Playground, park, and facility managers should always consider doing routine inspections and maintenance for their playground equipment. Properly maintained playground equipment and surfaces are vital to keeping children and families safe while having fun.
Here are a few maintenance and inspection tips from the team at Playground Guardian:
- Schedule inspections and maintenance regularly
- Inspect and maintain safety surfaces
- Don’t forget fencing!
- Look into playground inspection software
Schedule Inspections and Maintenance Regularly
Inspections and maintenance should be routine -- so it’s important to have a regular schedule for performing basic inspection and maintenance functions. Making sure that playground and park equipment and surfaces are safe is crucial to keeping visitors safe. If you aren’t qualified to conduct a formal inspection yourself, consider consulting a professional.
Inspect and Maintain Safety Surfaces
While it is important to make sure that all equipment is safe and in top condition, it is also important to regularly maintain your playground safety surfaces. If you have EWF or other loose fill materials under slides and swings, it will need to be raked out regularly in order to ensure that all areas are equally protective. Occasionally, you may need to add a bit more of the material to maintain attenuation. If you have PIP or other rubber surfaces, it needs to be regularly tested for impact attenuation, and may also need an occasional topcoat reapplied.
Don’t Forget Fencing!
Does your playground have any type of secure boundary or fence? If not, it may be a good idea to consider it. Not only do fences keep kids from wandering out of the safe play area, it also keeps local critters from taking up residence in your equipment, saving you time and money in damages and repairs! If you already have a fence, make sure to take it into account when performing inspections and maintenance so that you don’t overlook any holes or structural issues. Additionally, make sure that you have appropriate signage for equipment and play spaces.
Look Into Playground Inspection Software
If you’re currently performing inspection and maintenance and tracking these efforts with paper records, you may be using more time than you need to! Software designed specifically for performing all aspects of playground inspections and maintenance can be a game-changer, like Playground Guardian’s Park Protector. Consider this or other applications that can manage your regular inspection needs.
Other Considerations
At Playground Guardian, we are passionate about playground safety and have been dedicated to keeping playgrounds safe and fun for over 50 years. If you have any questions about maintenance or need any assistance with inspection, don’t hesitate to contact us!
