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Play area edging suggestions

ObliqueGeekObliqueGeek Posts: 53
in Garden design
Just looking for a little advice on sturdy edging between childrens' play area and the lawn. 

I've finally relented and to the conclusion that I need to sacrifice some of the garden to a kids play area. I've built a wooden climbing frame with slide/swings etc. Was thinking I could get away without securing it down due to the size, but that's also gone of of the window now I've seen in being used!

The area it's on is pretty rough anyway, the lawn has always struggled there, so I think we're going to section if off with rubber chippings or bark. Looking for suggestions on edging between the two. My initial thoughts were sleepers, but just wondered if anyone had any other suggestions? Bearing in mind it's going to need to be very durable. 

And if sleepers are the best option, do I just just dig a trench, place them in and pack it down around them? Will that be secure enough?

Posts

  • JellyfireJellyfire Posts: 1,139
    If you are going to use bark chippings Id have a raised structure between the two to separate them, such as the sleepers, speaking from experience the bark and the boundary between lawn and bark soon becomes blurred once the kids get involved!
  • ObliqueGeekObliqueGeek Posts: 53
    Yes, agreed. Definitely need something between the two and sleepers seemed to be the obvious choice. Just wondered what other options there were. Need to be study so can't be something like those little half logs things on a roll, that wouldn't last long with children and the strimmer! But sleepers obviously aren't that cheap - looks like sorting the area is going to cost as much as the play equipment, which I didn't really factor in...


  • hogweedhogweed Posts: 4,053
    If your lawn is a rectangle sleepers will be fine. Just skim off any grass. tamp the soil down and lay the sleepers flat. A single sleeper will be high enough. Won't stop the kids throwing the chippings on to the grass though!
    'Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement' - Helen Keller
  • ObliqueGeekObliqueGeek Posts: 53
    I was ideally looking for something little cheaper and easier than sleepers. Some sort of edging boards that I could erect and stake in around the are, but I guess the durability probably won't be that great. 

    If I did go with sleepers, I was thinking to dig them. So for example, if the cross section was 10cm x 20cm, I was thinking about having the 20cm the vertical, but the sleeper half dug in to make sure it's solid. If that makes sense.  
  • JellyfireJellyfire Posts: 1,139
    scaffolding boards would be a cheap and fairly durable option I guess. Not as sturdy or attractive as sleepers, but would do the job if staked in as you suggest. If you go with sleeper I wouldnt bother burying them that deep, they weigh a ton and are unlikely to move once in position
  • hogweedhogweed Posts: 4,053
    You can get old scaffold boards in a reclamation yard. I have used them in the past and just as they are, they lasted for 10+ years. And that was the majority of them in the ground. New sleepers up here are £14-£40 each depending on size. Scaffold boards £14-£22. I think sleepers would be less of a trip hazard ie more easily seen and I think that would be a big bonus especially with kids running about. 
    'Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement' - Helen Keller
  • JellyfireJellyfire Posts: 1,139
    If you go for scaffold boards its always worth ringing a few builders merchants, or scaffodlers if any nearby, Ive been given them free before
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    I have these wooden lengths, which were a bit cheaper than railways sleepers. The sand pit is actually a base for paving slabs, but I’m thinking something similar, with rounded edges, might be safer for kids? They were from a DIY store and sold as border edging. 120cm long, 20cm high and 6cm depth, joined together with metal plates, sunk into the ground. Don’t know if anything similar is sold in the UK though...


    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • ObliqueGeekObliqueGeek Posts: 53
    Thanks for the suggestions.

    Going to bite the bullet and go for sleepers. Found a relatively cheap supply. 
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