Play Domes?

I thought there was a thread about Play Domes here, but now I can't find it. Maybe it was on another forum...

Do you have one of these climbers? We're thinking about getting one since both boys seem to be more into climbing than swinging. I figure we can go to playgrounds to get the usual swingset activities, but this climber is only at one playground that I know of.

Thoughts? Reviews? Do I need to put playground material underneath? Do I need a huge perimeter around it? Does the ground need to be completely level? How heavy is it to move? We don't have the land prepped where we were going to build a swingset, but I figured that maybe we could put a Play Dome down anywhere on the lawn, and move it to the permanent location once we clear/prep the land.

I've seen families that have pea gravel under their structures, and I've seen families that just have grass... and the injuries are the same. I used to be of the mindset that you had to have something soft underneath, in case of a fall- but, now, I'd rather just have the lawn. You don't have to worry about the neighbor's cat pooping in it- like in our sand box, and you aren't going to be bringing in pocketfuls of gravel....

We just ordered one. Tbh, I had been thinking we might not need to put something under, since it didn't seem that high... But now all these posts have me freaking out, so I don't know what we will do about it. I guess dh and I need to talk about it and do some googling :)

which one did you order?

We have one and it is on the backyard lawn. Ours is smallish, about 4-5 tall in the middle and 8-9 feet wide... circle.. duh.

My ILs bought it from a store on Skymall for us (DH and sibs had one when they were little) 3 years ago... I don't see it on Skymall anymore. Ours is plastic (?PVC) so it is lightweight (though stable) and we move it around the lawn as needed (or the landscapers move it when mowing)... DH did not want something we had to anchor as he wanted to be able to use the whole lawn for parties, bounce houses, etc.

It gets played with sporadically in the spring/summer... sometimes a lot (esp with friends over... they will often throw a blanket over and build a fort, etc) and sometimes DD likes to go in there and chill out and read a book (hanging a towel over to create what shade she wants.

I get why people don't want to do the surfacing. Yes, you can still break bones and receive serious injuries even with surfacing in place. I think the major goal is to really reduce the risk of a life-threatening traumatic brain injury. You might not make a huge impact on broken arms with surfacing but I think there's pretty good evidence it can help prevent TBI?

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Originally Posted by brittone2

I get why people don't want to do the surfacing. Yes, you can still break bones and receive serious injuries even with surfacing in place. I think the major goal is to really reduce the risk of a life-threatening traumatic brain injury. You might not make a huge impact on broken arms with surfacing but I think there's pretty good evidence it can help prevent TBI?

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The only reason we don't want to is time. We have to clear trees, fill in the slope, etc. My husband started to do it last year then sprained his ankle. I don't know if he'll be able to get to it this summer, but even if he does, it won't be ready until the fall or winter. By then we've lost another season.

But, I also want the safest option. If putting it over grass (instead of the area that needs to be cleared) so that we can do it as soon as the snow melts is not safe, then we won't do it.

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Originally Posted by elephantmeg

which one did you order?

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I think it was called Lifetime Geometric Dome Climber. It was $200 and qualified for Prime on Amazon. It should get here tomorrow. I guess I was thinking it wasn't that tall and wouldn't need the surfacing. I will look into it because now I am all paranoid about it. :)

The last thread had some talk about a costco one, but I don't know if it was there last year or this year (and mine doesn't have it now).

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Originally Posted by fivi2

I think it was called Lifetime Geometric Dome Climber. It was $200 and qualified for Prime on Amazon. It should get here tomorrow. I guess I was thinking it wasn't that tall and wouldn't need the surfacing. I will look into it because now I am all paranoid about it. :)

The last thread had some talk about a costco one, but I don't know if it was there last year or this year (and mine doesn't have it now).

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Keep us posted!! I was seriously thinking about this one for our yard because we have a smaller yard. Let me know how you like it!

minor update - dh and I talked and I do think we are going to put mulch under it. Apparently I was the only one thinking we were not going to!
We haven't priced it out, but we have a big shady corner where nothing grows, so I don't think it will mess up the yard too much. Not sure what kind/how much, but time to start investigating.

This is the one I was thinking of getting: playdomes.com/unit.php?u=4x9

ETA: Removed the link because I don't want to support that company...

Oh wait, maybe this was the brand: domeclimber.com/6mini.php

I wish I could find the thread I'm thinking about!

Just wanted to update that the company I posted a link to did not return any phone calls or e-mails, and so I looked them up on the (other) BBB and they got an F rating! I found a different company, Zia Toys, who answered the phone right away when I called, and shipped right away. It should be here tomorrow!