Backyard Project

5,232 Views | 26 Replies | Last: 7 yr ago by 62strat
chjoak
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AG
My son turns 3 in Oct. He is big into construction equipment (backhoes, dump trucks, front loaders, etc...). For his Bday his grandparents are getting him a small ride on backhoe...



And my wife and I thought it would be cool to have a place for him to dig. He has a sand box now but it is small and sits on our patio (makes a huge mess). I was thinking about something bigger.

We have a space on the side of our house in the back yard that is currently used for my vegetable garden. The 8'x4' spot in the bottom left is the AC pad. Left border is the house. Top and right border is a privacy fence and bottom border is the rest of the back yard. The area in the middle is 5 raised vegetable gardens and just enough grass to get the mower between each bed.



What I am thinking about is taking out all the grass and garden beds and building a sand pit surrounded by pavers. Idea is that short term he gets a cool sand pit to dig and long term we can turn this spot into a fire pit.



I was thinking about using something (composite decking?) to build a box under ground for the sand and having the pavers be level with the top of the box to give a nice flush look. Considering putting plastic between the dirt and sand to keep runoff water, soil and weeds out of the sand. Drawback would be having nowhere for rain water to go.



Also thinking about adding a top to keep it from becoming a giant litter box for all the neighborhood cats. Maybe something like...




Thoughts, suggestions?
This is the 1st project of this size that I have taken on. Seems simple enough but I'm a little worried it's going to end up a much bigger deal than I anticipate.
62strat
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That's a spoiled ass 3 year old!
chjoak
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His grandparents spend money. I just provide the manual labor.

Frankly, the only reason I am considering a project this big is because I eventually want the firepit space when he gets too old to play in the sand.
TexAg1987
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Going to need a pretty big area for that toy if you want him to be able to ride it and move sand around.

62strat
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AG
Well from the looks of it, I think you just wanted to show off your MS Paint skills. You're putting pavers around a sand pit.. not much can go wrong. I assume the garden didn't do well? I'd hesitate to level a healthy garden.

The cover is a bit much, especially if you can't use it in the future when the fire pit is completed. Do you really have random cats roaming your backyard often?

Making a container for the sand seems like a waste of effort and time, just dig a hole and fill it with sand. He's just using it to move material around with his toy right? So if soil mixes in with the sand, it doesn't seem like an issue.
You can make the top of the sand level with your pavers this way as well. Don't put plastic down, (for the drainage reason you mentioned), put weed barrier down.
chjoak
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AG

quote:
Well from the looks of it, I think you just wanted to show off your MS Paint skills.

SnagIt actually. significantly easier than Paint for stuff like this.


quote:
I assume the garden didn't do well? I'd hesitate to level a healthy garden.
I enjoy having my own vegetables but I am a lazy gardener. Have a bad habit of letting the weeds go and then get too lazy at the end of the summer to get out in the heat and prep for a fall garden. Only things that myself or my family will eat that I have ever had any luck with (tomatoes, peppers & herbs) can all be grown in pots. Anything else I've tried either didn't go well or didn't have enough space to grow enough (beans) to justify the effort.


quote:
The cover is a bit much, especially if you can't use it in the future when the fire pit is completed. Do you really have random cats roaming your backyard often?
I know we have some. Not sure how mush they have been in my yard but I have seen tracks on my patio and "presents" in my front flower bed.


quote:
Making a container for the sand seems like a waste of effort and time, just dig a hole and fill it with sand. He's just using it to move material around with his toy right? So if soil mixes in with the sand, it doesn't seem like an issue.
I guess part of my thought process was also creating a border for the the pavers to keep things from shifting around. Would that not be a concern with the pavers stopping at a hole?
Beckdiesel03
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AG
As someone who has a backyard sand box I can tell you that you will in fact want a cover bc the sand will get disgusting and you'll be replacing it more than you think. Also we use weed barrier underneath which seems to work okay until my dogs get in there and dig it up to lay in the cool sand. When the dirt mixed with the sand-it gets nasty and you'll be replacing it yet again. This has just been our experience.
TruancyAg
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Had a sandbox just as you described as a kid, lid and all.

With the lid, it was a black widow maker....literally. it utimately led to us never covering. There were just too many.

Maybe with a plastic sealed sandbox you won't get spiders, but i guarantee you'll get some nasties under a wooden lid!
Aggielandma12
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AG
must be your first child
62strat
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quote:
As someone who has a backyard sand box I can tell you that you will in fact want a cover bc the sand will get disgusting and you'll be replacing it more than you think. Also we use weed barrier underneath which seems to work okay until my dogs get in there and dig it up to lay in the cool sand. When the dirt mixed with the sand-it gets nasty and you'll be replacing it yet again. This has just been our experience.
I agree a lid is nice mainly to keep rain out.. but his lid is very bulky and doubles as furniture, and if he can't use that with his future fire pit, it may not be worth it.

In the end, this is a digging pit for the kid and his backhoe, so I don't know if dirt mixing with the sand really makes a difference. If the kid wants a sand box too, then different story, but OP didn't specify.

OP, for the issue of the pavers up against an open hole, you don't need an entire box. Just use treated 2x4 or similar and make an edge, then use stakes to hold in place. Putting a box in the ground is a lot of work.
Or even can use that 6" metal landscape edging stuff.
UnderoosAg
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quote:
Going to need a pretty big area for that toy if you want him to be able to ride it and move sand around.





So uh, when is the kid's bday? I have some topsoil I need spread in the backyard. Deal in hot wheels?
chjoak
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He has been trying to raise money for his backhoe for atleast 6 months. Keeps offering to pickup dog poop in mine, my sis and my parent's backyards for cash. Outside of picking up poop for Aunt Pam his follow through has been lacking but he is only 2 (almost 3)
Bassmaster
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If your kid is anything like my boys, your a/c unit will end up with quite a bit of sand in it.
Quad Dog
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The small sand pit in my backyard was just removed. Kids didn't use it much because it was always wet. You'll want some sort of cover or good drainage, or it will be a bunch of small lakes in sand.
I did use some plaster and a mold to make dinosaur bones to bury in the sand for them to find. They thought it was cool to dig up dinosaur bones.
Whitetail
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AG
Time to teach that boy to pick weeds from the garden with that backhoe?
The Grinder (99)
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If I was you, I'd just do it. It'll be one of those things you look back on when they're older and be happy you didn't the time on.

you might consider adding a shade sail too. That has greatly increased the amount of time my kids used some of the outdoor areas I've built
chjoak
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Appreciate all the feedback. After several discussions with the wife, we've made a few minor changes to the plan. We are now planning to keep the raised garden beds. I needed to rebuild the frames anyway so I will resize 1 bed, relocate 1 and take another out entirely. The end result will be...



New questions...

1. In the past I've built my raised beds using 2x12 boards. Problem with them is they last 1-2yrs before needing replaced due to rot. Would like to find an alternative that will last significantly longer. Want to stick with similar thickness and height (willing to go a little taller and willing to stack boards if needed). I've considered composite decking boards but have not done enough research to know how they would hold up to prolonged direct contact with soil. Any other ideas?
2. Reconsidering the idea of pavers (purple area). I am still leaning that direction but wife is suggesting pebbles or crushed granite for cost and easy of instillation. I don't like pebbles because it will be no time at all and they will be scattered all over the yard. Crushed granite may be ok. Thoughts?
Flashdiaz
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AG
what kind of wood are you using for the raised beds. Cedar seems to hold up well.

as for the pebbles, not a big fan of pebbles and with that toy, i'm sure your son will be putting pebbles all over the place... and when he gets older, unlimited ammo for throwing.

Crushed granite would look better but may still have issues as above.
chjoak
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Don't recall but I think it was just treated boards from Lowe's. The ones I have now have lasted 2 yrs but have needed replacing for almost a year. Prior build was 2 yrs and held up pretty well up to the end.
Dr. Doctor
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Wood is going to rot, regardless of what you get.

One suggestion, but this tends to blow up budgets, is brick. Cinder bricks, pavers, etc. You can stack with liquid nails holding them down, but the price per foot is much higher than wood.

But then you don't worry about rot. The only thing I could think of is a plastic liner on the sides or wrapped around a landscaping timber (lay plastic on ground, stack 2 or 3 timbers tall, then wrap plastic back to the timbers and cover with a final course. Plastic sheets on the inside of the bed).

~egon
chjoak
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My dad suggested cinder blocks but I don't like the general look and they are far too thick for what I want. Pavers would probably look nice but cost combined with the effort of glue and I think I would pass.

My dad got a hold of something that looks kind of like composite decking but it is thinner and made from something that won't rot. He can't recall what the stuff was called as he got it from a gardening friend that was unloading excess he didn't need.
chjoak
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Doing a little research on the raised bed materials. The options I am finding...

Wood - Cheapest option. Cedar is the best option to last longer but all will eventually rot.
Brick/Rock/Pavers - More expensive than wood, not as bad as others. Bulkier than alternatives. Can absorb heat and raise temp of bed.
Composite - Expensive but lasts long. Composite designed for beds is hollow and can be damaged by gardening tools. Most likely needs to be ordered online.
Recycled Plastic - Expensive and heavy but will likely outlive me. Needs to be ordered online.
Galvanized Metal - Seeing lots of reference to people using livestock water troughs. More expensive than wood , not as bad as others (unless you get a leaky one from a rancher for free). Less flexible sizing than building a bed from the other materials.


Water trough idea is interesting. Anyone try that?
62strat
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Did your wood ones really only last 1-2 years? My parents built raised beds like 10 years ago, and they haven't replaced them. I always thought the plain old wooden boxes were tried and true.

Put down some thick plastic liner maybe? Staple some 3 mil trash bags on the inside of the boxes?
chjoak
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Yeah. Been in my current house 5 years. 1st added garden 4 yrs ago. Have built the boxes twice. 1st ones were in better shape after 2 yrs than the current ones but both times there was enough rot to warrant replacement. After a couple hours of research yesterday I'm leaning towards galvanized metal. Stock tanks would be easy but expensive for the number of beds I would need, so I am leaning towards something like...


or


I would have 3 beds each about 16-18" tall and 3' wide. Length would depend on the space. It is my general understanding that the rot issues I've had were due to the type of wood I used in addition to direct exposure to soil/moisture. A box like this would significantly reduce the exposure. That combined with using cedar for the frame should hopefully make the box last a very long time. The are where I have the garden has 4 sprinkler heads from my sprinkler system. I've always used that the water the garden and now wonder if that just ended up putting unnecessary water on the boxes. So moving forward. I am planing to remove those heads, cap off one and rig the other 3 to feed soaker hoses that will be placed in each bed. I'm thinking that gives me better watering for the garden without wasted water and unneeded exposure to the frame.
OlRock
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I made the exact sandbox for my kids. I stapled 6 mil poly for the bottom and folded it so it was thick. I never saw a blade of Bermuda in the box. I would also religiously cover it with a tarp when it was supposed to rain. I was proud of that damn thing and wanted them to be able to use it. I also added anholder for a patio umbrella to the side so we could add shade.
Satellite of Love
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Think about getting a cover for the sand pit. If there are free roaming cats, they will s**t all in the box. I effin hate cats
chjoak
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Been thinking about that. Finding a cover may be difficult given dimensions but I was thinking about just making a cover with PVC and a tarp (or similar) to essentially make a tent top with no legs. Should get the job done while keeping it lite enough for the wife and/or kids to move themselves.
62strat
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quote:
Think about getting a cover for the sand pit. If there are free roaming cats, they will s**t all in the box. I effin hate cats
Reminds me of a joke about how the moms of tiny babies of a certain skin color won't let them play in the sand box, because they might get buried by a cat.
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