In article .com, rob
wrote:

I am wondering what to use as the floor of my new sandbox that is under
the kids play system. It is 5' x 5'. Do I want to use landscape fabric,
or make a wood floor? Thanks for the advice. Also, anyone have any
opinions on where to buy sand for the box? How much sand will be needed
to fill a 25 sqft box? What depth should I fill to?

I used black plastic. 2x8 frame, formed the plastic over the edges,
pouring the sand in to fit it to the bottom of the frame, then screwed
1x2 to the top to hold it.

Ours was about the same square footage, and I filled it to the top of
the 2x8 with dry sand. The kids will get the hose into it and the sand
will compact. In hindsight, I'd use heavy landscape fabric to allow the
water to drain better. I had to punch holes through the plastic the
first time the kids turned it into "the beach".

Consider a top of some kind to keep the cat poop out. I bought a cheap
tarp and built a multi-piece frame from 1x2 and angle brackets, hinged
it together so it was a foldable unit that fit over the top. Easy to
get on and off, kept the rain out somewhat, and definitely kept the
cats from using it as a litter box.

I bought bags of play sand at the local lumber yard, but I don't have a
pick-me-up truck. 25 square feet is just under three square yards so if
you fill to 8 inches call it half a cubic yard to be safe. The guys at
the lumber yard will help you calculate and you can buy a couple of
extra bags. There's always a use for sand.

The advantage of the playbox sand is that it's clean and I used the two
bags I had left over to weigh down the lathe stand I built shortly
after the sandbox. g

Hope that helps...

djb

djb

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