Topping up Arena with rubber

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wildandwoolly

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I wondered if any of you more knowledgeable peeps would be kind enough to advise the best way to top up a sand and pvc arena with rubber.

Over the last year my arena has started to ride a bit deep so I have decided to top it up with rubber as this won't blow away as the pvc did. How have you all done this? Have you got a man and machine in, or done it yourselves with machine (what type?) or by hand with a rake (gulp!).

Many thanks to anyone who can advise.

W&W
 
I'm no expert but would be careful topping up with rubber if its already riding deep. If you already have silica sand then it should be ok but if you are using a generic sand it really needs a year or so to bed down, otherwise the rubber will mix through and ride deep. Ideally you want the rubber to stay on top.

Sorry don't really have advice but bear the above in mind and maybe go and see schools that are using the same surface.
 
Thanks for your reply Skipadeedooda. The sand is silica sand and has been down around seven years I think.

I do level it fairly regularly by dragging a sheep hurdle around it but I don't think this dry weather has helped matters really but there is certainly a lot less pvc rising to the top when it does rain. This is why I thought rubber would be better and also it might be better at stopping the surface from freezing.

My plan was to give it a really good level, wait for a good downpour and then roll it before adding rubber. What do you think?

This is all new to me as you can probably gather so any advice is very welcome.
 
I topped my silica sand & pvc granule surface with rubber. However mine wasn't riding deep, I did this to stop it freezing and add more spring for jumping

I just got the lorry in the area, tipped it whilst moving and we did the rest with rakes and a tractor bucket and then leveled a lot
 
Thank you Flyingfeet and Measles for your replies. I probably didn't explain myself very well in my original post. The school as a whole is not riding deep, just where the ponios have had "explosions" which left craters and even though I level the surface regularly these spots remain loose/deep. I've been told that this will improve after a good soaking and a top-up of surface which will retain the moisture and keep the surface firm and even.

It seems as if it is do-able by hand then Flyingfeet - thanks for that. Every penny counts as they say!
 
I topped my sand arena up with rubber. I got the rubber tipped in the gateway and moved it using a wheelbarrow, the reason being I didn't want the lorry driving on the arena and causing any damage. It took a while but was worth it. It rides a lot better now and does not freeze. The only time I can't use it is if we have deep snow.
 
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