When working with a professional playground designer, you can transform a themed playground into an entire experience by incorporating murals, themed surfacing, themed components, and independent toys. Let your LuckyDog Recreation Play Designer help you create an immersive and enjoyable play space without breaking the bank.
Imagine a playground that not only provides fun but also sparks physical activity, creativity, and imagination in children. A themed playground offers precisely this - an enchanting world where play and storytelling blend seamlessly. Each swing, slide, and climbing frame becomes a part of a greater narrative, immersing children in a world of their own making. The benefits are numerous: enhanced imaginative play, improved social skills, and increased physical activity, all contributing to the holistic development in children.
At Luckydog Recreation, we take pride in our unique and innovative approach to themed playground design. We are thrilled to showcase some of the exceptional playgrounds we have created over the years, each one a testament to our commitment to creating immersive and enjoyable play spaces.
IDAHO - Stuart Park in Inkom, Idaho - Leslie Smith Idaho's Creative Play Designer designed this Nature-themed playground that matches the beautiful Idaho scenery.
UTAH It’s a scene from a Hollywood Wild West movie in Grantsville, UT at Hollywood Park. In case you not sure you’re in Hollywood? Just look at the palm trees. See this month’s News for another cool Themed-playground in Grantsville. Watch Video
WYOMING Undine Park, City of Laramie, WY. This Castle-Theme playground shows off what you can do with surfacing to enhance the theme. Watch Video
In conclusion, children crave mental and physical stimulation and what is better than the gift of play. Themed playgrounds engage the mind, resulting in increased interactivity and prolonged play year after year. Start your journey today with creative Playcraft Systems designs.
When planning the location for your new playground, shade should be a primary component of the planning process, not an afterthought. In the high desert west of Idaho, Utah and Wyoming we often forget that we have extremes of cold and hot for several weeks each year.
Being in direct sunlight can make the air feel 10-15 degrees warmer than it actually is because of the sun's rays touching your skin. Incorporating shade from landscaping elements such as trees and shrubs reduces heat from the sun’s rays.
Our service extends to the installation and removal of your shade sails in accordance with seasonal variations. This ensures optimal use and longevity of your shade sails throughout the year.
Playground Drainage – A Crucial Investment for Play Equipment Preservation
Good drainage is crucial to the longevity and functionality of playground safety surface systems. Whether using loose-fill products, such as engineered wood fiber or rubber chips, or unitary surfaces, such as synthetic turf or poured-in-place rubber, the playground area needs proper water drainage. Most people involved in playground design and construction know the importance of moving water away from the play area. However, designers need to understand how a particular drainage system will affect the playground during and after construction.
All drainage systems are not created equal. Drainage for a playground in Las Vegas, Nevada, for example, will be different than a drainage system that's in Orlando, Florida. When in doubt, consult a local water expert who can ascertain how much drainage is needed for a particular climate and how much water, on average, will enter your playground surfacing area at any given time. For example, moving water via an entire "drain field" designed to exit into a more extensive drainage system in Orlando, Florida, makes perfect sense. In Las Vegas, such a system may be less comprehensive.
A playground area should be designed as something other than water collection points for the buildings or groundwater surrounding a playground. The accompanying photo shows water from the roof of the school building draining onto the asphalt area, which in turn drains into the playground protective area. Over half the water at this school is being discharged into the playground surfacing, rendering it unusable at certain times a year. Additionally, it can cause wood fiber displacement, premature wood rotting, and growth of insects and mold in the wood surfacing.
Solution, a sump pit inside the playground protective area is a common and economical way to address drainage concerns. A sump pit consists of a hole dug a certain length, width, and depth. The hole is then covered with a geotextile fabric and filled with drainage rock. To avoid interference with the footing layout provided by the playground equipment manufacturer, designers should show sump pits to be installed outside the fall zone to avoid interfering with play equipment footer placement.
While designers may add a slope to the play area to aid drainage, slopes greater than 1 or 2 degrees can create further problems for the installer. Unless precisely planned with the slope in mind, modular playgrounds are designed to be installed on level ground. For example, suppose there is a 2' slope in the distance of a forty-foot-long play structure with toys such as slides at opposite ends. In that case, one slide exit will be on or below ground level, while the other could be higher than 11", making both exits out of compliance.
Solution, the intentionality of the slope needs to be discussed in the design stage. Equipment designers and manufacturers can adjust for slope and even encourage equipment to be installed at different levels as part of the fun and function of the playground. Read more here.
In the late 1980s, prefabricated playground equipment was still in the infant stages. A set of plans showing a drainage design consisting of a layer of drainage rock throughout the playground protective area was not uncommon; it was widely used. However, geotextile fabric was exposed and ripped in high-traffic areas without regular surfacing maintenance, causing the drainage rock to contaminate the loose fill safety surfacing.
Additionally, a layer of drainage rock used throughout the play area can interfere with the structural integrity of the playground equipment footings. Play equipment manufacturers engineer their uprights and accompanying toys to be installed at a specific depth in native soil, not gravel or drainage rock. For example, a toy is designed to have an eighteen-inch footing, but 6" is used up in drainage rock, leaving only a 12".
This error renders the equipment out of compliance but often goes unnoticed because it is underground. It can even void the manufacturer's warranty. When the integrity of the footings is compromised, they can twist and go out of plumb, causing undue stress and premature breaking of toys. In turn, the life span of the equipment is shortened. And all because the footers were not installed in a solid footing. Think about that!
Solution, using a French drain or trench systems instead of a layer of drainage rock is now recommended. A trench that is dung along the lowest point of the playground protective area, is filled with geotextile fabric and gravel. This allows the water a place to go below grade to prevent water pooling in the playground pit.
In summary, consider the local climate and the playground equipment manufacturer's installation specs for your drainage system to perform correctly. Do not use the play area to discharge the surrounding water runoff. The goal is to move water away from the playground area without compromising the stability of the footings and manufacturer equipment height requirements.
Whether you are refreshing an existing site or brainstorming a new playground site, playground planners and architects are looking at the activity known as bouldering; scrambling and climbing options that mimic actual mountain-climbing but doesn’t require ropes and protective gear. LuckyDog Recreation offers you, our valued customer many bouldering possibilities, one of which is bound to excite and delight the community you serve.
From easy for beginners to technically challenging for experienced climbers, bouldering is perfect for a wide range of users in a public setting. Protective gear like ropes and helmets - for example, are not required. A bouldering challenge is the perfect addition to your playground offerings at schools, regional and state parks, city parks, and housing developments like single family subdivisions and multifamily apartment complexes.
ID Sculptures – With every project LuckyDog does with ID Sculptures, our philosophy matches: “. . . kids thrive when they feel an authentic sense of adventure and can safely explore their limits”. ID Sculptures has the ability to create unique and custom structures, they have become a playground designer's and landscape architect's dream come true.
LuckyDog is proud to represent ID Sculptures in Idaho and Wyoming and through our Playcraft Partners in Utah. Learn more with LuckyDog, check out our On-Demand Webinar from ID Sculptures: Breaking the Mold
Everlast Climbing – Everlast has been popularizing climbing experiences for young people for over 30 years. You can choose from indoor and outdoor climbing walls that attach directly to your building wall, so if you are short on space, with Everlast, lack of real estate for an awesome climbing experience is a non-issue.
Need help funding your indoor/outdoor climbing wall? Check out this easy Funding Support Guide compliments of Everlast Climbing. FUNDING SUPPORT: Everlast Climbing
TrekFit – If you follow LuckyDog’s monthly newsletters, then you probably know that Trekfit is our newest partner in the line-up of equipment we are proud to offer.
TrekFit is best known for their outdoor fitness equipment. Did you know they have awesome climbing boulders too? The Urban Boulder™ collection features both positive and negative inclinations making the difficulty levels vary. Sizes also vary to meet expanding and contracting budgets.
Check out this line up of climbing/bouldering events:
Base and Basecamp Bouldering
LuckyDog Recreation is proud to offer this on-demand webinar for Trekfit where you can get an overall view of all their offerings and especially the unique manufacturing process of their boulders. Click here and enjoy
When planning the location for your new playground, shade should be a primary component of the planning process, not an afterthought. In the high desert west of Idaho, Utah and Wyoming we often forget that we have extremes of cold and hot for several weeks each year.
Being in direct sunlight can make the air feel 10-15 degrees warmer than it actually is because of the sun's rays touching your skin. Incorporating shade from landscaping elements such as trees and shrubs reduces heat from the sun’s rays. Evapotranspiration (the process by which a plant actively moves and releases water vapor) from trees can reduce surrounding air temperatures as much as 6° F.
Hollywood Park Grantsville, UT
Hollywood Park Grantsville, UT
Consider natural shade that can be provided by trees. Never be in too big a hurry to yank out an existing tree. Even if it has to be incorporated into the play area, LuckyDog’s play designers can help you keep that natural element to help shade south-facing play equipment that would otherwise be unusable on a really hot day or later in the afternoon.
Existing buildings can also provide great shade. In the planning process, consider that you don’t allow the eave overhang of a building to extend into the “use zone” of a playground. Also, consider whether or not water runoff from a building will cause excess water to puddle into a playground pit. Other than that, a building that can provide shade to a playground on the hottest part of the day is a cost-effective win.
If you don’t have trees or a building, LuckyDog’s shade experts can help you craft and create summer shade to help playground surfaces stay cool on hot summer days.
Check out these LuckyDog tips:
Create shaded play spaces under taller decks or in and around equipment pieces like clubhouses. The space created under a tall deck is often void of equipment, but a good designer can help you maximize these areas. A taller piece of equipment can be strategically placed to provide shade to a picnic table or buddy bench so kids can be out of the sun and still engage with friends.
If you’ve built your playground but need a budget-friendly addition, a shade umbrella is perfect. With a single post design this shade option is simple to install, and at 15-16’ across it can cast a large shadow over a big play area. Use these to shade the bottoms of slides or smaller freestanding pieces, carefully positioning to maximize the angles at key times of the day.
If you’re just getting started on your new playground design, ask for the inclusion of shade sails or large roofs attached to your play structure. Incorporating shade into your design from the start will make your project usable through the whole outdoor season and save you from having to come back and add shade later.
As a playground planner or fundraiser, you may have to “sell” the idea of shade on a grant application, to your City Council, or other Board members that has a say in whether or not your playground will be shaded. Knowing and being able to articulate the primary reason for adding shade requires you to be educated and to educate. Download a guide for the prevention of cancer from the Surgeon General: Cancer Prevention
Download a report from a task force for the prevention of skin cancer targeting children’s parents and caregivers: Parents and Caregivers.pdf
Take advantage of the American Academy of Dermatology's (AAD) Shade Structure Program - that awards funds to schools, day-cares, parks, and other non-profit organizations for installing shade structures where children learn and play. Each shade structure award is a maximum of $8,000, which includes the cost for shade structure materials and installation. Learn more
Let us know you are ready to talk about adding shade to your play space!
Unleashing the Power of Terrain Effects: What You Need to Know
Prefabricated mounds, a new product exclusively from Luckydog Recreation and Playcraft Systems, offer limitless opportunities for playground design. They provide various configuration options, including standalone structures, standalone structures equipped with slides or climbers, and ones integrated with posts and decks. Furthermore, they can be functionally connected to post and deck playgrounds, paving the way for more dynamic and engaging play spaces.
Find out how to incorporate Terrain Effects from Playcraft Systems into your next project!
Dynamic Topography: Mounds introduce dynamic topography to playgrounds, creating an engaging and varied landscape for children to navigate. Unlike flat surfaces, mounds offer elevation changes that challenge motor skills and coordination, promoting physical development in a fun and natural way.
Imaginative Play Spaces: Children naturally gravitate toward imaginative play, and mounds provide an excellent canvas for fostering creativity. Landscape architects can design mounds to resemble hills, mountains, or abstract forms, encouraging children to invent stories, games, and scenarios as they interact with these unique features.
Natural Aesthetics: Mounds add a touch of natural aesthetics to the playground, blending the built environment with the organic elements of the surrounding landscape. Through thoughtful design, landscape architects can seamlessly integrate mounds into the overall layout, creating visually appealing and harmonious spaces that inspire a connection to nature.
Sensory Stimulation:
The varied textures and slopes of mounds stimulate sensory experiences for children. Kids engage multiple senses, whether climbing, rolling, or running down slopes, enhancing their proprioception and spatial awareness. Landscape architects can strategically position mounds to cater to different age groups and developmental stages.
Social Interaction and Collaboration:
Mounds can serve as gathering spots for social interaction. Whether children collaborate on building projects, organize games, or enjoy each other's company, these elevated play areas foster teamwork and communication skills. Landscape architects can design mounds with multiple access points, encouraging shared experiences and inclusivity.
Integration into Post + Deck Systems:
Our prefabricated Mounds can be integrated into post and deck systems for slides, climbers, bridges, or links. This adds another element of aesthetics and child engagement. Landscape architects can leverage these features to design spaces that adhere to safety standards and inspire a sense of wonder and exploration.
Great news! Our 2024 resources are now updated, and packed with grants for your playground projects. Dive in, save big, and build something fun this year! Need a hand? Don't hesitate to reach out - we're here to help!
GaGa Ball Pits take dodge ball to a whole new level of play and a Play Action Systems Gaga Ball kit makes the game easy to set up.
GaGa literally means “touch-touch” in Hebrew. The game is a variant of dodge ball played in a GaGa pit that is usually an octagon or hexagon shaped wall on top of a smooth surface of dirt, turf, or a rubber mat.
Benefits of Co-Op Purchasing with Luckydog Recreation
Getting the playground you want at the price you deserve just got easier. Fundraising and grants are great ways to garner interest and funds for your upcoming playground project. But did you know you can also earn big money off your playground directly from the manufacturer?
Remember, these cooperatives (Co-Ops) are not simply a discount; they are nationally recognized purchasing contracts. Playcraft Systems offers a variety of savings through national purchasing contracts, and you can shop for the one that best fits your needs and situation. So what are the benefits? How do they work? Who can apply? Read on for more “big buck” savings.
Purchasing Contract Benefits
Satisfy bidding requirements while skipping the burden of bidding requirements
It’s quick and economical to use a purchasing contract and you don’t sacrifice quality. The equipment and service you receive are not watered down to give you a “better deal”
Purchasing Co-Ops are not a ‘fake’ grants. Don’t fall for the inflating of the MSRP in order to discount it later to make it look like the customer is getting a “good deal”. Trust reputable contractors like LuckyDog Recreation. Call us today!
How Purchasing Cooperative Work
Allowable purchases include playground equipment, surfacing, and in some cases, the site work like concrete borders can be added to the scope of work. The only requirement is that purchaser be registered with the national purchasing agency by visiting their website and filling out a simple application.
Who Can Apply
· Education – K-12, Charter Schools, Private Schools Colleges, and Special Education n Districts
· Non-Profits - like churches, nursing homes and other charitable organizations
· Government – City, County, State Agencies, Park and Water Districts, etc.n
LuckyDog Purchasing Co-Ops
Here is a listing of the purchasing cooperatives through LuckyDog Recreation in Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. And, if you have any questions at all reach out to us at 1-800-388-2196. We are here to help.
NASPO – ValuePoint supplier Partner (UT)
The state of Utah Purchasing Division awarded Playground Systems with the NASPO State Purchasing Contract to include playground equipment, fitness equipment, site furnishings, fabric shade, hardscape shade and many, many other outdoor sit amenities and furnishings. Work with LuckyDog to get the highest quality and get discounts on your next project. Because LuckyDog Recreation is a turn-key company, you can use your NASPO discount on your equipment and on installation. Now that’s value!
OMNIA Partners – Playcraft Systems
LuckyDog Recreation has helped dozens of playground owners acquire their equipment, surfacing, site work; the whole kit-n-caboodle using a purchasing Co-Op called Omnia Partners.
For Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming (Region 4 Education Service Center) our premier playground vendor, Playcraft Systems has been awarded the competitively solicited and publicly awarded contract to save you time and get you a HUGE discount on all your outdoor park or playground purchases with LuckyDog.
Includes other Co-Ops you may have used in the past: US Communities and National IPA
