backyard playsets...do your kids use yours???? (considering spending $5K and wondering)

[Anonymous]

We have been thinking about getting a playset/swingset for our backyard.
Husband found one one made by Kids Creations that he likes....it is available
delivered from Costco for about $3,000. We then need to have a section of our backyard
regraded and husband wants to use some type of recycled rubber mulch ($1,000 delivered)
Plus, he would pay a handyman to help him with the yard work and building of playset.
We are looking at almost $5K here and I am wondering if this is worth it???
Do your kids play on your back yard equipment?
Is there something better to do with the $ that would still provide fun and physical activity
in our backyard?
(we do not want a big trampoline...one of our kids has special needs and couldn't use this)
Our youngest child is less than a year old and the oldest is 6.

Thanks for any suggestions....
(ps...we have a sandbox and that is pretty much it)

[Anonymous]

We do not have one, but our neighbors do. My kids ALWAYS want to go next door to play on the swings or climb into the club house and tell me that we need one. Fortunately the kids next door are friends. The kids next door do not always play on it when no one is there, but it always seems to get use when they have friends visit or when their have parties and kids come along as well. Anyway, it seems like a good investment.

[Anonymous]

we have had ours for about a year, my kids are 4 and 2 and we use it just about every day. They play on it while I am getting dinner ready ( with DH). A great investment in my opinion!

[Anonymous]

Kids are 4 and 5, and we've had ours going on 3 years (Rainbow). Yes, they still use it quite a bit and it has been well worth the money. But we just had it installed by Rainbow right on the grass, so I think we spent about $2,000 altogether. No other landscaping necessary. If you have the money, go for it.

[Anonymous]

Installation over grass is dangerous.

We also have a Rainbow and our kids (6 and 3) use it, but not daily. I'd say they're on it a few days a week, which isn't bad. However, I would not buy a set new. The sets made from redwood and cedar last years and years (we're talking 15 or more) and you can find great deals on Craigslist. We paid $1000 for our set which was three years old when we got it and still looked brand new. The same set retails for $5000 from the Rainbow dealer.

[Anonymous]

Another vote for a used set. Our used set was just set up a month ago and it is getting daily use by our kid and the neighbor kids.

[Anonymous]

For those who bought the set used, did you take it apart and re-install it yourself? I am not the op but I am also looking for a playset and dh and I are not handy at all. To hire a handyman to do the takeaway and delivery, it seems it would almost make sense to just buy new and have them do the installation and at least we know it would be done right...

[Anonymous]

PP with the month old set. DH did the hauling and assembly himself. The person we bought it from had already taken it down and I found the directions for assembly on the company website. DH did almost all the work alone and it took two afternoons. He had a second set of hands for about an hour. He is handy though.

I know there are companies that will assemble swingsets for you. I did a quick search and found http://www.theonegroup.us/assemblyplus/index.htm

Our swing set was $600 used so even if we paid someone to assemble it, we still would have saved a ton of money.

Good luck

[Anonymous]

We got a swing set when our kids were 1yo and 5.5yo, and 18 months later they still would be out there any day that they could. We spent about $1200 on one of the smaller Creative Plaything set, including installation, as part of a winter sale. I worried that the older one would grow out of it quickly but he loves it. Worth every penny.

[Anonymous]

my kids stopped using it around 7-8 years old.

[Anonymous]

I have a 3 and 5 year old. The house we bought had one of these big Costco playset in the backyard. They do climb on it, roll trucks down the slide...but it isn't an enormous amount of their playtime. They play soccer and other sports and chase, etc. We also live very close to many neighborhood public playgrounds so we tend to head over there where they can also ride scooters, bikes, etc and the equipment is even bigger.

I am not sure if I'd bite the bullet and get one if there already wasn't one here when we bought the place. But again--we are in a very urban area with many, many things to walk to. If I were in an outer suburb--it may get more use.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Installation over grass is dangerous.


WHY?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Installation over grass is dangerous.


WHY?

Information on Playground Surfacing Materials:

The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that about 100,000 playground equipment-related injuries resulting from falls to the ground surface are treated annually in U. S. hospital emergency rooms. Injuries involving this hazard pattern tend to be among the most serious of all playground injuries, and have the potential to be fatal, particularly when the injury is to the head. The surface under and around playground equipment can be a major factor in determining the injury-causing potential of a fall. It is self evident that a fall onto a shock-absorbing surface is less likely to cause a serious injury than a fall onto a hard surface.

Playground equipment should never be placed on hard surfaces such as concrete or asphalt and while grass may appear to be acceptable it may quickly turn to hard packed earth in areas of high traffic. Shredded bark mulch, wood chips, fine sand or fine gravel are considered to be acceptable shock-absorbing surfaces when installed and maintained at a sufficient depth under and around playground equipment.

Read the rest here: http://www.playstarinc.com/Playsets/MoreInfo/SafetyGuidelines.aspx

[Anonymous]

We did the same search last year and almost got pulled into spending beaucoup bucks on a play set. Luckily, we became practical and got a really inexpensive set from Lowes. We did not spend more than $850 on it and my husband put it together over several weekends. The kids seem to only need the swings, a fort they can climb up into, and a slide.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Installation over grass is dangerous.


WHY?

Information on Playground Surfacing Materials:

The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that about 100,000 playground equipment-related injuries resulting from falls to the ground surface are treated annually in U. S. hospital emergency rooms. Injuries involving this hazard pattern tend to be among the most serious of all playground injuries, and have the potential to be fatal, particularly when the injury is to the head. The surface under and around playground equipment can be a major factor in determining the injury-causing potential of a fall. It is self evident that a fall onto a shock-absorbing surface is less likely to cause a serious injury than a fall onto a hard surface.

Playground equipment should never be placed on hard surfaces such as concrete or asphalt and while grass may appear to be acceptable it may quickly turn to hard packed earth in areas of high traffic. Shredded bark mulch, wood chips, fine sand or fine gravel are considered to be acceptable shock-absorbing surfaces when installed and maintained at a sufficient depth under and around playground equipment.

Read the rest here: http://www.playstarinc.com/Playsets/MoreInfo/SafetyGuidelines.aspx

I'm the one who has ours on grass. While I can appreciate this warning, our grass is still in fine shape and hasn't gotten packed down (kids are both is school FT so it mostly gets weekend use, and only when the weather is decent). Plus, we were not ready to have wood chips tracked all over our yard and into the house. The sand from the sandbox is bad enough! They mostly use the swings, rock wall (beginner), and fort leading to the slide, so there isn't much high, dangerous climbing going on.