Play set advice?

[Chris Kennedy]

Everybody,

I'm soliciting expert opinions. My boy is now two and outgrown the toddler swing, and needs a more serious play set in general. I am unimpressed with the quality of the ones at the Borgs, although the ones at the Blue Borg maintain that they are cedar and cypress. We found some on-line that were just what we were looking for, but exceeded our budget.

So, I am contemplating building one. I don't think it should be tremendously difficult, but I was wondering if anyone here had built one from scratch and could give me an idea as to (a) cost, assuming built out of something other than PT and (b) time it took. Oh, and (c) a good design book.

I am hoping to bring it in for under $1K, including lumber and accessories -- slide, a couple of swings. I am thinking one main "fort" structure from which a swing beam extends to hold two or three swings.

Any and all advice appreciated.

(If this is more off-topic than woodworking, I apologize in advance).

Cheers,

Chris

[Craig Coney]

Check out playstarinc.com (http://playstarinc.com), they have different kits available with cutlists, and you can build it to your budget. These are usually carried by local lumber yards like Sutherlands or Dixieline. Also, if you check Costco or Sams, you may be able to get a seasonal one for around your budget, the one I picked up there is made from redwood.

[Mike Package]

I'm in the planning phases myself right now for a fort/swingset, for my 2 and 4 year old. I've enclosed a 40' x 40' area for their play yard. So far it just contains the sand box I built last year. The sand box is a 6'x6'x12" box with bench seats on either side and a peaked roof.

I'll say this much - it is definitely worth the effort. The kids get a TON of use out of it, and love it. So I think you definitely have a good idea going forward with it.

I'll attach the rough SU of my idea. Design-wise, It's based on the local town playground, which has a labyrinth of these stepped/twisting structures. The kids love them. And the style seems to lend itself to flexibility in terms of size and how it's situated. For this one, the 'fort' part will sit on a pad. I'm planning on using PT.

If you have any good local playgrounds around, head over there with a pad, a pencil, tape, and a digital camera and steal a good design!

[Nick DeMarco]

Since PlayStar is sold at Menards (based in Eau Claire, WI) and PlayStar is from Janesville, WI, I always assumed Menards owned PlayStar. They do own MasterCraft (MasterCrapt) and Tool Shop and other store brands, but apparently they do not own PlayStar.

In any case, you can go to a Menards and see their products. They usually have a set up play system area either within the store or outside in the covered garden area. It seems OK but not excellent.

I suppose I still hold Rainbow PlaySystems as the gold standard.

We just bought a complete Rainbow PlaySystems set, but from L*wes. The quality is not the same as the dealer-distributed RPS product, but it seems higher than that for the PlayStar.

Finally, you can also check out Detailed Play Systems. The quality seems on-par, but the pictures show a grandiose play system with a low price for the hardware. Read carefully to find out most of the stuff in the picture is an add-on. That's basically why we went the commercially made route.

Regards

[Greg Cuetara]

I suppose I am in the same ball park as you right now. I have a son and we would like a playset with a swing. I have been thinking about designing and building my own but after doing some research I think the best idea is just to search craigslist or the classified ads. A lot of people buy a nice big playset and then after a few years or when the kids outgrow it they want it gone. I have seen quite a few up here in maine for the $150 - $250 range for simple swings with slides. A new slide will run you about $170. I have also seen a few cedarworks sets that are huge and go new for about $3,500+ for about $800 - $850.

In the $150 range i can't even buy the wood for that much and then you need fasteners, slides, swings etc. Just something to think about.

You may be able to buy a used one and then add onto it with a playhouse but at least you would get a slide and all the gear for the swings.

Greg

[Travis Porter]

I built one for a friend from scratch with a set of plans. Cost was about $2K and it was a LOT of work and took a LOT of time. IIRC, it took 3 of us 2 full days of cutting, routing, and sanding. I left the finishing to him.

About 4 years ago I bought a prebuilt and precut kit from BJ's (similar to Sam's and Costco). Every piece was precut, predrilled, presanded, and prestained. At first, I was concerned with the posts as they just seemed to be particle board wrapped with plastic. As it turns out they are particle board, but put together with I am guessing epoxy and they are still quite solid.

I assembled the prefabbed kit in about 8 hours with a friend. It was substantially cheaper than the unit I had built earlier, albeit not quite as stout, but I really have no complaints as it has a LOT of functionality. It came with swings, slide, rock wall parts, canopy, and monkey bars, picnic table, and fort. It isn't a unit to last a lifetime, but for $940 including tax, it was well worth it to me.

[Steve Rozmiarek]

http://media.cedarworks.com/images/headers/wide_07.jpg

These guys make the most appealing stuff that I have found so far. Expensive, but dang, it looks good! Hope it dosen't violate the rules to post that...

[Richard Gibson]

Got this set at Toys-R-Us for about $1000. It took 4 of us 2-8 hour days to put it together

[Paul Ryan]

I was planning on a trip to menards tommarow to buy a build it yourself play set. i have been planning and designing the past few weeks. From what I have found I think buying the brakets and fasteners and then building a set that works with their designs to be the most cost effective version. We have 3 borgs in mankato and menards has the best bang for your buck. For the less $$ I can buy the brakets and build what I want compared to the pre-cut stuff. I plan to modify the design somewhat to fit what I want. I just couldn't justify the extra time spent and head scratching to design and build it completely from scratch. The playstar sets have a lot of choices and are really flexible if you buy the build it your self kit. The disney stuff from HD was my next choice but I didn't like there bulid it your self design, and the precut version was much smaller than what I could get from menards for the same $$. The lowes stuff was nice but green treated lumber is much cheaper than the cedar and cyprus kit. And by the time I added what I wanted to the lowes set the price was almost double.

[Angie Orfanedes]

I have built two for our three grandsons (two are brothers). They have a ladder up to a "fort" (4' by 4' and 4' off the ground - has an a frame roof), and a beam that holds three swings, as well as a fireman slide pole. I made good ladders with the steps attached into dadoes. Used pressure treated wood for all ground contact and structural lumber, but used SYP for the parts the boys would touch - like the ladder steps, the railing, etc. Each one cost about $800. The pre-made good ones in cedar and redwood seem to be about $2500 (and up) around here.

I enjoyed building them, and the younger boys (8 and 4) still play on theirs. But if I had it to do over again, I would consider the heavy duty kits.

[Chris Kennedy]

Everybody,

Thanks for the advice and suggestions. I am going to have a look at some of the suggested kits and weigh them against building my own. I've been cruising Craigslist as well, but nothing of quality has really come up.

And, Steve, for recommending the Cedarworks -- they are the problem. We were at a colleagues the other day and they had a Cedarworks playset. Nothing huge, but nicely made and constructed. I was very impressed, but man, they are expensive. If I had the cash flow -- in a heart beat . . .

Cheers,

Chris

[Scott Wigginton]

I scored a great deal on a Legacy Ready-to-Build by Playstar (http://www.playstarinc.com/lowes/legacy-fv.html) ($199 at Lowes) and expanded the main swing section to hold a 4' bench swing for adults. You can see mine here (http://lumberjocks.com/projects/9617).

I highly recommend checking out their Built-it-Yourself kits, which is what I'd do if I had to do it again without the great score (of course I'd end up going overboard, I never really grew up :D) I also second going with Western Red Cedar if you can do it within budget (I cringe everytime I have to use that new PT).

Pay a lot of attention to your planning of the area and make sure to budget for the appropriate landscaping. I wrote this review (http://www.epinions.com/review/Playstar_Ready_to_Assemble_Legacy/content_430116671108) of the Legacy which included my planning process and some concerns with the playground layout.

Hope this helps.

-Scott

[scott spencer]

Based on my experience with 6 kids and two swing sets, go with 3 swings...."rocket riders" and other "swinging" devices were never as popular as an old fashion swing....and they'er are always friends over. We added a fireman's pole to our last set that was always popular. Some seating on the upper deck is nice, and maybe some sort of pulley and lift system for raising and lower toys (but don't build it sturdy enough to tempt a kid to try it!). Some sort of sand box play area will also be very popular through roughly 7 or 8 years old (include a cover if you do that). A sea-saw was also very popular...do a small one that's close to the ground to reduce injuries. This is a great project that your kids will love...it'll also help ensure that the neighborhood crowd gathers at your house if there are other kids in the neighborhood.

[sean m. titmas]

i suggest a climbing wall and a zip line

[Mikail Khan]

Got a slide and accessories from www.detailedplay.com (http://www.detailedplay.com)

Better quality than from the BORG/Lowes.

MK

[Steve Rozmiarek]

And, Steve, for recommending the Cedarworks -- they are the problem. We were at a colleagues the other day and they had a Cedarworks playset. Nothing huge, but nicely made and constructed. I was very impressed, but man, they are expensive. If I had the cash flow -- in a heart beat . . .

Cheers,

Chris

That sounds VERY similar to the situation that I find myself Chris. The LOML actually found them. Now the flyers and email specials just keep "appearing" in odd places... One of these days I suppose I'll have to give in and try building a version of one, or take out a mortgage and buy one. Wonder if one of those would full sets would impact the property tax?:eek:

[Jeff Duncan]

Here's another vote for Cedarworks:)

I looked around and this is what I found, the stuff at the box stores is garbage and mostly made up of PT wood. I wasn't impressed at all so I kept looking.
Creative Playthings had much better quality and stuff available in both PT and red cedar. We were leaning towards this but here's the catch, according to the company you need to seal every year, and stain every other:(
Then I looked at Cedarworks, white cedar, no staining or sealing (unless you don't like the silver it turns over time). Also no treated wood, no splinters, and very good warranty. Ahhh, but they're expensive right....I started pricing out what it would have cost me to build out of white cedar at the shop including the hardware, the attachments, (slide, swings etc.) and most importantly the time, and it wasn't worth it for me to build it myself. So we bought the 'Play-Around', their most basic set. It cost $1450 delivered to the house and unloaded at the back of my driveway. I've been assembling with my nephew for the last several evenings. The directions are very clear and well written, the parts go together well, and it seems like a very robust set. I'll be putting the finishing touches on it tonight, attaching the slide, ladder, and enclosing the top platform.
They do have many sets for much more money, but for a basic set that competes with the others I think this was well worth the few extra bucks. And I think it's worth repeating that it's natural ceder, no chemicals and I'll never have to stain or seal it, that alone is priceless. If you have the time I think building your own would be a great thing to do. But keep in mind that you probably won't come out too much ahead money wise, and it will take good chunk of time to get it together. For us in New England, summers are much to short for my little guy to wait for Dad to build something;)
good luck whatever you decide,
JeffD

[Scott Busse]

Another vote for cedarworks. I built one based on some of their design ideas. Cost was under $1000 since I got the wood for free. :)

[Prashun Patel]

http://www.rainbowplay.com/

We got a bottom-of-the-line "Sunshine Clubhouse" system here for about $1600, installed. The $100 to install was the best I've ever spent. There are a million pieces, and it's just so unwieldy; I was happy to spend my time doing other things.

Keep in mind that your kids will play on this MAX for about 10 years. That's why we didn't go with one of the castles; We just wanted something basic to swing and climb on that would be safe and not look like crap.

IMHO, these are WAY NOT WORTH building yourself. It's all the hardware and non-wood pieces that'll kill ya.

[Chris Kennedy]

Here's another vote for Cedarworks:)
So we bought the 'Play-Around', their most basic set. It cost $1450 delivered to the house and unloaded at the back of my driveway. I've been assembling with my nephew for the last several evenings. The directions are very clear and well written, the parts go together well, and it seems like a very robust set. I'll be putting the finishing touches on it tonight, attaching the slide, ladder, and enclosing the top platform.
They do have many sets for much more money, but for a basic set that competes with the others I think this was well worth the few extra bucks. And I think it's worth repeating that it's natural ceder, no chemicals and I'll never have to stain or seal it, that alone is priceless. If you have the time I think building your own would be a great thing to do. JeffD

Jeff,

We have given serious consideration to the basic Play-Around structure. The way it is pictured in the catalogue, it is too wide for the space we need to put it in. Does it look like the fort part can be configured to reverse the slide and the climbing wall? Also, my boy is a little small for the climbing wall at the moment, so if we were to buy it, I would build a ramp for him to climb. Does it use special fasteners, or would it be easy enough to put a ramp on now and later re-attach the climbing wall when he is older?


Cheers,

Chris

[Jeff Duncan]

Chris, it's funny that you should bring that up b/c I thought the same thing. The design necessitates installing the ladder opposite the climbing wall, (which BTW is a ramp, you add the knobs yourself whenever and wherever you want). However since I'm not one for always following directions I've decided to install the slide perpendicular to the length of the set.
Several problems will arise however.

1) The ladder and ramp both have semi circular cuts to allow them to rest on the round crosspieces. On the sides of the platform you'll have to notch a couple floorboards to allow the ladder to rest on the beam. But hey we're woodworkers here right...so no problem:)
2) The ladder when installed on the front will have a small gap of about 1" or so as it's now resting on a round support instead of the flat floorboards. I'm actually not sure if this is actually a problem, but something to be aware of anyway.
3) Lastly and most importantly....there is a horizontal beam that rests on the ground connecting the ladder to the set, to the ramp. This beam helps to stabilize the unit. We set it up last night with the beam connected to the ramp and the set with the other end sticking out under the ladder. My nephew and I tried out the swings (for safety reasons of course:D) and found it to be plenty stable. So the only thing I think I'll do now is run a diagonal support from the end of that horizontal up to the unit, more to keep the kids from tripping on it than anything else.
PM me if your interested and I'll see if I can snap a couple pics tonight.
good luck,
JeffD

[Jeff Duncan]

OK update and correction. In my last post point #2 should have been slide instead of ladder, and as it turns out it wasn't a problem after all as the slide gets pushed farther back.
So last night I just about finished the installation with the exception of the slide bolts and 4 screws to secure the very top crosspieces. Altogether we spent about 1-1/2 - 2 hours each over the course of 4 nights. I'd have to say the installation was fairly easy and went smoothly even with the slight modification. Not sure how much they would charge for assembly but it's certainly not difficult. It does however require having a second set of hands available.
Overall I would say I'm happy with the quality of the set and I think my son agrees with me:D But to be honest I think the platform itself could be a bit beefier. It supports my weight (200+/-lbs) but has a bit of give when I'm up there. Of course I don't plan on spending a lot of time on it, and it's certainly strong enough to support several kids my sons age. But I feel as though it could use a bit of additional support and I may add a little extra bracing to it. I think that's my only complaint at this point. The structure itself once completed is very sturdy, more so than I expected.
Anyway that's my evaluation for what it's worth. I'd post a couple pics but I'm a little lacking in that dept.
good luck,
JeffD

[Jon Knauft]

Another option you have is to put an ad in CL or your local newspaper. I have a friend that did this and bought a $2500 Rainbow Playsystem for $300. He did have to move it but the family was moving out of state and wanted to get rid of it.

[Paul Ryan]

This is my weekend doings fellas. I have about 12 hours into it so far all by my lonesome. I still need to build the climbing wall, and steps for the rear. The wall is mostly done just have to put it together. I have spent a little under $700 with help from coupons from lowes used at menards. It is a play star set, the powerhouse is what they call it. It is one of the build it yourself kits. My little guy is only 20 months right now, so I will add other swings and fun things as we go.