A do-it-yourself sandbox with a lid can be performed in several stages. The first of these involves proper placement. This indicates the need to place a place for games where children will be easy to watch. This will ensure safety. Among other things, the sandbox must meet hygiene requirements. At the same time, you should not have a place for games under the trees, as they will become a source of falling leaves and bird droppings. However, care must also be taken to protect from sunlight. For children, among other things, it should be convenient to use your design. It is important to consider the number of children who will use the sandbox.
Features of the construction of the sandbox
A do-it-yourself sandbox with a lid, as a rule, is made according to certain rules, which are prescribed by standard norms. Thus, it is preferable to choose wood as the material for the reason that it acts as the most environmentally friendly material. It is preferable to make the shape square, the side can be 2.5-3 m. It is important to bring in sand in moderation. It will need about 2 m³. If you want to make a standard sandbox, it is preferable to use pine boards, which have a thickness equal to 25-30 mm.
A do-it-yourself sandbox with a lid should be made in accordance with safety rules, this indicates that all parts must be carefully processed. If it is planned to make the construction standard, it will be necessary to allocate a square-shaped area with a side equal to 2 m in the territory of the site.
Preparation before starting work
In the example, a handmade sandbox with a square-shaped lid with a side equal to 1.7 m will be considered. This will save free space in the garden, but for three kids this will be enough. Initially, you need to mark the site for the installation of the structure, it will be quite simple. To carry out this kind of work, it is necessary to prepare four pegs and a certain amount of twine, and roulette is also useful. The site must be carefully prepared in advance. Why, with the help of pegs and ropes, it is necessary to mark the perimeter of the future structure, which will allow to dig a hole inside the fence. Its depth should be equal to 25 cm. You should not get rid of the fertile soil layer that remained after excavation , it will be useful in other parts of the territory. As a result, you should get a platform whose dimensions are 170 x 170 x 25 cm.
Work on the base of the sandbox
When a sandbox with a lid is made with its own lid, a pit can serve as a base, however, in this case, there is no way to subsequently avoid problems that are expressed in frequent sand contamination. This, in turn, will suggest the need for its frequent change. It is for this reason that you need to think ahead about how to make the sandbox clean. If you make the base as dense as possible, this will prevent the mixing of soil and sand. Thus, in order to solve this problem, it is necessary to first align the bottom of the pit, and then lay the sand preparation. Do not make a layer whose thickness is more than 5 cm. The sand must be carefully compacted, and then covered with a special material.
Alternative base
After the dimensions of the sandbox are determined, and the pit dug, you can think about what the base will be. The above option can be replaced with paving tiles, however, much less energy will be spent with sand, and the effect will be the same. Sand can be covered with geotextiles or agrofiber. Do not use polyethylene for this, since after the first precipitation the structure will have to be removed in order to rid the base of accumulated moisture. But geotextile perfectly copes with its task. This material will pass moisture through it, which will go into the ground. But the sandbox will be well protected from moles and insects. If you still decide to use the film, then you need to make holes in it. For this, you can use plywood, in which holes must also be made first.
Sandbox Making Process
Before you make a sandbox with a lid, you need to prepare bars with dimensions equal to 450 x 50 x 50 mm. They have to be mounted at the corners of the structure. It must be remembered that part of the wooden element will be 15 cm in the ground, this indicates the need for surface treatment of the bar with an antiseptic. You can use bitumen for protection. The bars need to be driven into the ground at the corners of the sandbox. For each side of the installation it is necessary to make a shield made of pine boards. Its width should be equal to 30 cm, while the thickness is 2.5 cm. For which it is permissible to use one wide or narrow board - this is not so important. However, do not neglect the need to process the surface of the shields, so there should be no knots, slivers or nicks on them. On this we can assume that the sandbox made of wood is almost ready. It remains only to make sides for her.
Production of sides and other additions
Four boards are to be laid along the perimeter of the structure. Each of them should first be planed and checked for the absence of chipping. The sides can be used as seats. You can supplement the installation with a cover. This will prevent rain from falling onto the sand, the last of which will not be blown away by the wind. In addition, while the structure is not in use, it will be protected from debris. In addition, small animals will not be able to get into the sandbox space.
Before you build a sandbox, you need to think about whether it will have a lid. The latter, if necessary, should be made of a wooden board, which is fixed on several boards on the bars. Its adults will have to lift and clean before children use the construction. However, the child will not be able to do this, which is why the lid can be equipped with a door, which should consist of two parts. For her, you need to make 2 shields, fixing them on the hinges. If the doors are equipped with handles, even a child can open them.
The sandbox drawing must be prepared before the start of work, this will avoid many errors. The cover, by the way, can be replaced with an awning or a thick plastic film. For a while, while you will not be present at the cottage, the awning can be fixed with good rubber or bricks.
Canopy Making
Above the sandbox, it is preferable to place a canopy or fungus. When carrying out work on the manufacture of such an addition, it is necessary to use the same wood. Thus, the leg of the fungus can be made of timber with a size of 100 x 100 mm. It is necessary to use an element whose length is 3 m. It is worth considering that the leg must be driven into the ground by 1.5 m or more, only in this way will the stability of the fungus be achieved. Do not forget that the leg must be treated with an antiseptic. For the cap of the fungus, triangles should be made from boards in advance. From the inside, they need to be nailed to the leg, while the outside of the fungus must be sheathed using thin plywood.
If you used the recommended sizes of the sandbox, then for the hat of the fungus you can use a width that is 2.5 m, this will be quite enough for the children to play.
The choice of filling for the sandbox
The sandbox drawing can be prepared independently or use the one given in the article. As a rule, for sand structures of this type river sand is chosen. This is due to the fact that it is considered the cleanest of all the others and does not have impurities in the composition or has, but in the smallest amount. You can replace it with the one purchased on the building materials market, this option is more expensive, but may be more preferable. Thus, quartz sand is also suitable, this is a master must keep in mind. However, whatever sand you choose, it must first be sieved. A sandbox with a lid "Sunflower" can be filled with special sand, which is intended for children's games. It allows you to sculpt sculptures well, as there is some clay in it. In addition, in such material there are special perfumes that scare away unwanted visitors - dogs and cats.
Specialist recommendations
Boards must be processed with a planer, and then sanded with an emery. After the beam is mounted in the corners, you can strengthen the lower tier, which consists of boards, with screws, screws. Care must be taken to ensure that the steel caps do not stick out. The lid can also be fixed, but simply opening on canopies. Hinges for this are fixed with self-tapping screws.
Surface treatment of the structure
The sandbox layout with a cover will allow you to work correctly. Before fixing the cover elements, it is necessary to paint the frame. Nitro-paint acts as the most successful solution, it must be applied in two layers. Agrofibre laid on the bottom can be fixed to the sides with a stapler. If you perform all the work according to the recommendations, then the design will turn out to be durable, it will not have to be repaired during operation or some components should be replaced. It is important to use exclusively high-quality materials during the work, since the life of the installation depends on them in many respects. It is important to be able to work with wood so that the child does not get splinter during the game.