These colorful foam pool toys are useful around the house, garage, and yard. And with a little ingenuity, they can be even more fun in the water.
Arm On rainbow pool noodles
Even in a world of floating basketball hoops and donut-shaped rafts, the pool noodle remains the most ubiquitous pool toy of all. But this humble piece of foam is more than a symbol of summer fun—it’s a DIY workhorse.
What are pool noodles made of?
Polyethylene. It’s a closed-cell foam made up of millions of tiny bubbles compressed together. That’s why it’s such a great pool toy—water can’t penetrate the foam cells, and it’s light enough to float. The material flexes but bounces back under compression, retaining its shape.
You’ve probably seen polyethylene in packing materials. If you’ve ever done any plumbing work, you may have noticed that foam pipe insulation and pool noodle insulation are the same thing.
Polyethylene foam can be difficult to recycle. Fortunately, there are many uses for pool noodles outside of the pool, so you can reuse them anywhere in the garage and around the house.
They’re so handy that it’s worth keeping a few pool noodles in your workshop. And if you can’t find a pool noodle, you can always pick up pipe insulation at the hardware store.
Below are some of our favorite pool noodle hacks.
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Pool Noodle Planter Hack Via @PennyJo8 TikTok
Keep your plants cool
For potted plants, you can use vertical pool noodles to fill the container to about three-quarters of its height. This way, you won’t need as much soil in your largest containers, and it will aid drainage and prevent the soil from becoming oversaturated.
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Woman using a pool noodle to fill a bucket on the floor from the kitchen sink
Pool noodle water hose
If you need to fill a bucket that won’t fit under your sink faucet, get a pool noodle. Place the bucket on the floor, slide the noodle over the faucet, and run it down to the bucket.
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Pool Noodle Keyboard Wrist Rest
Pool noodle palm rest
Prevent wrist fatigue during a long day working from home by making this pool noodle wrist rest.
First, mark where you want to cut the pasta. For the palm rest shown, we made the height a little less than half the full diameter of the pasta. You could cut the pasta exactly in half and make two palm rests of the same size.
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Dinky Door Bumper Poolnudel
Half-noodle door bumper
A door slamming against a wall is annoying. Worse still, it can punch a hole in your drywall or dent your trim. But that’s easily prevented with a little help from one of these foam wonders. Simply cut a slit lengthwise into a short piece of pool noodle and slide it onto the edge of a door, cabinet, or gate.
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Pool noodle in the drawer
Drawer organizer to stay in place
Drawer organizers are convenient, but they tend to move around every time you open or close a drawer. Easily solve this problem with a pool noodle.
Measure the distance from the back of the organizer to the back of the drawer. Then, use a utility knife to trim the noodles. The pool noodle should fit snugly to keep the organizer in place. You can also cut the pool noodle in half lengthwise to reduce the space required.
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Woman with a rack containing a pool noodle attached to clean water on the garage floor
Super-fast floor mop
Here’s a classic, practical tip for replenishing the water in your garage or basement. Build this simple squeegee by sliding a piece of foam pipe insulation over the tines of a rake. Then simply push the water down the drain or out the door. — Art Rooze
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Pool noodle drink holder
Floating beverage barge
This inexpensive, easy DIY pool accessory keeps your drinks cool and handy in the pool.
Cut short pieces of pool noodles to fit inside a plastic container. (A container with a lip will keep the noodles in place.) Thread a bungee cord through the center of the noodles to hold them snugly against the sides. Tie a piece of rope or string to the bungee for a handle. Add a small circle of pool noodles as a float to make the handle easy to grasp.
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Luggage carrier protector pool noodles
Luggage rack protector
I had to pick up a ladder from a friend. To prevent scratching the cargo rack of my new SUV, I covered the bars with pool noodles. I simply slit the pool noodles along the side with a utility knife and taped them on. The foam padding also prevented the ladder from rattling. Don’t forget to strap down your cargo before you set off! – Gerald Ruppert
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Pool noodle cell phone tip door thing
Prevent dents on car doors!
I noticed several dents in my car door from opening it and banging it against the garage wall. My grandchildren had outgrown their pool noodles, and I was about to throw them away, but then I thought, “Wow, this could be the solution!”
I cut the pool noodle in half with a utility knife and placed it on the studs in my garage. The pool noodle should stay in place on its own. For a more permanent solution, glue the pool noodle to the studs with construction cement or a few nails. Voila, no more doorbells. — John Greene.
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Trunk bumper with pool noodle while hauling things that stick out of the trunk
Bumpers for the trunk
Keep a few sections of pipe insulation or pool noodles in your trunk to protect the paint and your oversized cargo.
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Fishing rods placed in a blue pool noodle with slots hanging on a wooden garage wall
Angelrute Organizer
I was tired of my fishing rods getting tangled, so I came up with this simple fishing rod organizer. All you need is a 3-inch-diameter length of PVC pipe and a pool noodle.
Drill 1-inch holes in the PVC pipe, 4 centimeters apart. Use a utility knife to cut slits in the noodles, 4 centimeters apart. Align the noodles against the wall so that at least two of the slits are over the studs.
Pull the slots apart, slide in a fender washer, and screw the noodle to the wall with 2-inch screws. Then screw the PVC pipe to the wall below at a comfortable height and insert your fishing rods. Look, Mom, no more tangles! — Brian Jones.
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No crushing trampoline springs Parents’ tip
No-Pinch Trampolinfedern
Here’s an easy way to cover trampoline springs to protect yourself from pinched fingers. Cut a pool noodle into short pieces, slice it lengthwise, and slide it over the springs.
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A man with groceries in his hand opens a car door in a garage. The garage door is secured with an orange pool noodle to protect the car’s trunk door.
Protection of lifting gates
When you open the tailgate of your van or SUV, it’s easy to hit a garage door crossbar and chip the paint on the door. Protect it by using a pool noodle as a cushion. Simply slit the noodle with a utility knife and slide it over the brace. You can also use pre-slit foam pipe insulation. If it slides off, use double-sided tape to hold it in place. – Mary Sprang.
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Water raft for pets Fh18djf 583 08 500 mledit
Cunning water raft
Ahoy, buddies! Simply tie these pool noodles together for a fun pool float that won’t deflate! You’ll need five large noodles (4 1/2-inch diameter), two medium noodles (2 1/4-inch diameter), six feet of 1/2-inch PVC pipe, and 36 feet of nylon string.
To begin, tie the five large noodles together with a double half knot. Next, tie the string between and around each noodle, securing it to form a raft. When you reach the end of the noodles, turn around and tie them back to the beginning. Finish with another double half hook. Cut the string close to the knot.
Now cut the smaller noodles to create three lengths equal to the width of the raft. Thread three PVC pipes through the holes in the three smaller noodles, then thread the string through the PVC and attach each short noodle to the large noodles with nylon string. Tie one noodle at each end and one in the middle to make the raft stiffer and more stable.
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High-visibility boundary marker pool noodles
High-Visibility Boundary Marker
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