Archive for the ‘playground safety’ Category
Tuesday, October 25th, 2011
Today’s society is all about video games, computers, and electronics. Many kids are couch potatoes, and even those who aren’t spend hours each day in front of a computer or tv. An excellent way to get your kids out is to play old fashioned games with them that speak to any child in any generation. Just make sure that they’re playing in safe areas that are carpeted with grass or rubber mulch surfaces.
Hopskotch is an old girls’ favorite for which all you need is chalk and pavement. Make it exciting by drawing themed hopscotch squares, and funny faces around the numbers. Sidewalk chalk in general is a great activity that allows children to use their creativity, and enjoy the sun and fresh air. Jumprope is also an inexpensive and enjoyable pastime. Kids can play a variety of games with the rope, and the real experts can experiment with double dutch, where two ropes are turned at once. Children will also enjoy playing jump rope with multiple players in the rope at once.
For the boys, there are the classic organized sports like baseball, basketball, and more. Then there are the classics like throwing horseshoes, running races, and flying kites. Just letting them run wild, they’re sure to entertain themselves with the bugs and other creatures that can be found in grassy areas. For more contained playgrounds that have rubber mulch flooring, boys can play line soccer, and use their imagination to have a good time.
Different areas of play will provide varied opportunities in play, but the greatest gift one can give to a child is the ability to use their imagination and the freedom to run free. Free play is an integral part of childhood that no child should be deprived of.
Tags: Playgrounds, rubber mulch, rubber mulch flooring, rubber mulch surface
Posted in Playground Kid Safety, playground mulch, playground safety, Playgrounds, rubber mulch | No Comments »
Wednesday, October 5th, 2011
Tragedies with children involved always make a sad situation seem so much worse. Even more grievous is when tragedies are caused by juveniles themselves. The Duluth News Tribune reports that this was the case in St. Louis, Missouri, at the Lester Elementary School Playground on October first, a calm Saturday morning. A group of juveniles were experimenting with fire, and set the playground burning. Thankfully, schools are closed on Saturday, and no children were in the school building, but the fire destroyed the playground. The juveniles were charged with felony negligent fire arson in the fifth degree.
Many products that are made for children today are flame retardant, and almost all take flammability into account. Playgrounds, too, should be fireproofed. This is an impossible feat, but there are ways to ensure that fire will spread less quickly in a playground, allowing time for children to be evacuated in case of an emergency.
Consumer Reports recently did a review on rubber mulch and wood chips, two varieties of substances used in playground surfaces. The results showed that both are flammable, with rubber burning hotter. However, an important redeeming quality of rubber flooring in playgrounds is that wood chips are light, and are easily thrown about, quickly spreading fire. Rubber chips, on the other hand, are denser, and stay in place. If the rubber flooring is used in one area of the playground, the fire may be more easily contained, as the rubber stays put, withholding the fire from spreading.
Many playgrounds today are installing rubber mulch as a safe playground flooring option, because rubber has extra shock absorbency to alleviate the impact from falls. The tragedy in St. Louis highlights another safety factor of rubber mulch in playgrounds – the ability to better contain fire. School officials should be advised to lay the rubber flooring in a contained area of the playground so that in case of fire, the rubber contains the flames.
Tags: playground flammability, playground safety, playground surface, rubber mulch, rubber mulch flooring
Posted in Playground Kid Safety, playground mulch, playground safety, Playgrounds, rubber mulch | No Comments »
Friday, August 26th, 2011
Playgrounds are geared for children, and as such, should be child safety proof in every sense of the word. All baby and child geared products, from pacifiers and cribs to building blocks, must be approved by various government appointed agencies before they are allowed on the market. The same should be true for playground equipment. Sadly, this is not the case. People pay little attention to the playgrounds that their children run around in daily. In the last few years, manufacturers have taken a step in the right direction with the selling of rubber mulch.
Rubber mulch is a flooring material that provides optimum playground safety, using recycled tires to produce rubber chips. This flooring looks like wood but is more shock absorbent, dramatically reducing the potential for injury. It also prevents scratches and scrapes, and ensures that children are not at risk of splinters when they fall. Animals and insects are not attracted to the playground flooring, a big pro for parents who are wary of the germs they carry. As rubber mulch is synthetic, the issue of mold and fungus growth is also eliminated. Rubber mulch leaves no dirt or stains on children’s clothes as they play.
Many schools and commercial playgrounds take their responsibility seriously, and ensure that their playground equipment lives up to the highest standards of safety. Virtually all new playgrounds being built today use rubber mulch as their choice of flooring. However, many people with private backyards look to cut costs with more affordable flooring alternatives that can cost them in the long run, as it has to be renewed, and can pose as a danger to their children. Rubber mulch is an option for everyone, not only commercial playgrounds.
From a design perspective, this innovative playground flooring comes in a variety of colors that don’t fade over time. In fact, some manufacturers go as far as to claim that rubber mulch can last for fifty years without any upkeep! It is a fact that the mulch need not be replaced or renewed annually.
Parents are quick to snatch up the latest in child protection locks for their medicine cabinets and lead free toys, but what about the play area their children run around in every day? Rubber mulch may be a considerable investment, but it’s just as important as the bars around the baby’s crib.
Tags: commercial playgrounds, playground safety, Playgrounds, rubber mulch, school playgrounds
Posted in Go Green, Playground Kid Safety, playground mulch, playground safety, Playgrounds, rubber mulch | No Comments »
Thursday, January 6th, 2011
Rubber mulch is installed on hard surfaces such as playgrounds, gardens and backyards so as to make a rubber covering on them. This rubber mulch is prepared from used tires and is eco friendly in nature. It is really a very useful product as it reduces the possibility of accidents that are taking place on playground surfaces. We all know that mulch made of rubber tires is great for our environment. Recycling and Reusing of these tires and manufacturing rubber mulch from them is really a great idea.
Rubber mulch can be used for multiple purposes. You can also use it as an alternative to wood mulch. It is really a great technique that reuses waste material to prepare a very useful product. The best thing about rubber mulch is that it is durable, long lasting and can be used for many years.
It does get ruined from bad weathers or heavy rain or snow. Rubber mulch is neither blown away by stormy winds nor is it washed away by heavy rains.
Seeing the increasing demand and excessive use, some people have started preparing and doing it themselves it is easy and might be fun . It just requires some easy steps along with a few tools. There are various benefits of rubber mulch. Some of them are as follows.
• Rubber mulch acts as a protective covering on hard surfaces.
• Rubber mulch makes the surface soft and just perfect for kids to play on it.
• It does not attract insects.
• It is easy to clean and easy to maintain.
• Rubber mulch is durable and affordable too.
For more information about rubber mulch you can call toll free at
888-492-7529
You can also contact Rubberecycle for their Playsafer rubber mulch that is being used at the white house.
Contact Rubberecycle
Corporate Headquarters
1985 Rutgers University Blvd.
Lakewood, NJ 08701
1.888.436.6846
1.732.363.0600
Fax: 732.370.4247
info@rubberecycle.com
www.rubberecycle.com
Tags: playground safety, playground surfaces, rubber mulch, tire recycling
Posted in Go Green, Playground Kid Safety, playground mulch, playground safety, Playgrounds, Recycle, Reuse, rubber mulch | No Comments »
Monday, December 6th, 2010
Having a green garden is everybody’s dream. It is always great to be in a fresh environment.
By having a green garden, you will have a great atmosphere around you.
It might be difficult to maintain a good, clean and green garden. You need to water your garden regularly and keep it free from pests and weeds. We all know that maintaining a good garden needs lots and lots of hard work but it is not so any more.
By using rubber mulch, you can have your gardens free from pests and weeds. Rubber mulch is also useful for landscape and gardening. It is one of the best ways to keep your garden area safe from drastic climatic conditions.
Rubber mulch is made up of recycled tires. This mulch is also used on playground surfaces which reduces the possibility of accidents.
Rubber mulch on playground surfaces, act as a shock absorbent that keeps your kids safe while they are playing on them. Rubber mulch is just perfect for all hard surfaces. It remains as it is in all climatic conditions. Heavy rains cannot wash it away and storms cannot blow it off. Thus, rubber mulch is also used for landscapes.
Rubber mulch is superb for gardening. It does not attract insects and also need less maintenance. By using rubber mulch, it becomes easy for you to maintain a real green grass lawn for a longer period of time. Rubber mulch is easy to install and easy to use. It is available in various attractive colors that make it perfect for all surfaces.
Children like playing on colorful surfaces installed with rubber mulch. Rubber mulch is affordable and is easily available at Rubberecycle .
You can also buy rubber mulch from rubbermulch.com. It is a fast and easy method that saves your time and energy.
Tags: Mulch, rubber mulch, rubberecycle, tire mulch
Posted in Go Green, landscape mulch, Playground Kid Safety, playground mulch, playground safety, rubber mulch | No Comments »
Thursday, October 7th, 2010
There’s been a problem at 3 schools in San Francisco — too many kids are getting hurt. Six kids in less than three weeks fell off the brand new playgrounds and broke bones. So school officials closed down the playgrounds to investigate.
8-year-old Lucas Fortune was one of the kids who fell off the new play structure at his Novato elementary school and he said it hurt worse than usual. He broke his arm.
Another child dislocated her shoulder, then the next day, another child broke his arm. So what is going on? Perhaps the playground equipment is too high from the ground. Or, officials wonder if the playgrounds are too crowded. They also plan to train staff on playground safety.
We believe there’s a better solution to preventing injuries on playgrounds — one not brought up in the article. It’s the playground surface. Having a safe surface like rubber mulch prevents injuries and protects kids. Kids are going to fall but they don’t have to break bones or get hurt.
Instead, all playgrounds should install rubber mulch like the first family at the White house did. Here’s a feature story (video) about playground safety and rubber mulch.
Tags: playground, Playground Equipment, rubber mulch, San Francisco
Posted in Playground Kid Safety, playground mulch, playground safety | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 28th, 2010
The playground at Guilderland Elementary School in Albany New York had dirt below all the equipment. Why is that a problem? Dirt isn’t a soft surface. When kids fall off the playground (as they often do) they are more likely to get hurt.
So the school decided to take action. Last week they held a ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the re-opening of the playground. What changed? They added rubber mulch.
The school got a $50,000 grant in 2007 to enhance the exiting playground, and meet the growning needs of the community.
The new playground is handicap and wheelchair accessible and “rubber mulch chips were also used to make it safer for kids.” Unfortunately the picture of the playground doesn’t show the new rubber mulch, but hopefully you can picture it. We used a picture from another playground that chose blue rubber mulch to give you an idea.
See: http://www.fox23news.com/news/local/story/New-playground-unveiled-in-Guilderland/weXNDqJ6BEWdzVk3pJf-xw.cspx?rss=39
Tags: Albany New York, playground, Playground Equipment, rubber mulch
Posted in playground mulch, playground safety | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 15th, 2010
A neighborhood playground in Buffalo New York has a problem. First a work crew came to remove the slide and the seesaw. They had been told by the city to remove the children’s playground equipment.
Why?
The equipment is about 10 years old. The problem? lead contamination. A child who had been playing at the playground had higher levels of lead. It could be traced back to property across the street, which was designated a Superfund site.
Common Council President David Franczyk said, “The area near a teeter totter where there’s a lead that didn’t have to be removed but was lower than the amount we had to close down the park, should be capped with either wood chips or rubber or mat, you know, just filled up and covered up.”
Neighbors weren’t happy to see the change – the neighborhood was happy to see an abandoned lot turned into a playground. The city plans to add wood chips or rubber mulch.
The best news? Officials are confident they can salvage that slide and seesaw.
See more at: http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/buffalo/Playground-may-have-been-contaminated
Tags: playground, Playground Equipment
Posted in playground mulch, playground safety | No Comments »
Monday, September 6th, 2010
Last week I wrote about the West Virginia schools that were going to do away with their swings. A child broke his arm and his parents sued the school so the school district was going to take all the swings out of all the Cabell County elementary schools. This decision caused an outcry across the country.
Now there’s some good news. Cabell County Schools announced they won’t remove the swing sets because it goes against state policy. “A statement posted on the school system’s website says school officials discovered that the West Virginia Board of Education requires swings at centers offering kindergarten programs.”
What a relief!
Tags: Cabell County West Virginia, Elementary school, swings, West Virginia
Posted in playground safety, Playgrounds | No Comments »
Tuesday, August 24th, 2010
Another playground fire is in the news. A playground in Plainfield New Jersey was recently torched and it’s being investigated as an arson. The damage? An estimated $50,000. It happened at the African-American Fund of New Jersey facility Saturday evening. The organization runs a day care center.
The fire was extinguished quickly, but most of the playground equipment was rendered unusable. Two men were seen on surveillance video leaving the scene as smoke and fire appeared.
It ruined playground equipment and destroyed a table, some fencing, a tree and rubber mulch. There is no word yet if insurance will cover the damage.
Anyone interested in helping her organization acquire new playground equipment is being asked to call 908-561-0123
See: http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20100823/NEWS/8230343/-1/special06/Suspected+arson+decimates+Plainfield+day-care+s+playground#pluckcomments
Posted in playground safety, Playgrounds | No Comments »
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