Updated June 4, 2024

Every year, I swear this will be the last time I have to buy the kiddie pool pictured above, because this year, I will dutifully keep it white 'n' bright. At the end of the season, I'll dry it out, fold it up, and store it for next year instead of furtively and guiltily dragging it to the curb, leaving behind an oozing trail of slimy green, stagnant water.

The thing about this inflatable pool is that it's 10 feet long, so you can't just flip ‘er over and spray ‘er down real quick every time the water gets gross. Cleaning this pool is a production that begins with two grown-ass adults arguing over who has to hold the pool up sideways and who gets to spray it down with the garden hose. 

If you're not averse to using chlorine to keep your kid's pool water clean, it's not very hard to maintain clear, safe water for quite some time, which means less emptying and filling back up. But if you'd rather not muck around with chemicals, there are still plenty of ways to keep the pool cleaner and the water clearer for a longer period of time.

I've done a ton of research on that front, and I'm here to share my findings with you. We'll start with how to keep a kiddie pool clean without chemicals, then dig into a solid tutorial on maintaining the pool using chlorine, bleach, algicide, and borax. If your pool water is already green ‘n’ gross, we’ll cover “shocking” the pool to turn the water clean and clear again. If you click on a link to a product, I may earn a small commission. Rest assured I only recommend products I've either purchased or would purchase, which means they're rated at least 4 out of 5 stars, have solid reviews, and appear to be the best bang for the buck!

How to keep a kiddie pool clean without chemicals

Although keeping a small pool clean without using chemicals is a bit challenging, it can be done — but you'll still need to plan on draining, cleaning, and filling it with fresh water at least every week or two.

1. Drain and re-fill the pool

For a super small plastic or inflatable pool — especially if it has a slide — the Centers for Disease Control recommends draining the pool after each swim and filling it back up with fresh water before the next swim.

After draining the water, give the pool bottom and sides a quick scrub-down with a plain old kitchen brush and some mild dish soap, then rinse it thoroughly. Allow it to fully dry, ideally in direct sunlight to help kill bacteria.

We all know that fresh water from the garden hose is icy-cold, so when it's time to swim again, heat it up with a couple of big pots of hot water.

Whenever you can, use the old water to irrigate your grass and plants — scoop it up in your watering can, or siphon it out with a garden hose.

Don't use a chlorine or bleach solution in very small kiddie pools — at such low water volumes, the math can get weird. Plus, small pools generally don't come with any sort of filter, and all of the dirt and grass and dead skin cells swimmers introduce into the water can quickly “use up” the disinfecting power of any chlorine or bleach you do add.

2. Cover the pool when it's not in use 

A pool cover keeps grass, dirt, and other debris out of the water. Perhaps most importantly, though, a cover blocks direct sunlight, which is a key ingredient for the growth of algae and speeds up evaporation of the water.

Intex sells a kiddie pool cover that's made for our big inflatable pool, although it's not just for Intex pools. I passed on that great idea for several years, because I've got plenty of old tarps and stakes and bungee cords taking up space in the garage. My sad, DIY pool covers kept out most of the bugs, twigs, grass, and other debris, but they were worthless against rain, the number one contributor to the pool water turning into a stagnant breeding ground for mosquitos.

I finally indulged in the store-bought pool cover, and it's well worth it, in my personal experience. It's easy to secure tightly around the pool, and it doesn't flap in the wind or sink to the bottom of the pool when it collects too much rain like my homemade covers did. Hot tip: Rinse the pool cover with the garden hose before you remove it if there's lots of debris on it.

3. Skim the pool every day

Grass, sand, dirt, and leaves constantly blow into the pool or get tracked in by dirty feet, and having a skimmer of some sort on hand makes quick work of getting all this debris out. I've used these inexpensive butterfly nets to remove debris from Ruby's pool, and they work fine for most of the bigger stuff that gets in the water. They come in a pack of four, so the young ones won't fight over who gets to skim — and they work great for catching fireflies and butterflies.

If you prefer the real deal, this HydroTools pool skimmer picks up smaller stuff, like the sand, dirt, and other debris you scare up off the pool floor. It's got an aluminum handle that's short enough that the kids can skim while they swim, but it also telescopes to 12 feet, which comes in handy for skimming from a distance.

4. Use a filter pump

A filter helps keep a kiddie pool clean in two important ways: First, it removes debris from the water, and second, it keeps all the water circulating to help prevent algae from growing.

The setup is simple: The pump sits outside of the pool and holds the reusable filter. Two hoses connect to the pump — the intake hose sucks water from the pool and directs it into the pump, where the filter removes debris from the water before sending it back into the pool through the output hose.

Many mid-sized kiddie pools, including some inflatable pools, come with a filter, but some don't. But even if a pool isn't designed for a pump — i.e., it doesn't have holes in the sides for the hoses — you can still use one to help keep any size kiddie pool clean. You just fill up the pump and hoses with water, submerge both hoses in the pool (you'll need to weigh them down), and turn on the pump.

For a kiddie pool, you want the pump to “turn over” the water at least once every 8 to 10 hours. Pumps are labeled in gallons per hour (GPH), which indicates how many gallons can run through it in an hour.

The Intex filter pump pictured above has a capacity of 330 GPH, which is suitable for any size pool up to 2,400 gallons. So if your pool has a capacity of, say, 1,000 gallons, it'll turn over all the water in roughly 3 hours. This particular pump comes with everything you need to get it up and running in minutes. It’s earned 4.4/5 stars on Amazon, with more than 39,000 ratings.

You don't need to run the pump all the time. Turn it on for a couple of hours after the kids swim, and then again for a few hours the next morning. Pull the hoses out of the water while the kids are in the pool — just be sure to completely submerge and fill them with water again before you turn the pump back on.

Here's a quick video demonstrating how easy it is to run a filter pump that's not built in to the pool:

5. Vacuum the bottom of the pool

If you don't want to mess with a filter pump, the next best thing is a pool vacuum. While regular skimming removes some of the sand and other smaller debris at the bottom of the kiddie pool, it won't catch all of it. For that, you need a pool vacuum. Here are three options, raging in price from a little north of twenty-five bucks to a little over a hundred.

POOLWHALE portable pool cleaner

This portable pool vacuum doesn't run on power, so there's no cords, chargers, or batteries involved — rather, it hooks up to the garden hose to produce suction. The bristles on the bottom help loosen debris, which is caught in a bag attached with a drawstring. For best results, the pool water needs to be about 2 feet deep, and the garden hose you attach to it should be no longer than 50 feet. More than 19,000 reviewers give this inexpensive gadget 3.9/5 stars — just under my normal 4-star threshold, but the reviews are overwhelmingly positive and point out that the suction strength depends on your water pressure and hose length (the shorter the better).

Intex rechargeable pool vacuum

This sleek little vacuum is great for removing debris from a small pool — it's lightweight and has an aluminum shaft that telescopes out to 94 inches. It comes with two interchangeable brush heads and a USB cable for recharging. This pool vacuum earns 4.1/5 stars, with over 12,000 ratings. Reviewers like that it's quiet and easy to use (even for kids!) and holds a decent charge. The suction is best if you keep emptying the filter — the fuller the basket, the lighter the suction. Some reviewers note that you have to go pretty slow, and only move backwards when vacuuming for best results.

POOL BLASTER cordless pool vacuum

This upright pool vacuum is a little pricier than the first two, but it's great for large pools or kiddie pools that collect lots of debris. It takes 4 hours to charge and runs for around 45 minutes per charge. Over 1,000 raters give it 4.3/5 stars, and reviewers note that it's pretty good at picking up leaves, small rocks, and other bigger debris. Like other vacuums, this one has better suction when the filtration chamber is emptied often.

6. Soak up the sunscreen and bodily oils

While skimming, filtering, and vacuuming helps keep the kiddie pool free of dirt, grass, and leaves, none of these are effective for removing oily substances like sunscreen residue and skin oils from the water. For that, you need something like the Scumbug oil-sucking sponge:

Each bug-shaped sponge absorbs 40 times its weight in oils, so if you slather your kid with sunscreen like I slather mine, this handy sponge will suck it out to help keep the kiddie pool clean for a longer period of time.

How to keep a kiddie pool clean with chemicals

I'm always loathe to use toxic chemicals when it's not necessary, but sometimes they're the best defense against worser enemies. “Worser enemies” could be the microbes that can make kids sick, or they could be the daily struggles of keeping the kiddie pool clean without having to drain it every few days.

For larger plastic or inflatable pools, like our 10-foot-long behemoth, the CDC recommends chlorine and filtration as the best way to keep the water clean and safe for swimmers.

Pool chemicals are safe for children when you use them properly — and using them properly requires understanding what small pool chemicals do and how they work. The thing you don't want to do is toss chlorine tablets into a floating dispenser and hope for the best.

Pool chemicals accomplish three goals:

• They kill germs that can make you sick

• They maintain an appropriate pH balance for optimal comfort

• They prevent the growth of algae

Although kiddie pool chemicals work best in pools that have a filter pump, you can use them in a pool without a pump.

What chemicals do you use in small pools?

You need five things to keep your kiddie pool water clean and safe swim after swim after swim: bleach, borax, algaecide, chlorine, and a water test kit. Here's what each of these chemicals does and where to get them:

Liquid chlorine bleach, 6% active strength

A regular household bleach solution is used along with Borax for the initial start-up treatment in the kiddie pool. Bleach is made up of the same chlorine that's used in pools, but pool chlorine also contains other chemicals that help balance the chemistry of the water. Both chlorine and bleach disinfect the water, killing harmful microorganisms — but bleach isn't ideal for routine pool maintenance, because it’s fairly unstable. Never use powdered, scented, or no-splash bleach varieties in the kiddie pool.

Borax

Also known as sodium tetraborate, Borax is a naturally occurring mineral that's non-toxic in small doses. It's commonly used as a laundry detergent booster, as a key ingredient in homemade slime, and in many a science experiment involving growing crystals. It's also added along with bleach to a newly filled kiddie pool as part of the start-up process.

Borax serves a few purposes in the kiddie pool:

• It helps maintain an ideal pH to prevent eye and skin irritation

• It improves the performance of chlorine

• It helps protect against algae growth

Since borax doesn't degrade or evaporate from the water, once you add it in, you won't need to add it again until you empty and refill the pool with clean water. The most famous and widely available brand of borax is 20 Mule Team, which is sold in the laundry aisle at your grocery store.

Stabilized chlorine, 55.5% active strength

Regular old chlorine in bleach breaks down quickly when it's exposed to direct sunlight. Stabilized chlorine, on the other hand, contains an ingredient like cyanuric acid to prevent the chlorine from breaking down. Stabilized chlorine lasts longer than bleach and works more effectively — and you don't need to use as much.

These AquaDoc Chlorinating Granules are a quick-dissolving form of stabilized chlorine specially formulated for small pools and hot tubs with a capacity between 200 and 1,000 gallons.

Algicide, 60% active strength

Also known by the catchy name "poly[oxyethylene(dimethyliminio)ethylene(dimethyliminio)ethylene dichloride]," algicide prevents the growth of algae and offers backup protection against microbes in the event pool chlorine levels get too low. It also helps to control some of the bacteria that's resistant to chlorine, including the little bastards that cause nasty ear infections.

Pool Breeze Algicide 60 is a non-foaming algicide that's effective against green, black, and yellow algae.

Water test kit

It's highly inadvisable to use chlorine, bleach, or any other chemical in the pool without a test kit on hand. These easy-to-use water testing strips will analyze the chlorine level and pH of the kiddie pool (along with bromine and alkalinity, which you can disregard for small pools).

How to add chemicals to a kiddie pool in 5 easy steps

When using chlorine and other chemicals in a pool, it's super important to use the right amounts — “more is better” definitely doesn't apply to pool chemicals. Here's how to use chemicals to keep the kiddie pool clean.

Step 1: Calculate how much of each chemical you need.

The right amount of bleach, borax, chlorine, and algicide you need for your pool depends on how many gallons of water it holds.

The experts over at Pool Solutions have created a pool chemical calculator that makes this step super easy. If you know the capacity of your pool in gallons, you can just enter it into the calculator tool to get your chemical amounts. If you don't know how much water your pool holds, enter the dimensions into the calculator, and it'll figure it out for you.

As an example, our inflatable pool has a 264-gallon capacity, which requires the following amounts of each chemical:

Bleach: 6.5 tablespoons
Borax: 1.5 tablespoons
Algaecide: 0.5 teaspoons
Chlorine: 0.5 teaspoons

Read the calculator directions very carefully so you end up with the right chemical amounts.

Step 2: Fill the pool, and add the bleach and borax.

Fill the pool to full capacity with fresh water. Add the bleach and borax, and mix it in thoroughly. If you have a filter, turn the pump on to circulate the water. Wait an hour.

Step 3: Test the water.

After an hour, use your test kit to check the pH and chlorine levels.

• The chlorine level should be between 2.0 and 4.0.

• The pH should be between 7.4 and 7.8.

Step 4: Add the algicide

Once your chlorine level and pH balance are right, add the algicide dose, mix it in well, and you're ready to swim!

Step 5: Re-test before each swim

Use the test kit again before each swim. If the chlorine level falls below 2.0, add one dose of the chlorine granules, and mix it in well. Wait 10 minutes, then re-test. Once the chlorine level is in the 2.0 to 4.0 range, the kids can safely swim!

After the initial start-up dose of bleach, borax, and algicide, you won't need to add anything else to the water besides granular chlorine to maintain the right pool chemistry. But each time you empty the pool and fill it up again with clean water, start over with Step 1.

How to remove algae from the kiddie pool

Now you've done it! You let the pool maintenance slide, and now it's full of sickly green, stagnant water, and you're stress-avoiding it like the plague. Because surely turning icky green kiddie pool water crystal clear again requires draining the pool and filling it back up with clean water, right?

Wrong — the best way to remove algae from the pool is to use a magical little thing called shock.

What is pool shock?

Pool shock is a super-concentrated form of chlorine that you pour into the pool in very high doses to kill microorganisms dead in their tracks — including the stinky, slimy algae that's turning the water green. Once the shock has done its job, the kiddie pool water will be crystal clear and good as new!

Even if you maintain the chemical levels perfectly at all times all summer long, you should shock your kiddie pool every two weeks to “recharge” the chlorine and keep the water clean and clear.

There are two types of chlorine shock: calcium hypochlorite and sodium dichlor. Only sodium dichlor shock is appropriate for a kiddie pool — calcium hypochlorite is way too strong for smaller pools.

SpaGuard chlorinating concentrate is a sodium dichlor shock that's perfect for clearing up algae in a kiddie pool. It dissolves very quickly, and since it's stabilized, you can use it during the day, when the sun is out.

How to shock a kiddie pool

Unlike adding regular chemicals to your pool, the amount of shock you use doesn't need to be exact — the point is to raise the chlorine level in the stagnant water to around 10 to 20 times the normal amount, so there's some leeway there. Still, follow the directions on the shock package for the best results, and put the pool cover on once you've added the shock.

If your pool has a filter pump, clean and rinse out the filter, turn it on, then add the shock evenly around the edges of the pool. Give it a good stir with the pool net, and let the pump run for at least six hours, or until the water is clear again. Then, check the water with the test kit, and keep everyone out of the pool until the chlorine level drops to between 2.0 and 4.0.

If your pool doesn't have a filter pump, you can still shock it, but it won't be as easy. For the shock to work properly — and to prevent chemical hotspots in the pool — it needs to be very thoroughly mixed into the water. Here's how to shock a pool without a pump and filter:

1. Add the shock evenly around the edges of the pool.

2. Add a dose of flocculant, like In The Swim Super Floc Out. The flocculant binds together the particles that would normally get trapped in the filter, causing them to sink to the bottom of the pool so you can remove them with a pool vacuum or (less easily) with the net.

3. Stir the water. Stir, stir, stir, stir, stir, and stir some more until you feel like the shock must surely be evenly and fully distributed throughout the pool.

4. Give the shock 12 to 24 hours to do its job — give it another good stir every few hours if you can.

5. Once the water is clear, remove the debris that collected on the bottom of the pool, and start testing the chlorine level — the kids can swim again once it's back down to between 2.0 and 4.0.

Other ways to keep your kids healthy when they swim

According to the CDC, kiddie pools are a breeding ground for bacteria, especially if children from more than one family use the same pool. The microscopic monsters that lurk in the depths can cause gastrointestinal, skin, ear, respiratory, eye, and wound infections.

Now, the CDC, to me, is the ultimate authority on such matters, but I've got to say, my sister and I swam in filthy horse tanks, communal wash tubs, and small inflatable pools all summer throughout our whole childhood — and so have our own babes — and as far as I can recall, no oozing rashes or copious diarrhea ever resulted.

But that obviously doesn't mean it can't or won't happen, and to help ensure it doesn't, the CDC recommends the following health precautions while swimming:

• Warn your children not to get pool water in their mouths (good luck with that!).

• Give children a cleansing soap shower or bath before they swim. (Lady, the swim is the bath).

• Keep sick children out of a communal pool.

• Children who are immunocompromised in any way should only swim in kiddie pools that are either maintained with filtration and chemicals or filled daily with fresh water.

So there you are. If you're up for the task, you can minimize the risk of recreational water illnesses this summer and help ensure your kid stays healthy and active in the kiddie pool all summer long. If you prefer to go chemical-free, use manual methods to keep the pool clean — and drain, scrub, rinse, and re-fill it every week or two. If you opt to go the chemical route, pair the chlorine with manual methods to optimize its sanitizing power.

If, after reading this, you're thinking a kiddie pool sounds like a big pain in the arse, check out these super-fun water balloon games or these dazzling water sprinklers for kids instead, and call it good!

FAQs about keeping kiddie pools clean

How often should you clean the kids’ pool?

How often you need to clean your kid's pool depends on a bunch of factors, including your summer climate, how much sun the water gets, how much water the pool holds, how dirty the water gets, whether you have children who are immunocompromised, and how you feel about using chlorine in your kid's pool.

The short answer is, it depends on the size:

• Very small plastic or inflatable pool: Drain and refill after each swim.

• Larger pool without a filter: Drain, clean, and refill it every week or two.

• Larger pool with filter + chlorine: Use the same water for the duration of the pool season — shock it occasionally to "refresh" the chlorine.

Can you keep a kiddie pool clean with bleach?

While you can keep small pools clean with only bleach, it's not ideal, for three main reasons:

1. While your standard household jug of Clorox bleach has a chlorine concentration of around 5% to 6%, the chlorine you'd use in a kiddie pool has a chlorine concentration of 55.5% — and that means you need a lot more household bleach than chlorine to keep the pool clean.

2. The chlorine in household bleach breaks down when exposed to the sun, but pool chlorine contains a stabilizer — usually cyanuric acid — that prevents it from breaking down.

3. Due to the large amount of household bleach you need in order to get the chlorine levels up to where they should be, using bleach to keep the pool clean can lead to limescale buildup and degradation of the pool's plastic surfaces.

Can you keep pool water clean with white vinegar?

White vinegar is a suitable alternative to dish soap for cleaning a pool once you've drained it — mix equal parts of vinegar and water to clean the surfaces and remove odors. White vinegar is not effective for keeping the water clean, since it won't kill bacteria and other pathogens in the water.

Can baking soda keep kiddie pools clean?

Like vinegar, baking soda is a good pool-cleaning alternative to dish soap, since it has a mild abrasive quality that helps scrub away dirt, grime, and oil buildup — mix it with a little water to make a scrubbing paste! But since baking soda isn't a disinfectant — it won't kill microorganisms — it's not an effective way to keep the water safe and clean.

Can hot tub chemicals work in a small inflatable pool?

Hot tub chemicals and pool chemicals aren't quite the same. In general, bromine is preferred over chlorine for keeping the hot tub water clean, since it's more stable than chlorine at high temperatures. But many hot tub owners use chlorine granules instead of bromine, although the required chlorine concentration is higher for hot tubs. Another difference is that hot tubs don't need to be treated with algicide, since the water is too hot for algae to thrive.

What should you do if a child poops or vomits in the pool?

If a child poops or upchucks in a kiddie pool of any size, regardless of whether it's got a filter or you treat it with chlorine, it's always best to empty the water, scrub all surfaces with dish soap, thoroughly rinse it, and let it fully dry (ideally in direct sunlight) before filling it again with clean water.