DIY Simple backyard ice rink plans and photos
November 25, 2007 by John
Filed under DIY Projects, Family Activities
Thanksgiving weekend has become ice rink building weekend at our house. We’re getting good at it and can now have the boards assembled and liner in place in about an hour. This year I took photos of the whole process to share with everyone.
Ingredients
I keep the rink simple and relatively small since my boys are only 5 and 3. I use 10 2 x 8s to make a rink 16′ x 24′. This is my third year with these boards. Notice I left the bracing attached to all the boards. This saves time. My braces are 2 x 8s cut to 1 foot lengths. I used 10 braces total (6 on sides, 4 on corners). I have a closeup of the bracing below.
I used 3″ primeguard screws to put everything together. The primeguard screws are more expensive, but they won’t corrode with the new ACQ treated lumber. I cannibalized the screws from last year in another project so I needed new ones for this years assembly.
My liner is a 20′ x 30′ tarp. Very heavy duty and also very dirty because I used it to cover post holes most of the summer as I started our new deck. The entire rink was made of last years parts or leftovers of other projects. Gotta love FREE.
Make sure you get the right length screws. A 2×8 is NOT 2 inches thick (it’s 1 1/2). I used 3 inch screws and made sure not to countersink them much. Last thing you want to do is put holes in your liner because your screws are sticking out the other side.
Assembly
Once I have my pieces all together I lay them out and get the rink squared and ready to screw. Notice my pile of leaves. I raked out the area a bit to get rid of any branches that might put a hole in my liner. This happened my first year as I was filling the liner. Bit of a scare, but nothing duct tape can’t fix.
I leave a pile in the middle to use as filler for any small gaps under the boards.
 Here is a picture of my bracing. I overlap each board with my 12 inch brace and use 4 screws on each side. The ice will push out on the boards as it freezes so I wanted to make sure my braces holds up. |
 For the corners I use a brace to overlap and strengthen the joint. |
My yard is far from flat so I ended up with gaps like the one below. For the smaller ones I just use leaves from my pile to fill it up. This helps prevent your liner from pushing under your boards and tearing as the ice expands.
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Last summer I added topsoil to level the area some more. Unfortunately some areas settled more than others and I had a very large gap under one corner. The ideal fix would be adding more topsoil and making the ground level. I’m on a budget this year so instead I screwed some scrap lumber onto my boards to close the gap.
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Liner
With the assembly done I add my liner. I simply tuck the sides of the tarp under the boards. Make sure you leave enough loose liner inside the rink because the water will really pull on it and stretch it out once you fill the rink. At the same time, don’t leave so much liner that get folds of liner floating in the water.
Also don’t let the liner ‘tent’ along the sides and corners. Push it all the way down. The weight of the water could cause the liner to tear if you don’t leave enough material.
Update 11/27 - Darn…my tarp did not survive the summer very well. It wasn’t holding water so I grabbed the duct tape and went hunting for the leak. Turns out the whole thing is pretty porous from the plastic material wearing off. Going to look for a cheap replacement. Probably going to go with a 1 season plastic liner.
Conclusion
That’s it! Pretty simple and cheap. This year was free since I reused everything, but my first year startup costs were under $100. Ten 2×8s, a box of screws, and a large tarp.
I was hoping to get one more picture of the rink filling, but I made a rookie mistake and left our hose outside and it froze. Never leave the hose outside because it is a pain to thaw. Instead I use an old rubbermaid to store the hose and bring it inside. I’ll cart it in and out all winter to do my ice surfacing.
Feel free to send me any questions or suggestions. I’ve only been doing this a few years and am always looking for ways to improve the rink. Next year I’m considering an upgrade to taller boards (2×10 or 2×12) and making the rink itself larger as well (24 x 30 if it will fit).
Check back this winter to see how our rink is progressing. I’m hoping to have it frozen filled and frozen by the weekend if mother nature cooperates. I’m also considering adding corner seats and building a rebounder (a piece of elastic to bounce the puck back to you).
[...] DIY Simple backyard ice rink plans and photos [...]
John
Thanks a ton…I am off to Lowes to start…great info.
Can u tell me what to do if it cracks
Cracks aren’t a big deal. Just wait for the whole thing to freeze and then get to work with the rink rake. If it freezes solid and you get a gap or hole in the ice, pack it with snow and saturate it with water. Don’t melt the snow, just enough for it make a nice mortar. Pack it in good and let it freeze over night. The next day you can go over it with the rink rake and it will be good as new.
HOw do you level the low spots in the yard?
Do you think 2 x4’s would work if the slope is not more than 1 1/2″?
I would not recommend 2×4s. You need a couple inches of ice as your base and during the season as it snows and rains your base will get thicker.
I have a significant slope across my rink. I use 2×8s and one corner will have 2 inches of ice while another corner is 5 inches deep. The 2×8s are enough to handle this much of a slope and I have enough wood above the ice to keep pucks in.
I know people who build rinks and have a 2 foot slope! They build a frame and use plywood for walls. This works too, but it takes longer for the ice to freeze.
What about the low spots in the yard do you have to level it out? Someone said to put hay in the low spots, is this necessary?
I had a bout 4 inches of water at the highest spot in my rink. I had water covering about 98% of the surface because I have a slope. About 2 inches were frozen when we get a big snowfall today. The frozen ice sunk and I have slush on top. Should I shovel it all off or just water it all down after the snow stops?
Yeah..Im having the slush problem as well….rink is 20 X 40 and I have a 10 inch deep side and 2 inch deep…
The ice sank and slush was created………It seems to not want to freeze up! UGh. I want the kids to skate. I considered shoveling the slush but I m thinking eventually having the ice lower and water from below becoming frozen ice up top will be beneficial….Great site BTW ..extremely helpful.
Yeah, its been a strange start to the rink season. Lots of storms with freezing rain. My best recommendation is patience. Last year my rink was a ‘lap pool’ until mid January because it was so warm. We only had about 6 weeks of decent ice. I was tempted to buy the kids a remote controlled boat for Christmas so they could drive it around the rink!
This is our first year w/a backyard rink. We had the slush problem too. We filled the rink (24×40) about 3 inches and then got a couple snows, totaling about 8 inches, which sunk down in. The water was almost to the top of the sides, so we spent a couple of hours cracking up the 2 inch layer of ice and pitching it out, then scooping the remaining ice chunks out. Looks like we were able to lower the water level by a few inches. Now if it would only freeze before we get more precipitation!
Hi
my tarp has a very small hole in it. Would this be something I could fix with duck tape?
Scott - Duct tape works great as long as the area around the hole is dry. If the hole is under water some others have posted about using a patching caulk they bought at boat and marine shops.
How do you break down the frame for summer storage?
I just use my cordless drill to remove all the screws. I save the screws in a cup and pile the wood behind my shed. This is why I stress the importance of primeguard screws. They hold up much better over the winter and it is easy to back them out in the spring. I sometimes use the same screws the following year, but they usually get cannibalized for other projects during the summer.