This Clever Pool Noodle DIY Keeps Cold Drinks Safe From The Summer Heat

If you love to sit outside and enjoy the warm, summer weather with a cool drink, you should be using this genius pool noodle hack in your backyard. During hotter temperatures, your drink sitting on the patio table could become too warm before you get to finish it, and if it doesn't have a lid, bugs might go after your sweet beverage. Luckily, a simple pool noodle is enough to keep your drink cold and create a covering to prevent you from accidentally gulping down pesky insects.

Your DIY drink koozie could be placed on an outdoor table, or you might fasten it to the side of a chair so you can comfortably sip your drink while sitting wherever you like. Alternatively, you might try using a pool noodle as a drink float in the pool by crafting a small raft to support your beverage insulator. However you decide to do this project, you'll have a simple, creative way to protect your beverages and better enjoy your time outside this summer.

For this hack, you'll need to use pool noodles that are thicker than the typical size. This will ensure that most cans or cups will fit inside the foam so they will be effectively insulated. You can find Big Joe super foam swimming noodles at Walmart for under $4 each. One noodle should be enough to create a few koozies, making it easy to have one for each person in your household.

To start, lay out your noodle beside a cup or can to measure the length you need. You might choose to use several models so that each koozie can fit a different-sized drink. Leave a few inches of extra room below the drink, to have a support at the bottom of your insulator. Mark the size and cut the noodle. Now, place your cup on the end of the noodle and trace around it. With a box cutter, cut around the tracing to widen the hole in the pool noodle so that it fits your drink, leaving a little foam at the bottom so the can won't be exposed. Set your drink inside the holder to ensure it fits well and the top sticks out a little so you can easily sip from it. To make a lid for your insulator, cut another slice of pool noodle a few inches thick and hollow it out the same way. Fill the small, center holes of the drink holder and lid with scrap foam to keep your drink inside.

Because pool noodles actually work as pipe insulators, this drink holder should be able to keep your beverage cold for a while longer than if it were just sitting out, especially with the lid. While you could tie the base of this insulator to the arm of your chair or just set it down, you might want to create a floatie so you can use it in the pool. To make your drink raft, cut another piece of pool noodle so that it's about double the length of the cup you used for your insulator. Stand this up and cut it in half hot dog style.

Lay these cut noodles next to each other on the flat side, so that the curved sides face up. Now, set your insulator in the center of these two pieces, trace around it, and cut that section out. Place your drink holder inside to ensure it fits snuggly, then remove it. If it doesn't fit, you can widen the opening slightly. Flip over your half noodles and secure them together by gluing popsicle sticks or wooden craft sticks across both pieces. Once the glue has dried, you can flip your raft back over, put your drink insulator inside, and take your beverage into the pool. The lid of the insulator should help to keep out any pool water, and your drink will stay cold and nearby as you go for a dip.