Steps to Buying Play Equipment for Outdoor Use

Playground are one of the best ways to provide fun, exercise, and recreation to children aged 2 through 12. Slides, swings, merry-go-rounds, and climbers are just a handful of the events made available for kids to release pent-up energy and stress.   You’ll find most playgrounds in outdoor venues, such as schools, churchyards, neighborhoods, or parks.  That being said, playgrounds can be constructed indoors as well.  

So, you’re into it.  You want to build a playground for children that frequent your place of business or public institution.  But there’s a problem.  You’ve never bought a playground before and you don’t even know where to start.  Don’t fret.  Playgroundequipment.com is here to help with a simple 4 step process to finding the best outdoor playground equipment for sale.

1) Budget

What do you need to look for when selecting outdoor play structures? First, a budget must be set for your purchase. The range of potential expenditure can be shocking to some unfamiliar to the playground business, with a low end of a few hundred and a costs as high as hundreds of thousands elsewhere.  This typically is a reflection of quality, branding, and durability, but if you familiarize yourself with standards of safety and construction, you should be able to find a quality outdoor plastic playground that is both affordable and reliable.

Keep in mind that you’ll have to put some funds aside for delivery, installation, surfacing, and bordering.

Customers of PlaygroundEquipment.com come from all backgrounds and all budgets.  We work with you and with several commercial playground equipment manufacturers to see that everyone is satisfied with the exchange.

2) Shop

The first thing you need to decide is what kind of materials you’ll be using.  Plastic is the most universally used in commercial playground construction due to its affordability, durability, and highly regulated nature.  

The next step in planning a kid’s outdoor playset is identifying your target age group.  Generally outdoor playground design is categorized into the following three age brackets:

Commercial grade play equipment is designed to withstand limited adult use, but it’s intended for children.

Once you’ve decided which ages you’re building for, you can focus on extra features such as specific events and color schemes.  A variety of themed panels are designed to stimulate children in multiple stages of cognitive learning.

There’s a classic mistake many developers make when putting together outdoor playgrounds.  In all the excitement around colors, structures, and design, safety surfacing is often relegated to an afterthought, when it should be a primary focus.  Afterall, if and when a child falls on your playground, do you want to explain to the parents that you hadn’t given much thought to what they’d be falling onto?  Newer solutions like rubber mulch, rubber tiles, and poured-in-place have gone a long way in reducing playground injuries in the last few decades.

3) Quote

Before you decide where you’re going to get your playground, make sure you get a quote for not only equipment, but shipping and installation costs as well.  Most playground equipment providers should have prices posted on their website.  Don’t be afraid to take the price you're offered somewhere else to see if a competitor is willing to beat it.   Worst case scenario, you can always come back to the original offer.

4) Commit

Once you’ve found the playset you want for the price you love, the only thing left is to ride the slide. Prices change and key structures go on and off the market.  If you’re ready to make a buy, don’t hesitate.  Contact your playground provider and make plans for installation.

PlaygroundEquipment.com provides only the best items for use outdoors. All equipment is tested for safety. Browse equipment easily by category, age group, price, and manufacturer.  We make the process of research less involved so you can enjoy more with less investment.  Take the first step to building your own outdoor playground today by calling 317-747-0203 or contacting us online.