James, slow it down my brotha... I admire your imagination with the kiddie pool, but I think it would be very hard to control the water parameters in an area that isn't under control.
I wouldn't get a kiddy pool and put it outside in sac. You know how bad sac winters get.
My suggestion... Keep the 10G, get a UFG and run in it reverse. Get a penguin 150 and change the filter three times a month. Keep up with you WC and you will be fine for the interim.
You can find a free tank on craigslist. I did, and so can you. As much time as we spend online, check the postings often. I set up an RSS feed so as soon as the post is online I get an alert, you can do the same thing. If you want some help just pm me.
I live very close to san mateo, I would be happy to pick that tank up for you and deliver it next time I'm in sac if you arrange it with the owner. Keep your eyes open and you will see a tank soon.