When do hire the birth pool for the home birth I'm hoping to have?

[HelloMama]

I am 18 weeks pregnant and really hoping for a home birth with a hired heated pool. What stage do I contact the company to hire the pool, pay the deposit etc? And do you think it is worth checking with the midwife the type of pool I plan to hire (bearing in mind, I never see the same one twice, so I don't know who will deliver baby and each may have different preferences?)

The websites I have looked at says contact them as soon as possible to reserve the pool, as obviously they may get reserved by other people at the time i want it. But at 18 weeks, should I wait a little longer to ensure I'm still a suitable candidate for a home birth? You have to pay about £50 to reserve it.

I don't know if anyone has used this pool or has any opinions about it? TIA!

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As soon as possible. Really, truly!

If you can, find a company which has a 'pencil in' policy or won't keep your deposit if you need to cancel for medical reasons.

BTW, a friend has a pool like that - it is her hot tub. It only cost here £250 to buy.

I would ask your m/w opinion. Mine was adamant that the La Bassine inflatable pools were the best she's used. She doesn't like the rigid ones at all.

Suited me as the La Bassine is also cheapest! Not heated, but they're easy to keep warm.

I was going to hire one, but decided to buy a La Bassine following recommendation by my independent midwife who'd used them loads of times, and only costs £100 vs £250-£350 hiring. If you don't use it (we didn't - last minute transfer to hospital), you can sell it or use it as a ball pool for the kids! They love it! Honestly, though, why spend £350 on something you may not use. Apparently they don't lose heat quickly, so having a heated one isn't important.

Don't hire, buy!

la Bassine

Birth Pool in a box

yes its much cheaper to buy one! I had a birth pool in a box (at home) and think it cost £160 with all the trimmings. If you have the cover (which we did) then it only loses 1 degree C an hour and all your dp needs to do is take out a bucket of cool water and put a warm one in to keep it at a nice temp - you really won't want it that hot.
My mw also told me that heated ones are not that great in terms of hygiene especially if your labour is long.
All the best

Yikes they are expensive aren't they - I just had a big inflatable paddling pool from Toys R Us it was perfect, just the right size, with broad comfy sides. It did have pictures of fish and suchlike on it, but it did the job and all for about, I don't know, 20 quid?