After the winter months and warm weather is approaching, families are beginning to transition outside the home to play on their favorite outdoor products. At this time, it is beneficial to perform the following checklists if you own a wooden swing set, trampoline, or basketball system; both for safety purposes and protecting your investment.
GENERAL MAINTENANCE OF WOODEN SWING SET
- Check nuts, bolts and acorn nuts and tighten as needed
- Inspect swing seats, swing hangers, chains, ladders, slides, ropes and wood components for signs of deterioration or sharp edges
- Spot sand any spots that are cracking or splintering
- Check to make sure all ropes (Rope Ladder and Ramp Rope) are tight with no slack that can be overlapping on itself
- Check to make sure there are no gaps between the slide bed and the slide bolts
- Verify all suspended items are secured (ropes and chains)
- Grease the tire swing swivel
- Clean all plastic parts with an organic dishwashing detergent
- Clean all vinyl coated parts (rungs, brackets, etc.) with a bathroom tile cleaner
To protect your investment and be proactive, we recommend you have the wood sealed with a good quality OIL-BASED sealant within its first 2 months outside. By being proactive and sealing it soon after set up, you may be able to skip a year or two before having to reapply the sealant. We recommend and sell Super Deck Transparent Sealant. This product penetrates deep into the wood and closes the pores of the wood thus not allowing water in to do damage. This also slows down the natural checking and cracking process. With your proactive actions of sealing, you will enhance the factory stain color before it starts to wear.
GENERAL MAINTENANCE OF SPRINGFREE TRAMPOLINE
Your Springfree Trampoline is designed using the highest quality materials, resistant to outdoor weather conditions. However, all products will incur general wear and tear, so it’s important to inspect your trampoline from time to time. Replacing any required parts quickly will ensure the longest life span for your trampoline.
- Material flaws in the mat bed, mat edge system or net
- Missing trampoline rods or rods disconnected from the mat edge
- A bent or broken frame
- Missing plastic edge fittings/ broken cleats
- Enclosure support rods and attachment fittings missing or damaged
- Missing C-clips from the sockets on the frame
- Cracks or flaking in the PV coating encasing the fiberglass rods
It is highly unlikely under normal use that a Springfree FlexiRod™ will ever break or delaminate. Should you notice cracking or flaking on your trampoline rods, rest assured this is most likely sun damage caused to the “sleeve” which is a protective cover inserted over each fiberglass rod during the manufacturing process. While our sleeves are UV treated, over time and depending on the amount of UV exposure they’ve had, they may deteriorate at an accelerated rate.
GENERAL MAINTENANCE OF BASKETBALL SYSTEM
- Clean backboard using only a 100% Cotton soft cloth and glass cleaner. Clean glass as you would clean household windows. Strong cleansers will damage backboard and void warranty.
- Look over rim for torn back plates, damaged springs, bent rings, damaged eye bolts, and torn or distorted rim supports result from hanging on the rim.
- To ensure ease of operation, lubricate all pivot points at least every 6 months or as needed with a good lubricant such as WD-40.
- Inspect your pole periodically, if rust should appear, remove loose paint, sand lightly, primer and paint with exterior flat matte finish enamel paint.
If this checklist seems daunting or you just don’t have the time or the proper tools necessary, our service department is happy to complete the tasks for you. Not only are you assured the tasks get completed, but can be rest assured they are done correctly. Our staff is happy to help answer any questions or concerns and can be reached at (608) 234-5600 or info@playnwisconsin.com.