How do I level a backyard wood play set?
Question:This is a typical wood play set with tower and swings. We just finished building the tower, but found that the yard slopes more than we thought. My father-in-law thought we could just stick a 4 by 4 underneath the structure in back of it to level it out. I am not sure how safe that is. The options I am thinking is to put dirt in the back of it and try raising it up. My only concern with that is if it would errode after awhile. The other option is try and dig in the front of the tower and hopefully that will bring it down. The yard slopes because of drainage. Any suggestions? Thanks.
Answers:
Your playset will be more stable if you dig a hole around the higher ground and burying the feet into it. It's definitely safer than trying to prop up the feet on the lower side with wood or cinder blocks because 1) The kids could trip over it, and 2) if it shifts, and it will because of the momentum of the swings, the entire thing could suddenly collapse and really hurt someone.
Could you build a level "platform" area (could be costly, not sure). Take railroad ties to form the border, and then fill in with mulch or pea gravel to level it off and make it a play area.
use concrete blocks. 1st, move the swingset out of the way. measure the distance between the legs so you'll know how far apart to put the blocks. the blocks don't have to protude above ground and probably shouldn't. they'll be ugly at 1st, but grass will grow around them. just be sure to mound dirt around them so they won't be visible. use a line level to get the blocks level and place the swingset on them. sort of the same idea as using the 4x4, but the concrete will slow down the rotting of the wood-even if it's treated. good luck.
Depending on the slope, I would just level out the ground in which the legs rest. You can leave the ground unlevel under the swings and other play parts. This will not make a difference. Once you have the swing set level, you can fill in the gaps with wood chips or whatever you are using.
dig it out and put concrete footers under it . they don't have to be much two bags or so should be fine get it level first and mark it then you could trim the post if you have to. good luck
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