OT: Outdoor playsets

[NittanyLionNation]

Looking for a good quality outdoor playset for my kids (current ages 5 & 3). Went to a Rainbow showroom this weekend and saw 2 sets we liked, but don't know much about what other brands are out there.

Willing to pay in the $3-$5k range and looking for something that is good quality. Definitely looking at wood instead of vinyl or other materials.

Thanks in advance!

 

[MtNittany]

Our company does a lot of playgrounds - both residential and commercial...

...Most residential customers I come across use Costco. Good products and good pricing, plus good warranty. Commercial customers obviously aren't using wood, so they go with tubular steel.

 

[nittlion]

Go to Costco**

asdf

 

[Zenophile]

If you go with wood,

be wary of 1) splinters & 2) carpenter bees.

 

[massimoManca II]

BEARSplaygrounds.com my nephew in an engineer for this family-run

operation.... (FYI: Bears is the name of the family that started this company ... it's not some cutesy corporate moniker)

if you're considering Rainbow (overpirced IMHO... believe me as I shopped them 10yrs ago ) then you are in the same market as this Upstate NY (Lima NY, 20min south of Rochester... but they do commercial and residential work all over the USA) company...

if you are truly interested call them and ask for Trey... tell him Uncle Mike recommended you and you're a Penn Stater

good stuff...
This post was edited on 3/23 9:10 AM by massimoManca II

Bears Natural Wood Playgrounds

 

[Big 0]

Built my own - Grossmans in Hazleton had "buildable" playsets back in the..

early 90's. You bought the hardware set and then the lumber. You got plans with the hardware set. Built the swingset and then moved to Delaware. Took apart the swingset and took it and the rest of the materials to Delaware. Reassembled the swingset and then built the tower. Fortunately I had some power tools. Built the whole thing myself and it is still standing this day according to my old neighbors more than 20 years later. Cost me less than $500 total to build. IIRC it cost about $350. Materials cost a lot more now, but you could probably build it for around a grand now.

I don't know if any of the home centers have anything like this now. But if they do, you could buy the materials and hire someone to build it if you wanted to. I feel the set I bought and built myself was much better than the ones sold by various vendors now because my neighbors now have those and they are not quite as robust as the playset I built.

 

[Class of 67]

I assembled an elaborate wood set purchased on sale at Costco.

It cost roughly $1,000 on sale two years ago. Very well made, attractive, and with many features: Swings, slide, 2-story main structure (ground floor "cabin" with door and windows, upper roofed "lookout" level), ladder and climbing wall access to upper level, and child picnic table. Many other minor features. But beware: Packaged in numerous, heavy, large boxes; you will need a truck and help to get home. Also, assembly requires putting together hundreds of pieces. You will need patience and time. The set is virtually identical to the linked set, sans the tunnel slide.

Play Set

 

[psu_1989]

we went through the same analysis as you last year (4yr old boy). After a few months of research we settled on the Woodplay brand from a local backyard company. It has been great and is much better built than anything we could find at Costco, Target, home depot, etc. Also got a springless trampoline with a basketball hoop. Both have been a smashing hit in our family.

 

[CF LION]

Find a good local company that sells them....

I used a local mom and pop operation that has been in the biz for years. They installed my set 17 years ago and it is still in good condition.

To make sure it was OK after installation, the biggest guy - who probably weighed about 250 pounds -- tested each swing, hung from each monkey bar, etc.

Seventeen years ago I think the system cost around $2500, but it compared to a $3500 set from Rainbow, etc.

 

[dmk228]

A few alternative to Rainbow and Costco:

-Cedarworks
-Creative Playthings
-Triumph Play systems

A few things to look for when you're shopping
-what's the warranty and what's covered vs what's not covered?
-what type of wood is used and how often will you need to stain / maintain the wood (and if you don't, will it void your warranty)
-what are the weight limits for the swings and any structural components? Will it be a problem for a bigger kid or will a parent be able to climb up in the structure to help a younger kid get up and down safely?

Another potential alternative is searching on Craigslist. You might find something that's a been lightly used for a fraction of the cost you can buy it for new. The downsides are (1) you'll most likely need to tear it down, transport and rebuild the thing yourself and (2) the warranty most likely won't travel with the purchased set (of course the cost might make it worth the trade-off).

I don't think you'll find anything out there of equivalent quality beating Costco's pricing, however, some of the competitors beat Costco in terms of quality (of course the higher quality comes at a price).

 

[basic blues]

In what area do you live? I worked with a vendor local to state college for my kids playset.......did everything from ordering to site prep and installation......could provide contact info if you are near the state college area

 

[NittanyLionNation]

Originally posted by basic blues:
In what area do you live? I worked with a vendor local to state college for my kids playset.......did everything from ordering to site prep and installation......could provide contact info if you are near the state college area

I live outside of Philadelphia, just north of King of Prussia.

 

[basic blues]

Obviously my vendor won't work for you but here is a link to the place where we ultimately bought the swingset from.....an Amish vendor....the site also has s place to look for a vendor in your area

Www.kingswingsets.com

 

[NittanyLionNation]

Originally posted by basic blues:
Obviously my vendor won't work for you but here is a link to the place where we ultimately bought the swingset from.....an Amish vendor....the site also has s place to look for a vendor in your area

Www.kingswingsets.com

Thanks - this is great info, there is a dealer right down the road from us.

How has your experience with your set been? Which set did you go with?

 

[basic blues]

Our experience has been great....this was the third winter we've had the playset for and it still looks good. I'm not sure of the model name of the playset we went with but it was a cedar stained model with a regular and tube slide along with a built in picnic table which my daughter loves. We also have a glider, trapeze bar and regular swing along with a firemans pole and monkey bars.

 

[basic blues]

I just looked at their site again.....we have The Captains Castle model

 

[Cletus11]

Something to think about. We bought a really high end trampoline (rectangle, not a circle) about 6 years ago. The house we bought had a big wooden Rainbow type playset already. I would say the kids play 75% on the trampoline and 25% on the playset. They also get a ton more exercise on the trampoline. I would highly suggest to buy a really good rectangular trampoline and a cheap playset.

 

[NittanyLionNation]

Thanks everyone - a lot of great info in this thread!