, foggy water, etc. (My hubby hooked up a new water spigate in the garage that is hooked up to the hot water too, so I fill the pool up with hot and cole water so we don't have to wait for the sun to warm it up. That might be a nice option for future summers. Even a few buckets of hot water makes a huge difference in the temp.)
There is some type of sanitizer made for kiddie pools. I think I bought it at WalMart.
I would say, DON'T DUMP IT! First, it would be a waste of water, if you use it everday (especialy if you are having a draught) Second, it is a waste of money. Third, It s unnecessary. Daycares need to dump for safety reasons. I owned a daycare and my sister-in-law works for one, they dump so kids don't get into it when no one is around (do not want a kid to drown) Bleach works fine (if used correctly) if ou are worried, use chlorine or Shock. Your husband did not say anything wrong. I was told by pool professionals that bleach is fine.
Have fun!
Wooh! If you do put any bleach in a cup is way too much for that volume of water. When I worked in a kitchen we used a capfull of bleach for a big sink half full of water. Please check the amount with your childs doctor or the poison control folks before you put anything into the pool.
You need to dump it and start over. I would NOT put bleach in it. The grass needs the water. When I dump ours, I figure I am watering the lawn. :-) I fill our pool and use it for a day or two at the most. It usually has a lot of grass, dirt, and bugs in it by that point.
S.
I have to refill mine every day. I just do it as early as I can & let the sun warm it up for a few hours.
