First Rink Construction Questions

[kevmac]

Depending on the durability of your tarp, a small twig should not damage your tarp unless of course the ideal circumstance occurs where the twig and perfect pressure meet and yes it could ruin your winter. I've never seen it yet though.

I would look for something more 'solid' for the fill though. I wouldn't trust something like mulch that will pack down or compost for that matter.

Kevin

[bjlasota]

Danny, See you're in the states. Where are you finding 2x2 stakes? All I'm finding are 1x3, .75x2, 1.25x1.25, all typically at lowes, menards, or home depot.

[Danny]

I plan to go to Home Depot this weekend but they have them online. $5 for a 6 pack :

[Danny]

Now that I look at it, it might be a localized thing, cause I only have the option to pick them up in the store, not to have them shipped. Kind of weird.

[bjlasota]

How many stakes you plan on using. My 30x50 rink is going to take around 122 stakes. So buying by the 6-pack is gonna get expensive. I was looking at the 1.5x1.5x24 stakes that you can get a pack of 25 for 11 bucks.

If you're looking towards your boards, I don't think the concern is how wide(left to right) the stake is, but more like how thick(front to back) it is. That's kinda why I was going to go with the 1x2x24 or something like that. I'd pound the stakes in so that the 1" runs parallel with the boards, and the 2" comes out perpendicular. Should give the same support for a fraction of the price.

[Danny]

I was planning on buying 10 packs, staking out my 20x40 rink about every 2 - 2 1/2' but if the price difference is that drastic, I might take your 1.5 x 1.5 " approach. Thanks for the heads up.

[bjlasota]

When I'm talking about the orientation of the stakes, the picture below should illustrate what I'm getting at. the square stakes(1.5"x1.5"x36") are around 7$ every 6pack. So it'll get quite expensive. The other 2 stakes(1"x3"x24") are around $9 for a 25 pack. It all depends on the orientation of the stake against the boards as to how much support it'll give the boards. Any thoughts on this illustration and using the 1x2 or 1x3 stakes vs the 1.5x1.5?

[Danny]

So I took this weekend to clean up the backyard a bit on Saturday, wake up early on Sunday and head over to Home Depot.

[Danny]

I quit on the project once the football games started, but not before constructing a huge empty sandbox in my backyard!

[kevmac]

Congrats on the first weekend of construction. You made great progress! Add water and cold weather and you're practically there!