Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool - Enjoyed Carpooling all summer long!
Written: Aug 30 '02 (Updated Sep 02 '02)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Durability: |
 |
|
|
Pros: Cute Looks, Shallow, Great for Toddlers.
Cons: Small & Shallow - for wading and sitting around only.
The Bottom Line: The Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool is a good choice in first pools, suitable for young toddlers.
|
|
|
| marytara's Full Review: Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool |
As summer draws to a close (boo hoo!), I'd have to say that one of my son's favorite things was spending time in his Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool.
My son absolutely loves water-play. From a very young age the two of us have been taking Water Babies classes twice a week at a local pool. When the weather here finally rolled around to summer (it takes a while in Upstate NY for that to happen), I knew it was time to set up some sort of pool in the backyard for additional water time. A large backyard pool really wasn't an option for us due to a small yard and a tight budget. I remembered that I'd purchased a small kiddie pool at the very end of the season last year that I never got to use. This pool was the Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool which I picked up at Target for around $5 because it was nearly September. Such a deal! and the hours of enjoyment have made it among the best $5.00 that I've ever spent.
The Interior and Exterior
When inflated you will understand that the Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool was appropriately named. This little pool looks just like a bright red VW Beetle equipped with tires, horn, steering wheel, luggage, head and brake-lights and more. The outside "brim" of the pool looks like the outside of the car and the bottom of the pool like the interior - various "parts" of the car are labeled with their name descriptions. So, not only can this pool be enjoyed for water play - kids can also learn a few new words too!
Making Arrangements to Car Pool
Before enjoying the Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool it must first be inflated. Unless you have a lot of hot air, I wouldn't recommend attempting to inflate this by blowing it up. After about 10 minutes of blowing (and going nowhere fast), I gave up. I let my son play in a cold bath tub that day, instead. When my husband returned home from work he gave me the airpump and together we had inflated in just minutes. Inflated, the car measures in at 59" x 47.5" x 10" - so its fairly small as far as pools go.
I purchased a small drop cloth (intended for beach use) and put it on the ground first in the area I was looking to set the pool up in. Even though the plastic floor of this pool is made of 8 ga. reinforced plastic I didn't want to risk any leaks from a stray sticks or rocks that I may have missed picking up. Plus, I wanted to provide the smoothest surface possible under the pool, as well as a "cloth" perimeter around the pool to aid in getting in and out of it. Understand that the grass area under this pool will turn brown if you keep the pool in one spot for very long.
Rules for all Riders
~ Sunscreen is a must
~ Never car pool without adult supervision
~ Swim Diapers are recommended for Health reasons but since this pool is intended for private backyard use they are not necessarily a requirement. (Skinny Dipping can be a lot of fun too!)
~ Don't forget the sunscreen (especially if skinny dipping)
Water and Rider Capacity
The Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool holds approximately 30 gallons of water (based on being 80% full). I filled the pool up with each use from my backyard garden hose and it fills in less than 5 minutes. I found it best to fill the pool in the early morning and allow the morning sun to heat it up a bit before going in. Otherwise, it was a bit of a cold shocker and not as much fun.
When full to capacity the water is about 10 inches deep. This is shallow enough to be relatively safe, but not shallow enough to really swim in. The pool is for sitting in, playing in and splashing. The inflatable sides are easily pushed in or sat on, which allows all the water to spill over the edge. Once my son discovered he could flood the yard that became a really neat trick. Luckily the pool fills up quickly since it often requires a topping off to keep the water level fun enough.
The Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool comfortably fit my young toddler (he is not yet 2 years old) all summer. The pool also held a ton of water toys including little boats, containers and strainers. Without the toys it would have held one more small child, but no more than that. Occasionally it also held my feet for wading, but if I dared to sit down it would have taken up too much space in this little pool.
Age Recommendations
The manufacturer suggests that this pool is ideal for kids aged 3 years and up. I think that kids much older than that will be bored with this pool which is more of a baby pool than anything. Next year, I plan on purchasing something with a larger water capacity so that my son can actually swim in it - and maybe I can fit in as well.
Maintenance
To Drain the pool, simply pull the small plug in the bottom and let the water drain out. Or, dump it. The pool is small enough that its easily dumped by raising up one side. Voila! Empty pool.
If you do let the water stay in the pool overnite this pool water will attract various bugs etc and the bottom of the pool will get slimy. To clean the pool out just use soap and water and be sure to rinse it out thoroughly.
Oh no, a flat tire?
Should the pool spring a leak a repair patch kit is included from Intex. I'd say that for the low cost of this pool, I probably wouldn't mess around with patching it and would just replace it entirely. After using this pool almost daily all summer and moving it around my lawn and to and from my deck while not in use, it has maintained intact with no leaks. I'm thinking that our use of a drop cloth under the pool helped this out a bit.
Overall
Out of all the backyard summer toys, my son enjoyed his Intex Inflatable Kiddie Car Swimming Pool the most. This pool was really great for my little guy to get in and splash around, cool off from the hot summer heat. Even our dogs enjoyed the pool to cool off by taking an occasional drink out of it. Since my son is a little fish I hope to be able to get him something larger and deeper next year. I may even set this pool up again though for shallow water play, wading, or for a foot bath. If you are looking for a small, affordable, baby or toddler pool - this one is great.
Manufacturer Site
http://www.intexcorp.com
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 5
Type of Toy: Other
Age Range of Child: 12 to 36 Months
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
marytara
|
 in Education, Kids & Family |
 - Top 50 |
|
Member: MT
Location: Jersey Shore
Reviews written: 898
Trusted by: 623 members
About Me:
email to suggest a product for Kids & Family/Education
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.