Who knew pool noodles had so many uses?

Yep, pool noodles – who knew they could have so many uses?

If we all just used our noodles (yes, plural) when caravanning and camping, the world would be a nicer, safer and more colourful place.

I’m not talking about using your brain for the more obvious, common-sense type activities, like being courteous to others at camp and caravan sites (and online, of course), cleaning up the campsite before you leave, final checks on vans, regular maintenance and checks when you get home and making sure all weights are correct for both vehicle and van.

The humble pool noodle — The pool noodle spotted in its natural habitat

No … I’m talking about using your pool noodles; cheap, rubber, plastic, synthetic thingies, which you would normally find in the backyard pool.

I’d heard about these things online and their variety of uses so decided to spend up big and do some research.

A whole four bucks each (I shopped around), I bought a few of each colour available, initially because I thought they would add a bit of brightness to the pics, but realised as my research progressed that colour serves a purpose … it makes them (and the object they’re attached too) highly visible.

Note the big sticker attached to the noodle states “Warning: Aquatic toy, use under supervision. This is not a life-saving device. Use in shallow water under supervision”.

This is obviously a safety regulation (indeed, a sensible one), but I figure the manufacturer hasn’t caught on to the simple caravanning accessory uses of these objects.

It’s important to note that if you buy your noodles online, make sure they have holes in the middle (it helps).

A weekend away at Wirrina in South Australia with some friends was a perfect opportunity to see how people use their noodles … the research continues.

By the way, a sharp blade came in handy as I had to slit the noodles on one side, and in some cases cut them down in size for depending on what I was using it for.

Pool noodle door stop — Use your noodle as a doorstop

So here’s my list (in no particular order) from research and other contributors

Around the guy rope and peg – perfect for better visibility of the ropes, particularly at night
On edge of the door to stop it banging against the van
On the edge of a fold-out table to stop objects falling off
Attach to the bottom of wind-out windows – saves the head when bending down to grab a tinny from the esky
On the awning struts – helps raise the plastic a tad to tighten and stop flapping
On the awning supports, simply to stop bumping into
A shin-saver on the tow hitch
On the fridge, camp fridge or esky to keep the lid or door open when not in use
On the corner of slide-out campers, once again to stop accidental bumping into
Around gas or water pipes as protection
Fun and games for kids; maybe you’ve taken a blow-up pool to the caravan park.
Makeshift bucket toilet seat edge, for a bit of extra comfort
Emergency roof rack/roof protector
Fishing rod holder/support
Playing card holder
Mobile phone holder
Large hoop game.

I’m sure there are a plethora of noodle uses, and I must admit, a bit of fun was had by all as we came up with and implemented some noodle options. Maybe give them to the kids, get them to use their noodle on your next trip to see what they come up with.