We have listed our top tips for maintaining your backyard ice rink:
- Start with a good foundation in order to maximize the life of your rink during the winter season, it is so important to...
- Keep your ice clean Just like your local hockey pad, it is smart to clean your backyard ice rink after every skate.
- Use HOT water for a glass-like surface Using hot water when you...
How to make a homemade ice rink in your backyard?
The Buyers Guide On How To Build An Outdoor Rink In Your Backyard
- Pick Your Spot. The first tip in how to build a backyard rink: Find the perfect outdoor spot for it. ...
- Measure Your Working Area. ...
- Survey Area. ...
- Layout And Build. ...
- Inspect Rink Boards. ...
- Fill In The Gaps. ...
- Line Away. ...
- Fill It Up. ...
- Secure The Rink Liner. ...
- Skate, Skate, Skate! ...
How to Zamboni your backyard ice rink?
- Couple Up – Use a removable rubber coupling connector to easily connect/remove Zamboni from hose. ...
- Protect your Pipes – Turn on/off water to outside valve as needed. Turning off the water to the outside hose when not in use prevents pipes from freezing. ...
- Storage – Store all materials inside so they don’t freeze. ...
How to build a backyard ice rink on unlevel ground?
Instructions
- Prepare the Base. Before you attempt to create the ice surface itself, it is important to start with a 1- to 2-inch base of packed snow, which will serve as ...
- Create the Border. ...
- Solidify the Base. ...
- Flood the Rink. ...
- Maintain the Rink. ...
How to turn your backyard court into an ice rink?
Using Your Sport Court to Master Fall and Winter Sports
- Health Benefits. Although you and your kids may be tempted to stay inside drinking hot cocoa and watching movies, it’s so important to keep moving!
- Baseball. America’s pastime hits a full swing in the fall with the culmination of the MLB season into the World Series.
- Flag Football. Why watch the Big Game when you can play it? ...
- Tennis. ...
- Ice Sports. ...
How do I keep my backyard ice rink smooth?
Smooth it out Most people who make backyard ice rinks don't own a Zamboni. So to keep the ice rink surface smooth, you'll occasionally need to do what's called resurfacing. Essentially, this means you'll be putting a new layer of water on top of the existing ice to freeze, which will create a smoother surface.
How do you protect an ice rink from the sun?
You can preserve ice rinks in between use with Tarps Now ice rink covers and tarps. These waterproof tarps are made of heavy material and undergo UV treatment to withstand prolonged sunlight exposure.
How do they keep outdoor ice rinks cold?
It has to do with a substance called propylene glycol, says Willy Bietak, president of Bietak Productions. His company installed outdoor rinks at Pershing Square and by the Queen Mary in Long Beach. Beitak says propylene glycol can get much colder than the freezing temperature of water and still stay a liquid.
How often should I water my rink?
Your ice base is the most important part of making ice. I find 3 to 4 consecutive nights where the temperature is ideal (this is where weather.com forecasting helps!) and I flood my rink with almost 1/2 to 1 inch of water every night for 3 consecutive nights.
How long does it take for a backyard rink to freeze?
At -5, it should do a decent job of freezing overnight. Hopefully you didn't use too much water. Regardless, I would recommend doing at least 2 or 3 more light floods before skating on it.
How long does it take for 4 inches of ice to freeze?
Ice may form quickly when temperatures tumble, but it takes more time than you might think for ice to reach the four-inch thickness that experts recommend. On average, it takes four days of below freezing temperatures to form ice that is safe. Also, this guideline is for ponds and lakes.
How do ice rinks stay frozen summer?
These compressors push brine or a glycol solution through a big tank of cooling ammonia, and then out into the "extensive grid of PVC pipes underneath the concrete floor of the rink." The cold liquid brings the whole massive slab of concrete to below freezing — which means water on top forms a layer of ice.
How do you melt snow in an ice rink?
In a busy arena the ice is resurfaced up to 10 times a day; during which ice is scraped off and allowed to melt. Some facilities even use hot water to melt the snow and with this more energy. The ice shavings are often taken outside of the arena and dumped nearby.
How do you keep an outdoor ice rink frozen?
To keep the ice cold enough for skaters, the rink uses a minus-5-degree chiller, which is essentially a very large refrigerator that runs for 24 hours a day. “It’s the machine that keeps the ice frozen,” said Rachel Radawec, placemaking and community engagement manager for the Tampa Downtown Partnership.
How often should you flood an outdoor rink?
Your ice base is the most important part of making ice. I find 3 to 4 consecutive nights where the temperature is ideal (this is where weather.com forecasting helps!) and I flood my rink with almost 1/2 to 1 inch of water every night for 3 consecutive nights.
Should I shovel snow off my ice rink?
Keep the Backyard Ice Rink Clear You’ll get some snow over the winter months, but do your best to keep the DIY ice rink cleared as snow acts as an insulator and will quickly stick to the ice. And when the snow falls, shovel often.
Can ice be too cold to skate on?
The ice temperature can definitely affect how the ice feels under your skates – soft or hard. An ice rink that caters to figure skating will usually have ice that is considered softer with an on-ice temperature of 25 to 29 degrees. It is possible to have ice that is too hard and cold.
Why do they put hot water on ice rinks?
Hot water is usually viewed as preferred for flooding, because that’s what we all see in arenas across the country. The reason is that hot water contains less dissolved oxygen, or micro air bubbles, which aids with a harder ice surface. So try a test flooding with both hot and cold water on your rink.
Do backyard ice rinks ruin grass?
Why an Outdoor Ice Skating Rink Won’t Ruin the Lawn As long as you time your outdoor rink properly, your lawn won’t be any worse for the wear once you pull up the rink in early spring.
How long does it take for backyard rink to freeze?
It takes a minimum of 72 hours at -10 C for 8 inches of water to completely freeze. Do NOT walk on your rink before this time unless you have to. Water will seep up around the sides and flow onto your surface.
When should I set up my backyard ice rink?
The most ideal time to set up your backyard ice rink is when the temperature is -7 to -20 degrees Celsius. Ice rinks will be stable if the air temperature is 55 degrees Fahrenheit, while the ice temperature should be about 24 degrees Fahrenheit.
10 Tips on How to Build Your Backyard Ice Rink
If you live in a rural area that experiences freezing temperatures, and if you have a vast lawn, it’s suitable for you to make a backyard ice rink. Likely, skating will be a favorite pastime of your family.
Our Answers to All Your Questions
Living in a cooler climate has various perks, one of which is the ability to make an ice rink in your backyard. Yet can this damage your lawn? Here are the answers to all your queries.
Will a Backyard Ice Rink Kill my Grass?
Your backyard ice rink will not harm the grass if you build it between mid-December and mid-March, as the weather can freeze the water. Creating an ice rink outside of this time frame will not kill the covered grass, but the covered grass will fall behind the exposed grass in terms of growth.
How to Know When Your Grass Is Dormant So That You Can Start Building Your Rink
There are two points to consider with regard to whether your grass is dormant. The first point is the time of the year, while the second point is the variety of the grass. Most sorts of grass become dormant in cooler temperatures.
Will the Weight of the Water and Ice Kill the Grass?
Excessive weight can damage the roots of your grass. But commonly, the water level required to make an ice rink is only around 3 to 4 inches. At 4 inches, you’ll have 20.77 lbs. per square foot of weight on your grass. The entire body of ice is weighty yet scattered over the rink, so it’s likely just less than 1 lb. per square inch.
Would an Ice Rink without a Liner Be Better for My Grass?
Building an ice rink without a cover or base will let the water runoff when warm days arrive. You can make use of a good white-sided tarp or thick and strong plastic as a liner to sustain uniformity in your rink. It could be simpler to cut a new one every time you want to build as compared to reusing and cleaning the old one.
How to prevent ice from melting?
Resurface/flood with warm water. Do not allow skating and place snow on melting areas as a thicker layer of ice will help prevent melting in warm weather. Some rinks may have as much as 30 cm (12″) of ice by the end of the season.
What to do if you have too much snow?
Cold temperatures. Fill cracks with a wet snow slush and resurface/flood. Pebble or Rough Ice. Too much snow on ice, or flooding while snowing, or scrapers not flat or not sharp enough, or you could be using too little water, if it ripples you are using too much water.
Can you skate on melting ice?
Do not allow skating and place snow on melting areas as a thicker layer of ice will help prevent melting in warm weather. Some rinks may have as much as 30 cm (12″) of ice by the end of the season.
What Do I Need to Do to Set up My Backyard Ice Rink?
If you’re wondering how to set up a backyard ice rink, don’t worry – it’s not as difficult as you might think! All you need is a level piece of ground, some boards or PVC pipes to outline the rink, and a tarp or liner to hold in the water. You can find all of these items at your local hardware store easily.
How Do I Level the Ground for An Ice Rink?
When planning your backyard ice rink, you will need to consider how to level the ground. You do not want one end of the rink to be significantly higher than another, as this will make skating difficult and dangerous. There are a few ways you can go about leveling your backyard:
Do I Have Any Options if There Is a Slope on My Property?
If you’re looking to put a rink in your backyard but have a slope, what sort of options do you have? You do have a few:
Do Backyard Ice Rinks Ruin Grass?
An important question to ask before putting a rink in your backyard is if it will destroy the lawn underneath it. The short answer is, yes, an ice rink will kill the grass underneath it. But there are a few things you can do to minimize the damage.
How Do You Maintain a Backyard Ice Rink?
Once you’ve got your backyard ice rink all set up, you’re probably wondering how to keep it in tip-top shape all winter long. Luckily, maintaining a backyard ice rink is not as difficult as it may seem. Here are a few tips to help you keep your rink looking great:
How Long Does It Take for A Rink to Freeze?
How long your rink takes to freeze depends mainly on your local weather and how long the weather has been below freezing.
Can You Make an Outdoor Rink without A Liner?
There are a few workarounds if you don’t have the budget or access to a liner for your backyard rink. First, you can try to use some heavy-duty tarps, but you’ll need to make sure that the tarp is completely sealed off from moisture.
