Does anyone regret spending thousands of dollars on a wooden playset? I am about to spend $14,500.

[Anonymous]

Wow, that's something. You know your kids. Mine 8 yr old will play on stuff like that if other kids are playing and the fort would be a hit. I'd make sure that there are things the littler ones can do as well, maybe swings that can be switched or something. Enjoy!

[Anonymous]

Drive around and count the number of those playsets that DON'T have any kids playing on them. Like, ever. Just something to think about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:thats more then my rent for a YEAR.

Well, for a person with a family in DC that is a very, very low rent. But yes, OP is spending a massive amount. It is widely know that kids NEVER play on their own swing/play
set. Do you have trees in your yard, OP? Tie a looooong nylon rope to one of them for swinging like Tarzan. Build a traversing plank between the others. Buy a big trampoline. They'll use this stuff from 4 or 5 to 21 at least. Lastly, don't be snotty douches about it like our neighbors : invite other kids next door to play in your yard and be friendly and open about it.

[Anonymous]

First world problems.

[Anonymous]

Hi OP, we spent 1500 on a playset and it was a huge waste of money. My kids just want to be out front riding bikes with the neighbor kids OR beg to go to the playground.

IF you live somewhere too far to go to a playground, spending in the 1-2k range might be worth it. I wouldn't spend any more than that!!! BTW, the prices are negotiable just like mattress prices. Our set was marked over 3k and we bargained down to about 1500k including install. This was from a store in Chantilly (blanking on the name).

Seriously, there is no way you will not regret spending that much on a playset. You could fund several vacations for the same price.

[Anonymous]

I like the idea of a trampoline with a net. Maybe a tree house and a rope or tire swing.

[Anonymous]

Personally, I wouldn't want that monstrosity in my backyard even if it were free. Besides taking up too much space and knowing that it will all just be trash in a few years, I'd constantly worry about someone falling (or trying to jump) off. Out of 5 kids, I can almost guarantee you will get at least one broken bone as a result of a playset so big. Aside from the safety issues, the younger kids won't be able to play on something that big for a couple of years and the older kids will grow out of it very fast. In just a few years, you'll have to pay someone to dismantle the thing and haul it away. I honestly think you'd get just as much use out of a smaller playset that is a fraction of the cost.

[Anonymous]

We spent about 5K seven years ago. My younger child (now 9) occasionally uses it. However, it is mostly used by her 14 year old brother and his friends who find the tower to be fascinating. They have concocted various things to climb up and slide down, have water balloon fights, etc.

What always gives me a chuckle is during our huge family BBQ's you see kids of all ages (even teens) on the playset. My BIL has been known to go down the slide... My cousin's teenage daughters spent hours on the swings talking.

[Anonymous]

We had the Castle climber, spent what we thought was a fortune at the time (20 years ago) and my kids loved it as did all their friends.

Did not regret it for one minute.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My chikd is 8 - playgrounds and park have lost their once strong aappealand she spends way lesss time climbing and playing and gets bored quicker no matter how big or sophisticated the structure. Slides stopped being fun a couple years ago. In general, at parks and playgrounds, I have observed less kids over 5 and 6 in general. I woulld discount years of use from the older kids and for the younger kids realize that the set is too large and spphisticated for them to use without your constant and direct supervisionm. he set you selected seems more appropriate for commercial use not home. For home use, I would select something smaller, that is geared towards kids under 5.

I'd pay attention to this, OP. If the older ones aren't impressed and the younger ones need hands-on assistance, what have you really purchased? The longevity of the playset is its selling point. Without that...

But as teens, they might become re-intrigued by the secret hiding places

Probably not unless you put in a TV and WiFi. That being said, I also have a more modest one and it got/gets lots of use, but we probably didn't need one as big as we got. The least used parts are the hiding places/tree house parts. My middle kid, 10 years old, still plays on it.

The amount of supervision your kids will need depends on a lot of factors. I think by about 18 months my youngest could climb the stairs to the slide herself and by 2.5 she could swing herself on the swings. However, her older brothers played on the top of the monkey bars, which are six feet above ground and I did have to keep an eye on my youngest for a few years until she was old enough and competent enough for the monkey bars.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My chikd is 8 - playgrounds and park have lost their once strong aappealand she spends way lesss time climbing and playing and gets bored quicker no matter how big or sophisticated the structure. Slides stopped being fun a couple years ago. In general, at parks and playgrounds, I have observed less kids over 5 and 6 in general. I woulld discount years of use from the older kids and for the younger kids realize that the set is too large and spphisticated for them to use without your constant and direct supervisionm. he set you selected seems more appropriate for commercial use not home. For home use, I would select something smaller, that is geared towards kids under 5.

I'd pay attention to this, OP. If the older ones aren't impressed and the younger ones need hands-on assistance, what have you really purchased? The longevity of the playset is its selling point. Without that...

But as teens, they might become re-intrigued by the secret hiding places

Probably not unless you put in a TV and WiFi. That being said, I also have a more modest one and it got/gets lots of use, but we probably didn't need one as big as we got. The least used parts are the hiding places/tree house parts. My middle kid, 10 years old, still plays on it.

The amount of supervision your kids will need depends on a lot of factors. I think by about 18 months my youngest could climb the stairs to the slide herself and by 2.5 she could swing herself on the swings. However, her older brothers played on the top of the monkey bars, which are six feet above ground and I did have to keep an eye on my youngest for a few years until she was old enough and competent enough for the monkey bars.

[Anonymous]

Way too much money! I felt like the 6K we spent was a waste once they started after school sports activities and biking more.

[Anonymous]

oh my god that is a monstrosity. Unless you are on at least a half acre+ I would not want that thing in my backyard. That being said I have two words of advice. Think about liability with such an extreme play set, I feel like it is so tall if a kid fell it would be bad. Once a kid is 7-8 I feel like they lose interest in the playset. I think you would get lots of use out of it but I also think you would get equal amount of use out of something smaller. Or try second hand:
http://annapolis.craigslist.org/bab/3101140079.html

[Anonymous]

Get a playset but go smaller..if you need more..you can add

[Anonymous]

We don't regret our playset at all but we spent about $1500 on ours and it is great, has lasted, etc. I'm at a loss as to why you would need to pay ten times that. Sure i have that money sitting in the bank too but that doesn't mean I like to burn it.