Have you used an aquarium heater in the birth pool?

[Adaline'sMama]

This isnt really a homebirth question, but I figured more people in this forum would know than anywhere else.
So, after researching a ton of past MDC threads about this, it seems that the general arguments are:

1. Women in labor dont really care about the temperature enough to worry about it.

2. Dont use them because electricity and water dont go together.

3. The hot water in your water heater plus a pot on the stove will be enough.

That being said, I wont be at home. Ill be at the hospital, where the showers never got hot enough for me last time. Im going on Wednesday to temp the water that comes out of their shower, but Im pretty sure its less than 98 degrees. Ive temped my baths, and I know that I prefer water around 101, but I wont go over 99 when Im pregnant. That being said, water that is between 90-95 degrees is not warm enough for me to be comfortable even if the room temp is 80 degrees, which it was when I gave birth last time. (Thankfully, each birth suite has its own temp control). I have a aqueon pump and drain kit that I will be using to fill and drain the pool, and a 2 gallon percolator to heat extra water. (Its disguised as being there for coffee for DH and my labor assistant, because I was told that the hospital could not allow us to boil water for the birth pool in the room).

I already have a submersible heater for an 80 gallon aquarium, that I used momentarily for fish, but it my fish never lived

SO, my question is this:
Can I put my submersible heater in my inflatable birth pool, just to help maintain the water temperature? Will it melt the plastic? Could it burn me? I plan to test how hot it gets, but I just havent done it yet.

Here is my pool:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00004YTIP/ref=oh_o00_s00_i00_details

and here is my heater (it appears to be stainless steel, not glass. Maybe there is glass inside it?)
http://www.amazon.com/Fluval-M-300-Watt-Submersible-Heater/dp/B0027VIS5E


Thanks in advance for your help! I dont want to wind up with a big mess, but I also dont want to be cold

[olw3k]

heaters are not recommended for most of the soft-sided professional pools (Aquaborn, La Bassine) as it can melt the material the pool or the liner is made out of...

by way of temperature, i know that Barbara Harper suggests that the pool temperature be between 98.6-100.4 degrees... higher than that and it can cause the mother and baby's heart rate and blood pressure to go too high...

[Peony]

I have no idea about the logistics of that since I didn't birth at home with my pools. You might have to ask the hospital about their policies regarding bringing equipment in such as a heater. 

[jljeppson]

I've tried a aquarium heater before and found it useless.  What I now have in my pool kit is a water trough heater.  It's relatively small and kind of shaped like a water bottle, so doesn't take up too much room.  It's designed to be used in a plastic trough, so has a grill around the heating element that prevents it from melting the plastic (or burning you if you brush up against it.)  It heats 100 gals of water (about the amount of a normal birth pool) about 5 degrees per hr, so if you start with water that is around 90' within 2 hrs you'll have it plenty hot.  They can be kind of hard to find (most things I've found have been deicers; NOT the same thing as a trough heater) but Amazon carries them now for around $40.  The Amazon description is below.

MARSHALLTOWN The Premier Line 742G Bucket Water Heater

[tpic6]

Hi! Just found this post and am curious about which birth pool you used and heated with the amazon heater??? I know most birth pools say they should not be heated but did you just do it anyways? We have a very small hot water tank and i am due in Jan and its usally arond -30-40 here so i will def need a heater of some sort!!! Thanks!

[Adaline'sMama]

Hi! I started this thread a long time ago Here is what I did:
I used this pool: http://www.amazon.com/Large-Sunset-Glow-Inflatable-Pool/dp/B00004YTIP/ref=dp_cp_ob_t_title_3
and this heater:
http://www.amazon.com/06109-Heaters-Submersible-Aquarium-250-Watt/dp/B003GKN12A


I gave birth in a little less than 20 minutes, and as soon as my water broke in the pool I was grossed out and wanted to get out (Im not squeamish, but you never know what might bother you in labor). The water was still hot 5 hours later. My friend used the same set up, had a 22 hour labor and her DH covered the pool with a tarp during times when she wasnt in it. Tarp, sheet, comforter, whatever you grab to throw over it to keep the heat in. You'd be surprised at how warm the water stays.