Birth pool questions for BTDT mama's

[3ontheway]

Hi mamas!

Im due with my third baby in june this will be my first UC BIRTH and am planning a  in my home and just have a few questions about the birth pool. hopefully you ladies can help me out!

do i have to clean/santize my pool prior to using? or can i just take it out when labor starts and use it?

if you do haave to clean how do i go about that?

do you recommend a thermoneter for keeping track of water temp , or is just a waste of money?

I plan on using our garden hose to fiill  our pool but iwas reading its best to buy a new one  hose and a new tap connector  to ensure safety in hygiena, is that nessesary?

how do you empty your pool aftwards?

I bought a bucket to dump the water out in our backyard but hubby think it will stink if we do that

[vanessalucas@comca]

IDK about cleaning the pool... I didn't with my last birth.  I know that I read it was better to buy a new hose- I went to Ace and you can buy it by the foot (it's clear) and use this! http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1814417&cp=2568452.2631240.1260905 

Made filling and emptying easy!!!  we just removed the screen from our bdrm window and let it out that way, not stinky at all!!!!

[3ontheway]

Thanks for the link! im def going to go buy one!

[strongrad]

I bought a drinking water safe hose to fill the tub.  You can get your faucet hose adapter at the hardware store.  I used the "fishy pool" for the second time last time (new pool though) I just couldn't justify spending more when the "fishy pool" is just as good. I used it straight from the box. DH inflated super fast with his air pump.  I think a pool thermometer is useful.  You want to make sure your water is hot enough but not too hot that it will overheat you.  101 is a good temp.  Don't forget to turn up your water heater temp!  I ran out of hot water during my last very fast birth.  You could also get a plastic table cloth to use as a lid to keep the water warm while you're not in the tub. As for dumping the pool afterward DH runs the hose out a window and syphons it out. A large fish net is good for clean up or if you deliver the placenta in the pool (which I've never done) There weren't smell issues with that.   Good luck and happy birthing.  

[Mamatoabunch]

Originally Posted by 3ontheway 

Hi mamas!

Im due with my third baby in june this will be my first UC BIRTH and am planning a  in my home and just have a few questions about the birth pool. hopefully you ladies can help me out!

do i have to clean/santize my pool prior to using? or can i just take it out when labor starts and use it?

if you do haave to clean how do i go about that?

do you recommend a thermoneter for keeping track of water temp , or is just a waste of money?

I plan on using our garden hose to fiill  our pool but iwas reading its best to buy a new one  hose and a new tap connector  to ensure safety in hygiena, is that nessesary?

how do you empty your pool aftwards?

I bought a bucket to dump the water out in our backyard but hubby think it will stink if we do that

I have had 8 waterbirths. I only bleach out a pool once. I am even sure why I felt the need too.

I used a thermometer w/ my 3rd-7th. In labor w/ my 7th the glass fish tank thermometer broke. I haven't used one since and never thought I needed one again.

I used a regular garden w/ my 3rd-8th and a water tap white one for rv's w/ my 9th and 10th.

My dh and/or my kids dump the water out after w/ a bucket or big bowls. Sometimes it went down the drain of the tub or toilet, other times outside. It never smelled after we dumped the water outside.

[strongrad]

Originally Posted by Mamatoabunch 

I have had 8 waterbirths. 

[beebalmmama]

I used the fishy pool as well and didn't clean it prior. We did a test run on it to check for leaks and mainly to see how long our hot water would last. No, didn't use a thermometer. HOWEVER they had the hose filling at the bottom of the pool and at one point they felt the water was actually too hot and started adding cool water........only to find out that all the cold water was sitting at the bottom of the pool. I ended up having to wait 30-45 minutes from when I wanted to get in so they could take out some water and add more hot.

We drained in out the window with the hose (used a white RV hose).

[Mamatoabunch]

Originally Posted by strongrad 

My 9th and your 2nd were born on the same day and year.

[3ontheway]

thanks everyone for your replies yall have really been helpfull ! I will also be using the fishy pool, wont worry about santize , but i guess i can jus air it out so it dosent have that smell pools tend to have.

Another question too , where can i buy the hose? i dont have an Ace around here ,for some reason i thought we did , but we dont.  would home depot have one? i really dont live in a big town so i dont have much option unless i order on line.

[Mamatoabunch]

Originally Posted by 3ontheway 

thanks everyone for your replies yall have really been helpfull ! I will also be using the fishy pool, wont worry about santize , but i guess i can jus air it out so it dosent have that smell pools tend to have.

Another question too , where can i buy the hose? i dont have an Ace around here ,for some reason i thought we did , but we dont.  would home depot have one? i really dont live in a big town so i dont have much option unless i order on line.

My kids will be blowing mine up today to air out the yucky smell. I bought my rv hose from Walmart here in my small town, otherwise Home Depot has them as well.

[labortrials]

Someone recommended I get a birth pool because the sides are more rigid so you can really lean on them during labor.  What do y'all think?  I bought a fishy pool 2 years ago when I was planning a natural VBAC with the twins.  I just assumed I'd use that.

Any particular reason to get a drinking water quality hose instead of a clean garden hose??

[strongrad]

Originally Posted by labortrials 

Any particular reason to get a drinking water quality hose instead of a clean garden hose??

I think ??? it's to make sure its lead-free.

[strongrad]

Originally Posted by Mamatoabunch 

My 9th and your 2nd were born on the same day and year.

     Cool 

[greenmama66]

I've never used a birth pool (plan to this time as tub isn't wide enough) and don't remember cleaning it  (my bathtubs) before. I mean I just kept it clean daily. I'm not sure what to do with birth pool either but I wouldn't use bleach, maybe povidone??

[hereyes]

I bought an AquaBorn Eco Birth Pool from YourWaterBirth.com. Unfortunately I was unable to birth in it, but I did labor in it...AmAzInG

I labored at home for 16 hours and getting in that tub was glorious. I got in and out 3x while at home because I was relaxing a little too much. Ctx were same intensity, but 1-1.5m apart on land and would slow down to 3+m in the tub. I didn't have a thermometer, just went with what felt comfortable, and we kept two big pots on the stove to replenish warm water. Also, these tubs come with a liner and you can purchase extra. I highly doubt I will be sharing this tub (esp. since I haven't even used it to it's fullest potential yet btw I've read you can get 5-6 uses out of a personal birth pool with proper care/storage), so I didn't bother using the liner. I inflated it with some pump that came with an air mattress and I just did some quick swipes with the steam cleaner and rag. I did not buy a new hose or adapter. I took a fairly new garden hose that had only been used in the house and followed these instructions for disinfecting it (step 9: I ran really hot water through it for like 30 minutes to rinse): http://www.ehow.com/how_7506115_disinfect-old-water-hose.html

I ended up delivering in a hospital strapped down to a bed for the duration of labor and pushing . Never Again! I was even screaming, "I don't want to do it like this! How can I push if I can't breathe! I'm gonna puke!" -lol- It's hard to labor lying down confined to a bed when you know what it can be like, i.e. walking around, swaying hips (which you can so do in this tub, it even has handle bars inside), all fours (and the walls are rigid enough to hang over), all while still having belly under water because it is so deep. I wasn't around for "clean-up", but my husband just used a utility pump and hose he had lying around to empty the tub straight out the patio door.

To achieve bouyancy in water and allow easy movement between positions, 21" of water depth is required.

No matter what you decide to birth in, it'll be awesome because it's in water! I can't wait to break mine out again for my first HWB! I'm sure this is an exciting time for you and your family! Congrats!!!

[Mamatoabunch]

Originally Posted by labortrials 

Someone recommended I get a birth pool because the sides are more rigid so you can really lean on them during labor.  What do y'all think?  I bought a fishy pool 2 years ago when I was planning a natural VBAC with the twins.  I just assumed I'd use that.

Any particular reason to get a drinking water quality hose instead of a clean garden hose??

I have done 7 waterbiths in a fishy pool and never had issues w/ the sides not be rigid enough to support leaning or even someone sitting on the edge. Lead is the potential issue w/ garden hose, I did use one w/ most of my waterbirths though. I switched when I became aware to a rv drinking hose.
 

[lightinmyhands]

We bought a drinking water hose to fill the birth pool with, and then just siphoned it with that very same hose when it came time to empty it. 

[3ontheway]

awsome im def going to haave to chk walmart out ! so is it called a "RV HOSE" just wanna make sure i know what im loooking for. 

also is it recommended to use only the water from the sink in the kitchen or tub , or can i also use the water hose connection from outside with a  drinking water hose?

My intial plan was to set my pool  in our game room since it leads to the outside and fill our pool with the hose , since we have easy acces to the hose connection . How long are the RV hose ? I will def need more then 50ft  if its best to use kitchen sink to fill the pool.....

[lightinmyhands]

not sure how long an RV hose is, and we weren't able to find our drinking water hose (essentially the same thing I imagine, but possibly longer?) at walmart but we did pick one up for about ten dollars at a local hardware store.

[Mamatoabunch]

Originally Posted by 3ontheway 

awsome im def going to haave to chk walmart out ! so is it called a "RV HOSE" just wanna make sure i know what im loooking for. 

also is it recommended to use only the water from the sink in the kitchen or tub , or can i also use the water hose connection from outside with a  drinking water hose?

My intial plan was to set my pool  in our game room since it leads to the outside and fill our pool with the hose , since we have easy acces to the hose connection . How long are the RV hose ? I will def need more then 50ft  if its best to use kitchen sink to fill the pool.....

Mine is white, it was easy to find. It is only 25ft I believe, you can buy more than one. It won't matter where you hook it up to get water.