Backyard "Patch"

ONskater74 · November 13, 2012, 08:39:13 PM

I'm wondering who on here has tried their hand at a backyard rink? I made one last year but the weather only allowed me a week of decent ice

Weather permitting I'm trying again this winter. Rink size is 20' x 40', enough for figures except serpentines. My lot slopes slightly and it is a pain to find a spot. Going to try levelling a flat spot in the garden.
Hopefully this will allow me to practice daily once things freeze up. Oh for a good old fashioned winter

rinkrat · November 20, 2012, 08:48:21 AM

I also had a backyard rink last winter, and I also was unable to use it often due to the warm winter. I am going to create one again this year and I'm hoping the winter is a little colder this year.

SynchKat · November 20, 2012, 05:03:25 PM

I have seen elaborate backyard rinks up where my parents live complete with benches and lights. We never did one growing up because my mom didn't want us ruining our blades on outdoor ice and my dad didn't want to ruin the grass. The club at which I skate is apparently thinking of putting up an outdoor rink so the hockey enthusiasts can play outside. Only problem is you need a cold winter.

iomoon · November 20, 2012, 08:46:25 PM

Quote from: ONskater74 on November 13, 2012, 08:39:13 PM
I'm wondering who on here has tried their hand at a backyard rink? I made one last year but the weather only allowed me a week of decent ice
Weather permitting I'm trying again this winter. Rink size is 20' x 40', enough for figures except serpentines. My lot slopes slightly and it is a pain to find a spot. Going to try levelling a flat spot in the garden.
Hopefully this will allow me to practice daily once things freeze up. Oh for a good old fashioned winter

I envy you cold weather people. The coldest it gets over here is 34 degrees at night.

Good luck with the rink!

ONskater74 · November 22, 2012, 06:49:33 PM

iomoon, ha ha

Last year my rink was a wading pool most of the winter. There was a real burst of bitter cold early on, like 2 weeks, and I made the rink, then it remained above freezing and muddy all winter.

Decided to make the rink this year 28" x 45', leveled the site this morning. Rink liner arrives tomorrow, I
ll use last years smaller liner as a ground sheet.

Now just need cold...

techskater · November 23, 2012, 11:07:18 AM

It arrived in Chicago over night - 29 degrees after it being 65+ yesterday!!

PinkLaces · November 25, 2012, 12:56:06 PM

My neighbor scrapes our pond and makes a hockey rink for his kids. I don't usually skate on it though because it is tiny. I could probably do a spin but there is very little room to set up a jump. My yard is hilly for a rink.

ONskater74 · November 25, 2012, 04:44:47 PM

Grey skies today and light snow in the morning. I set up the rink boards and got the liner in. filled it about 1/2 way. Early yet but needed water in to keep iy in place. Rain will help fill it.....

Wondering how to make a "zamboni"... any suggestions? I was thinking a barrel on a small wagon with a short 6' boom... 1 1/2 pvc with holes drilled every few inches....? broom the ice off first then sprinkle on a thin layer of water. I don't want the surface pebbbled though...hmmm. $:-\$

platyhiker · November 26, 2012, 08:12:23 AM

I would guess that you need to do something to spread the water evenly to get any decent resurfacing - think of that big wet cloth that drags behind the zamboni. I'd also guess that a really wide squeegee might do a moderately good job of spreading the water around fairly evenly.

I have no experience with making backyard ice, so take my suggestion with an appropriately critical eye.

ONskater74 · November 26, 2012, 08:44:57 AM

Yeah, that dragging cloth thing, I was thinking about that... Wonder what its made of to keep it from freezing stiff as a board?

Kim to the Max · November 26, 2012, 08:58:59 AM

This website might give you an idea:

http://www.nicerink.com/

Timmy5 · November 28, 2012, 06:39:32 PM

ON skater74,
My cousin and I run the Village ring, using a 10,00 sq. ft. liner. If you are paying for the water, you can figure the cost to fill your rink. Find the cubic feet of your rink CF= length x width thickness. All measurements need to be in feet, as 6in. deep equals .5 feet. The magic number is 7.5 gallons per cubic foot. This will tell you how much water you need and also cost. Our ring hols about 45,000 gallons and is only 5 inches deep. Also line the inside of you ring with rough cut boards, to prevent the liner from being cut or damaged. Hope this helps.

Crowbar

ONskater74 · December 01, 2012, 04:43:20 PM

Holy cow, Crowbar

That's one Big Mama rink liner

I just run an irrigation pump with a footvalve down an old dug well on my property.... fill with a 2" pipe. Water I've got...subzero temps are the question. It has been dang cold here and ice is over an inch thick, but the forecast is for plus 5 to plus 10 over the next couple days...so who knows.

I wish municipalities around here still had outdoor rinks, but I haven't seen one in years. Politicians have no vision

Orianna2000 · December 02, 2012, 09:09:12 AM

I just wanted to remind folks to be careful about using local ponds for ice skating. I know most of y'all are talking about do-it-yourself rinks, which are safe enough, but someone mentioned an actual pond and those can be so tricky to gauge whether or not they're safe. Two or three winters ago, we had a long cold spell and the pond next to our house froze. My hubby kept joking about how he was going to pull out his skates and give it a try. Well, some kids in a nearby neighborhood decided to do just that. I don't know the whole story, but the ice broke and they fell through, ended up in serious condition at the local hospital.

Isk8NYC · December 02, 2012, 09:31:13 AM

Good point. If you do have a pond on your property, put a ladder nearby.
If someone falls in, a rescuer can slide the ladder out to help so that they don't have to go on the ice.

ONskater74 · December 03, 2012, 09:37:41 PM

ponds that just collect runoff or are springfed are safer than those which have a stream or ditch flowing through. I used to cut ice off our pond on the farm and it was a dug pond with a ditch flowing into and out of it. Some spots would be a foot thick or more and other spots would be half that, where the current eddied it would be open or just a thin film of ice..I got lots of soakings as my feet broke through cutting backwards with the chainsaw One second solid, the next your boots are full

Frozen feet while sweating buckets lifting and stacking huge blocks of ice. I don;t miss it.....

Janie · December 04, 2012, 01:59:45 PM

Quote from: ONskater74 on December 03, 2012, 09:37:41 PM
ponds that just collect runoff or are springfed are safer than those which have a stream or ditch flowing through. I used to cut ice off our pond on the farm and it was a dug pond with a ditch flowing into and out of it. Some spots would be a foot thick or more and other spots would be half that, where the current eddied it would be open or just a thin film of ice..I got lots of soakings as my feet broke through cutting backwards with the chainsaw One second solid, the next your boots are full Frozen feet while sweating buckets lifting and stacking huge blocks of ice. I don;t miss it.....

What were you cutting ice for?

ONskater74 · December 05, 2012, 07:41:03 AM

Ice for the summer. Pile it under sawdust. For the cottage. Have solar panels now, so don't need ice....

Handy dandy refrigerator thingies...

Janie · December 05, 2012, 01:58:21 PM

Quote from: ONskater74 on December 05, 2012, 07:41:03 AM
Ice for the summer. Pile it under sawdust. For the cottage. Have solar panels now, so don't need ice.... Handy dandy refrigerator thingies...

That's cool! Free refrigeration!

PinkLaces · December 07, 2012, 04:28:13 PM

Quote from: ONskater74 on December 03, 2012, 09:37:41 PM
ponds that just collect runoff or are springfed are safer than those which have a stream or ditch flowing through. I used to cut ice off our pond on the farm and it was a dug pond with a ditch flowing into and out of it.

This is the pond that borders my neighbor's yard and mine. We both have hilly yards and have drainage easements that flow into the pond that borders our yards. There is a covered drain at the back that goes into the marsh land behind the development. He left that area weedy so kids would stay to the middle. The pond is maybe 2 feet deep plus the neighbor also does a little flooding. Like I said, I don't skate on it, but his kids do. He is out there with them.

ONskater74 · January 21, 2013, 07:39:25 PM

Well, rink weather is here at last. Flooded it the past 2 days. Another 2-3 times and it will be where I want it...hopefully no snow to wreck the finish... Forecast is for -15 to -20 Celsius all week. If it works out I'll try to take a pivture/video when it's done.

ONskater74 · January 26, 2013, 05:36:13 PM

Hey, had 2 hours free skating today

Bad news is that I forgot how uneven natural ice is. There was a few air pockets that I had to avoid or they would trip me....was working on back inside eights and caught myself twice in them..ouch! Other than that it was great. Scraped it off swept it, then flooded again afterwards. looks really glassy smooth now. I used my custom designed/built scribe and it really helps me starting out. On public ice I don't use it as there is no place to safely set it.
Anyhow, anyone else skating outdoors now?

Nice to be able to do a patch anytime

tookyclothespin · January 28, 2013, 12:23:38 PM

I am so jealous! I wish I could do this but I live in a small apartment building. Contemplating flooding the neighbor's flat gravel parking area when they leave for work though...think they'll mind? haha Just kidding...maybe.

Clarice · January 28, 2013, 01:12:38 PM

Okay, so a group in the city where my rink is wanted to make an outdoor rink for a special ice festival event this past weekend. They laid down a plastic liner, recruited the fire department, and basically tried to fill it up like a wading pool and let it freeze instead of laying down thin layers. Of course the water burst free, ran downhill like a little tidal wave, and flooded the street. I wish I could find the news footage to link it - it was pretty funny. I think the event has been postponed indefinitely.

jjane45 · January 28, 2013, 01:37:14 PM

Quote from: Clarice on January 28, 2013, 01:12:38 PM
Okay, so a group in the city where my rink is wanted to make an outdoor rink for a special ice festival event this past weekend. They laid down a plastic liner, recruited the fire department, and basically tried to fill it up like a wading pool and let it freeze instead of laying down thin layers. Of course the water burst free, ran downhill like a little tidal wave, and flooded the street. I wish I could find the news footage to link it - it was pretty funny. I think the event has been postponed indefinitely.

Disastrous... I feel for the residents. Wonder if the group also got fined by the city?

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Backyard "Patch"