For children, the sandbox in their own garden is still the biggest thing. They spend hours baking sand cakes, imitating the construction site opposite when they play, digging deep holes and building sandcastles. You can easily build a wooden sandpit yourself with our construction plan and detailed instructions. Our homemade model is so uncomplicated that even inexperienced do-it-yourselfers can do it without any problems.
The experienced do-it-yourselfer can also build a simple wooden sandbox himself
Form
In most public playgrounds, the sandbox is square or rectangular with a wide wooden seat. This variant is not only easy to create, it is also much cheaper to build yourself than a ready-made model. An inner and an outer wooden square, which is stabilized by the seat, form the basic structure.
material list
- four boards for the outside. The length corresponds to the external dimensions
- four boards for the seat
- four boards for the inside.
- weed film
- Gravel to weigh down the foil
- wood screws
- and of course a sufficient amount of play sand.
tool
- spade and shovel
- cordless drill
- staples and needles
- 4 small slats, string and hammer
The building instructions
preparation
First, use a string board to mark the inner surface that you need to dig out for the self-made sandpit. Make sure that the edges of the pit you create are straight and at exactly right angles to each other.
Draw the outer boards on a blue plan. The seat boards will later be screwed onto these with a little overhang. If these are, for example, thirty centimeters wide and should later protrude five centimeters on both sides, the following calculation results:
Outer frame minus twenty centimeters = inner frame.
dig pit
Sandboxes should have a minimum depth of 15 centimeters. Since children like to dig, it can be a few centimeters more. Remember that a layer of gravel will also be filled in and dig deep enough.
A layer of gravel at least two centimeters thick is then filled into the hole as drainage. This prevents the water from accumulating under the sandbox.
Assemble the sandpit
- Put the wooden boards for the inside square together and screw them together from one side with at least four screws.
- Do the same with the boards for the outside.
- Place the outer one in the inner wooden rectangle and mount the seat over it.
Position the construction exactly on the edge of the excavated pit. Now fix a length of weed film on one of the insides and run it along the ground to the other side. The film serves as a weed barrier and ensures that no uninvited guests from underground settle in the sandpit.
Fill the sandbox
Now we're almost done and it's time to fill the homemade sandpit. Use special play sand for this, which you can get in sacks or loose in stores. It is characterized by the following properties:
- Dimensionally stable: Due to the grain size and the type of granulation, sand cakes and sand castles hold together wonderfully.
- Clay-free: The washed quartz sand (€15.85) leaves no ugly yellow marks on clothing.
- Free from harmful substances: play sand is TÜV tested and is guaranteed to be safe for the little ones.
The needed amount
Unlike with purchased sandboxes, where the filling quantity is often specified, you have to calculate the sand required for the sandbox built according to our instructions yourself. If the digging box has internal dimensions of 120 centimeters by 120 centimeters and a depth of 30 centimeters, the following calculation results:
120 cm x 120 cm x 30 cm = 432,000 cm³ which corresponds to 0.432 m³.
Play sand is offered either in small bags, a cheap big pack with a volume of one cubic meter (1000 liters) or open.
tips
You can build a cover for the sandpit to prevent animals from soiling the play sand with their droppings. A frame that is covered with a close-meshed net is very practical. This means that there is no sealed off space under the cover in which woodlice and other insects would feel at home. Neighbor's cat is still effectively kept away. In addition, the penetrating sunlight has a germ-killing effect. And while you're at it, you might also want to build a children's swing yourself.