Backyard rink... has anyone ever made one? tips?

[Dar]

We (err i should say dh) is making the kids a backyard rink and he is having "issues" the ground is frozen but he cant get the water to "pool" to freeze...

he is using the unlined method

 

[Imp]

When I lived in Anchorage (college) we made one by shoveling the snow into a ridge around the edge of the lawn, packing it down then running the hose into the "pool". Took a couple days to do.

Imp

 

[domino7]

We made them every year when I was a kid in Michigan. Sometimes, my dad would put down a big sheet of plastic first, but usually we would just ring it with piled up snow. Like Imp said, it takes a couple days.

 

[Wifezilla]

In Wisconsin the city of Wausau owned several empty lots. In the winter, they would build a snow berm on the edges and fill it with water. Instant skating rink. If I would have known it was going to stay so cold in Colorado Springs this year I would have tried it. Usually it gets too warm during the day.

 

[CityChook]

If the ground is not totally, and I mean TOTALLY frozen underneath your rink, the water will simply absorb and you'll have a tough time building it up. I recommend putting down a tarp and making a border out of snow. Also, know that it's likely going to ruin the grass underneath, so go into it with that piece of knowledge.

Also, make sure that you're only putting down a skim of water at a time so that it can freeze quickly. Otherwise it will just make slush and that freezes all bumpy and is a bummer to skate on.

My kids would DIE for a rink in the backyard, but I'm not willing to sacrifice the grass. There are plenty of ponds/public rinks to skate on around here anyways.

Have fun!

 

[domino7]

We built huge rinks, and still had a nice lawn. I don't remember it ever killing the grass.

 

[Wifezilla]

Did you use a tarp? Maybe it is the tarp that does it.

I looked to see if I could find detailed instructions. All I found was a reference to spraying the ground and sides to "seal" it first. Maybe if you did a sprayed layer, waited a night, sprayed it again and THEN filled it it would work.

 

[Imp]

Quote:
That's why it took a few days to make. Took awhile to seal the ground.

I was going to add that I don't remember it hurting the lawn, but then realized I left Anchorage with 1 1/2 feet of ice on the ground.

Imp- it looked fine under the ice

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Here is a helpful link: http://www.southcoastal.com/history/rink.htm

I searched Google for "make backyard hockey rink" and got tons of results. There are apparently kits you can buy to help you build one and all sorts of other things.

 

[Dar]

he made the edges out of snow and is attempting to flood the area.... we did not use a tarp from the directions he read it was optional