Backyard skating rink

creeper

Yikes !!

Coochgrass

Great rink - that looks huge!

Nothing better than family fun in the backyard rink. Unless you ever built one you never know how much work (and fun) it can be!

I live in the classic Saskatchewan suburbia (no jokes please lol) and I can only build a ~24'x45' rink. Some good tips you provided thanks, I will have to cover up my red tuck tape next year. I use clear poly but will have to look for white.

A few tips for other rink builders:
- 500w lights are pretty cheap and work very well for night visibility.
- Portable construction fence placed vertically prevents more pucks from going into neighbor's yard.
- I used to have a real net but the kids would put the puck off the crossbar and once it hit a neighbors house so I just built 2x4 border (goal regulation size) to make sure that doesn't happen anymore.

Hope you get a lot of use this winter. Last year our last day we skated was March 29th!!

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creeper

TA DA...sort of.

The deep end has frozen nicely, but the shallow end is not ready. Here is a spot in particular that is troublesome.

I couldn't think of a reason why they couldn't skate on the solid half so on they went.

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oh'mike

Looking good--odd that a soft spot would be in the shallower end---

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kwikfishron

Looks like fun creeper...The smiles on the Girls faces says it all. Good job.

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creeper

Mike:
It is odd that the shallow end is taking longer, but that is where I keep adding more water if that makes a difference. Not sure.

Ron:
They did have fun this afternoon. Perhaps I didn't think this thing through though. The friend has gone home and the remaining child is after me now to put my skates on. I don't have the endless energy supply that kids do.

epson

Ok, now that’s a really nice home made rink…

creeper

Deeper cold is predicted for later this week, so one last fill up should take care of that trouble spot.

After that the hose comes in doors and all further floodings will be done with the home made zamboni and hot water.

AndyWRS

Enjoyable thread, thanks for sharing.

That is a lot of water, if i ran the hose for 4 days my water bill would send me to the ER.

wkearney99

In many areas you're billed twice for water and sewage. So for watering your lawn, filling hot tubs or an ice rink you end up paying for sewage that doesn't get used. If you're filling stuff like this a lot then it's sometimes worth having a second meter added for 'agricultural' use. That way you're only paying for the water, not the sewage too.

creeper

Here is the zamboni. Hot water works really well for melting any bumps, but you must work quickly or the hose that is laying on the surface will eat a hole in the ice.

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rossfingal

Nice "DIY" Zamboni - Jan!
As far as the hose goes -
I think I would put some 2 inch wide pieces of foam, pipe insulation on it -
to hold the hose off of, the surface of the ice.

Looks kind of cold up there -
They're talking 50 degrees F. this Weds. - down here

Rossi

creeper

That sounds like a good idea Ross.

Another great use for that stuff is a garage door sealer instead of that expensive weather stripper.

I've drilled a few lengths onto the bottom edge of the door. So far its (except one piece) lasted 3 years and it works really well

BigJim

That is also a good idea, I will have to do that on my shop door. Another thing I use the pipe insulation for is to stop air around my shop door, my shop door is a roll up not a regular garage door.

That is really a neat set up you have Jan, I wouldn't have thought of that.

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Jim

creeper

Now operating at its fullest potential..

After shoveling off a huge dumping of packing snow, they had the nerve to ask if they could play xbox. Lucky for them they were just as happy to hear a firm NO WAY.

My arm is too heavy from shoveling to get a good smack in anyway.. (I'm totally and completely kidding)

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