7 tips on arranging a playground for children in the country

Contents

1. №1.The age of the child and the equipment of the playground
2. №2.Choosing a place for a playground at the cottage
3. №3.The size of the children's playground at the cottage
4. №4.Material to cover the playground
5. №5.What should be on the playground?
6. №6.Children's game complex for giving
7. No. 7.Country playground with their own hands

Cottage - one of the most popular places for family holidays in the warm season. Far from the hustle and bustle of the city, you can breathe fresh air, admire nature, gather with friends and family for a picnic, or grow fruits and vegetables yourself - as you like. If there are kids or teenagers in the family, then it is also necessary for them to provide interesting leisure in nature, and the best option would be a playground for children in the country. It can vary greatly in equipment and size, which depends on many factors, but, most importantly, it must be safe and in the best interests of the child.

№1.Child's age and equipment of the playground

- trap and maybe a simple small swing;

children under 6 years old will enjoy small slides, different types of swings, carousels, simple sports equipment. If there is space, they arrange a closed path for cycling;

for children up to 12 years old. will suit more complex play equipment, with numerous slides, ropes, labyrinths and bridges, stylized as a fortress or a pirate ship. In this case, ready-made children's complexes are perfect;

for children from 12 years old can already equip a full-fledged playground with a Swedish wall, horizontal bar, rope, simple exercise equipment, and the former playground, when it becomes unnecessary, can be converted into a recreation area.

If there are several children of different ages in the family, then modern modular gaming complexes that can be assembled in different ways, rebuilt, complemented with new elements and thus make the playground interesting for kids of all ages will be the ideal solution. The complexes equipped with facilities for small children and adolescents will make it possible to forget about the constant problem of modernizing the playground and will for a long time meet all the needs of the children.

№2.Choosing a place for a playground at the cottage

The safety of the child and his comfort depends on how correctly the place is chosen for the playground. It is advisable to find such a plot in the country so that it meets the following requirements:

• playground should be at the maximum possible distance from outbuildings, greenhouses, thorny shrubs and various utilities;
• if there is a reservoir on the plot, then it is better that it is separated from the children's area by a fence or hedge;
• playground should be well viewed from the windows of the cottage and from any place where adults spend most of their time( beds, recreation area, etc.);
• The children's area should be well-lit , its location is not allowed in dense shadows, on the north side of the house, in the lowlands, in the area of ​​high groundwater - there will always be damp here, and after the rain everything will dry for a long time. On the other hand, there should be no excess UV.Ideally, you need to have a playground for children near fruit trees, giving a scattered shadow, and preferably only a third of the children's area. If there are no trees, then you can equip a small shed or build a small house - such a solution will allow children to play on the playground and in light rain;
• should also take into account the preferential direction of the winds in the region and protect the site from drafts with hedges or a small fence;
• is better to have a platform on the flat surface , but if this is problematic, then the area for the children's area will have to be terraced. Even a seemingly small bias can cause the toys to roll and the water in the children's pool will be unevenly distributed;
• under the inflatable pool, if it is provided, it is better to lay a special dense base, or even perform paving. It is allowed to install the pool on the ground, but there have been cases when the grass sprouted and punched the bottom of the pool: first, water, of course, will not flow out, but a sieve will eventually be obtained from the structure;
• is allowed to organize the site in the immediate vicinity of the main fence of the site, and the fence can be used for mounting the chalkboard.

№3.The size of the children's playground at the

cottage. In order for the playground to turn out to be functional and not traumatic, it is important that create an project in advance, where to mark all facilities in scale, taking into account the free space around them. Depending on the size of the place allocated for the playground and the child’s age, the dimensions of the equipment and its quantity will be different.

In order to organize everything correctly, you first need to decide what area is allocated for the children's area, then decide which gaming equipment is in priority, what dimensions it has, and make a plan on paper, taking into account the following safety rules:

• before the slides andsome stairs should be a runway;
• around a swing, carousels and other dynamic structures should be a safety zone of at least 2 m, the exact value depends on the size of the equipment. If a finished structure is purchased, the manufacturer indicates how much free space around the carousel should be;
• around sports equipment also need to provide an adequate supply of free space;
• size of gaming equipment must match the age of the child. If for a preschooler there will be enough a slide about 2 m high, then for a student this parameter increases to 3-3.5 m. The size of the sandbox and other objects should correspond to the age and number of children in the family. In addition, it does not interfere with making the platform with a small margin of , so that when the guests with children visit, all the kids are comfortable.

It turns out that if you set up a separate slide, you will need at least 15 square meters.m of space for the carousel - about 20 square meters.m, swing - 15 square meters.m, spring rockers - up to 10 square meters. If there is not a lot of free space at the dacha, it makes sense to purchase a ready-made children's play complex .Its equipment can be completely different, and this construction takes up an area of ​​15 square meters.

In addition, to ensure maximum security, you should get rid of sharp metal corners, carefully polish and paint all wooden parts with varnish or paint. Swing and some other merry-go-rounds are guaranteed to be buried in the ground and concreted to ensure.

№4.Material to cover the playground

The flooring of the play area for children should not be too hard so as not to injure the child in the event of a fall. It should also be non-slip and eco-friendly. For the conditions of the garden, the best are suitable:

• lawn is the most natural option, besides, it is pleasant to walk on the grass even barefoot. It is necessary to choose for sowing grass mixture, resistant to trampling and with a high density of shoots. This is usually used in stadiums, but even in some places it will trample over time, so you have to sow the lawn, and it is also necessary to cut and water it regularly. After the rain the ground will be unsuitable for games;
• sand of large fractions, in which the leg will not sink, is a natural material that softens the fall. It is often used to organize sports fields. The advantages should include accessibility, and there is no need to think about a special sandbox. Among the minuses is the difficulty of harvesting, the ability to spread throughout the site and the need to wait for the sand to dry after the rain. The basis for the sand coating is a layer of granite screening at 5-7 cm, covered with geotextiles and geogrids. The sand layer ranges from 2 to 10 cm;
• The bark of is not a very common material for covering playgrounds, but still occurring. The bark is a natural material that does not stick to clothes and shoes, well softens the fall, but cleaning the site will be difficult. The durability of the coating is limited to 2-3 years, but the bark is inexpensive. To arrange such a platform, it is necessary to dig a hole about 20 cm deep, cover it with geotextile, cover it with sand 15 cm, lay the geotextile again, and then pour a layer of bark 5 cm;
• artificial turf is devoid of many of the drawbacks characteristic of previous materials. It is a roll-on material on an elastic basis, the coating of which rather accurately simulates natural grass stalks. It is easy to lay your own hands, care is minimal, it is not trampled, has a soft surface, runs water, is durable, all-season, durable, does not stain clothes, but is expensive and not as good as grass or sand, softens the blows. Artificial turf is laid on a concrete base, and when choosing a coating, consider the height and thickness of the blades of grass, as well as the density of the coating, because artificial stems should not impede the movement of the child;
• rubber tile - one of the most modern options. The material is absolutely safe for the child, springs, softens the fall, does not stain, is easy to clean, leaks and dries quickly. The tiles are produced in different colors and even with fun drawings - the perfect solution for the playground. Care of the coating will be minimal, because it is durable, does not abrade, and it can be laid on almost any flat surface and even the ground;
• bulk rubber coating, like tile, consists of rubber crumb and polyurethane binder. It has all the same advantages, but does not have seams, and its organization requires the use of special equipment, therefore it is used infrequently at summer houses;
• The modular plastic coating consists of individual elements that simply and quickly fit on any base and are connected with a special lock. It can even be disassembled and moved to another place. Modules are made of high-quality, safe plastic, which is not afraid of sunlight, moisture, can withstand severe loads, and rainwater is drained through the holes.

№5.What should be on the playground?

The equipment of a playground for children in a country house depends on the area of ​​the zone allocated for it, the interests and the age of the child. Most often, the playground is equipped with the following elements:

• sandbox - a mandatory attribute of the site for the smallest;
• swing, carousel, bungee, rocking chair of different sizes and difficulty levels;
• roller coaster;
• houses;
• ladders, rings, parallel bars and other sports equipment;
• pool and trampoline.

Some elements for the playground can be bought separately. If you have the skills, then a swing, a sandbox and even slides with houses can be built independently, and the easiest option is to buy a ready-made game complex.

№6.Children's play complex for giving

Domestic and foreign manufacturers offer modern parents a huge selection of ready-made children's complexes for giving. Usually, they consist of several modules and are easily assembled, turning into a real designer. If necessary, an additional module can be purchased and modified existing site. Some companies offer the manufacture of such sites to order, taking into account all the requirements and wishes.

The package bundle can be very different, and the choice depends on the age of the child and free space. The standard set of includes a bench, sandpit, slide and swing. More complex complexes can be equipped with houses, fortresses, bridges, cobwebs, nets, tunnels, labyrinths and ropes. For more adult children, sports games complexes are provided, which include the wall bars, horizontal bars, rings, simple simulators.

The following materials can be used as material :

• tree is the preferred option. Large domestic companies use it, and only some elements can be made of plastic or metal;
• plastic .Responsible manufacturers, if they use plastic, the highest quality, as evidenced by the accompanying documentation. The quality of plastic complexes from nameless Chinese manufacturers is dubious;
• inflatable complexes - a great holiday option for the little ones. In a literal sense, such a playground can be taken on the nature. As a rule, inflatable complexes represent a hill with a trampoline or a pool with balls.

Modern game complexes improve the physical shape of the child and develop imagination, but the is important for the design to be safe: the

• slide should be with high sides and a rounded bottom;
• meshes and cobwebs should be made of durable nylon or perlon rope;
• sharp corners and edges, protruding bolts, wood roughness are not allowed;The
• complex must be durable and stable, and its pillars are guaranteed to be buried in the ground and concreted to ensure. The need for concreting is eliminated, if the complex is large enough, wide and heavy, the supports are equidistant from each other. It will be stable, and dismantling will be much easier.

As for manufacturers , it is better to pay attention to the products of such companies:

• Rainbow is an American brand, offers high-quality wooden complexes of different sizes and configurations, but the prices are high;
• Perfetto Sport is an Italian brand. The company offers wooden complexes with plastic elements, they are supplied with slides, swings, and at the same time are quite compact and are not as expensive as the American counterpart;
• Keter - simple and inexpensive gaming complexes of Israeli manufacture for the smallest. Plastic, compact and with an interesting design;
• Paremo - high-quality domestic systems, which are several times cheaper than foreign analogues, but in terms of reliability and equipment are not inferior to them;
• "Rosinka" - game and sports and game complexes from a tree. Compact, well equipped, inexpensive;
• Playgarden is a large domestic manufacturer of children's complexes, which offers interesting ready-made solutions, observing all the requirements for safety, aesthetics and attractiveness for the child. There are solutions designed for any budget.

№7.Country house with their own hands

Ready-made complexes can scare away the price, but this does not mean that the playground at the cottage is unnecessary to equip at all. Some elements can be built independently:

• sandbox is done elementary. It is enough to dig a hole 20-25 cm deep, fill it with pebbles or rubble and tamp down a layer of stones - this is drainage. Along the edges of the pit lay a box of polished boards, and all fall asleep clean sifted sand. It is possible to lay geotextiles between the drainage and sand. It remains only to put an umbrella next to it, and the sandbox is ready. Old tires are sometimes used instead of carcass;
• the hut will become a place to play for kids and is made of long rods, which are fixed in the ground at an angle. The upper ends of the branches bind. Do not forget to leave a place to enter;
• game house build more difficult, but quite realistic. For the construction of the frame will need a wooden beam, and the walls and roof can be made of a picket. The interior of the house and exterior decor depends on the imagination;
• the simplest swing can be constructed from strong, cleaned boards or tires, which are fastened with chains or ropes to a thick tree branch, wooden or metal frame. Metal crossbar will have to be welded, and the base concreted. A rope or chain is attached to the swing seat with the help of special fasteners - rem-bolts with hooks;
• if you attach a rope or two rings to a metal crossbar or a branch, you will get a sports equipment;
• if space allows, you can put the gate or basketball rings for outdoor games. With limited territory, you can equip the platform with an ping-pong table, which is easy to build from a sheet of plywood;
• it is difficult to erect an slide with your own hands, but if you buy a ready-made plastic ramp and make a support for it and a ladder with your own hands, the task will be much easier
• A small pond for games and launching ships can be made from the usual pelvis, if you dig it into the ground and slightly ennoble the coast;
• final touch - fencing platform , which can be performed from the sawn more or less thick and smooth branches. If they are shaped into a pencil and painted in bright colors, it will be very interesting.

It is possible to organize a functional playground for children in the country with any budget - the main thing is to follow the safety rules and find a suitable place.