Ground Cover For Swing Set
I'm so excited! I finally bought a swing set and DH put it together yesterday for the only flat spot in our yard. Here's a link to see what it looks like:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Flexible-F...Swing/11008173 Right now, it's sitting on dirt. Our grass is almost nonexistent b/c it's fairly heavily shaded; and I spent all day yesterday weeding the area. Now it's just dirt (well, mud now b/c it's raining today!). I want to section off the area, and put down some sort of ground cover so it's not just mud. What do you all suggest? I'm on a budget, and for whatever reason my DH doesn't think a ground cover is necessary so I'm on my own with this project. I think later on in the spring, we will be purchasing St Augustine sod to install in our entire backyard... should I just wait and lay the sod under the swing set too? |
wood chips/mulch?
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i have nothing but dirt and grass under mine. And the other swing set is set in my play yard that is filled with pea stones. i would rather do mulch, its way cheaper.
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I don't have anything on mine. But I know by law you are supposed to have it in something. Like they do at the playgrounds. Either cemented into the ground, or pegged, and then so deep into the gravel, sand, or whatever you choose.
At least that's the law here. |
they just changed the regs here and are requiring us to put ground cover under all our swings and climbers.
i'm going with mulch. |
Mulch sticks to clothes, FYI....
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Originally Posted by DCMomOf3: any other suggestions? |
Originally Posted by DCMomOf3: I feel like there is no good alternative to mulch though; at least not a good inexpensive one. I think I may just wait and sod the area with the rest of the backyard. I don't know...:confused: |
what about the turf stuff they use on the golf courses?
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it is probably not cheap at all but what about rubber? they come in bits or squares you can piece together.
http://www.diamond-safety.com/Rubber...Surfacing.html http://www.diamond-safety.com/Playgr...20Listing.html |
I have 8" deep of playground mulch. It is natural (not dyed) so it doesn't stain clothes. Invest in a good, deep ground cover in case of a fall.
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Hummmm, I've been raking all these pine needles out of the yard and away from the swing set. Maybe I should leave them under the swing set. I'm not licensed, so my choice.
What do you guys have around your swing sets to contain your mulch/pea gravel etc? |
I would suggest the ground up tires that some places use, but only if you don't mind that they are a carcinogen...
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We bought an awesome swingset about 3 years ago before I started daycare. It had a 10' wavy slide, 2 large clubhouses, deck bench, swings, sun deck, climbing ladders, rock wall, and a tunnel over the top of the swings. It was really, really neat. After I started daycare, I checked into the regulations and spoke with the local surveyor. After pricing woodchips to place underneath that swingset according to manufacturer recommendations, we would have had almost $2000 in just woodchips to cover the necessary circumference. We would have had over $3500 into this swingset and the groundcover, so at that point we decided to sell it. I didnt want the liability of someone falling off the upper clubhouse or off the top of the rock wall even with approved ground cover. My kids loved that swingset, so dh bought a basic swingset this past September and I contacted the local surveyor and spoke with her about the groundcover. She said to follow manufacturer recommendations for the fall zones. Even for this basic swingset, we paid almost $500 for wood chips at a 6" depth. They prefer a 12" depth for many swingsets and that, again, would have been $1000 for this "basic" swingset. I will say that these woodchips do provide a very soft area for the kids should they fall. As for the rubber chips, when I priced them a few months ago, they were ridiculously high. Good luck finding what works best for you.
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They sell playground mulch that is rubber and made for playgrounds.
http://www.permalife.com/ This is what all our public playgrounds and schools have under their swings and play equipment. No carcinogens like ground up tires. |
I'm looking for an alternative to sand. Because I have under 3s I can not have mulch (rubber or wood), wood chips, or pea gravel. So for now, no climbing structure. We are allowed a small cube slide and 24" toddler slide with no ground covering. Other than those items, we have lots and lots of ride ons. I don't know what I'm going to do this summer as our new regs also disallow any type of water play, not even a table or sprinkler, without a 2nd adult present. Going to be a long summer.
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Originally Posted by MG&Lsmom: WHAT???!?!?!?!! That has got to be one of THE most ridiculous things I have heard! omg, what on earth is their reasoning?! I am SO glad that my state doesn't require us to be licensed if we have 6 or fewer children...and I hope to heaven that never changes. Some of the crazy things I hear coming out of other state's license requirements is just nuts. |
Originally Posted by MG&Lsmom: I swear the people who come up with these regulations have NO CLUE what it is like to spend the day with a bunch of little people. lilbutterflies: I have rubber anti fatigue mats under my swings ~ the look like this: http://www.emedco.com/anti-fatigue-f...ats-ssmat.html I definitely didn't pay that much thought; they were like $15 each at Menards or Home Depot ~ 2' x 3' I think. It's been awhile, but I think we put six together under the swings, then black dirt then grass seed. We did it in the the fall, so there wasn't as much traffic and the next spring we had grass growing up through the spaces. The kids can't create the muddy holes that form under the swings; it worked so well that we put them at the ladders and the end of the slides. When I put in my under two play area in last year, I put them under the rubber mulch to keep the digging to the dirt to a minimum. They haul it around but it is adjacent to my patio, so I just sweep it up and put it back. So, if you don't have to have mulch it is a nice alternative. |
Do a search for previous posts here on daycare.com for playground surfaces it has been discussed before and I got a great idea for the outdoor carpet. I LOVE it! We put 12 inches of free wood chips under for a safe fall zone and paid $60 for the carpet from an ad on craigslist.
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Originally Posted by SilverSabre25: I had forgotten about the outdoor carpet someone had posted. And that I could use wood chips underneath. Duh! :o |
I use wood chips. They are expensive, but worth every penny. I started with an 8 inch depth and add more every year.
I'd rather spend money on safety material than on hospital or liability bills, and it's a tax write off :) |
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I realize a long time has passed but the snow is gone and I took pics today of my carpeted outdoor play area. It is carpeted over 12 inch depth of mulch. I LOVE it btw and the pics were taken after it rained last night. No mud, no wet clothes, no stones, etc....
Attachment 424 Attachment 425 Attachment 426 Attachment 427 |
Originally Posted by Childminder: |
Originally Posted by Crystal: We also got a whole bunch of wood chips from our city landscapers as they pruned and chipped the trees and branches along the city streets. |
At a daycare going out of business sale:D. You should have seen us bringing it home on the back of a flat bed trailer...we looked like a parade float and the kids love it, btw. It is an Amish built play set. I googled it when I got it home to see if I had gotten a good deal ($200) and I had. They had a bus, train and the most awesome pirate ship but I couldn't afford the $600 they wanted for it. It was HUGE!! Still regret not getting it.
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Originally Posted by Blackcat31: If you go this route, check the quality before they deliver the full load!! |
My state requires a certain depth of either wood or rubber mulch and it is easily $2000 to put in. Makes me wish I wasn't licensed, but if I wasn't I could only have two children :(
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http://www.lowes.com/pd_155419-20787...site=shopLocal
I buy these at Lowes, and put one under each swing, then fill the holes with sand. It's soft, thick, and lasts for years. I have two that are 14 years old, and they have been outside in the hot sun this whole time. I bought one on Saturday to put over the rocks, and I paid $20. Anti Fatigue Rubber Mat http://images.lowes.com/product/conv...82000398lg.jpg |
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Originally Posted by Childminder: |
Originally Posted by youretooloud: Only $20 each too that's a good deal I think! |
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Originally Posted by Tygerluv: I was going to attach a photo, but I apparently have too many attachments so I need to figure out how to delete some :) |
Originally Posted by DCMom: |
Originally Posted by Lilbutterflie: Does all mulch stick to clothes? I'm wondering if the more expensive rubber mulch sticks? |
I got a quote for rubber mulch for my new playground were going to build, and its like $4000...............Ridiculous! going with pea rock.
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Originally Posted by Abigail: Jewel ~ that seems really expensive, unless your play area is huge of course. I bought my rubber mulch in bags at Ace Hardware in bags for about $10/bag and each bag covers 10sf at about 1-2" thick. We spent around $400 for about 250sf. Lucky our Ace Hardware is fairly close because it took two trips to get all the bags we needed! That was a few years ago and Ace was the only place that had it, but now Home Depot, Lowes, all the home improvement stores seem to have it now. |
heres my playground. never had a problem with mulch.
http://i178.photobucket.com/albums/w...g_w560h420.jpg |
We had the wood mulch for years but as it breaks down and composts it get too dirty and the kids get filthy, plus we had a huge problem with mushrooms growing. The first couple of years were fine with wood much and you will have to replace or renew every couple of years.
The rubber mulch was exorbitant in cost because we are required to have a certain thickness depending on fall zone 9 inches to 12 inches. Could never get by with 1-2 inches here. |
Originally Posted by BentleysBands: My problem with mulch is our playground will be set in the part of our yard that always gets flooded during rainfalls, and so mulch would float away, I have to go with pea rock, because it will stay in place when the area floods, and it will drain the water very quickly, otherwise, I'd rather have mulch. And I'd much rather have the rubber, but way to spendy. |
Originally Posted by SilverSabre25: Our school yard uses those annoying wood chips too. I have wondered about those hazelnut shells.....the kids might throw them though.....hmm...what is the perfect mulch?....mine is grass under the play structure.:) |
awesome, we just love our playground. i'm sure you will too :)
we have almost 6" of mulch but we get it free so thats a plus. we add to it yearly as well as our flower beds. glad i'm not licensed :D |
Just have the kids go out side and stand like statues for an hour or so. No matter what we use it will be an issue for someone. How did we ever manage to grow into adulthood without all of these rules and regulations?
Wood chips - tree allergies, relatively inexpensive, mold and fungus allergies, sticks to clothes, turns to dirt as it composts, needs replaced yearly or bi-yearly, washes away when flooded, must be thick for fall zone .... Pea Gravel - tracks in to house, babies eat it, kids throw it, moderate cost, children like to play in it, hard to walk on, ends up in the grass, find in pockets and cuffs, must be thick for fall zone ..... Rubber Mulch - expensive, carcinogen, (recycled tires)lasts an indeterminate amount of time, don't want babies to eat this stuff, works well for cushioning/safety purposes, good for the environment, thickness isn't as important.... Sand - sticks to clothes and skin, gets in eyes and hair, food source for most under two, carried everywhere, it WILL end up in your house and bedding, gets wet and stays wet easily, cats love it, it must be covered so cats don't get in it, source of contamination, must be thick for fall zone .... Rubber padding - if you can afford it why are you doing daycare?, great cushioning, easy to clean, good for the environment (recycled tires), carcinogen.... Grass - not safe for fall zone, wears down to dirt in high traffic area, grass allergies, weekly maintenance during growth period, stains clothing if in contact with clothes/children.... Plastic mat grids - water drains easily, possible trip hazard till settles in to ground, cost could become expensive if you need to purchase very many, protects wear and tear of grass, safety of it in fall zone is in question... Did I miss anything?:D |
Swing
I always wanted to make DIY wood tree swings for my kids and still undecided whether to purchase in wood tree swings or just make our own.
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