Howdy, Foax! We’re seeking a Devil’s Advocate regarding a DIY construction project in the lowcountry of the Great Sovereign Confederate State of Georgia. My vastly better half and I are preparing to construct a playhouse for our grandchild. After careful research, we purchased a slide-swing combo that ostensibly could be constructed over a weekend. Of course, nothing was said about the fact that preparing a 38’ L x 23’ W x 1’ D safe playground area would require exponentially more effort and time than that required to build the playhouse, which leads me to the following questions:

(1) Are 787 cubic feet of mulch (the play area surrounding the playhouse, filled to a depth of 9" – 12") truly necessary? Given that the maximum height from which a child may fall is 90" (i.e., a child leaps off the swing at it’s maximum extension) will such a “soft” area truly protect life, or is it simply one more in the long list of “sound good” manufacturer recommendations designed to shield the company from Torts-R-Us? (I note that none of the seven public playgrounds near my residence possess more than 1" of mulch at most. More than this, the playhouse manufacturer recommends the purchase of a safety surfacing called SofPlay, which sells for almost four times as much as the playhouse itself. While I recognize many feel no cost is too great where child safety is concerned, Reason suggests that this is an illogical fallacy, especially in the absence of evidence that such a quantity of “soft” ground is any better at mitigating injuries over time than ground mulched to a lesser depth.)

(2) Assuming a deep mulch to be desirable, our initial response would be to construct a 38’ L x 23’ W x 20" D area, level the ground within, and border this with pressure treated 2 x 6s. After constructing and “planting” the playhouse, we would fill the bottom of the play area with pea gravel to a depth of 6” (to expedite drainage), cover this with 12" of “rubber” mulch under a porous matting material, and top the whole off with 2" of natural mulch, to be replenished seasonally as required. The 64K questions: (a) Does this make sense, and (b) do y’all have any better ideas?

Thanks very much for your kind assistance. May our experience, and your expertise, prove useful to future generations of overzealous grandparents.