Has anyone seen/does anyone have this type of sandbox?

[jess]

I am really looking to get a sandbox for my kids this year--I know I want something large and somewhat deep, so it'll hopefully be used for a few years. I'd like to stay away from chemically treated lumber, if possible. I was looking at this box:

http://littlepeoplescove.com/images/vegherb/sbxhex_mainimg.jpg
from http://littlepeoplescove.com/sandboxes/sandboxes.htm

Is anyone familiar with this type of box? Or does anyone have any other suggestions for a large box? We would be willing to build one, but am wondering if the cost of good, weather-resitant wood would be about as expensive as this 'pre-made' box. Would love your opinions! Thanks :).

[bchafin]

No experience, but that looks nice. I am also in the market for a nice sandbox.

Barb

[brittone2]

I don't have any experience w/ that one (although it looks really nice). However, if you are at all considering your own, you might find this old thread helpful. I really like the one that this family built themselves. You might be able to PM her for details on cost, etc.

http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/dcboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=12&topic_id=34038&mesg_id=34038&listing_type=search

I liked the built in storage that they incorporated.

[bluestar2]

DC play in this sandbox at pre-school and I have been tempted to get one for home. They've only had it a few months but it seems to be holding up well and is large enough for several kids to play in. It sounds like it may fit the bill for what you are looking for. When we close the cover, we put in a big ball the keep the middle of the cover from sinking in. The cover stays on pretty securely, enough to keep cats and larger animals out.

[jerzeygirl]

I just did lots of sandbox research this past weekend. We were all set to build the one that barbarhow's DH built at the link above (the plans are still available on the FamilyFun magazine website), until we ran into the issue of pressure-treated lumber being bad for kids to play around. The guys at Lowes told us they're not even allowed to cut the lumber in the store themselves because it's bad to breath in the arsenic, so they definitely wouldn't recommend it for kids. They suggested pine instead, but the wood costs 2-3x as much, and they didn't have the right size boards. Considering that the sandbox was going to cost us $300 to build to start with, that was definitely out of our budget. (I was going to PM barbarhow to ask her how she dealt with this, but her profile has been disabled and i didn't know how to contact her.)

So after leaving the store with no lumber, i came home and did research. If i were to buy a kit, i'd probably go with the hexagonal one here (http://www.sandboxbuzz.com/outdoor-sandbox.html) because it has benches, which is a dealbreaker to me. If we're gonna have a sandbox that's big enough for me to fit in it, i don't want my butt in the sand every night. Then i can't remember where, but i found a site where 2 people said they had kits like that (as well as the one you posted), and they were awful for some reason, and they were looking to replace them.

In the end, we bought regular untreated lumber, and we're going to simplify the FamilyFun plans. Maybe do a square box that's 6x6 inside (about 7.5x7.5 with the benches) and a tarp cover instead of doors. Pretty much what barbarhow did, only a bit smaller. The wood cost us about $150, i think... plus the sand, liner, etc. We also bought a can of deck sealer to use to hopefully extend the life of it a bit, but we need to read it more thoroughly to make sure it in itself is safe to use around kids before we start the work. The lumber and sand is sitting in our garage now.

[jess]

Thanks to all for the feedback--who knew that a sandbox was so complicated?....I'm still trying to work out in my mind what I should do (and trying to convince my husband that we need to spend $200+ on a sandbox ;)).

Shannon