Tips for installing your own playset.

Before you begin, get your mind in a calm relaxed place. Do not rush and you will likely enjoy the project. Remember, it does not have to be done in one day.

Whether you just want the experience or expensive playset installation cost eats into your playscpe budget, these tips will help you to be successful with your do-it-yourself project. Read our playset product reviews to determine level of difficulty before you buy. The following tips are offered in a chronological order of the actual build. 
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• Take the time to read and understand your assembly instructions. Read once to familiarize yourself with the plan, fasteners and layout. Read again to fully understand the scope of the playscape project.
• Understand that you will build separate components or peripherals that will join together to make one complete play structure. A common playset has five basic parts: Fort, swing set, rock wall, ladder and slide. (Yes, the slide requires assembly)
• Plan to assemble the peripherals, ie, rock walls, swings, monkey bars, ladder, or panels over a period of a few days before you start the actual build.  For example, build the rockwall one night after work in the comfort of your garage. Most times you have to build a front and back panel before you join them with deck supports and fascia to make a base fort. Each peripheral part can take 1-2 hours to build.
• Unpack your boxes, stack and match wood pieces that are alike. Keep a tape measure and your instructions handy to accurately match lengths and hole locations exactly. One hole in a different spot means it's different. If you can identify the parts as you unpack, stack all your rock wall boards together, ladder parts, roof parts, etc. 
• Separate fasteners, hardware and match like pieces. It's not uncommon for there to be a variety of bolt or screw sizes with only 1/4" difference between them. If you make a mistake and use the wrong fastener in the beginning of the project, it can lead to big trouble towards the end and leave you short of fasteners.
• These box playsets are mass manufactured and are not perfect, however, the engineering and instructions are usually sound. Our rule of thumb, " If something seems very wrong, it's probably you".