So, you’ve chosen an ideal backyard playset for your family. Cue the cheers of excitement from your kids! They now have a fantastic place to play outside in the fresh air, stay active, and flex their imagination muscles. But before they’re able to do that, you face a challenge: officially installing your backyard playset.
While many sellers offer professional installment, this option can get quite pricey. For some, it’s worth the few hundred dollars to have the experts take care of installing the backyard playset. On the other hand, if you’re capable and willing to do the installation yourself, there are a few things you need to know before getting started. More goes into installing a backyard playset than just reading the instructions. Below are our top 5 tips!
Tip #1: Choose the best location in your yard for the playset.
Install the playset in a location you can see from inside the house. This way you can easily keep an eye on your kids as they play outside.
Try to install your playset near some shade. Kids can spend all day playing outside, so you don’t want them to get burnt from hours in the direct sunlight. This is especially true if your playset has metal elements; we all know how much a hot, metal slide can hurt!
Tip #2: Make sure the surrounding ground is prepared.
It’s not enough to just place the backyard playset wherever it’s most convenient.
One guarantee is that when kids are playing on an outdoor playset, they’re going to fall off at some point. This is why it’s important to have shock-absorbent material underneath. Options include wood chips, shredded rubber mulch, and rubber mats.
Make sure the ground underneath the playset is completely level. This will save you time and effort in the long run. The material you choose to go beneath the playset must be level as well.
Tip #3: Make sure you have every single part.
This is basic advice for when you’re building anything, but is especially important when installing something as significant as a backyard playset. Lay out every single part that came in the box and compare it to the instructions. You don’t want to be halfway through the backyard playset installation and realize you’re missing an integral piece!
Tip #4: Read all the directions ahead of time.
You may think this is an unnecessary step, since you’re going to follow the instructions regardless. But it’s recommended that you look through all the instructions just so you know what you’re getting into before you start the project. Set your expectations and understand what the installation entails.
Tip #5: Give yourself time.
As much as your kids might be itching for the backyard playset to be complete, it can take days to make this happen. If you’re doing the backyard playset installation yourself, set your expectations accordingly. You may even want to recruit a few friends to help you out in installing your background playset to move the process along.
As a parent, you’re saddled with the tedious job of installing the backyard playset for your kids. Hopefully these tips can help make the installation a little bit easier. Then, when the job is complete, your kids have an incredible playset to enjoy for years to come. The work will be worth it, we promise!