Hi all, I'm considering doing a messy session with a inflatable pool/kiddy pool so that I don't have to worry about drain clogging, but I'm curious about how you all dispose of the mess after. Do you just slide it into a garbage bag and call it a day? Do you put a plastic tarp under? If so, why not just use the tarp? I assume there's less risk of spillage when you have the pool. It also seems expensive to buy and inflatable pool to use once haha.

Any advice is appreciated!

I picked up an inflatable pool and used it once. I had similar reservations and ended up just putting a tarp over it. It caught the mess well and allowed it to pool. I then rolled up the tarp to toss it out and had clean pool. I imagine some with more space may do the pool outside and just spray it down. I now opt to just use a tarp and not bother inflating the pool. Interested in how others got around these issues as well.

Usually I use a pool and then can transport the mess to the bath or toilet to be disposed of, or I move the entire pool and empty / hose it down in the bath.

Both options ensure it gets properly diluted, and afterwards you're left with a nice clean pool for next time.

Trying to clean off gunge from a deflated pool in the bath or garden with a hose is a nightmare.

I find it easiest to clean the outside off with sponges, scoop out the inside goo in to buckets and dispose, then sponge clean down the inside with several buckets of water, scooping out the dirty water with the plastic pan from a dust pan and brush set.

Normally get the inside of the pool clean with 3 or 4 buckets. Towel dry it off and leave it to completely dry over night, then deflate it and put it away.

One thing if it's outdoors is being able to clean up quicker not worrying about a drain and also being able to use more substances

We've been picking up 5ft inflatable pools for $15 and disposing of them once we're finished - scooping out as much of the muck as possible, naturally. Easy enough to stuff into a big black plastic bag and dump in the community dumpster afterward. But we're going to try wrapping them in plastic tarp the next go-around - the 2mm sheets are huge and only cost about $2 from any hardware or DIY store. The less mess in the shower, the better.

I also put a 2mm plastic tarp under the pool, just in case of rips and leaks. Then a long strip of thinner plastic tarp on the way to the shower, since I still have carpet on the floor rather than easy-to-clean wood laminate.

You have to decide what your time is worth.

I found to get an cheap inflatable pool properly clean with anything that could mold took more time of my own time and effort than the cost of a new pool. If you only used something like shaving cream that won't mold, it's a different story.

I also watch for them to go on clearance (soon) and stock up.

I put sheet plastic under and extend it, at least in one direction. You want a place to put containers that held goo that's not in the pool, but that when you reach out with a messy arm, you can put them down without dripping goo on the floor. It's also handy for a spot to stand outside the pool; to clean up, scrape down your skin with a spatula or squeegee in the pool, then clean a foot, step out with that foot, then clean the other foot.

For clean up, you then pop the pool, roll it up in the tarp, put that all into a yard waste garbage bag, and then dispose of this thing that no, doesn't look like a body at all, into a dumpster.