• Welcome to AlpineZone, the largest online community of skiers and snowboarders in the Northeast!

    You may have to REGISTER before you can post. Registering is FREE, gets rid of the majority of advertisements, and lets you participate in giveaways and other AlpineZone events!

Building a swingset from plans

Nick

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
13,176
Points
48
Location
Bradenton, FL
Website
www.alpinezone.com
Anyone done this? I want to install a swingset in my backyard for my son & daughter. However, some of them are so ridiculously expensive (Seriously, $3,000?).

So, I was looking onlin and it seems like you can by plans + hardware kits. Has anyone done this? They give you plans and all the required hardware, and then you just go to Lowes or Home Depot with a lumber list and get the required lumber. Seems you could get away with it for < $800 or so going this route. Taking into account probably at least a full weekend's worth of work.

For example, http://www.planitplay.com/Discovery-Fort-Ws-p/28-2001.htm

Also, do you guys have any suggestions for surfacing? I"m probably going to have to do some leveling as my backyard is sloped. Not sure if mulch is the way to go. A friend of ours just installed one but they used this peastone gravel base, seemed really uncomfortable to me.
 

Hawkshot99

Active member
Joined
Aug 16, 2006
Messages
4,489
Points
36
Location
Poughkeepsie, NY
Whether or not its worth it, depends greatly on your ability to make a QUALITY swing set.
My boss bought a premade set that needed to be assembled (how hard could it be?) It sat barely started for several years as he was to frustraded to finish it.
 

Savemeasammy

New member
Joined
Mar 20, 2013
Messages
2,538
Points
0
Location
S. NH
Nick, we got ours (used) on Craigslist a few years ago. It was assembled, so I just needed to take it apart just enough to fit it on the trailer. We saved a lot of time and money that way.

If your yard needs to be leveled, you need to use soil to level it. You may want to add mulch afterwards to make it softer to fall on, not to mention that your lawn is going to take a beating around the swing set!

If you aren't handy, or you don't have a lot of time, you could probably find a contractor to put it together for you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

dlague

Active member
Joined
Nov 7, 2012
Messages
8,792
Points
36
Location
CS, Colorado
Nick I hear you regarding the cost! We wanted to get a kit years ago and our son wanted one really bad. I never did get one and felt like a smuck! However years later, he never thought about it again and does not know the difference! We are typically gone most of the weekend anyhow.

Ever thought of looking at Home Depot - you can buy a lot of the stuff separately!


i typed with my i thumbs using AlpineZone
 

HD333

New member
Joined
Apr 15, 2009
Messages
1,312
Points
0
Location
Central Mass/Lakes Region NH
Me and my Dad put a premade one together, I assume building your own with plans will be the same amount of work, but I bet that would be more satisfying.
+1 in Craigslist, once kids outgrow these people will almost give them away to get it out of their yard.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

hammer

Active member
Joined
Apr 28, 2004
Messages
5,493
Points
38
Location
flatlands of Mass.
Nick, we got ours (used) on Craigslist a few years ago. It was assembled, so I just needed to take it apart just enough to fit it on the trailer. We saved a lot of time and money that way.

If your yard needs to be leveled, you need to use soil to level it. You may want to add mulch afterwards to make it softer to fall on, not to mention that your lawn is going to take a beating around the swing set!

If you aren't handy, or you don't have a lot of time, you could probably find a contractor to put it together for you.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I went the expensive route and bought one of those nice redwood sets many years ago. Had some insect and rot issues with a few main beams which were replaced under warranty...ended up disassembling and reassembling the set with the new beams which was one of my long term projects. Once the kids got too old to be bothered with the swingset I sold it on Craigslist for a whopping $200, mainly charged money so the person would pick it up. Guessing the set will last at least another 10 - 15 years, especially with the new pieces.

If you have the space I'd go with the pea stone. Less maintenance once you have it in place and safer if the kiddos fall.
 

drjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 18, 2006
Messages
19,183
Points
113
Location
Brooklyn, CT
My wife designed the "playscape" (I was told by her that playscape is the "preferred" name over swingset these days :rolleyes:) that we had built for our kids via the Cedarworks Company out of Maine. They have a host of predesigned options as well as customizable choices in everything from their take on the classical swing + teeter totter + slide A-frame style set up all the way to massive community playground style custom versions with equally as massive a price tag :eek: :eek: :eek:

Ours has been in our backyard for 6 years now, and while the cedar has weathered, it's still as strong and stable as ever, with the only "maintenance" we've had to do was replace one of the ropes supporting one of the swings and also we added a few extra hand/foot holds for the climbing wall we have.

I knew going into it that I wanted nothing to do with assembling what my wife designed!! It was shipped in 37 boxes with 4 5 gallon buckets of screws/bolts/hardware!! :eek: We had their professional assemblers build it, and it took the team of them about 20 hours to finish the project. It's all about how handy, how patient, and how much time you have to build it ;)

Our is set with a bed of 3-4" of pea gravel around it.

My 8 and 10 year old still use it fairly regularly too
 

wa-loaf

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 7, 2007
Messages
15,109
Points
48
Location
Mordor
I got one for free. It was a little beat up, but I bought some new bolts and put a new deck on it. It's been going for 7 years or so now. It could stand a little tightening, but the kids don't use it that much anymore.

I would have loved to get one of these when the kids were younger: http://www.wooden-wonders.com/playhouses.html
 

HD333

New member
Joined
Apr 15, 2009
Messages
1,312
Points
0
Location
Central Mass/Lakes Region NH
Me and my Dad put a premade one together, I assume building your own with plans will be the same amount of work, but I bet that would be more satisfying.
+1 in Craigslist, once kids outgrow these people will almost give them away to get it out of their yard.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I forgot to add we did the first 5 steps 2 times since we did it backwards the first go around, took us about 8 hrs to assemble, he knows what he is doing around tools I was basically the nail/beer b!tch.

My neighbor put a swing set up right on our property line a few years ago facing my house, I was going to give him a hard time but then I figured, we had a free swing set. My kids use it more than his!
 

Puck it

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 26, 2006
Messages
9,681
Points
48
Location
Franconia, NH
I built a tree house years ago. It was 8x8 square. Spent a lot of money and time. It was never used.
 

hammer

Active member
Joined
Apr 28, 2004
Messages
5,493
Points
38
Location
flatlands of Mass.
I built a tree house years ago. It was 8x8 square. Spent a lot of money and time. It was never used.
Whatever happened to the days when the kids would find some scrap wood, one or more trees, and build a treehouse of their own? That's what we did once when I was young...except the "treehouse" was more of a "tree platform" than anything else.
 

bvibert

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Joined
Aug 30, 2004
Messages
30,394
Points
38
Location
Torrington, CT
Whatever happened to the days when the kids would find some scrap wood, one or more trees, and build a treehouse of their own? That's what we did once when I was young...except the "treehouse" was more of a "tree platform" than anything else.

Kids are learning early the way that most of the rest of the country works these days. If you want something built hire someone else to do it for you.
 

hammer

Active member
Joined
Apr 28, 2004
Messages
5,493
Points
38
Location
flatlands of Mass.
Kids are learning early the way that most of the rest of the country works these days. If you want something built hire someone else to do it for you.
I do that now but that's because I don't have the time or the talent...but that never stopped me as a kid. Of course, that was back in the days when you could also wander miles away from home and it was no big deal.
 

madman

New member
Joined
Dec 16, 2004
Messages
160
Points
0
Location
chaplin ct
I bought my daughter a metal one, simple 5'x5' square platform with a Ladder on one side and a Slide on the other. One beam going across the top with 2 Swings. Simple, inexpenceive, easy to put together and a small foot print. And the best part is easy to get rid of. I used the Main posts to hold Bluebird houses and cut the rest up with a Sawzall and put in Recycling. One day in the not so distant future you will look out at the Swing set and wonder why is it still in the yard the kids havent used it in years. This will be faster than you think!
 

buellski

New member
Joined
Nov 18, 2010
Messages
592
Points
0
Location
Lake Sunapee Region, NH
I built a pretty basic one from a Home Depot kit. Both of my kids used it pretty regularly when they were younger. I ended up selling it for $50 and that included the buyer dismantling it and hauling it away. About the best $50 I ever earned :)
 

Glenn

Active member
Joined
Oct 1, 2008
Messages
7,691
Points
38
Location
CT & VT
That kit Nick posted doesn't look too bad. It lists all the lumber and the cuts are pretty basic.

I've had good luck with precut kits. It's still work, but if you can follow directions, it goes smoothly. My wife and I built a 10x16' shed last summer from a precut kit. It's about 3,400 pounds of a material.
 

Nick

Administrator
Staff member
Administrator
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
13,176
Points
48
Location
Bradenton, FL
Website
www.alpinezone.com
Awesome, thanks everyone for the replies!

Yeah, the Craigslist route worried me a bit because of quality and age. 7 years of hard use in the sun will beat up anything pretty good. I guess a solid would set could probably just be refinished, maybe that's still easier than building from scratch.

I haven't made any moves on this yet. Surprised by how complex something like a swingset can be. err. Playscape :)

PS: i still planning on doing a separate tree fort in the future, maybe when my son is around 5 or so.
 
Joined
Jan 18, 2010
Messages
662
Points
0
Location
spring mount, pa
i think it depends on how much you value your time...a week of my labor is expensive! serially tho, remember that this thing is going to have a very limited useful life due to your children outgrowing and/or growing tired of it within a couple years...if you have a good playground nearby your house, i would forgo it. i hung a swing for my son from a really sturdy maple in our yard...$24 for the swing and about $5 worth of chain. he's been enjoying it for 3 years now and we also frequent the several decent playgrounds within a couple miles of our place. gives us something free and fun to go do.
 
Top