Adding sand to woodchip......would you?

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Bananaman

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My woodchip surface has recently died and is no longer compacting when I roll it. It is riding so deep as to be impossible.
I knew it would do this in time and so now I have a dilemma.......

As I type OH and mate are scraping out about half the depth to leave approx 4" of the ''peat'' and do I top with
a) fresh woodchip or
b) sand?

Before anyone says you want a sand/rubber mix, I know, but it's totally out of the question unfortunately!
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I'm quite warming to the idea of mixing sand with the peat but OH's mate thinks it will mess the drains and probably still ride deep.
If we use fresh woodchip I am hoping that the horses hooves will not get down to the peat but stay on top more. Hmmmm!
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I have to make a decision fairly quickly and am dithering so much! Just wondered if anyone out there has renovated an old woodchip surface?
 
At my old yard the original surface was woodchip, after much umming and ahhing and lots of people looking at it they ended up removing all of it and putting sand down.

I am not sure why they didn't top up but am assuming it was because the two were incompatible.

Doesn't really help you much does it! Sorry
 
No problem, all views are helpful.
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I just cannot afford a sand mixed with whatever surface and I'm really not keen on sand alone as it too rides deep when dry. We have no water pressure here so a sprinkler is not an option.
I just wondered whether the peat/woodchip would keep the sand moist and therefore firmer.

Oh my! I just wish I could have a go with both options and see what works 'cos mistakes are costly. Or maybe I should start doing the lottery!
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Just interested how does woodchip surface work? I put a small amount down and it was to chunky and stuck in the horses feet then went to mush, do you have stone and drains aswell? As now its coming to winter it would be a good way to still work on woodchip, I cant see the prob with adding sand but not sure if it will make it more/less deep?
 
I was under the impression that the woodfibre surfaces had a "life" and at some point they would rot and need to be completely replaced.

I assume you have asked an expert, ie someone who supplies them new ? My friend got very good advice from the Martin Collins people about what to add to her pure sand surface.
 
We have just had a new arena put in and can sympathise with the whole cost thing - my dad is still going on about the fact he pays someone to take away tyres and then had to by them back to put in the school!!!!!

The nature of sand is that it is 'washed away' which allows it to compact so I think I am right in saying that if you topped up with sand eventually all the sand would wash to the bottom of the arena and you would be left with the woodchip on the top wich was the reason for altering the surface in the first place because it was not compacting...
 
Is there any way you could experiment with a small part of your arena to see if it works , that way if it doesn't you know you just have to remove a small bit and still spread what is left round to top up again with woodchip.

I would also contact all the arena companies that supply sand and ask them if they have ever topped up a woodchip one before with sand and did it work.

I theory it sounds like it should work but I can also understand what someone else said that the sand would get washed to the bottom and you could be left with the peat again.

Sorry cant be more helpful just trying to give you some ideas.
 
You have the same problem as us. Our cushionride was great for about 4 years but has gone down hill since. I would have a top up if I knew it would go back to how it was but I am not sure and the company are not that helpful. I was going to have a look at this stuff and find out the cost.
http://www.equestriandirectltd.co.uk/index.php?page=flexiride
Wish I could afford a nice wax surface but as it is only for us it has to be cheap.Let me know how you get on
 
We inherited a sand and woodchip arena and it was lethal. Some areas would have more woodchip than others and that would make it very slippery. I had a horse nearly fall over doing a very sensible and balanced 20m cicle and I gave up on it!
 
Thanks for all your replies.

It doesn't sound as if adding the sand will be the way to go.

sarahgill, we have proper drains underneath, no stone layer over as we are on sandy soil and trying to keep cost down still, then a membrane then the woodchip.
As long as it didn't get too thin it wasn't slippery. Now it's too deep, not at all slippery but not holding the weight of the horse on top of the surface.
So depth is crutial!

As THE_carthorse says, if I knew it would go back to how it was then there's no problem with adding more woodchip. I just wanted to explore all affordable options before making the vital decision.
 
The yard I'm at has a cushionride surface. For a good few years it was really good and didn't ride like a stereotypical woodchip arena at all.
Now it is a complete bog and is a nightmare to ride on, false economy in the long run I think
 
i rode on a woodchip and sand arena years ago, it was, as mentioned above, lethally slippery, and i and my well-balanced horse slipped over while cantering a 20m circle. horrible surface, really didn't work.
in your position, i would either totally replace the woodchip with new, or look at adding something in big pieces that would help hold the remaining peat/woodchip together, such as a shredded rubber. have a look at Springride rubber shred, it is big flat pieces with holes in, works brilliantly at binding.
or, the big flat white pieces of fabric (look like cloth) which big companies use to mix with sand to bind it together for stability. i can't remember what it's called, Matt Ryan has it in his arena though.
i'd have a chat with Equestrian Direct or other arena manufacturers if i were you. best of luck!
 
as a YO i had a livery about 6 years ago now print a load of info off the net for me about mixing things for arenas. There was one about mixing peat/compost (mainly from your muck heap) with sand. It would have been from either the Columbia or Colorardo state evnironmental webpages (sorry cant remember which one).
No disrespect to any of the above post but woodchip is not slippery, its when bark is used that it becomes slippery and very dangerous, i think the bark often gets refered to as woodchip hence that may have been why it was slippery. we have an outdoor woodchip paddock that has come to the end of its life, we also have the issues of what to use as the land is rented, the paddock isnt used much as we have an indoor and also its at the top of a hill hence is very exposed to the wind.
 
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