Building your own Sandschool / Menage!

[itstime222]

Hi - Morning,

So in a few weeks we are taking on the rather momentous task of building our own sandschool!

I'm starting to get a bit daunted and was wondering if I could ask other people that have done the same if there was any advice they would give me / us? What mistakes did people make that we need to avoid!

Also - and very importantly - has anyone used chalk as the base layer instead of crushed concrete?

Did anyone find a good guide of video etc they followed - or books etc? Anything we can get to help us?

Apart from the big machine (which we will hire in) we have smaller diggers, rollers, dumpers etc - which we can play around with at our own leisure. So the plan is to crack on and get it excavated, drainage in, fencing in, membrane down, stone down (or chalk), more membrane, limestone, top surface.

ANY help or advice MUCH MUCH MUCH appreciated!

 

[kathantoinette]

OH builds arenas. Don’t scrimp on the materials; only use silica sand and you’ll need a stabiliser for it.
You’ll need a laser leveller to make sure it’s all level.
Drainage in then Base material crushed hardcore, screaned so no fines, then a hard chalk, then your surface with the membranes in between.
Good luck and remember if you’re offered cheap materials, more than likely they’ll be rubbish. I’d imagine the haulage costs will be expensive getting it all in depending how far you are from the quarry.

 

[blitznbobs]

Dont use crushed concrete you need stone that has no fines …
Do not skimp on drainage or you will
Regret it later .
Buy the very thick geotex membrane for the top membrane

 

[blitznbobs]

Oh and beg borrow or steal or buy a really good laser level blinking hard to do with out

and you want 20 to 40 mm stone or a layer of 40 to 60 stone followed by a layer of 20 to 40 to make your life leveling it all easier

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

Assuming you have the knowledge & ability to use the excavators proficiently. For digging out, laying drainage & sub base out level, membrane down & then topping with rubber, silica sand or whatever probably 2-3 weeks & longer depending on weather conditions. Most arenas have a fence surrounding them with an entry gate, some arenas for dressage do not have any surrounding fence. Hiring excavators, 'bomag' vibrating roller, rental of a decent laser level is quite easy, knowing how to use them safely & well is different. You may find that hiring a machine plus driver may save you money in the long run. The driver may do 2 or 3 times the work that you may do in the same time? You will have to factor in the cost of a pathway from stable to arena. Think everything through & don't just go with the cheapest quote whether it's for labour or materials. A cheaply build arena may look good initially but it may show itself up after 12 months or so of use. Pay a little more & the arena will look good for years. At our yard the arena had a mound or earth, now covered with grass & willows to keep wind at bay. The surface of silica sand has been down a long time but has now been topped up with rubber & carpet. This helps keep the moisture in & also stops sand from moving. It measures 20 mtrs x 40 mtrs & surface is ideal for both dressage or show jumping. It was built by the YO and a friend. The friend is a skilled machine driver of excavators, rollers, everything.
There are plenty of videos of arena building on the net, as below. Good Luck

 

[itstime222]

Sorry I didnt reply sooner - I've got my notifications set up wrong on here! I didnt know anyone had replied!! My fault!

Thats great advice on all counts. Problem is at the moment the cost of decent materials for the base layer - say concrete cobble is about £400 a load! We need 240t so its a hell of a lot of money for a personal school used 2-3 times a week!

I'm thinking scrimp on the chalk - do everything else properly ie drainage / silica etc. I've been and seen a school at the weekend which just has a chalk base and it seems good! And free!

Machinery wise we have a few smaller diggers and i have a roller - as well as a very good level. And im doing it with a good friend who is a machine operator - so I should be okay on that front. I'm just the dumper driver

About to put my money where my mouth is and buy the fencing and book in the machine

 

[blitznbobs]

Scrimping on the stone IS scrimping in the drainage — it basically works as a massive soak away… but if you are lucky you might get away with it — it is a gamble but gambles sometimes pay off (and sometimes end up costing you much more in the long run)

 

[mini_b]

Who is the lady who did the blog post on her arena disaster? Might have a few helpful pointers!!

 

[Dexter]

Who is the lady who did the blog post on her arena disaster? Might have a few helpful pointers!!

Catembi

 

[PeterNatt]

If you want to save money then building your own arena is not something that will save you money long term. I have seen too many arenas that have failed and have had to be rebuilt from scratch. Get a professional company who have a good reputation in to build it but check some of the arenas that they have done.