Backyard ice rink, yay or nay?

[Train]

Thinking of doing one this year so my 6 year old can get more ice time. I've looked at several kits online, but it appears experiences vary quite a bit.

Anyone done one?

 

[DesiPower]

Deja vu... I swear to god there is another thread by this exact same name...

 

[waggy]

down the road from me a family would build one. it wasn't that expensive to do. Then again out in the country we aren't charged per gallon of water.

 

[cavemanmoron]

72f outside here today, might not work too well this week, yes go for it.

 

[Train]

down the road from me a family would build one. it wasn't that expensive to do. Then again out in the country we aren't charged per gallon of water.

I estimate it would cost me about $1.50 of water from the tap.

I think most of the cost is either in the particle board or the metal brackets

 

[Train]

Deja vu... I swear to god there is another thread by this exact same name...

ha, found it: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2351102&highlight=backyard+ice+rink

 

[bigi]

Yay!

Check the how level your area is in planned zone. This will matter a lot if you pay for water.

Don't forget about the foil sheet that you put in the frame you had made. Lots of fun if sub zero weather is your friend.

The real Ice Hockey is played outdoor.

 

[Homerboy]

I started a thread on this a few years ago. I ended up making a small one so my son and his buddies could mess around on it. Was a lot of fun... but then it started to "leak" onto my neighbor's driveway -- by February they had about a 3" thick glaciers slowly creeping across their concrete

 

[Tweak155]

My uncle used to put one up in his backyard. While I can't comment on the skill required, I would like enforce that putting one up for your 6yo would be AWESOME! We LOVED it when we were teenagers. Make it happen, man! Great idea!

 

[TheGardener]

Make sure you have adequate insurance for when the neighbor kid falls down and breaks his leg.

 

[Homerboy]

Here was my thread from a while back:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2136227

 

[BoomerD]

Just be sure you have a decent first aid kit handy...Shit DOES happen on ice...especially when kids are involved.

We used to build an ice rink in our yards when I was a kid. If it wasn't at my house, it was at one of my friends' house. Never real big...maybe 30 x 50 or so at the biggest...but for a bunch of <10 year old kids...it was big enough for skating...but not great for hockey.

Every year, at least one of us got hurt...sometimes requiring a trip to the emergency cave room.