Imagine packing up your kids for a day at the pool. You’ve brought suits, sunscreen, goggles, towels and even a magazine or two to scroll while your kiddos splash away. Just as you get settled onto your beach chair and your kids are about to hop into the cool water….
DISASTER. A poop-disaster, to be specific. In fact, the entire pool is evacuated to contain the mess, and rather than a fun-filled afternoon at the pool, you’re heading home with some sad kids.
Not only are poop disasters gross, they’re actually a health concern. According to the CDC, fecal matter in the pool can cause germ-causing bacteria like cryptosporidium to spread. That’s why at SwimWest we take swim diapers seriously – it’s critical to keeping our water clean and our swimmers safe.
At SwimWest, we require swimmers that aren’t potty trained yet to use reusable swim diapers. Reusable diapers have a ton of advantages over their disposable counterparts – from being more cost effective per wear to being much more comfortable to offering a variety of sizes and colors, reusable diapers give you the best bang for your buck if your child is attending lessons. But the biggest reason we require reusable diapers is simple – they just work better. They keep fecal matter in much, much better than disposable diapers, which may or may not have a tight enough fit. No matter what, it’s important to keep checking your swimmer and change their diaper (reusable or disposable) regularly while you are swimming.
If you’ve been a swimmer at SwimWest over the past 5 or so years, you’ve probably noticed we switched to a double diapering system. While reusable swim diapers are a great barrier and help prevent leakage while your young swimmer is in the pool, *two* swim diapers offer double the protection. This prevents most pool accidents from shutting down our pool, causing canceled lessons, disrupted schedules and general inconvenience.
So how does a double diapering system work?
First, any child under 3, and any child currently potty training, should be utilizing “double diapers” while swimming at SwimWest. Choose two reusable cloth swim diapers and layer them on your child before getting them into the water. Reusable swim diapers are comfortable and don’t swell like disposable diapers, so using two should be comfortable for your child. Choose diapers that fit your child snugly, but consider sizing up the outer diaper if necessary.The combination of two reusable swim diapers will prevent accidents in the pool. Make sure you have an extra set just in case you do need to change your child during lessons or free swim!
Thanks for your help and support in keeping our pool clean!