Enhancing the Safety of Your Playground As the weather warms and more people move outside to enjoy the warm days, families flock to playgrounds in droves to enjoy time together. Playgrounds are fantastic source of outdoor fun, and are generally long lasting pieces of equipment that are worth the cost for the vast amount of fun that they offer. Playground planning is exciting, but it also has a serious component, and that is the safety of children and families. To enhance the safety of your playground structure, there are a few simple steps that you can take. Of course, you will initially need to consider the safety of the play structure itself. Two of the most overlooked areas on play equipment are openings and sharp corners. Whatever toys or structures you choose, you need to make sure that the gaps between pieces are not too small, where a child could get stuck, or too large where children could easily fall out. Sharp corners are bad for scrapes and bruises, so make sure to sand down all corners, especially if they are made of hard substances. One of the most important features to consider for your playground is the ground surface that you will choose to put under the play equipment. Many people now know that packed dirt and concrete are safety risks, and that alternative materials should be used. Another choice for safe playground surfacing is rubber mulch, but that comes with it’s own difficulties such as tripping, and can still be thrown about. One of the great inventions in playground safety is pourable rubber playground surfaces. This surfacing is poured in and is in one solid level of rubber, preventing tripping, and offering the same, or more, cushioning like the rubber mulch. Careless children that are caught up in playing trip and fall often, and this takes care of a lot of possible fall related injuries.
Why No One Talks About Playgrounds Anymore
Lastly, it is important to be sure that all of your surfacing extends far enough under all of your equipment, not just the main play structure. While the playground may have different designated areas, all need to be covered by a safe surface. Any safe surface should be far enough out that someone could jump off the equipment and still land on the safe surfacing. Also keep in mind just how far a determined child would be able to get off of a swing in motion when putting in that section of surface.
Understanding Tips
Safe playgrounds are the most fun playgrounds, because parents don’t have to be constantly worried about their children. Just keep a few important things in mind, like gaps, corners, and rubber surfacing, and you should be good to go on the safety front.