Been reading these forums since fall of last year when I started my first rink. It was (and will be again) 24 by 36 feet, and it was decent sized enough for my 7 year old and I to work on some skating and hockey stuff. The yard is very sloped, more-so than I had thought. I ended up with 15 inches in the deep end, and never did get all the way up to the top level. So we ended up mostly using 2/3rds of the rink and still had a blast with it.
This year I had hoped to level out the yard, but that didn't happen so I'm stuck with the same issue. I'm wondering if I would which way would be best to lay the rink out. Last season I had one end in the low area. So 24 feet across of 15 inches of ice. I'm wondering if I'd be wiser to run the rink the other way this season, and have 36 feet of deep end. It would end up less than 15 inches, because I would only be 24 feet down the yard. Basically last year I ran the rink north south, but I'm thinking east west may be easier to fill and overall, put less stress on the boards. thoughts?

Hey Jeff, welcome! Where are you located? Fill out your profile with location, rink size, and materials just so we always have that info when giving advice.

Basically, it's close to impossible for us to make this decision for you because we can't see your yard. It might be better, it might not be. Best bet is to bribe a friend with beer (or guilt your wife into it under the guise of "it's for the kid!") and set up some stakes and a line level, like we do in this post (http://www.backyard-hockey.com/2011/10/ ... yard-rink/). If you have a friend with a rotary laser (or you're within an hour of southern NH and don't mind paying a small fee for me to do it - see here: http://www.eliterinks.com/the-process) that'll be even quicker and easier. I can often find a suitable spot (or be honest that it's not going to happen) within 20-30 minutes with the rotary laser.

All that said, you're smart to think about this now...planning in the fall avoids headaches (and heartbreak) in the winter.

Thanks.... I'm in Prince Edward Island, Canada. I do in fact have a friend who has access to some equipment to shoot the yard and check the slopes that way.. Hoping to have him over saturday.

Just don't try to bribe him with Schooner or Alpine - he might never come back! :-)

lol, he'll drink anything. Didn't get at it last weekend, going to take some measurements tomorrow afternoon.

Sounds like a Maritimer - I know, I'm a transplanted one!

Good luck with the measurements. Let us know how it goes.