Post by twilightmv on Oct 20, 2020 11:09:48 GMT -5
Does anyone know anything about backyard ice rink set ups? Are they useless/hard to maintain? The boys played hockey up until the spring and we all loved to go ice skating together. I'm sad enough about sitting this winter out that I'm considering a backyard set up. Our yard is pretty level but not perfectly level. We live in NH so it's usually cold enough but does it get immediately buried under snow...?
Some of my neighbors have them. I don't know too much but yes, you're going to have to shovel snow and you're also going to have to figure out how to zamboni it. People mostly have them for fun. They don't really practice on them. Then you have the millionaire living not far from me who wants his kids to be in the NHL so he built them an indoor ice rink, with locker rooms and everything.
Post by cattledogkisses on Oct 20, 2020 11:23:19 GMT -5
My parents made us a backyard rink a few winters when I was a kid (also in NH!). You just need a big sheet of heavy plastic like a tarp, and something to elevate the edges and contain the water so you can basically make a shallow pool to flood. It doesn't matter if the ground is perfectly level, because the water will level itself before it freezes. If it snows, you just have to shovel or snowblow it off. If the surface gets rough you can just top it off with more water.
If you don't end up doing the backyard rink you can also see if there are any publicly accessible lakes or ponds near you that you can skate on. My parents live on Winni and we skate on the lake every winter.
Lots of people have them here, but they are a lot of work and it’s only worth it if you have a big enough space. A tarp or heavy duty plastic sheeting, edging (can be just a short thing or others have actual boards) and cold weather is all you need. You will need to shovel when it snows and either add another layer of water for resurfacing or create some type of zambini (warm water in a cooler you wheel around works well). It’s a great winter to try it since we’ll all be home so much.
Post by gibbinator on Oct 20, 2020 11:42:58 GMT -5
We had one for awhile when I was a kid. I mean, it was basically a ditch that my dad widened that had a stream sort of feeding it (so about 20ft by 10 ft), but was plenty fun for a few winters he kept it maintained. Nothing fancy, but skatable.
I see ads for these kits in my son's USA Hockey magazine every month - they're pretty fancy, with boards and everything, and also pricey. I would think that plastic sheeting and hay bales would work just as well, and you just have to keep up with shoveling and resurfacing from time to time. Zambonis use hot water to create a smooth surface, so the warm water in a wheely cooler idea is perfect.
My friends have one... they ordered a kit and got two so they could make a large rink. They put it up and take it down each season, so have used it for 3 years now. They got fancy last year and put colored waterproof lights in the water prior to freezing and could light them up.
My parents made us a backyard rink a few winters when I was a kid (also in NH!). You just need a big sheet of heavy plastic like a tarp, and something to elevate the edges and contain the water so you can basically make a shallow pool to flood. It doesn't matter if the ground is perfectly level, because the water will level itself before it freezes. If it snows, you just have to shovel or snowblow it off. If the surface gets rough you can just top it off with more water.
If you don't end up doing the backyard rink you can also see if there are any publicly accessible lakes or ponds near you that you can skate on. My parents live on Winni and we skate on the lake every winter.
I'm scared of skating on lakes! Both because of falling through ice and also the smoothness. But it sure sounds easier than maintaining my own rink....
My parents made us a backyard rink a few winters when I was a kid (also in NH!). You just need a big sheet of heavy plastic like a tarp, and something to elevate the edges and contain the water so you can basically make a shallow pool to flood. It doesn't matter if the ground is perfectly level, because the water will level itself before it freezes. If it snows, you just have to shovel or snowblow it off. If the surface gets rough you can just top it off with more water.
If you don't end up doing the backyard rink you can also see if there are any publicly accessible lakes or ponds near you that you can skate on. My parents live on Winni and we skate on the lake every winter.
I'm scared of skating on lakes! Both because of falling through ice and also the smoothness. But it sure sounds easier than maintaining my own rink....
We take a hatchet and chop a little test hole to check the ice thickness. As long as you have at least 4 inches of ice, you're good!
My parents made us a backyard rink a few winters when I was a kid (also in NH!). You just need a big sheet of heavy plastic like a tarp, and something to elevate the edges and contain the water so you can basically make a shallow pool to flood. It doesn't matter if the ground is perfectly level, because the water will level itself before it freezes. If it snows, you just have to shovel or snowblow it off. If the surface gets rough you can just top it off with more water.
If you don't end up doing the backyard rink you can also see if there are any publicly accessible lakes or ponds near you that you can skate on. My parents live on Winni and we skate on the lake every winter.
I'm scared of skating on lakes! Both because of falling through ice and also the smoothness. But it sure sounds easier than maintaining my own rink....
Skating on a lake is almost like trying to skate on gravel. This stuff isn't smooth. There is a huge pound behind my property and my neighbors wanted to skate on it. They work in construction so maybe they have access to this but they brought a freaking water truck to be able to skate on it.
My neighbor put one up last year for his kids. He bought the kit used on FB BST, so he got a good deal. It had boards and a big liner and he filled it with a hose. Unfortunately, last year was pretty warm so they didn't get a ton of use out of it. I'm sure he will be putting it up again this year tho, so it could be a good investment if your kids like to skate. The weather person was forecasting a warmer than average winter this year too (I'm in MA), but if you can find a used kit for not too much money I'd go for it.
You actually reminded me that I should try to find some used skates for DD1 so maybe she can use it too.
My neighbours have this and while their kids are continuously using it in the winter, they continuously complain about the upkeep in the winter, especially since hoses are closed and you have to manually water it to smooth out the surface - unless (doubt it) you own a zamboni - after each snow fall.
I'm scared of skating on lakes! Both because of falling through ice and also the smoothness. But it sure sounds easier than maintaining my own rink....
Skating on a lake is almost like trying to skate on gravel. This stuff isn't smooth. There is a huge pound behind my property and my neighbors wanted to skate on it. They work in construction so maybe they have access to this but they brought a freaking water truck to be able to skate on it.
It’s wasn’t high tech but my dad rigged a pump to pull the water underneath the ice of our pond to freeze smooth on the top. It was sufficient for our little hockey parties but you could definitely tell when you reached the end of the smooth part. 🤣
We played plenty of pond and lake hockey. Too hard to get the yard smooth enough. We had a pond right across the street that we skated on. My brother lives on a pond now so when we go back to MN to visit we skate on there. The kids 2 doors down from him have a whole rink set up. Never worried about falling thru during cold MN winters!
I would always look longingly at this item in the Hammacher Schlemmer catalog when I was a kid. It was soooo expensive but now that I look at it it’s no more $$$ than a trampoline 🤷🏼♀️
DH makes one every year. Our yard is not level at all, aside from where a large tree is, naturally. He just uses higher boards at that end.
He also floods it using warm water and one of those fabric collapsible hoses that he attaches to our laundry room tub and runs it through the back door for a few mins every night.
Sometimes I love it, some winters it’s a waste of time.
Our kids are back on the ice here, for now, but we’ve talked about making sure it’s bigger and better than usual this winter in case arenas and hockey close again.
Southern N.H. here! I have 3 boys in skating lessons and since the Gov has already shut down rinks for 2 weeks I spent the money on a kits for the backyard. We’re also homeschooling, and Pinterest has ideas for smoothing the ice. I’m looking forward to kicking them out of the house during the winter 🤷♀️
Post by cinnamoncox0 on Oct 21, 2020 8:44:09 GMT -5
Oh this is a great idea! I’m in Ma and see them all over here it’s not uncommon but I never think to do it. This winter it will be vital to have something outdoors and even if the rinks open the open skate is at like 1230-115 which doesn’t work with school anyway so this is a great idea.
Now to talk dh into making one. I think he actually will love the idea for the girls. And us I guess if it’s big enough.
We had them many years when I was a kid. Just really big tarps and hay bales. Filled with water. The ice was rough and we had to shovel when it snowed. It was great for just ice skating. When it got really choppy, we just put a new layer of water down. I didn’t play hockey, but I’m sure you could put a net and practice shooting. Not ice rink quality, for sure.
Post by definitelyO on Oct 21, 2020 10:57:43 GMT -5
oh - we used to have one in our side yard in MI... well - really it was a flooded low area of the yard that my dad put more water into and I used to ice skate on it. nothing official or fancy - just frozen water in the side yard
This is literally the Northern version of 'should I get an above ground pool' that I saw from all my southern friends in the Spring. I think it looks awesome but would never work in my SE city.
Post by Captain Serious on Oct 21, 2020 17:01:55 GMT -5
We're building one this year. I grew up skating in a lake. The key to smooth ice is in the upkeep, so we're approaching it as a science project for my kids, and they will learn about how all the different weather conditions affect the ice.