Maxx Clear H20

Big announcement coming this week as we roll out Maxx Clear H20 Playground Conditioner. Maxx Clear H20 is a crystal clear, water based, elastic coating that restores and preserves existing rubber playground surfaces and running tracks.

Much like waxing your car, poured-in-place rubber playground safety surfacing and running tracks need periodical maintenance to help them last, and keep them safe.

Until now, maintenance professional used a thinned version of a solvent based polyurethane binder which needed to be applied by hand with a roller. Polyurethane binders are moisture cured and can get very temperamental when humidity and ambient temperatures come into play, plus they can leach harmful chemicals into the environment.  

Maxx Clear H20 is a highly advanced polymer coating that is water based, and is not affected by humidity and temperature. It is a "green" product that can be applied with an airless sprayer which considerably reduces time / labor cost. Like the solvent based products, Maxx Clear H20 stops surface granulation, restores the color and extends the life of the surface. Maxx Clear H20 is as durable as the solvent based products but clean up is with soap and water.

When applied with an airless sprayer and depending on surface condition, each pail of Maxx Clear covers between 400-600 sq ft.

You can get Maxx Clear H20 at Discount Playground Supply. 

Tom

Rain-Out

FINALLY! It's taken a long time but we pleased to announce we are an authorized dealer for Rain-Out. 

Rain-Out is a sports field and baseball diamond drying agent that dries up wet, muddy fields in less than 5 minutes. Each 10 pound pail will dry as much area as a full pallet of the older clay product plus it is reusable and green.

Watch how easy Rain Out is to use https://youtu.be/nxNuAMKiCDo

Free Shipping on this product - Click Here

The Benefits of a Poured-in- Place Surfacing Maintenance Program 

Poured-in-Place Surfacing or Wet Pour as it is called in the UK is a impact absorbing safety surfacing used in many playgrounds. What makes these types of surfacing systems so popular is the ability to custom design the surface with amazing graphics, its ability to accommodate various fall heights requirements (Head Injury Criteria)  in and around the play structure, wheelchair accessibility and the retaliative low cost of maintenance over the life of the surface. Many playground owner operators are under the false impression these type of surfaces are maintenance free, which is not the case. 

These types of surfacing use a combination of ground rubber or EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer) which is a synthetic rubber for the wear or top layer and a MDI ( Methylene diphenyl diisocyanate)base polyurethane binder (glue) to hold it together. Over time Ultra Violate Light rays for the sun attach and break the MDI backbone of polyurethane causing it to fail. Once the polyurethane binder fails, the granules of rubber dislodge from the surface which is called "surface granulation" and the surface develops thin spots, holes and becomes less safe and non compliant.

Owner/operators should walk their poured-in-place playgrounds and check for signs of granulation, soft spots, holes, gaps and shrinkage on the surface. For areas that are damaged, you will need to call a surfacing contractor to repair it or purchase a rubber playground repair kits such as Fast Patch.

A simple test for granulation is to vigorously scuff the surface in several location with your boot or shoe to see if rubber separates or granulates from the surface. If it does, then you will need to re-coat the surface with a specialized coating to halt the granules. In the surfacing industry, this is called "Roll Coating" and is a modified version of the binder used when the system was installed. Roll coating is typically done by the original installer of the playground surface, but there are products available like Maxx Clear that allow the owner operator or their maintenance crews to apply the coating themselves.

Like cleaning and waxing your car, Poured-in-Place Surfacing can last a lot longer with simple inspection and maintenance.

   

Start a Play Club at Your School

I wanted to re post this article which was written by Pat Rumbaugh feature in Playground Today latest issue. It is a great way to get to know your neighbors, neighbor's kids while giving kids the time and supervision to play. - Tom Discount Playground Supply

Schools all over America have clubs, especially in middle and high school, so why not consider having a play club in every school in America including elementary schools?

What is a play club? My idea of a play club would be inclusive to every person that spends their days at the school: students, staff and all employees. Start small and dream big with your play club at school.

The obvious part is that for every get together the club has, there would be fun free playtime offered. If the weather were acceptable to go outside that would be the first choice of play. The sky is the limit here; freeze tag is a popular game at all ages; have a bin filled with balls, jump ropes, hula-hoops, Frisbees, jacks, yo-yos and any other items students would enjoy playing.

Now if the weather is not suitable for being outside have a gym or room reserved for indoor play. This is a great time to bring out the board games, cards and other games you can easily play inside. Maybe your school already has a game room: billiards, table tennis, darts, air hockey, foosball and how about pinball machines. This would be an awesome space to play these activities.

Who runs the play club? Ideally, students run the play club with an adult as the advisor, sponsor or chaperon. Parents, teachers and administrators can all play a positive role in the life of the school. Students can do it all with supervision: form a play club, run it on their own and with adults hanging around just in case they are needed to play a game or assist in anyway.

When should  the play club meet? I recommend starting out once a week if possible, say a Friday after school or at lunchtime.

How do young students run play club? There should be an understanding from day one that students have the right to play. In fact, Article 31 of the UN Convention on Rights of the Child states children have the right to play.

Children normally play at recess during the school day. Even here, the key is to allow students ownership of their play time. Explain early on that they have the right to play, but at the same time need to treat each other how they would want to be treated and that they share the play space and equipment and are responsible to help take care of it.

Where do funds come from for the play club? This could be a mixture of students raising money, the PTA chipping in funds and the school allocating funds for play equipment.

Lets move on to the middle and high school students who need playtime just as much as the younger ones. Some of them may be involved in after school sports and they get more than enough physical exercise, but do they get the opportunity during the day to just have fun, free, unstructured play? ALL students need to play, be physically active and have free time to choose what they would enjoy playing.

Students could be encouraged to take playful walks around a walking path at school or the school track. If weather does not cooperate, walking the halls is always an option.

So many activities without much cost can be added at every school; hopscotch and foursquare can be painted on the blacktop at school. It doesn’t take much space to add badminton, bocce ball, corn-hole, croquet, shuffleboard, horseshoes, or other active games.

Be creative and take a good look at your school campus: are there trees students would be allowed to climb? Is there a space that would be great for hide-and-seek? How about a playground for students in all grades? Yes, I believe ALL students can benefit from playing at a playground.

You may not have a playground at your school, but the play club when it expands could meet on the weekend at a certain hour to play. Parents that cannot volunteer during the week might be available once a month for an hour, so other parents could drop off their child to play.

The other activity of the play club, besides playing, that I feel is important is promoting play in the community. Lets say you are an elementary school; you have started a play club, how about planning an outing to a nursing home where you would play board games and cards with seniors? Another option would be to plan a play day at your school for people in the community. Just imagine on a Saturday afternoon going to the school and playing jump rope, Simon says, Red light, Green light, and other activities with people of all ages. Check out the post about planning a play day.

Older students could go play with younger students. Teens could offer to play soccer, play catch or Frisbee at a playground or park in town as a way to promote play in your community.

Tips for starting a play club in your school

• Students interested in starting a play club should first talk to their friends and classmates. Make a draft of what you want and have it typed up. Have everyone sign it and ask to meet with the Principal.
• Speak to the PTA, your parents and teachers about starting a play club.
• Look at your facilities at your school and figure out the places where would be ideal to play outside and inside.
• Start gathering play equipment, games, etc. Ask parents if you can donate some of your equipment, ask neighbors for used equipment.
• Does your family belong to a community list serve? If they do ask if you can send a message through the list serve asking for donations, some people will give you money and/or buy you new equipment.
• Make a wish list, so people know what you want.
• Remember to include the entire school. Everyone deserves to play.

Tips for promoting the play club

• Once you have the play club up and running beginning thinking about a way to promote play in your community.
• Would a play event at your school be possible?
• Are there homes for seniors in your community? If there is I suggest you contact them and ask if you can come play with the seniors. They may already have a Games Night.
• Be creative about promoting play. Take a good look at the facilities in your community and think of ways you can get people to join you to play. We have held a couple of Indoor Splash & Play Pool Parties. They were a big hit.

Children have the right to play. If your child or the children in your community do not have the opportunity to go out and play like you did when you were a child then forming a play club is a must. If the children in your community are over scheduled, stressed by attending an adult led activity daily then they need fun free unstructured play. You can help give this to them by helping form a play club at your neighborhood school.

I believe play clubs are the answer to so many problems that are going on in America today. Some children hardly get any physical activity during the day. Some children are so busy they are stressed to the max and some children do not have a safe place to play.

If you are a parent, teacher, administrator, or an adult who loved to play as a child who notices that play is missing in your community I urge you to act now. Feel free to contact me. I would be glad to help. I would even be willing to come to your community or do whatever it takes to give children the opportunity to play.

Let’s put playing on the priority list in your community. As I said before, every child deserves to play.

Pat Rumbaugh

This is such a good article I had to post it - Thanks Robert and our supplier at The Park Catalog

This is such a good article I had to post it - Thanks Robert and our supplier at The Park Catalog

 -Tom

 

Don’t Make Me Lock My Bike to a Tree! More Commercial Bike Racks Needed

Posted by: Robert Caston January 22, 2016

Adding more commercial bike racks will alleviate situations like this

It’s getting ugly out there. There are just not enough Commercial Bike Racks on streets today to accommodate the growing surge in bicyclists. So defenseless trees are picking up the slack.

Be a hero. Give a bicyclist a place to park. Give a tree a break.

According to Statista, the number of Americans who biked in the past 12 months grew from 47 million in Spring 2008 to a whopping 66.7 million in the Spring of last year.

That’s nearly 20 million more people who now ride a bicycle.

This type of behavior should be rewarded.

After all, bicyclists are doing their part. They are making your community a better place to live.

More of them are riding their bicycles downtown to work than driving. That frees up city streets. Cuts down on congestion. Makes it easier for others to park.

More people are also riding their bicycles to run to town or do errands.

All of this bicycle riding has a major impact on air quality, just like trees. Every time someone pedals a bicycle anywhere, they are not putting more exhaust into the atmosphere.

Tree bike

And more people are finding bicycling is a great way to stay healthy. That means a physically fitter population spending less time in hospitals.

First Lady Michelle Obama has made it her mission to reduce obesity in the US. She points out that riding a bike does that. Kids love it (especially when they aren’t old enough to drive a car).

Baby boomers are jumping on the bicycle wagon as well. There’s a popular saying now: “bicycling is the new golf.”

Nearly 67 million people are doing all these great things by hopping on their bicycles.

So how are they being rewarded by the community?

Because there are so many bicycles and there’s such a shortage of secure commercial bike racks, bicyclists have almost been forced to act like outlaws.

They have to lock their bikes to trees. Or to sign posts. Or to railings. Whatever they can find.

This is not good. For one, a tree is not exactly as secure as a 1.9-inch diameter commercial bike rack manufactured with steel piping that is embedded into the concrete with an in-ground mount. Locks and chains can damage tree bark. Bikes also parked next to trees can impede pedestrian traffic.

Here’s another other issue that is out there. Stealing bicycles has become popular with thieves – low level street criminals. The FBI estimates $1 million bicycles are stolen every year. (Here’s an account of one thief who just grabbed a bicycle every time he needed a few bucks.)

According to crooks, it’s relatively easy to rip off a bike. Bust a cheap lock. Cut a tree. So many targets are parked incorrectly or locked to the wrong thing. City streets that don’t offer bicycle parking force bicyclists to park their bikes in low-visibility areas near alleys or in the back of buildings. Guess who knows exactly where these spots are located – bike thieves with cutting tools.

Then you have the issue of street signs. A bicyclist wants to park his or her bike legitimately to a commercial bike rack, but there aren’t any around.

So they lock it to a street sign. There are plenty of those. Guess what? In some cities, that’s illegal. The bike lock will be cut and the bike confiscated. Not only that, in some towns there is a fine as high as $1,000 if you lock your bike to a sign.

Most bikes don’t even cost that much.

No parking sign becomes a bicycle parking rack

Then there’s the issue of private property. Business owners might get upset to see a bike locked to a tree or railing on their property (if they provided commercial bike racks, they wouldn’t have to worry about that.).

They will cut the locks (they have that right). They will take the bikes (they don’t have that right).

Even if they don’t take the bike away, an unlocked bicycle standing on a busy street won’t last for long (see note on thieves above).

How to fight back with more commercial bike racks

Municipalities know bicycle parking is a major issue. Many are doing their part to add more bicycle parking racks.

The smart ones also realize it’s in their best interest to provide more outdoor bike racks. For example, how great would it be on if 50% of the population rode their bicycle to work instead of driving there? They do this in places like Copenhagen now.

That means you don’t need to spend more money on expanding roads. You don’t have motorists complaining about traffic jams. You have people spending money in local shops because the parking is not so bad.

The air will be cleaner. The citizens will be healthier. The public will be happier. Trees will breathe a sigh of relief.

Smart businesses also realize how they can easily attract more customers just by adding commercial bike racks in front of their stores or restaurants. Merchant associations would also be smart to make sure there are plenty of commercial bike racks available in their shopping districts.

Studies in Oregon showed that businesses that provide commercial bike racks benefited greatly from the bicycling consumer. Researchers found that the bicycling consumer visited a business more often than a motorist. While they spent less per visit, cumulatively over the course of a month they spent more. Wouldn’t it be cool to add more parking in front of your business? Consider bicycle parking. After all, a vehicle is a vehicle.

NYC added a bike path in front of a bunch of stores in Manhattan and the stores reported an increase in overall sales. A bicycling consumer is more likely to notice your business than a motorist who has to worry about the cars in front and behind and finding a place to park that giant chunk of metal.

In other words, if you want a magnet to easily draw more customers to your business, add a U-shaped bike rack (it actually resembles a magnet). It works.

Railing becomes bicycle parking rack

City officials need to be sure that for every gargantuan car parking garage out there, they should add a number of commercial bike racks. That’s a no-brainer.

Local bike clubs and local bike shops would be smart to band together to get their towns to add more bicycle parking racks. While every municipality has budget constraints, it’s still the squeaky wheel that gets the attention. Organize a mass gathering at any town council meeting and officials will listen.

Bicyclists don’t have to be antagonistic. Theirs is a noble and just cause. Just present the facts. Show pictures of areas where bicycle parking is sorely needed.

Compared to other municipal expenditures, buying a handful of commercial bike racks is minuscule. But it could have a big impact on downtown parking and the revenue of local businesses (and sales taxes).

For events, talk to parks and recreation department officials. Towns love to hold festivals and events. It brings recognition to the town. Creates a sense of pride. And generates quite a bit of revenue. But everybody hates the traffic.

Local streets fill beyond capacity when there is an event. There’s a hundred times more vehicles on the road than normal. It’s always a nightmare.

Think how great it would be if event organizers offered bicycle valet parking? Say they cut traffic by just 20%. That’s significant. More people would enjoy the event and more people would find it easier to get home. This whole concept of temporary bicycle valet parking is catching on big with many towns.

The numbers speak for themselves. There are 20 million more people riding bicycles than just eight years ago. There are more bike share programs coming to towns. Bicycle tourism is increasing in popularity.

The right path is clear. Bicyclists are doing their part. Adding more commercial bike racks is certainly more desirable than damaging trees. Build it and they will park their bike next to it.

(If you like this blog please pass it on by hitting the share buttons below. You might just save a tree).

Playground Repairs Made Easy

If your thinking of repairing rubber playground surfaces or running tracks using Discount Playground Supply Fast Patch Repair Kits make sure the temperature is over 45 degrees F for at least several hours. Also and the surface needs to be dry with no rain or snow in the forecast. Other than that, repairs will be quick and easy. Great standard color selection and custom blends too

Here's what one of our many customer wrote

Great Service & Product September 10, 2015 Reviewer: Greg Arnott from Redwood City, CA United States   Tom was awesome, everything was smooth and the product is fantastic. Great transaction, we're very happy and plan on doing business again in the future. Thanks!

Six Tips for Playground and Park Safety

The playground should be a place where kids can come to engage with their surroundings and have a fun time blowing off steam on equipment like slides, swings and seesaws. If the playground isn’t a safe space, however, it makes it a lot more difficult to prevent serious injuries or other mishaps from occurring. The following six tips will ensure that parks remain a fun and injury-free place for kids to visit!


1.    It is very important that all play structures more than 30 inches high are spaced at least nine feet apart. In order to ensure that no injuries occur due to incorrectly spaced equipment.


2.    Always check for sharp points or edges on the equipment that kids will be interacting with and running around on. Objects like hardware, s-shaped hooks, bolts and sharp or unfinished edges can stick out of equipment and severely cut children or get stuck in clothing. It’s also important to pay careful attention to swing seats so that you can make sure no sharp metal inserts have become exposed.


3.    Tripping hazards like exposed concrete footings, tree stumps, roots, and rocks can contribute to serious injuries on the playground. It’s important to make sure that the space is free of any of these major hazardous materials before children are allowed to visit.


4.    Always make sure that guardrails and other safe barriers are in place for elevated surfaces like platforms and ramps. This helps prevent any serious falls from occurring and generally makes the playground a safer place.


5.    When a playground has proper surfacing, this can do a great job of reducing the number of injuries that occur when kids trip or fall from equipment. It’s important that the surface under the playground equipment be soft and substantial enough to soften the impact if a child were to fall. Surfaces made of rubber tend to be safe and allow easier access for anyone using a wheelchair.


6.    Children should be carefully supervised on the playground at all times. When someone is there to look out for them, it prevents injuries from occurring and overall misuse of equipment. It’s also important to be in close proximity just in case an injury does happen to occur so that first aid can be administered immediately.  

Check out Discount Playground Supply, browse our wide selection of playground maintenance equipment and let us know if you have any other tips in the comments!