I'm about to set up a plastic playground in the backyard for the kids. Can anyone share their experience as to how they did it?
1. How deep should we dig when we remove the grass/topsoil?
2. Do we need gravel to level it? Or do we put limestone screening on top of the soil?
3. If we use limestone screening, do we still need the black plastic sheet to prevent weed growth?
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Proud Mom of 3 Girls :)
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upholsteryguy, we need photos !
Hi there we installed a play ground for the kids last spring, man was that a job-n-a half!!. we had to dig very deep because our yard was so uneven. after we dug our space out we put we layed the weed cover & then put the playground right on top . I was told not to put the PG on any kind of screening because it makes it unstable. i think the expert say to dig out 4-6" for your fill to help prevent head injury. We used the rubber mulch called "soft stuff" through Dol turf, we dealt with nancy Stein, I see PearlG gave you her info she was great to deal with. but I warn you the stuff isn't cheap I think we payed $38 per 50lb bag, & we used 16 bags.
I think you'd be better to put pea gravel rather than limestone down. Limestone is sharp but pea gravel has runded edges. The other option is cedar mulch, but you need fairly deep coverage to provide a cushioned surface for kids to fall on.
I don't have any play area specific experience but can tell you that whenever you put anything like rock on the dirt it really helps to use the landscaping fabric under it. It's not even so much to prevent weeds (because they grow on top) but to keep whatever stone you use from mixing down into the dirt and sinking in.
I did a gravel area for my dog and just put the landscape fabric right on top of the grass and poured on the gravel. the grass just died away, no digging etc. required but you do need to make sure you use the plastic trim to hold down the fabric and contain the gravel if you do that because it is on top and needs something to hold it together.