Underwater Pool Balls
4
Watermelon Ball — the pool toy you play with underwater
We make the watermelon ball: a fillable underwater pool toy you fill with water from a garden hose instead of blowing it up. Filled, it sinks, hovers and rises again, so the games happen under the surface of the swimming pool rather than on top of it.
- Fills from a garden hose in under a minute
- Sinks, rises and floats — all three
- Durable PVC that survives a concrete deck
- Played by kids, teens and adults
Four things in the bag
Everything we make falls into one of four groups. Each one plays a different part of the same afternoon.
How to play watermelon ball in a swimming pool
A beach ball floats and blows away. A football, basketball and rugby ball behave the same way once they are wet — they sit on top. The watermelon ball does not. Fill the shell from a hose, add two pumps of air, and it holds neutral buoyancy: it sinks slowly, hangs halfway down, and will bounce off the floor of the pool.
That one trick is the whole game. Swimmers dribble the ball along the bottom, pass it underwater and chase it when it starts to rise. A watermelon ball is durable enough for a concrete deck, and the fruit pattern is practical before it is pretty: green on black stays visible through three feet of moving water.
The watermelon ball sinks, rises and floats
Three states, one ball. Fill it to the brim and it sinks, which is the setting for diving games. Leave a pocket of air and it hovers — that is how most people play. Half fill it and it floats like a beach ball. Changing the setting takes thirty seconds with the same hose, so one watermelon ball covers every pool game of the afternoon.
- Hose adapter in the box
- No pump required
- Neutral buoyancy when filled right
- Durable PVC shell
- Pool, lake and ocean safe
- Drains in seconds
Why a filled ball beats an inflated one
Six things that change the moment the ball stops floating.
Bounce it below the surface
Filled right, the ball bounces off the pool floor and rises back through the water — that underwater bounce is where the fun is.
Football, basketball and rugby in one
Pass it like a football, basketball or rugby ball. The same watermelon ball plays all three games underwater.
Kids, teens and adults
The 6.5-inch junior suits ages six up; the 9-inch watermelon ball is for eight and up, which in practice means the whole pool.
Durable in and out of the water
Thick PVC and a welded seam. These are durable water toys, not party balloons: they survive a concrete deck and a summer of games.
Packs flat, fills fast
Drain it, roll it up, pack it. A watermelon ball takes less room in a bag than a swimming towel and fills again in a minute.
Fun without a battery
Birthdays, spring break, the last week of school — the fun of a pool full of people chasing one ball beats anything with a screen.
The balls people reach for first
Our eight most-reviewed pieces, from the original 9-inch ball to the combo sets.
Watermelon Ball 9″ Green
$24.99
Watermelon Ball 9″ Blue
$24.99
Watermelon Ball JR 6.5″
$21.99
Watermelon Ball Lit 9″
$28.99
Two-Pack: 9″ + JR 6.5″
$32.99
Pool Football 9″
$17.99
Water Skip Ball 2.4″ — 3-Pack
$17.99
Pool Football 9″ Light-Up
$19.99
In the water, not in a studio
Pool shots from the people who swim with these every summer.
What swimmers tell us
Verified buyers, in their own words.
Fun Watermelon Football That Is Filled with Air, Not Water
When I first saw this watermelon football, I assumed it was going to be filled with water because of the name and the way it is advertised for pools and water play. I was actually surprised to find out that you inflate it with air instead, and after using it, I think that is much better. Filling it with air keeps it lightweight, easier to throw, and much less messy than a water-filled ball would…
A fun ball for the pool
We grabbed the Watermelon Ball Lit for our Intex above-ground pool, and the underwater game itself is a genuine blast. You fill it with water so it becomes neutrally buoyant and "dribble" it along the bottom of the pool — the kids (and honestly the adults) have had a great time passing and chasing it around. It's a clever twist on a pool toy and a nice change from floats and noodles. The Game…
Grippy texture makes it easy to catch and throw; waterproof provides peace of mind
Light-up watermelon football great for little hands. In the box, you will receive the watermelon football, a small hand pump, and a white charging cord specially designed to charge this football by fitting in the same hole as the ball pump. The hand pump is sufficient to pump up the football since so little air and psi is needed to inflate it. It is also very easy to charge and doesn't take a lot…
These actually work perfectly and my family now has skipping addiction
Fair warning: these things are dangerously addictive, and your family will develop a serious skipping problem. This set comes with three skippers: two round balls and one flat disc that's basically the Michael Jordan of water skipping. The flat one regularly launched clear across our 20-foot pool and into the neighbor's yard, which was both impressive and slightly embarrassing. All three skip…
Fun Pool Toy
This ended up being more fun than I expected. It’s basically a football designed for the pool, and it throws surprisingly well once you get the hang of it. The included pump made inflating it quick, and the material feels durable enough for regular summer use. The LED lights are a nice touch if you’re swimming in the evening. They’re bright enough to make the ball easy to track after sunset…
Really cool toy with auto on and off lighting and multiple ways to fill and play with it.
This is a really interesting toy. You can pump it with only air or mix it with air and water adjusting its buoyancy which changes how it acts and reacts in and under water. This is easy to charge with the included charger and fill with the included pump so right out of the box you have everything you need to charge and fill this pool football. I really like how the lights turn on automatically…
Pool games you can play with one watermelon ball
You do not need a rulebook to play watermelon ball. Most groups invent the same three games within ten minutes: underwater keep-away, sunken water polo and a diving relay. All three are more fun with one ball than with a bag of floating toys, and all three work in any swimming pool deeper than four feet.
Deck notes
Three guides written at the side of a pool.
The underwater pool ball game, start to finish
This is the game we get asked about most. It takes one ball, a swimming pool and…
Filling, inflating and draining
The whole process takes under a minute once you have done it once. The part worth…
Pool games by age, from paddling to competitive
A pool full of mixed ages is a scheduling problem. These are the games that work at…
Questions we get at the pool
How do you play watermelon ball?
Fill it with water from a hose, add two pumps of air, and throw it in. The game is keep-away: two teams, pass the ball underwater, score against the far wall.
Is the watermelon ball supposed to float?
All three. Completely full it sinks; nearly full with a little air it hovers; half full it floats. The hovering setting is the one the games are built around.
How is this different from a regular beach ball?
A beach ball holds air and the wind owns it. A watermelon ball holds water, so it stays where you put it and you can play with it underwater.
Do I need a special pump to fill it?
No pump. The hose adapter in the box screws onto a garden hose; fill the shell, then add two breaths of air to set the buoyancy.
Why does the ball look like a watermelon?
Because it is easy to see against a blue pool floor and easy to explain to a six-year-old. The fruit pattern was practical before it was fun.
Can it be used in saltwater pools or the ocean?
Yes — saltwater, chlorinated swimming pools and lakes are all fine. Rinse the watermelon ball with fresh water afterwards and drain it before you pack it.