# Kids' Play Center



## olaf (Nov 21, 2007)

*Choosing a Plan*

For my son's fifth birthday, my wife and I decided to check into an outdoor structure for him to play on. I've gone back and forth in my mind about this; I didn't have one growing up, there are nice parks within a 15 minute drive, and he's an only child at this point. On the other hand, I would love to build this for my son. There are plenty more pros and cons to weigh, but this story is more about the fact that we have…more or less…decided to build. The slight hesitation is a result of the costs that are piling up in my planning stages.

From the onset of our decision, I had found a set of plans from "Workbench Magazine" that I immediately fell in love with. It's sturdy, not overwhelmingly big, and attractive.










The beam extending from the face of the building attaches to a footed post - this design does not require any buried structures.

I like this design for a few reasons. The large timbers used to build the supporting structure and beam for the swing set are very attractive to me. It reminds me of the Craftsman ideal in form and function. It is built to sustain some rough times, yet looks stylish too. The house perched atop the base is quaint. It could be a trick conjured by color - one that may lessen if another color were chosen. Whatever it is, I like the appearance of this little house topped with cedar shingles, painted a deep hue of red, and trimmed in white. The plans call for certain amenities; a slide, swings, sandbox. I have a tire swing I'll use made to resemble a bull. I will probably add a swing, as it has enough room for both. The sandbox will stay too, but I will switch out the slide for a zip-line we got for him at Christmas. I still have to mitigate the safety concerns on that little accessory, but I think I can figure something out.

The major downside to this construction is that it requires level ground - something I have a total absence of. I could alter the design a bit and sink some concrete footings for posts into the ground, but leveling the ground is an added bonus for the rest of the family. I had thought to terrace my entire yard - the house itself is sitting on a 4'/1' slope down the backyard. This is a step towards that dream if I choose to level off a play area. The other downsides have to do with material costs. The plans call for cedar shingles and all pressure-treated lumber. I'm considering alternatives, but not interested in doing so at the cost of rigidity or durability. If I'm going to spend upwards of $1000.00 on something like this, I want it to be around for a decade or more. For the record, I live in northeast Georgia. Even treated lumber can can fall prey to fungus, termites, and sun-bleaching around here. This will be my first exposure to MCQ and ACQ treated lumber. Perhaps these newer chemicals will resist the local concerns better than I've seen in the past.


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## GaryK (Jun 25, 2007)

olaf said:


> *Choosing a Plan*
> 
> For my son's fifth birthday, my wife and I decided to check into an outdoor structure for him to play on. I've gone back and forth in my mind about this; I didn't have one growing up, there are nice parks within a 15 minute drive, and he's an only child at this point. On the other hand, I would love to build this for my son. There are plenty more pros and cons to weigh, but this story is more about the fact that we have…more or less…decided to build. The slight hesitation is a result of the costs that are piling up in my planning stages.
> 
> ...


Looks like quite a project. I wish you luck which ever way you decide to go.


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

olaf said:


> *Choosing a Plan*
> 
> For my son's fifth birthday, my wife and I decided to check into an outdoor structure for him to play on. I've gone back and forth in my mind about this; I didn't have one growing up, there are nice parks within a 15 minute drive, and he's an only child at this point. On the other hand, I would love to build this for my son. There are plenty more pros and cons to weigh, but this story is more about the fact that we have…more or less…decided to build. The slight hesitation is a result of the costs that are piling up in my planning stages.
> 
> ...


Good luck with your dilemma. I can tell you that I put in a play center for my two grandsons and they use it everyday, weather permitting. Your son is at the age where he will get a lot of use out of it for the next few years, if you decide to put one in.


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## MsDebbieP (Jan 4, 2007)

olaf said:


> *Choosing a Plan*
> 
> For my son's fifth birthday, my wife and I decided to check into an outdoor structure for him to play on. I've gone back and forth in my mind about this; I didn't have one growing up, there are nice parks within a 15 minute drive, and he's an only child at this point. On the other hand, I would love to build this for my son. There are plenty more pros and cons to weigh, but this story is more about the fact that we have…more or less…decided to build. The slight hesitation is a result of the costs that are piling up in my planning stages.
> 
> ...


have you been working on the play centre?


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## olaf (Nov 21, 2007)

olaf said:


> *Choosing a Plan*
> 
> For my son's fifth birthday, my wife and I decided to check into an outdoor structure for him to play on. I've gone back and forth in my mind about this; I didn't have one growing up, there are nice parks within a 15 minute drive, and he's an only child at this point. On the other hand, I would love to build this for my son. There are plenty more pros and cons to weigh, but this story is more about the fact that we have…more or less…decided to build. The slight hesitation is a result of the costs that are piling up in my planning stages.
> 
> ...


Thanks for reminding me that I had this posted out here. Time to update the LumberJocks!


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## rick1974 (Apr 4, 2010)

olaf said:


> *Choosing a Plan*
> 
> For my son's fifth birthday, my wife and I decided to check into an outdoor structure for him to play on. I've gone back and forth in my mind about this; I didn't have one growing up, there are nice parks within a 15 minute drive, and he's an only child at this point. On the other hand, I would love to build this for my son. There are plenty more pros and cons to weigh, but this story is more about the fact that we have…more or less…decided to build. The slight hesitation is a result of the costs that are piling up in my planning stages.
> 
> ...


love the cubhuose but i was wondering how did you attach the beam for the swings with the house itself? did you have any pictures? I am biulding a clubhouse for my son and daughter and saw yours and love the idea for the swing. thanks.


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## WestcottMitch (Feb 7, 2011)

olaf said:


> *Choosing a Plan*
> 
> For my son's fifth birthday, my wife and I decided to check into an outdoor structure for him to play on. I've gone back and forth in my mind about this; I didn't have one growing up, there are nice parks within a 15 minute drive, and he's an only child at this point. On the other hand, I would love to build this for my son. There are plenty more pros and cons to weigh, but this story is more about the fact that we have…more or less…decided to build. The slight hesitation is a result of the costs that are piling up in my planning stages.
> 
> ...


Looks fantastic! I live in the Southern Midlands of England, even though our winters are cold-ish I would treat the wood every couple of years and that should be okay. I build most projects with reclaimed wood pallets (which I pick up for nothing). I've never seen a termite, so good luck!


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## olaf (Nov 21, 2007)

*Slow Progress on Phase I - Leveling*

I spent Memorial Day weekend breaking ground on the leveling part of this project. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get my hands on decent railroad ties until I had already spent the money on something less important like food. There are railroad ties a-plenty now, but I'm madly preparing for our new baby in the fall and haven't considered getting back to work on this project yet.

I did, however, get some of the foundation laid with what ties I had and an order of 1 yd³ of drainage gravel delivered. It might have been a ½ yd³ (I should find out for sure since this bit of information could be very important to those who would like to attempt this project).



The site is approximately 16' x 15' and has a grade of about 10°. It's the flattest area available to us, though it has almost a 3' wall at the far edge of the 15' length. I began by digging out the 16' trench; 14" deep and 18" wide. This took a tremendous amount of time and effort. Using a mattock and shovel, I spent two days mostly digging trenches in Georgia's red clay. The gravel filled in half of my 16' trench and I worked to level it such that my cross ties would lie flat. Once adequately leveled, I hammered 4' rebar through the ties, deep into the earth. This provides the foundation on which I can build the rest of the retaining wall. I also dug a trench perpendicular to this one for the first of four dead-men that would further anchor the foundation. These trenches are more difficult to dig because you're digging into the hillside, making the whole considerably deeper. You have much less room to work a shovel and mattock in such a confined space. Regardless, I finished the trench and worked at length to level this bit as well. Laying a single cross tie into this spot and anchoring it with another 4' length of rebar provided the second dead-man (me being the first). It's also secured to the footer with a 1' piece of rebar hammered through the two ties. In retrospect, I probably should have put in a gravel base on the dead-men as well, but the gravel was pretty expensive, and I was done digging ditches for a little while.



When I get started again on this project, I have three more ditches to dig for the remaining dead-men. After they're placed, it's a relatively simple matter of stacking the cross ties and anchoring each one to the one below it. It's also important to note that you need to stack them towards the hillside. I'm offsetting each row by about an inch. The second row (the row containing dead-men) will have gaps between its units for drainage. These gaps are backed by an aluminum mesh to keep the gravel from escaping.

As a closing thought, I should mention that what you've read has very little to do with a "lumberjock." It's all for what will eventually require some real woodworking skills, and that's the reason it's being posted here. In the spirit of the board however, I did task myself with cutting the railroad ties with a handsaw. I don't own a circular saw big enough to get through the wood, and a friend is still borrowing my chainsaw. Alas, the handsaw was the last option.


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