Pea Gravel users, how much did it cost???

[Jo..]

I did more and more calling around and finally found a place nearby that sells pea gravel for $165 per 14 ton load. 3 loads = 42 tons at just under $500, and that should give us 10-11" in our 40'x24' play area. We know we could have gotten away with less, but we figure at that price we'll keep some spare gravel around.

[Mikey0709]

Just bumping this up to see if anyone is local to my area - - and if so where did you call? I'm in the Philly, PA suburbs - - Chester County? Anyone?

[cimberdog]

I was pricing out pea gravel for under our Rainbow Play System and WOW it's way more expensive than I thought!

One place was $64.99/cubic yard
One place was $53.99/cubic yard
One place was $42.99/cubic yard

I have a 40x30 area to cover and want at least 8" depth - our set is tall and I have boys who are adventurous and also diggers!

I think it looks like we would have to pay $1400-1800 Plus Tax so far.

Has anyone found pea gravel from places other than landscape\patio places or in Minnesota for less?

TIA!
Kelli

[bubbaray]

We are installing a Rainbow Fiesta set this weekend. DH calculated it out and IIRC we are getting enough for a 5" depth. I pushed for 10", but no WAY was DH going for that. It was hard enough to get him to agree on pea gravel instead of wood chips (to which I and DD#1 are allergic). He priced out recycled tire chips, but they were a lot more.

I'll try to get ahold of him and post dimensions and cost.

ETA: Apparently for the Fiesta set, 6" of pea gravel is recommended -- not sure if DH got that from Rainbow or based upon the height of that particular set. The area is 20' x 20' (we've moved the slide around so the set is more square than rectangular, it works in our yard better and Rainbow OK'd that). We paid $300 delivered next day (he ordered it today, its being delivered tomorrow).

[bubbaray]

DH just sent me this.

http://www.cps.ca/ENGLISH/statements/IP/IP02-01.htm

Of course, now he and I are having an argument b/c IMO a Fiesta set is NOT a preschool sized playset, even if the children using it are at that age. Grrrrr.

12" seems like overkill, though.

[cimberdog]

Hi Melissa,
Thanks for the information! We have a Rainbow that is a few years old and is the Monster series, so the platform is five feet high. My boys are 5 & 3.

What kind of company did you find to purchase the pea gravel from? I am thinking if I can find a gravel pit it may be way less than the landscaping places. I cannot believe the difference in pricing!

[bubbaray]

Hi Melissa,
Thanks for the information! We have a Rainbow that is a few years old and is the Monster series, so the platform is five feet high. My boys are 5 & 3.

What kind of company did you find to purchase the pea gravel from? I am thinking if I can find a gravel pit it may be way less than the landscaping places. I cannot believe the difference in pricing!

I just got the last "missive" from DH. He quoted me this from the CPS article:
modifying existing playgrounds to reduce the fall height to a maximum of 1.5 m (5 ft) for preschool-aged children and 2.3 m (7 ft) for school-aged children;

So, according to *his* research, the Rainbow Fiesta set is 5' off the ground. Ergo, we need 6" of pea gravel, which in his mythical world equates to 5". ?!?!?!

We were going to get it from a large wholesale dirt/gravel place (they only deal in a certain size load) and it was $300 delivered. DH just informed me that he found it even cheaper from a local cement manufacturer -- so we are only paying $230 for that amount.

Also, DH is getting the exact amount. He's an engineer and calculated it all out (maybe that is another reason we are getting 5"? not sure). He also deals with suppliers through work, so I'm wondering if the $230 price is something he's worked out through work. Not sure and not sure I really *want* to know, if you get my drift.

I would definitely recommend calling around. If you know anyone who works in commercial construction, they might know a good supplier.

[cimberdog]

Just wanted to update this now that we have our pea gravel all in the backyard.

First thing- I am SO happy we did this! It makes for so much more fun when the kids are on the playground!!! They dig, they swing on their tummies and run their fingers through the rocks, AND, we can hide little treasures in there like GI Joes, plastic snakes, spiders, etc., and they are busy looking for those too.

Second and best thing - I found a great resource for free pea gravel. We used our local Craig's List and people were giving it away for free if we came to haul it. So, we spent Memorial Weekend hauling pea gravel out of someone's back yard. I would recommend renting a bobcat and trailer for this - we rented a smaller bobcat where you stand behind it and it was SUPER easy to operate - I drove it as much as hubby did. We probably spent $500 on rentals by the time all was said and done, but I couldn't fiund it to buy near us for less than $1400-1800.

[Jo..]

We just did pea gravel for a 50x25ish area and it is about 9inches deep (our play structure is about 5 ft off the ground). It was about 25 tons of pea gravel, but we probably "only" (LOL) needed about 22 tons. The total cost was 1500, but we did end up with some extra. The weed barrier ran another $200.

I wanted to add a couple things here. We found our weed barrier at Big Lots for about 25% of the price that it sells for at Home Depot/Lowes etc. It was $4 per roll (IIRC the roll size was 3'x50') vs 12 and change for a similar product at home improvement stores. We have a play area which is about the same size as Beth's, and i think we spent about $40 on landscape fabric/weed barrier. So check Big Lots first if you have one close!

[Jo..]

after months of planning and work, here's the result!