Best Sprinklers for Kids – Top Models Reviewed
Kids love playing with water, whether they’re bathing in a tub or splashing on the lawn while the sprinklers are on.
But water play isn’t just all play.
Child development experts note that water play also promotes optimum physical, mental and social development in various ways including:
- Encouraging them to explore the world around them and learning how it works through highly tactile experiences
- Increasing their vocabulary by talking to others about their discoveries and experiences with water
- Learning how to socialize with others and taking turns at splashing through the splash pad
- Providing them with the opportunity to run and jump, which are exercises on their own right
- Giving them the opportunity to let go of their stress – yes, children can become stressed and overwhelmed, too
With such a wide range of wonderful health benefits, parents are understandably looking for great ways to provide their children with opportunities for water play, preferably outdoors during the summer and winter seasons. This is where the best sprinklers for kids come in!
Looking for the best sprinklers?
We chose the following toy sprinklers based on their price, a main concern for most parents, as well as on their ease of setting up, possibility for fun play, and overall design (i.e., colors, theme and number of sprinklers).
Table of Contents
- 9 Best Sprinklers for Kids - Comparisons
- Reviews of 9 Best Sprinklers for Kids
- 1. Kids Sprinkler Fire Hydrant
- 2. Melissa & Doug Sunny Patch Grub Scouts Sprinkler Toy With Hose Attachment
- 3. Melissa & Doug Sunny Patch Pretty Petals Flower Sprinkler Toy With Hose Attachment
- 4. Little Tikes Super Spiral Sprinkler
- 5. Banzai Aqua Blast Hopscotch Water Splash Pad
- 6. GLORDEN Flower Design Circular Spot Sprinkler
- 7. Hydro Twist Pipeline Sprinkler
- 8. Imperial Toy Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Spin and Spray Sprinkler
- 9. 19.7' Lime Green, Black and Blue Inflatable Aqua Fun Caterpillar Outdoor Water Sprinkler by Swim Central
- Final Verdict
9 Best Sprinklers for Kids - Comparisons
Image | Product Name | Product Dimensions | Weight | Price |
---|---|---|---|---|
8.9 x 5.2 x 4.2 | 9.6 ounces | |||
10 x 5 x 7.7 | 17.6 ounces | |||
6 x 7.5 x 8 | 17.6 ounces | |||
18.7 x 19 x 59.7 | 30 ounces | |||
Banzai Aqua Blast (Currently unavailable) | 11 x 10.5 x 2 | 17.6 ounces | ||
1.25 x 4.25 x 4.75 | 1.6 ounces | |||
13.5 x 11.2 x 1.3 | 17.6 ounces | |||
Imperial Toy Teenage (Currently unavailable) | 17.8 x 17.8 x 26.7 | 11.22 ounces | ||
19.7' Lime Green (Currently unavailable) | 16 x 14 x 20 | 13.6 ounces |
Reviews of 9 Best Sprinklers for Kids
What better way to enjoy fun water sprays than from fire hydrant? But since you can’t open fire hydrants on your own, the Fun Splashers’ fire hydrant-inspired toy sprinkler is a great alternative.
While it’s a significantly smaller version of real-life fire hydrants – it’s just around 8” tall – it’s sufficient to give children such joy in water play.
The toy spins and spins around while spraying water as it goes so kids can just stay in one place near it and get drenched or they can spin around it for more fun.
The stream of water reaches up to 8 feet in height, which is among the tallest heights that toy sprinklers can provide. Your kids may even play a game of who gets drenched from a certain distance so the repertoire of play expands.
Pros
- Ingenious fired hydrant inspiration
- Spinning and spraying motions
- High sprays of water
- Easy to use and store
- Stable base
Cons
- Colors may fade when exposed to sunlight for prolonged periods
The brand is well-known among parents who want the best value for their money when buying toys for their kids – and the Sunny Grub Sprinkler isn’t different.
The toy sprinkler is easy to set up, too, since all it takes to inflate it is to attach it to a standard garden hose, preferably in an outdoor area like the lawn.
As soon as the garden hose is disconnected, the sprinkler will also deflate on its own, which can then be left on the ground or stored in the shed.
The numerous projections make fine water sprays that mimic a relatively heavy rain, without the lightning and thunder obviously. The familiar Sunny Patch friends on the toy also becomes a source of happiness for kids while the cool water will keep them entertained for as long as there’s a supply of it.
Pros
- Durable materials used
- Attractive colors
- Easy to set up and store
- Fine water spray created
- Promotes love for playing among little kids thus encouraging them to explore the properties of water
Cons
- May not be large enough for larger kids to enjoy the spray
Real flowers obviously cannot spray water on their own but the Sunny Patch Pretty Petals Flower Sprinkler definitely does!
The charmingly designed toy sprinkler has 12 flower-shaped parts that spray water at a good distance; the flowers are in a girly pink with a green base.
When it’s attached to a garden hose, it almost immediately sprays water in all directions so be careful about being too near it if you don’t want to get wet.
You can use it to water your lawn – or better yet, let the kids enjoy their water play while the lawn gets watered and it’s a win-win for everybody. The flowers are stationary but that’s okay since the kids love the streams of water, not the movement from the toy.
Pros
- Promotes outdoor active play and waters the plants, too
- Durable material and build
- Girly flower-inspired design
- Shoots streams of water from the petals
Cons
- Strength of streams of water varies depending on the water pressure
- Stationary (i.e., no spinning movements)
While water itself holds the children’s fascination, adding more toys to the mix will exponentially add to the kids’ enjoyment.
Parents know it because their kids love playing with bath toys, such as rubber ducks and plastic toys, while in the tub.
The Little Tikes Super Spiral Sprinkler is a unique one because it adds toys to the streaming water while most of the sprinklers in our list simply stream water.
The spiral part of the sprinkler has such a powerful jet stream that it actually shoots up the four balls up into the air for a good distance. Your kids will have more fun catching these balls even as they play with water.
The sprinkler is also easy to set up in the yard, thanks to its plastic footed spike at the bottom, which also means that it will stay upright even with a strong water pressure.
Pros
- Sturdy vinyl material
- Provides kids of all ages with multiple play opportunities including water and ball play
- Comes with four balls for added catching fun
- With powerful streams of water
- Attractive design
- Can be used in many places, such as lawns, parks and pools
Cons
- Requires high water pressure but it’s usually a must in all toy sprinklers
Hopscotch is a traditional game usually played on cement and soil. But with the Banzai Aqua Hopscotch Splash Pad, your kids will have fun playing with water while also playing the game – think of it as a two-in-one toy that gives great value for the money.
This is made from a textured PVC material that provides kids a better grip while jumping on the squares, even with a wet surface. The set contains a single water spraying mat with the hopscotch squares and three playing chips.
Pros
- 2-in-1 toy
- Strong material
- Introduces kids to a beloved game
- Comes with a colorful mat that also sprays water
Cons
- Mat is too small for larger kids
Yet another flower-inspired toy sprinkler is the Glorden Flower Circular Spot Sprinkler.
But unlike the vinyl sprinklers in our list, it’s made of aluminum with a powder-coated painted surface for additional rust protection. You should always check that there are no sharp
edges and rust on the toy sprinkler for safety reasons.
This is small sprinkler but it works well with its 30 x 30 feet water coverage area and its circular spray pattern. You can even use it as a garden sprayer for the lawn when the ids outgrow it.
Pros
- 360-degree spray action
- Rust-resistant aluminum construction
- Small footprint with large spray area
- Promotes outdoor water play while also watering the plants
Cons
- Aluminum will rust over time
Children just love getting sprayed on from various sources but unless you have multiple garden hoses with each one hooked to its own faucet, it may not be possible.
Fortunately, there’s a simple solution to your problem – the Hydro Twist Pipeline Sprinkler! This has several spray sources that your kids will love being sprayed on at the front, back and sides.
The spray comes from two larger fountains and several smaller wiggle tubes so the effect is almost like a Las Vegas fountain show. You don’t have to worry about complicated assembly since there are few things to assemble, not to mention that it’s a simple matter of connecting it to a garden hose and your kids are in business.
Pros
- Comes in various colors
- Solid construction coupled with sturdy materials
- Multiple spray sources
- Easy to use
Cons
- Requires high water pressure to get the most out of the toy sprinkler
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle franchise is among the most popular among kids because kids love them, period.
The TMNJ Spin and Spray Sprinkler makes its way to many best sprinklers for children because it has such a familiar, fun and lovable character as its inspiration – the effervescent Michelangelo.
When a standard garden hose has been attached to the fully assembled sprinkler, the inflatable Michelangelo moves his arms in several directions – think crazy ninja moves.
This results in streams of water shooting from the arms’ multiple holes that, when coupled with the body’s spinning motions, make for a truly good time. Your kids will have a blast just getting drenched from all directions, oftentimes with the streams coming unpredictably.
Pros
- Easy to use by attaching to a standard garden hose
- Sturdy materials and build
- Familiar character
- Multiple sprays coupled with spinning motion
- Allows kids to enjoy hour after hour of water play
Cons
- High water pressure necessary to get good sprays
Caterpillars are fascinating creatures for kids although not many will want to touch them due to possible allergic reactions.
But when these butterflies-in-making come in the form of toys, then kids likely take to them like ducks to water.
No wonder then that this caterpillar-inspired water sprinkler lands in many lists of the best toy sprinklers for kids!
The green, black and blue colors are the first things that will attract your kids’ attention followed by the charming caterpillar’s smiling face, as is the case for most caterpillar-inspired toys.
But since it’s a toy sprinkler, kids will love playing around it so that they become drenched to the bone, so to speak. With its 20-foot spraying action and a 3-foot upward shooting action, you have to position it away from things that you don’t want to become wet.
Pros
- Durable 8.8-gauge vinyl used
- Excellent spraying actions sideward and upwards
- Vibrant colors
- Provides hours of fun for children of all ages
Cons
- Can be difficult to store
Final Verdict
The best sprinklers for kids are designed to provide kids with the best possible water streaming experience in the safety of their own backyards, perhaps as an additional source of enjoyment at the park or even at the beach.
Just be careful about keeping a close eye on younger children as they play with the sprinklers for safety reasons – kids have been known to drown in a small amount of water, among other things.
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