19 Genius Winter Pool Noodle Hacks You Should Be Using For Yourself

When the words "pool noodle" are bandied about in conversation, you likely expect an invitation to a summer pool party to follow. Seldom do you expect to find that conversation veering into the territory of winter. And yet, surprisingly enough, pool noodles are one of the most versatile materials you can have on hand for winter.

As it turns out, there are tons of awesome pool noodle hacks that can help you make it through the winter. If you're looking to keep your pipes from freezing, protecting your car's windshield wiper blades from ice, or making a more ergonomic handle for your snow shovel, you can achieve all of that with the use of a few pool noodles. And it's not just practical hacks you can use them for. You can also utilize them to create some really festive decorations, like garlands and Christmas wreaths, to have around the house.

In addition to them being a jack-of-all-trades in terms of wintertime hacks, pool noodles are also incredibly inexpensive. You can easily find them for a few bucks at local budget stores, making them an excellent return on investment for what they are able to achieve with them. If you've got a stash of pool noodles in the shed or want to run to Dollar Tree to buy a bunch, here are 20 pool noodle hacks that will help make winter a little easier.

Where you live will dictate how much of a problem frozen plumbing pipes could be. If you live somewhere that frequently sees exceptionally cold winters and need a quick, DIY hack to keep your pipe from freezing, use a box cutter or knife to slice down the length of a pool noodle, then fit them snugly over your pipes. They will provide enough insulation to keep the water inside from freezing, seeing as they are made out of polyethylene, a similar material used to make standard pipe insulation is also made from.

Don't think that it's only your indoor pipes that need to be insulated. Outdoor faucets are a classic target through which cold air can form ice in the connecting pipes and burst inside of your basement. Thankfully, there is an easy way to winterize your outdoor faucet with a pool noodle DIY. Cut the noodle long enough to cover your faucet, and be sure to stuff additional insulation into the cavity that is exposed to the elements. Seal everything with tape, and you have yourself a handy tool for colder days.

One of the easiest ways you can keep cold air from seeping underneath your doors is to create an easy, DIY pool noodle door draft stopper. The idea is to use the noodles to seal the bottom of your doors and prevent any cold drafts from getting inside. This can be as simple as cutting a pool noodle to the length of your door and stuffing it along the bottom. You could also get a little more elaborate by wrapping two measured lengths of pool noodle in fabric and essentially creating a two-sided sock for your door.

Whether you have tall dress boots, hunting boots, cowboy boots, or heavy-duty snow boots, keeping them upright instead of flopping over onto themselves is going to help them retain their shape. A pool noodle is both flexible and rigid, making it the perfect implement to stuff inside of your boots to keep them standing straight. You could also add pool noodles to the pillars of a boot drying stand. This will have them facing upside down, which will actually help them dry faster than standing up.

Something aggravating about winter weather is having your windshield wipers freeze your windshield. Ice and snow can do damage to the blades by bending the frames, chipping the rubber, or breaking the joints. Sliding pool noodles over your wiper blades may help insulate them from the weather and keep them from freezing to the windshield. All you need to do is measure your blades, cut the noodle to length, cut down the length with a knife, and place them over your wiper blades. Note that some love this winter pool noodle hack, and some hate it.

The job of a steering wheel cover is to provide an insulating barrier between your hands and the steering wheel, allowing for better grip and warmer hands when driving in cold weather. To make one using a pool noodle, simply cut along the length of the noodle with a knife and then wrap it over your steering wheel. Cut away the excess foam, seal the seam using tape, and you've got yourself a cheap, colorful cover.

You've likely seen people online attaching a pool noodle to their garden rakes and using them as a squeegee to wick water away from patios or pool pavement. But did you know you can also use that same DIY squeegee as a snow broom? The noodle might protect whatever you're brushing from the teeth of the metal rake, and will easily push snow away. The length of the rake handle makes this an excellent tool for using to brush snow off the hard-to-reach places of your car, garden shed roofs, porch stairs, or chicken coops.

Creating a cover composed of pool noodles might not be the most attractive thing in the world, but it could protect your car from a hail storm. If you don't have a garage to park your car in, then you might want to try this out. String together some full length pool noodles until they completely cover your car, or at least your front and back windshield. You can keep the noodle cover strapped down with bungee cords or by placing a metal rod through the pool noodles at strategic sections. 

As of this writing, a 20-cubic-foot bag of packing peanuts costs $30. Why spend that when you could chop up your old pool noodles for free? If you are planning on sending gifts out during the holiday season, the pool noodle packing peanuts will help keep them secure and protected. Cut your noodles in half lengthwise, then cut down the two halves to make smaller packing peanuts. You can get a lot out of just one noodle, and you can pack with them the same way you would with standard packing peanuts.

It turns out that pool noodles make for excellent faux candle decorations for the holiday season. You can cut them to any size you like and hollow out part of the cavity to fit a battery-powered candle into. For added garnish, use hot glue around the edges to make it seem like the "candle wax" has melted. You can spray paint them in festive colors, and then adorn them with extra festive touches like pinecones, ribbons, and a bit of glitter for sparkle. Just make sure you use battery candles and not real ones. 

If you've ever used a pool noodle to create an ergonomic grip for other garden tools, like a rake or standard shovel, why not do the same thing with your snow shovel? The principle is the same: Creating a more comfortable handle that is easier to grip onto with gloved hands. While you might not be able to slip a pool noodle down the length of the shovel hand, you can slice the noodle open and cover the handle. You can even cut a smaller piece to cover the D-grip handle. 

A snow blower is an excellent tool to have, especially if you live in an area that sees frequent heavy snows throughout the winter. Depending on the brand and model, a snow blower can come affixed either with one solid handle, akin to that of a lawn mower, or two smaller handles which separately control the auger and drive. Like you would with the shovel, you can cut and add a pool noodle to your handle bars for a better grip and more comfortable operation.

It doesn't necessarily have to be a last minute thing, but you can create a beautiful winter wreath for your door out of a pool noodle in little to no time. All you need to do is force the noodle into a circle — sized appropriately — and add adornments. You could glue on a ton of baubles, force forest shaded fabric into the foam to make it look like pine, or wrap it in faux pine needles and ribbons. Feel free to get creative, and thank us for how good it looks later.

In the winter, your garage floor can be subjected to a lot of weather — including freezing rain, snow, and ice. The road salts that melt off of your car can also have a corrosive impact on the concrete floor. One great solution would be to build a floor dam using a tarp and some pool noodles. The noodles can act as the edges to keep the detritus from seeping out into the floor. You can attach them to the tarp using glue or tape, and ensure they won't move by adding dowels into the noodle cavity.

There are a few ways you can transform pool noodles into candy canes. First, you could use bendable wire to shape the noodles into the candy cane shape. Or, you could purchase light up candy canes and stuff those onto the pool noodles. That will provide the shape, and some cool lighting effects at night. White pool noodles are best for this, as you can just wrap them in red or green ribbons to achieve the classic candy cane spiral. Add additional garlands or festive touches if you feel so inclined.

There are a lot of different types of garlands you could make with pool noodles, but one of the easiest would be as festive framers for your front door. Insert some wire with a looped end into the pool noodles to provide a place for hanging and additional structure. You can add festive pine needles, ribbons, baubles, flowers, pinecones, or any other adornments you find festive. Use some command strips and hooks to hang these alongside your front door. Add some twinkle lights and a wreath for added ambience.

Winter storms can be just as damaging as hurricanes in the late summer or fall. As such, it is useful to have sand bags at your disposal to divert water away from important locations in your house. You can also add pool noodles to this mix as well. The sand bags will work to divert the water, while the pool noodles, wedged into the seams of windows, doorways, or garage doors, will help keep any potential overflow from getting inside.

There is something about the white-and black-color scheme of birch logs that makes them exceptionally festive. But you don't need to go cutting down birch trees just to get them into your home. Using a combination of pool noodles, old newspaper, glue, and paint, you can fashion your own birch logs as a festive decoration to festoon different areas of the house. You can glue three or more logs together to make a bundle, then wrap them in some holiday ribbon.

A pool noodle makes the perfect base for a warm and cozy DIY holiday winter wonderland centerpiece. You can essentially add whatever you want to it, from festive ornaments and baubles to faux pine needles and ribbons to wine glass candle holders and LED string lights. There are endless possibilities to transform this innocuous length of foam into something truly special for the holiday season.