 An Ice Rink in your back yard is a fantastic source of fun for kids. And, it's not as difficult or expensive as you might think.
Here's a picture of the ice rink in the spring after a full winter's use. This rink is 30 feet wide by 60 feet long. It is about 6 inches deep at it's deepest point and 3 inches deep at it's shallowest point. The rink I build in the rest of this manual is smaller, about 18 feet by 30 feet, but it can be enlarged fairly easily. I poke hole in the rink with my rake to let the water meter out slowely. Most of the water is soaked up into the ground this way. My liner is cheap and disposable, so there's no storage throughout the summer and no worries about keeping it tear free.
The Budget Ice Rink Materials List This is a listing of the materials needed to build the budget backyard ice rink. The ice rink measures about 18 feet by 36 feet when completed. This is a small rink and best suited to small children (under say 8 years old,) or when making a rink for the first time. If you need something bigger, check out how to elarge your rink. All of these items are available from your local home center. I got mine at Home Depot. The picture to the right is of my Ice Rink boards all stacked up for the summer. | Image | Quantity | Item | Approximate Cost | Why | | 14 | 5/4" x 6" x 8' Pressure Treated Decking Boards | $42 | I chose these for my first rink because they are widely available, inexpensive and easy to work with. If you KNOW you are going to move up in rink size next year, then skip these and move right up to 2x6, 2x8, etc, with longer board lengths, too. If you get longer boards, realize that a 2x12x16 weighs quite a bit and you might need help moving them into place. |  | 8 | Aluminum Mending Plates | $4 | These are the square aluminum plates that measure about 6" x 4". They're commonly used to connect the wood in roof trusses. You're looking for the flat plates with a bunch of holes (for screws) in them. |  | 1 | 3 lb box of 1" coated deck screws | $6 | Coated deck screws can be used over and over again every winter. Be sure to get only 1 inch screws. You don't want the points coming through the other side of the wood, or they will poke holes in your liner. |  | 1 | 1 lb box of 3" coated deck screws | $4 | Coated deck screws can be used over and over again every winter. Be sure to get only 1 inch screws. You don't want the points coming through the other side of the wood, or they will poke holes in your liner. |  | 16 | 2' pieces of rebar | $4 | Rebar is used to reinforce concrete and cement. It's a steel bar (usually rusty.) These are used to hold up the boards in case one of your joints isn't holding up. |  | 1 | Boxed sheet of 20' x 100' 6 mil Clear Plastic Sheeting | $40 | This will be your liner and will hold water until it freezes. There are other liners available on the Internet, but this is cheap and does the job. I'm always on the lookout for a wider inexpensive liner, so if you find one, let me know. |
That's it for the materials. Now on to the tools.
Tools needed to Build a Backyard Ice Rink. Here's a listing of what you'll need to create your rink. That's it for the tools. Let's build a rink!
Backyard Ice Rink Construction Plans Finally you're ready to start construction. Here are the step-by-step plans. | 1. |  | Using a mitre box or setting your circular saw to a 45o bevel, cut two of your 8' boards in half. These boards will be used at the "corners" of your rink. The first year I created my rink I used 90o corners. This didn't work so well, as the corners were always a problem. The ice was poor because these areas where generally the high spots and low spots in the ground where I placed my rink. Using 1/2 length boards at a 45o angle, I've found, works much better. Also, it more closely resembles a real skating rink. | | 2. |  | With the 4 1/2 length boards you created in step one, cut the non-beveled end to a 45o bevel. This will allow you to connect both ends of these boards flush with the ends of boards that will run down the length and width of your ice rink. | | 3. |  | This next step is crucial. Choose the flatest 20' x 40' stop you can find to place your rink. I just eyeballed mine, but my reading on the web has lead me to believe that this isn't such a good idea and that using a line level or water level ensures greater success. If you end up with a lot of slope where you place your rink, you will find that one end of your rink won't be think enough to support the weight of your skaters. There are a number of solutions available if you don't have a flat area for your rink. Check out my tips page for uneven ground. | | 4. | | Lay out the boards. Put 1 corner piece at each corner of your rink. Then put 2 full boards at the ends of the rink and 4 full boards for each side. | | 5. |  | Secure the boards together using the mending plates on the straight joints with the 1 1/4 inch screws. At the corners, use the longer screws and screw into the wood directly (If you've got a little extra money, a 45 degree mending plate will make a better joint and the wood will last longer.) | | 6. |  | Once the boards are all together you need to support them. This is because water weighs a lot. Once the rink if full, there will be a lot of outward pressure exerted on the boards. Drive a piece of rebar into the ground with a sledge hammer at each joint on your rink. | | 7. |  | You're ready to rock 'n' roll now. | | 8. | | Move on to installing the liner! | | | | | | |
You're frame is build, now what? The next step is to put the liner down. However, there are a number of thing to consider before taking this step. How reliable is your source of water? If you're going to use your garden hose to fill your rink, then I suggest waiting until the last possible moment to put your liner down. There are a number of things that can go wrong if you put it down early. The wind can rip it. Leaves will fall into it. Leaves must be raked, without damaging the liner, out of the rink before filling it with water. More disscussion on leaves can be found here. On the other hand, if you don't have a reliable water source, or you're worried about over using your pump, you can put the liner down in the fall and hope to accumlate some rain water. I have heard that this can be somewhat effective, but you still have to remove leaves. How are you going to secure your liner. Until there is water in your liner it is in danger of blowing away. Even after water is securing the main portion, the edges will still blow back into the rink. I recommend either rocks or a staple gun. If you use rocks you don't have to worry about stapling the liner without enough slack. If you do not leave enough slack with staples the liner will rip and cause problems. Rocks will simple slide over the liner and not rip it, but they're somewhat more difficult to round up and place. What's the weather like? Hopefully you're taking my advice and waiting until the last possible day to put your liner in place. But what is the best day for this? First of all, the weather needs to cooperate. You're going to need 3 solidly cold days in a row. Ideally you would put your liner in the day before a spell of days with highs at most in the upper twenties and lows in the teens. It will work if you're bordering on freezing during the day and only getting down to 25 at night, but it will take longer. Much of this is dependent upon how much water you need in your rink. More discussion on that later. Low wind while you're putting in the liner is also useful.
Ok, you're now ready to place the liner. The rink has been designed so that your liner will cover it with one piece. The 20' width is about 3 feet wider than the floor of the rink. This extra 1 1/2 feet on either side is necessary to go up and over the rink boards. Cut your liner at about 40', or about 4' longer than your rink from end to end. Like the side boards, the liner will need to go over the end board similarly. Secure your liner in place. Put rocks heavy enough to withstand the wind on top of your liner on the outside of your boards. Or, if using a staple gun, staple your liner to your boards on the outside of your boards leaving plenty of slack for the liner to move as you fill the rink. One trick is to push the liner between the rebar supports and your boards. This help keep the liner in place while you secure it.
Time to fill your rink!
Almost time to skate! - Not Really :( It's time to fill the rink. It will take you a good 8 hours or so to fill your rink. That's if it's very flat. On a very flat rink you should aim to get the water at least 3 inches deep at the shallowest point. Be mindful of little rises in the ground in the middle of your rink. If you only get 1 1/2 inches of water over these spots you'll have holes in your ice at these spots throughout the season. There are some things you can do to help with shallow spots, but nothing works better than just getting the rink 3 inches deep everywhere. Honestly, it's tempting to take the hose out early and let it freeze, but err on the side of too deep if at all. Too deep will only mean it takes a little longer for the water to completely freeze. Now, pray for cold!
When is your backyard ice rink ready to skate? So, you've constructed your boards, put in a liner and filled your rink. It's been minus 10 out for 3 solid days (lucky you!) Here are some things to consider before you venture out onto the ice. First and foremost make sure it is frozen at least 3 inches deep. It's tempting to venture out onto the ice when it will just barely support you, but you're better off waiting another day or two. The holes that you make, and the ice that you break while going out early will be a pain to make "good ice" later. It snowed, now what? Well, if your ice isn't strong enough to support you, leave it! That's right, don't shovel the snow from the side of your rink, or even try to remove it. You're ultimately looking for a uniform surface on your ice. If you can only get to some of the ice to shovel, or if you break through, you'll end up having uneven areas that will be more difficult to make "good ice" later. If, on the other hand, your ice is strong enough to support you, go ahead and shovel it off. I personally wait until it the rink can support me and my snowblower (oh yeah, you now have two driveways to shovel.) When shoveling, be careful next to the boards. Especially early in the season you don't want to rip your liner. You never know when that 3 day thaw is going to come and steal your precious water. If your liner stays in place you won't lose too much, but if there's a rip, you're sunk. The surface is not good for skating. If there was a lot of wind, or it snowed while freezing, etc, you can end up with ice that wouldn't be too easy to skate on, especially for little ones. If you have this problem turn right to the "Maintaining Ice Quality" page. Everything looks good, get 'em out there skating! If your kids are little like mine were when I started you need to keep a few things in mind. They'll only want to skat for a short time. They'll stay out even shorter if it's really cold. To maximize things, at least one parent should plan on "attending to needs" the first couple of times. Also, I recommend getting the kids skates on in the house and carrying them to the ice. Their feet will stay warmer longer. Also, make sure you brought the skates in from the garage to warm them up plenty ahead of time. More little kid skating tips can be found here.
CONGRATULATIONS!
How to have Perfect Ice on your backyard ice rink |