gonna build a swing set

I am going to take a break from "fine" woodworking for a few weeks and build my 2.5 year old a swing set / slide / fort. I don't mind putting in a little extra effort for something that looks kind of cool or has some cool features. I am leaning toward designing something with a little bit of victorian style, maybe with some gingerbread and stuff, but I haven't really decided yet. My number on requirment is that it is going to have a real roof, and not a piece of canvas wrapped of the top. (Not that there is really anything wrong with that, I just think a real roof adds a lot.

Does anyone have any cool ideas for a project such as this that you have seen, or built yourself? Pictures or just a short description would be equally helpful. I don't need plans, I can figure out the details myself.

Thanks for any help or ideas.

Joe in Denver my woodworking website:

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Reply to
Joe Wilding
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Reply to
Joe Gorman

Before you go planning on the cool roof, think of how you are going to get it up there. I know of some folks who built the roof on the ground and then carried it up to the top of the swingset rather than build it in place. Small roofs are very easy to build on the ground. Somewhere around chest level they discovered that those roofs are actually fairly heavy. Unfortunately, at that point they still had two thirds of the vertical lift to go. I still dare not mention that particular part of the project around them.

Michael

Reply to
Herman Family

Half way there myself...

In this category - let me ask what you're thinking about using for padding/bedding? If you've driven by the Playnix stores around Denver, you'll find they have shredded tire material. Colorful, soft, but expensive. Woodchips are common too, likely inexpensive but I'm pretty sure they won't survive our Chinook winds. Pea gravel is currently at the top of my list. A recent drive-by at Pioneer indicated we'd need about 7 1/2 tons to provide adequate depth/coverage for our setup.

Reply to
mttt

I just tackled just such a project in the last few weeks. It had to be completed for the 1st graders easter egg hunt at our house. This was our second such event and seein 45 first graders mob a swingset makes you think twice about the sturdiness of the unit. Now for some of the gory details. I to did not want the canvas top so I opted for a wood roof that just consisted of PT fencing lapped . Not totally water proof but much nicer than fabric. The install of the roof was something I worried about but in the end was not that hard. Since the framing consisted of only 3 truss units built out of 4x4 material I was able to fully install one side and then install about 2/3 of the other side from inside the deck. Then I placed a board across the railing which gave me a platform to work off of to finish the roof. The complete swing set consist of the turbo slide, monkey bars and 4 swings. Given that the location was not that level I had to work this into the design. To keep everything planted firmly in place I buried each pole and set them in concrete about 15" deep. The complete area was then sectioned off with landscape timbers and filled with 6-10" of cedar mulch. I will try to post a few pictures of the results. And yes it held up quite well against the 45 first graders.

FYI Not the Victorian style you are after but I am sure that could be worked in.

Steve

Reply to
Steve

ok I just posted a sketch and picture of our swingset in ABPW.

Steve

Reply to
Steve

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