Woodworking Projects, Playground Equipment
When you go to Maccas for a hamburger what is the first thing the kids want to do. Go and play on the playground equipment. Is it the bright colors or the magic of climbing that is so attractive. Take the kids to the park and they run to get on the playground equipment. They just love it. There is something about playground equipment that just captures their imagination. So why not build your own at home. Your kids will go berserk and you will have every kid in the neighborhood clambering to come visit. Your kids will gain instant popularity when it leaks out they they have their very own playground equipment in the backyard.
You will find it very easy to build with the easy woodworking plans and patterns that are available. It can be all in lumber so you wont need any special tools or skills. The treated pine poles used to be popular for kids playground equipment and made construction very easy. However, there has been some concern recently about the arsenic used in the treating of the pine and whether it can harm the kids. I suppose if the kids are going to sit there and chew at their playground it could be nasty but check it out anyway.
There are plenty of alternate lumbers you could use and even dress them up with bright colored paint as long as there is no lead in the paint for those playground chewing kids. Your equipment will include the obligatory slide which can incorporate ply in the construction and the swing. However, to really capture the imagination of the kids there needs to be much more than that. Have a good look at Maccs next time and see exactly what the kids enjoy about it. The little hidden corners and upstairs all add to the intrigue so pick out some plans that incorporate these.
There is no end to what you can include in your equipment and such things as a flying fox and sea saw will all add to the fun. However, as you study the kids at Maccas you will see that they love the intrigue of different levels and up and down slides and hidden walkways and ramps. Try and pick out a plan that has all these elements and your kids will love it. It is not hard to build with the plans available. They will have easy step by step instructions so get stuck into it before the kids get any older. They will love you for it and will be bringing your grand kids over one day to play on at as well.
