Has anyone used a regular plastic slide (like Little Tikes) for little ones to slide into the pool?

[poolnoobgrandma]

I'm already looking forward to spring and summer, when Pookie will be playing in our pool a LOT. He'll be far too little for a real pool slide (and our pool fence provides limited space for that) but I was wondering if one of the little kid plastic slides might work. I don't want him bonking his head on the coping or anything. There would be a grownup in the water to catch him, so it's just climbing up and sliding in that we need to make sure is safe enough.

Thanks!!

 

[JoyfulNoise]

We have. You just have to brace the back legs with some heavy stones so the slide doesn’t kick back and the kiddos don’t hit the coping. Doesn’t work for adults....don’t ask how I know that ?

 

[Newdude]

I had several friends who made theirs work like @JoyfulNoise. I didnt like it when i went to do it myself. Even with a catcher the odds of head bonking were too high for me. So i found the inflatable slides that were made specifically for the smaller kids and pools. It dropped them off a few inches past the coping, above the actual water to make it much safer. If memory serves they were $100-ish. I understand re-using the free slide, and im usually the not the overprotective parent, but it was worth it to me in this instance. I never ended up buying one because i found them over the winter and at the start of season 2 my little one was doing the diving board like a champ.

Amazon.com: Swimline Super Slide Inflatable Pool Toy: Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com: Swimline Super Slide Inflatable Pool Toy: Garden & Outdoor

www.amazon.com

$50 is nothing considering what it may be protecting. I just saw a much bigger one too for $250 that looked like it could hold adults.

 

[poolnoobgrandma]

We have. You just have to brace the back legs with some heavy stones so the slide doesn’t kick back and the kiddos don’t hit the coping. Doesn’t work for adults....don’t ask how I know that ?

Thanks for the bracing idea. We have tons (probably literally) of pavers leftover from the build, so could brace with those. I'm thinking that we will be OK as long as the slide hangs over a few inches .

 

[sacredcow]

We have. You just have to brace the back legs with some heavy stones so the slide doesn’t kick back and the kiddos don’t hit the coping. Doesn’t work for adults....don’t ask how I know that ?

If I had a nickel for every time I thought, "Yeah, this will probably work out OK," and then had to stop some bleeding I'd be on easy street.

 

[jtpipkin]

We've used both. I repurposed the swingset slide, kids loved it. I had also purchased a few of the inflatable slides off amazon. They're fun and relatively safe. They never lasted the full season though, through no fault of the slide. My little one has the same daredevil / creative streak in her and she'd end up destroying it. Here's one that had caught my attention, but it's pricey for what it is. I like that it's not permanent though so when she gets tired of it, I could just sell it and still enjoy my backyard views.
S.R. Smith SlideAway Removable Pool Slide, Taupe

 

[jimim]

Amazon.com: Swimline Super Slide Inflatable Pool Toy: Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com: Swimline Super Slide Inflatable Pool Toy: Garden & Outdoor

www.amazon.com

$50 is nothing considering what it may be protecting. I just saw a much bigger one too for $250 that looked like it could hold adults.

So does that work well? I like that idea. We used to do the sketchy times slide thing over my neighbors. I always worried.

Does that flap go in the pool to block the coping and tile in case a head hits?

 

[Newdude]

So does that work well? I like that idea. We used to do the sketchy times slide thing over my neighbors. I always worried.

Does that flap go in the pool to block the coping and tile in case a head hits?

I didn’t end up getting one but this was what I would have done. We had about 1.5 months when the pool was built. I found these over the winter but my little one (5 at the time) went right for the diving board come spring. These style models *appeared* to pass my safety concerns. I’m an idiot with my own safety but I try for the kids. Accidents can still always happen but I would have felt better about it having this precaution.