Playset Consultations and Good Advice

Wooden swing sets don't grow on trees. Trees are easy. Plant one and off they grow. Almost every child would love to have a wooden backyard swingset like their friend down the street. If you've done your homework, you know wooden playscapes are expensive, options are almost endless, and making a decision you're comfortable with can become confusing.

​That's why we offer playset consultations. Our playset technicians are specifically trained to inspect and evaluate wooden backyard play systems for safety, durability, and functionality. Unlike a salesman representing a specific company, our experienced techs are trained to work for you. We offer an un-biased opinion for $200. If you use any of our service for repairs, upgrades, moves, etc., we'll apply 50% of the consultation to the service expense.

Buying New Playground Equipment

Wooden playscapes can be expensive, options are almost endless, and making a decision you're comfortable with can become confusing. Our consultations for new play equipment are usually centered around the family and what will be the best piece of playground equipment for your backyard. We ask questions that are relavant to your future play area.
  • What age group are your kids and how many? Your youngest? 
  • How much area is available for the swingset?
  • Do you have a wish list of activities and play events?
  • How many years of service do you expect from the swing set?
  • Would you like to add components as your kids grow?
  • Do the parents want to play too?
  • What's your budget? The budget and wish list rarely match up.
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We use this information to help you make an informed and happy decision about your purchase. 

Buying Used Playsets and Swingsets

When you're trying to get the most bang from a limited budget, buying a used playset can be a good option, however, there are a limited  number of swingset manufacturers making lifetime swingsets that can be passed on from one family to another. Depending on overall quality, condition and age, a used premium play system should sell for 25-50% of original cost.

The majority of swingsets found are "box sets". These "box sets" when delivered usually have 100's of parts packed in a few boxes, require lengthy assemblies and are priced in the $200-$1000 range. These are generally 5-7 year playsets, sometimes more and potentially a good purchase if they've been maintained and the current age of the play equipment gives your family time to enjoy it.

It's important to remember, wooden playsets are subjected to the elements 365/24/7 and children play hard. Ask these questions before you buy:
  • How old is it? A 6-10 year old playset is a risky purchase and might cost more to move and repair than to buy new with a warranty.
  • Is the seller the original owner? Sometimes the playscape is inherited with the new house and the history is unknown.
  • Is the swingset under warranty? Most times the original owner can file for warranty parts before they sell and replace rotted pieces with new parts.​
  • How many times has it been water sealed and how long since last application? Preventive maintenance can extend ​the usable life.
  • Is a visual and physical inspection necessary? They always look good, while hiding rot, wear and potential damage that make the system unsafe.​ Minor disassembly is required to find real problems.
Call us before you buy a used playset.
We offer phone consultations at no charge.
Some used swingsets look good on the surface like the top picture. The new owner of this used playset hired us to move this to his house. He described it as, "In great condition, previous owner maintained it every year and it's free." We could post a dozen pictures to show how much was wrong with this playset, but one picture is enough. It needed about 75% replacement. The expense of labor and materials to repair was in excess of buying new. Free?

Playscape Repairs and Add-ons​​

It's common for parents to buy a smaller swingset made for a toddler and later realize their little rug crawler is a rock climber. The first instinct might be to get rid of it and get a new bigger one, however, your existing backyard fort could be used to make age appropriate upgrades with more challenging add-ons or accessories like monkey bars, sliding poles or even a vertical rock climbing wall. It doesn't have to be all about the kids; pull up bars, climbing ropes, and adult swings are options too. You can also add play events separate from the main structure like the free-standing 360 degree tire swing shown to the left,
 
Maybe the family playset is looking like it's time for retirement and it might be, but unless it looks like the one to the lower left, there could still be a chance to save it. Over the years we have repaired swingsets crushed by falling trees, uprighted wood playsets flipped in hurricane f​orce winds, provided knowledgable labor for warranty replacements and even used parts from a playscape backed over by a concrete truck to manufacture a replacement playscape. We are ready for almost anything.

​  Call for helpful ideas to upgrade or repair your family playset

If your swingset looks like this, you should call us!

Playset Recycling and Removal Service

There are times that the usable life of a swing set has passed and talented hands with a lifetime of skills cannot bring it back to a safe standard. When that time comes, call us to remove your playset and recycle it. 

The easiest method of playset disposal is to break it down, load it up and haul it to the dump. Even though there's not much need for a used up broken down swingset and the parts are rarely usable, we feel it's wasteful to just throw it away and try to recycle as much as possible. The amount of labor it takes to strip a playset down to it's simplest parts is not at all profitable. For example, the swingset to the left yields about 50lbs. of metal at $.11/lbs. Some of the wood is usable, but is usually trash and has little to no value. Add storage of swingset parts and you end up with a playset junkyard. We sell some used parts and accessories to offset recycling expenses, but our used stock is limited and subject to availability.

​        Our removal fee is $225 and up depending on size and level of difficulty.