How To Build A Wooden Kids Swing Set

How To Build a Wooden Swing Set..the Piece of cake way!A DIY swing set that's a fun and piece of cake summer project that your kids will love.

DIY Wooden Swingset

COST: around $300 (see caption at end of mail service)

Fourth dimension: 3-4 hours

LEVEL: Beginner

We've been working hard on your backyard this yr, calculation a few more fun things for the kids to play on. One of the items that nosotros really wanted to get was a large swing fix. We've had a wooden play prepare for quite awhile, and it has a couple of swings, just as kids go a petty older–seven+–they showtime getting too big for those smaller swings.

We needed a swing ready that could hold our bigger kids (8-12), and give them more of a playground experience. I started looking at large swing sets, and the prices were just not what I wanted to pay, so we decided to make our own! Afterward a scrap of research, I came across something that makes it SO easy–with no need to cut whatever woods. It's a elementary swing gear up, and yous don't need any specific swing set plan. I've got all the instructions and tutorial below, and you'll have a crawly swing prepare for your lawn play area in no time!

How to Build a Wooden Swing Set the EASY way!

I honestly can't believe how easy this was to put together, and how chop-chop it came together, considering how big it is. It's approximately a four-6 hour project, making it perfect for a Sat afternoon!

The secret is a set of swing set brackets that yous just slide the woods into, and screw them in. If you buy the right size of wood posts, y'all don't fifty-fifty have to cut them down, which also saves a ton of fourth dimension.

The top slice is a 4×half-dozen post that'due south 12 anxiety long, and it's perfect for three swings. The legs are 4×four posts that are x anxiety tall. We wanted them tall enough to allow the kids to swing pretty high, and to adjust our older kids. It turned out perfectly, and the kids dearest it!

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Wooden Swing Set Supplies:

Swing Hangers (a set of 2 per swing)
Galvanized Bolts for the swing hangers (3/viii inch carriage bolts, 7 inches long) + Lock Washer (4 bolts and 4 washers per swing)
Swing Chains
Swing Seats
Swing seats & bondage–no brackets needed (some other option)
A-Frame Swing Set Brackets
1-12x4x6 post (pressure treated)
4-10x4x4 posts (force per unit area treated) (or 12 feet if you are going to cement them in the ground 1.five-2 feet)
Optional: 5.5 inches 10 eight ft. wood stringers for the a-frame (pressure treated)
Anchors (nosotros used these temporarily) OR Cement (which we highly recommend)
Some other anchor option (not cement)
Drill (we used a Hammer Drill, which is AWESOME!)

***You can also opt to buy this set, which includes the a-frame swing brackets, swings, band trapeze, and all the hardware!

Putting together your Wooden Swing Set…

Y'all'll demand the posts and the brackets start–and in the set I purchased (linked to a higher place), all the bolts needed came with information technology. Make sure you lot are using pressure treated woods–that will make it last outside much longer. We also used galvanized bolts and screws for the same reason.

We laid out the elevation beam first, with each stop resting on height of a fleck 4×4 mail, to keep information technology off the ground and easier to work with. And so we slid each end of the post into their respective brackets, and drilled the bolts into place.

Next we slid the 4×4 posts into their corresponding brackets (bottom sides, then pinnacle) and bolted them in. Information technology really is as easy every bit that, when you use the crawly a-frame brackets!

In one case all the posts were bolted in securely, we carefully brought the swing set into a standing position, and moved it where we wanted it to be. We started information technology right where we wanted information technology, and then we didn't take to move information technology also far. This took the two of united states, and you lot might even need a 3rd person to help y'all get information technology into standing position. I have had some questions about this procedure, and we lifted information technology up on either finish, then walked it forward, moving our hands down the sides as necessary. I honestly don't remember any specific details, but we were able to do information technology together.

We decided to add the wooden stringers connecting the two posts on each side, and we cut them at 5.5×viii. This isn't necessary–y'all can do it without as well. Just if you desire to, it's a super easy pace. If you lot don't have a circular saw or another mode to cut wood at habitation, Home Depot will also brand cuts for you when you lot buy it there, and these would be actually easy to do. I've seen some locations accuse for this service, but I know others that haven't. It's definitely worth asking about!

We anchored the swing ready down for at present, only we are planning to cement it in place. You're seeing it with just mulch (used it every bit fill), simply wood chips are adjacent, after it's cemented in. We highly recommend that you cement them in place, but I did add together some anchor options to my supplies list.

**I added this note above, but if you are going to cement them in, so I suggest buying 12 foot 4×iv posts for the legs, so your swing is nonetheless ten feet loftier.

Side by side up…hanging the swings! I ordered separate seats and bondage, because I needed a longer length chain than usual considering of the swing set height. Along with the seats and chains, I besides ought the swing hangers that attach to the acme mail. If yous buy like ones, make sure to bank check if they come with the bolts to hang them. Ours didn't, so we bought the right bolts and washers to adhere them.

Afterward the pressure-treated lumber is totally dry out, we recommend adding a water-repellant sealer to the wood, then it volition help foreclose swell and splitting due to weather (hot or cold), but specially where information technology's sunnier. Doing this regularly (one time a year is best) is a adept thought for maintenance, and so your swing volition concluding longer!

MEASUREMENTS Betwixt SWINGS:

There are 16 inches from the each edge to the first bracket. The brackets for each swing accept 20 inches betwixt them (this is for the bodily swing–the two brackets holding the swing upwardly.). Then between each swing, there are 18 inches.

Then from border to edge, it goes:

xvi inches–from border to first swing,
20 inches–the ii brackets for swing #1,
eighteen inches-the space betwixt the showtime swing and second swing,
20 inches–the 2 brackets for swing #two,
18 inches–the space between the second and third swing,
xx inches–the 2 brackets for swing #3, and 16–the space between the third swing and the other edge.

TOTAL MEASUREMENTS OF SWING Gear up:

8 anxiety deep 10 xvi feet wide 10 10 feet high

NOTE: The dimensions for the finished swing are 16 feet–considering the legs are at an bending, and stick out by the 12 foot acme post. The finished dimensions are for those that need to fit it in a certain space.

The very 2d those swings were on, my kids were swinging, and they haven't stopped since. They Beloved it! Such a fun and like shooting fish in a barrel summer project, that will exist a wonderful addition to our backyard for years to come.

Full Price: effectually $300

This corporeality reflects the prices of wood and supplies at the time we congenital them. Woods can profoundly vary in cost from area to surface area, and then there could exist a difference for you—either more or even less. But to buy a swing fix of this size and durability, information technology would be much more. I'1000 so pleased with the swing, and with the cost savings!

UPDATE:

I idea information technology would exist helpful to add an update so yous could see how it'southward held upwards since we put it in iv.5 years ago. It's gotten a lot of employ, from a lot of kids, and it'due south completely solid and sturdy. We nevertheless absolutely love it!

DISCLAIMER:

We are not experts, nor engineers! We congenital this for our kids, and wanted to share in case others wanted to too. If you have whatsoever concerns almost safety, weight limits, or overall stability, delight contact other sources. The Eastern Jungle Gym Company may be able to help respond specific questions–they are the makers of the a-frame brackets that hold the structure together.