BYO Recreation Blog

Shade seems pretty unimportant when it comes to playground safety, after all, making sure play structures are built properly and swing set parts are not worn out seem to be at the top of the safety checklist, but shade is very important, if not the most important safety feature on a playground. So if shade is the most important safety feature, why is it overlooked so often?

Answer: People don't realize how HOT playground equipment and surfaces can get!

Let's find out just how hot a play area can get on an average sunny summer day.

In Cathedral City, California, the CBS Local 2 News staff took a laser temperature gun to measure playground equipment at Panorama Park when it was 115F degrees outside. The playground equipment and flooring measured 161F to 180F degrees! According to AntiScald Inc., a person can receive third degree burns by touching a structure, at 140F degrees,  for 5 seconds. That's 20-40 degrees cooler than the recorded temperature of playgrounds and surfaces that are not protected with shade.

Burns are not the only thing to worry about,  "children’s skin is especially sensitive to direct sunlight because they don’t have as many pigment cells as adults do. Children burn faster and cumulative skin damage starts with the first exposure," according to the American Academy of Dermatology, "one bad sunburn in childhood could cause skin cancer 30 years later." Improper shade over your playground area can cause children to over heat and adults can have heat strokes resulting in a trip to the hospital.

So you can see why shade is a very important component to playground safety. It prevents heat exhaustion, heat strokes, second and third degree burns, skin cancer and so much more!

BYO Recreation offers a variety of shade structures for playgrounds, sandboxes, benches, tables, sidewalks and virtually anywhere you desire, we can provide you with shade. Pretty cool!

For more information about how shade can save your visitors from harsh injuries or illnesses please give us a call at 1-800-853-5316 and one of our consultants will be happy to answer your inquires and concerns. Also, visit our website and take a look at our state-of-the-art shade structures and place an order to save children's health.

To learn more about playground safety, please review the Public Playground Safety Handbook, and to obtain a playground safety checklist please refer to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Checklist.

In 1990 the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed.This act is designed to give civil rights protection to individuals with disabilities. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, it "guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in public accommodations, employment, transportation, state and local government services, and telecommunications."

Here at BYO Recreation, we believe in every child having the opportunity to enjoy the thrill and excitement of adventure on the playground. Whether your playground is at a daycare, in a park, at a school or at your place of business, you should make sure that your playground equipment is ADA accessible, so you can accommodate every child.

Some ways to make your playground accessible and fun to children with special needs is to install wheelchair ramps. These help kids enter and exit the play space with ease, especially playgrounds that are bordered. BYO Recreation offers a variety of playground surfaces, all are ADA certified, but some are a little easier to move around on than others. For example, our mulch is ADA certified, but installing a Poured-In-Place surface is smoother and easier for wheelchairs to move from the swing sets to the spinners and the spring riders.

Another way for kids with special needs to enjoy the playground are the swings and spring riders. BYO Recreation offers swings that are designed specifically for kids with special needs. They are engineered with a safety bar that lowers down and buckles in place to ensure the child's safety.  Spring riders are great because they are low to the ground and a whole bunch of fun! The height makes it easy for kids to move from their wheelchair onto the spring rider and back. Each rider has feet and hand pegs, so kids can hold on and spring away!

There are infinite ways to make your playground accessible to children with disabilities; these are only a couple ways that will allow children with disabilities to have the time of their life on the playground.

To Learn about more ways to make your playground ADA accessible and keep kids safe at play please visit BYO Recreation's website or give us a call at 1-800-853-5316 and one of our consultants will be more than happy to answer all of your questions and concerns and help you choose the best playground equipment for your play space.

To learn about playground safety, please review the Public Playground Safety Handbook, and to obtain a playground safety checklist please refer to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Checklist.

Visit our blog throughout the month of May 2013 to learn more tips on how to keep children safe at play with our Safety Series Posts!

Keeping children safe is the number one priority for BYO Recreation, so for the month of May we are going to continue to educate you about how you can keep your kids safe while at play. We talked about Surface Safety Monday, April 22, 2013, so today let’s move on to swing safety.

Swing sets are the most common playground equipment found in any play space, and it’s the most used structure by kids of all ages, so it makes sense that you should inspect your swings every six months to a year.

What should you be looking for in your swing set inspection?

Swings are composed of several parts such as swivels, seats, frame connectors, hangers and chains. Over time every day wear and tear from use and Mother Nature take a toll on these parts causing equipment to become brittle, or weak. When inspecting your swing sets, examine the chains and hangers first, because these are the most replaced parts of a swing set.

Some chains come coated in a protective material to prevent children from pinching themselves, but over time, this coating can come off and expose the chain. The chain is coated in galvanized steel, meaning it won’t rust, but the coating gives extra protection and a nice visual appeal to your swing set.

Hangers are what attaches the swing to the top beam and slows for swinging motion. After years of swinging back and forth, these hangers wear down and become weak. The swinging motion rubs the metal chain against the metal hanger, which causes the link to become thin over a period of years. These should be replaced, if worn out, to ensure children will be safe while swinging.

Every aspect of your swing set should be inspected to ensure your play structure is up-to-code and safe for child play. If you are unsure of how to inspect your swing sets, or any other play structure in your play space, please call BYO Recreation at 1-800-853-5316, and one of our certified playground inspector representatives can help you make a checklist of all the major parts to examine, or help you find an expert playground inspector in your area.
For more tips on how to inspect your playground for safety, check back here throughout the month of May 2013 and remember to inspect your playground annually!

To learn more about playground safety, please review the Public Playground Safety Handbook, and to obtain a playground safety checklist please refer to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Checklist.

Keeping children safe is the number one priority for BYO Recreation, so for Playground Safety Week we want to provide you with a checklist of things to examine on your playground surface, so you can ensure your children are safe while playing.

Let's start with your surface:

If you have a rubber or wooden mulch surface, you want to check its level. Over time, your mulch will become compact from children running and playing, children will pick the mulch up and toss it about, kids will even digs holes in the ground, which buries your mulch under dirt. Making sure that your mulch level is good keeps children safer because it keeps your ground level, it protects kids from tripping on any underground objects and it keeps kids from major injuries or infections that a hard dirt ground can cause.

Rubber tiled surfaces or poured-in-place surfaces are much more durable and lasting than mulch surfaces, but even these should be checked from time to time. Tiled surfaces can be pulled up by determined children or have dangerous objects wedged between the cracks. Over time, the tiles may even shift slightly making gaps that kids can trip on. Poured-in-place surfaces are a little more durable than tiled surfaces, but still have some risks. After years of wear and tear, your surface can become thin. This can cause kids to fall on harder ground or trip from an uneven surface. If you inspect your surfaces once a year for these issues, you can keep your kids safe during playtime.

It’s also a good idea to border your play space with BYO Recreation playground borders. Bordering your playground will designate where the children can play and where they may be out of sight from supervisors. This is also a great way to contain your playground mulch.

For more tips on how to inspect your playground for safety, check back here throughout the month of May 2013 and remember to inspect your playground during Playground Safety Week (April 21-27)! If you would like more information about your surface safety, or would like assistance fixing your playground problems, give us a call at 1-800-853-5316 and one of our associates, will be happy to help you determine your playground issue and select the best product to fix your problem.

To learn more about playground safety, please review the Public Playground Safety Handbook, and to obtain a playground safety checklist please refer to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Checklist.

BYO Recreation’s (BYO) 2^nd Annual $1 Million Create Play Fund, beginning Feb. 11, will allow communities nationwide to save 50 percent off playground equipment. Helping to create play for children, BYO will match 100 percent of customer funds for select playground structures.

The Create Play Fund features some of the company’s most popular playground structures, including the Caterpillar Crawl and the Red Baron—the two most popular structures in the inaugural Create Play Fund in early 2012.

Last year’s Create Play Fund garnered a lot of success. BYO matched over $1 Million of customer funds dollar-for-dollar and created over 100 new playgrounds throughout the nation, reaching the overall goal of creating more play for children. This year, the company aims to help even more communities create play.

BYO believes in the positive impact playgrounds have on the lives of children. Decreasing budgets affect the ability of schools, parks and communities to provide their children with playground equipment. The goal at BYO is to eliminate this struggle and foster the creation of more play for children, families and communities across the nation. This is the core of the Create Play Fund and is the reason BYO is giving away $1 million in matching funds.

The Create Play Fund gives BYO’s customers the chance to create play opportunities for children by purchasing high-quality, safe playgrounds at an extremely reduced cost.

Register now at http://www.byoplayground.com/createplay or call 1-800-853-5316 to register for your matching grant.

BYO Recreation (BYO) and the Comotara Mainsgate Homeowners Association (HOA) teamed up to replace the community’s playground equipment after their playgrounds were destroyed by arson in the summer of 2012.

In order to meet their goals of providing a safe, enjoyable community for their children and families, as well as keeping it visually appealing and updated, the Wichita, Kan. HOA immediately set to work on replacing the playground equipment.

According to Harry Dobbin, Comotara Mainsgate HOA President, the Playground Committee’s criteria for the playground design included no roofs or tunnels because their previous equipment, made from wood, had several areas where older children could hide at night. BYO specifically designed the new playground to meet these criteria, yet still offer a variety of fun, exciting things to do.

BYO’s Playground Consultant Adam Nicholas worked with the HOA throughout the playground planning process. When asked what they were most pleased with about Nicholas’ service, Dobbin commended the consultant’s tireless work with the HOA, always making sure they received what was needed to implement all the desires of the Playground Committee.

“We would not have achieved the final result without Adam. He was very patient, extremely helpful throughout the design process and worked to ensure we would have a quality product within our budget,” said Dobbin. “He took a personal interest in our project because of the fires we had and wanted to make sure we were able to replace the loss and help the families feel a sense of security once again.”

The Comotara Mainsgate community values recreational spaces that create a family friendly atmosphere and allow for play and growth. After the fires, replacement of the playground equipment was very important to the neighborhood and the HOA aimed to have the equipment completed by their annual picnic date.

“Adam’s service continually stood out in the planning process,” said Dobbin, “but when we were getting down to the timeline needed to accomplish the installation, he talked with the installer explaining our circumstances and we had our playground before the picnic.

“The quality of the equipment is excellent … The neighborhood is extremely complimentary of the playground and so made the committee feel confident and pleased to have made the decision to use BYO.”

BYO Recreation worked with the MOMS Club of Fayetteville, Ga. throughout 2012 to recreate a safer play environment at Church Street Park for the children in their community.

The local chapter of the non-profit support group for stay-at-home and working moms regularly performs service projects throughout their community; the Church Street Park Project being their largest to date.

According to Sara Van Etten-Athey, Co-Chair of the Church Street Park Project, the rusty, dangerous equipment of the only public playground in Fayetteville created a need that had to be addressed. The group began working with the city for the removal of the equipment at Church Street Park and planning for new equipment.

In their online search for playground equipment and quotes, BYO Recreation’s playground specialist Chris Woodward began to work with Van Etten-Athey.

“BYO was great; Chris Woodward was, in fact, the only sales representative who answered my initial online requests for quotes,” said Van Etten-Athey. “I can only assume that other companies saw that we were a MOMS club with a small budget and a three year goal, and simply dismissed us as unworthy of their time. Chris contacted us the next day and gave us as much attention as he would have a far larger project.

“We were actually contacted by a playground company that had local representatives a few months later and for a minute we considered staying local, but the outstanding level of customer service from Chris and BYO kept our business,” said Van Etten-Athey.

Working with Woodward, the group learned about BYO Recreation’s $1 Million Create Play Fund. The promotion saved them half off the Caterpillar Crawl playground structure, enabling them to purchase swings, a Village Shop Early Childhood Playground Equipment piece, as well as safety surfacing—100 cubic yards of mulch and border timbers.

The MOMS Club of Fayetteville, with the help of their community, raised around $20,000 for the project through local fundraisers.

“When Chris got us the information about Create Play, it caused us to really step up our game. We knew we would never be able to get a $16,000 piece of equipment at half off anywhere else,” said Van Etten-Athey. “Thanks to BYO and the generous support of our community, what we had planned as a two to three year project, only took us four months.”

Church Street Park has already seen an increase in traffic since the installation of the new playground equipment. Not only has the playground created a more walkable downtown area and given children in the area a safer place to play, according to Van Etten-Athey and the MOMS Club, it has given the children a feeling that they are cared about by their community.

The MOMS Club continues to fundraise for projects that will benefit the community. Their next goal is a new basketball court for Church Street Park. Visit www.facebook.com/ChurchStreetPark to learn more about the MOMS Club of Fayetteville.

BYO Recreation recently teamed up with Carrollton Oaks Apartment Homes to create a playground and dog park for the community, located in Carrollton, Texas.

According to Brandy Davis, Carrollton Oaks Property Manager, the addition of their new playground equipment and dog park will benefit the community tremendously. The community has already seen an increase of inquiries because of their new amenities.

“We have been advertising the dog park and getting hits solely based on the fact that we cater to our furry friends,” said Davis. “Dog parks are becoming increasingly popular in residential communities. Having a place for pet owners to take their dogs to play and exercise so close to home is fun and convenient.”

Through this project with BYO, the Carrollton Oaks community has revamped its recreational space and site amenities. Along with their new Dizzy Dare playground structure and Complete Novice Dog Park, they have added benches and tables around both areas for the comfort of parents and pet owners.

Carrollton’s vision was brought to life with the help of Playground Consultant Ingrid Vargas. Working closely with both corporate and the Carrollton office, Vargas promptly answered questions and guided the project to its successful completion.

BYO Recreation and Dew School, located in the Dew Community in Teague, Texas, planned the perfect playground earlier this year. Taking advantage of BYO Recreation’s spring promotion, the $1 Million Create Play Fund, the school was able to save a substantial amount of money on their new playground equipment.

According to Thomas Weeaks, superintendent and principal at Dew School, the main focus at the school is to create a positive, professional and safe environment where student achievement can maintain growth.

“One of our goals at Dew School is the allocation of necessary and appropriate resources needed to maximize student achievement,” said Weeaks, “Our new BYO playground will benefit the students by giving them additional equipment to play with safety in mind.”

Dew School’s administration worked with BYO Playground Consultant Ingrid Vargas to plan, purchase and install the Red Baron playground structure with safety surfacing--BYO’s second most popular Create Play structure. The success of any playground project is dependent on communication, which, according to Weeaks, was the one factor of the planning process he was most pleased with.

BYO Recreation’s $1 Million Create Play Fund succeeded in its goal of helping schools, daycares, churches and communities across the nation create play for children by matching customer funds—totaling over $1 Million in donated funds. BYO Recreation helped over 100 communities nationwide, including the River Bend community in Hillsborough County, Florida, save a substantial amount of money on their playground equipment.

Due to the housing crisis in recent years, the River Bend community experienced a significant setback in their development. Part of this setback included promised amenities that were never realized, triggering the Community Development District (CDD) to take action and get the subdivision back on track to its full potential.

“Our ultimate goal is to create the amenities that homeowners expected and develop a sense of community where there are options for the adults and the youth to socialize, exercise and relax,” said Lance Belka, River Bend’s Community Development District Supervisor.

The first priority of the CDD was the creation of the “Phase I Amenity Center.” This center now offers the community separate adult and children’s swimming pools, as well as their new BYO Create Play playground equipment, achieving the goal of providing a positive outlet for the children.

Having previously worked with BYO Recreation Playground Consultant Dede Owens in order to purchase park benches, bike racks and dog waste stations for the community, the CDD called on Owens once more to assist in the planning, ordering and assembly of their new Red Baron playground structure—BYO’s second most popular Create Play structure.

“Dede was an invaluable asset in determining what was feasible and integrating our needs within our budget,” said Belka, “The most significant factor is what was promised was received, on schedule and within budget. She clearly understood our situation and worked within those guidelines to provide the best options available. It is our intention to use BYO Recreation, and Dede, as we continue to develop our resources for the residents we serve.”

Saint Augustine, Fla. March 07, 2012

Americans with disabilities will soon have the ability to participate in swimming activities that may have previously been inaccessible to them. The updated 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards will require public and commercial facilities to include accommodations for entry and exit of pools nationwide by March 15, 2012.

The updated ADA Standards requirements will affect many of BYO Recreation’s customers. This is why they have included ADA compliant pool lifts with backs to their wide selection of products. According to ADA Standards, pool lifts that have backs allow a wider range of people with disabilities access to pools. The new access that pool lifts allow will change countless lives across the country.

“BYO is dedicated to accessibility standards,” said Bill Calhoun, president and founder. “The products we offer are ADA compliant because we believe that everyone should have access to recreational areas and the opportunity to have fun.”

National and local facilities can help increase memberships and programs by installing ADA pool lifts. Some of these programs are created specifically for different types of disabilities, which can range from learning and behavioral to physical disabilities. These types of programs offer a vast amount of benefits and can create opportunities for fun.

BYO Recreation added pool lifts to their selection in order to continue with their mission of creating Beyond Your Ordinary recreation spaces that everyone, regardless of physical ability, can enjoy.

Saint Augustine, Fla. February 21, 2012

Communities nationwide will now have the opportunity to “Create Play” for children thanks to BYO Recreation’s new program, the $1 Million Create Play Fund. Beginning on Feb. 21, BYO Recreation will match up to 100 percent of customer funds for selectplayground structures. The $1 million fund should help create at least 100 new playgrounds and thousands of happy children.

Playgrounds positively impact the lives of children all over the world. With decreasing budgets, many customers, including local parks and schools, struggle to provide playgrounds for their communities. BYO Recreation’s goal is to eliminate this struggle, fostering the creation of more play for children, families and communities across the nation. This is the core of the program and the reason why BYO Recreation is giving away $1 million in matching funds.

“Through the $1 Million Create Play Fund, our mission is to give every school, church or daycare nationwide the opportunity to afford a playground,” said Bill Calhoun, president and founder. “Play is an important part of a child’s development, and BYO is committed to helping create more play.”

Playgrounds provide numerous benefits for children, both mentally and physically. They encourage children to challenge themselves every day, making playgrounds a great educational resource for parents and teachers. The $1 Million Create Play Fund gives BYO Recreation’s customers the chance to create play opportunities for children by purchasing high-quality, safe playground equipment at an extremely reduced cost.

It started with a swing set. Bill Calhoun, our founder and president, built a backyard swing set for his children in 1999 and thus laid the foundation for what is now BYO Recreation. Over the past 13 years, we have grown from an idea to a full-scale, web-based recreation company and can proudly say that we offer our customers a lot more than just backyard swing sets. We decided to begin a blog in order to provide our customers and website visitors with information on recreation & playground equipment, as well as provide news and updates about our company.