Wooden Swing set- on a budget update pg 3

[mommybrown]

Has anyone purchased a swing set in the last year? We moved into a new house last summer and I am hoping to get our kids ages 8,6 and almost 3 a swing set. We had a metal framed set before but I am leaning towards a wooden one this time. My only concern is that dd 8 is almost 4 feet 8 and weighs 85lbs. I want something sturdy. I would love a rainbow or gorilla set but the price is way up there. I am hoping to stay under 1000. Any suggestions?

These are the ones I am leaning towards:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=8222491

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3436594

My favorite but too pricey
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=9124330

Thanks for you help!!!!

 

[FLAngie]

Have you checked out Lowes or Home Depot. They sell the kits and you can build in stages. We bought one two years ago and have just been adding to the set as we have extra money.

 

[Dizneydaz]

I put swings on our patio cover. My DD9 loves it and the neighbor's kids liked it so much that I bought another one about a year later and now we have two. They love to swing out over the grass (and jump off). It was a wonderful solution for us.

I bought the swings (wooden) at Ikea and they are very strong-I've even used them. The attach very securely to the headers on our patio. And when DD is over swings, It'll be easy to take down. Unlike the playhouse that we had that she never used.

I think the swings were about $14 plus extra for the ropes, hardware to hang. Since I got the ones from Ikea I've now seen similar ones at other stores (it was either Home Depot or Lowes)

 

[CarlisleMom]

We bought our wooden swing set about 5 years ago. BJ's had the best price. We supplied all the labor but everything was pre-drilled.

 

[Mickeyorbust]

We bought one a little over a year ago from toys-r-us. Got it on sale, of course. I did a lot of research before buying one. Unless wal-mart's changed manufactures in the past year, their wood swing sets are pretty flimsy. The wal-mart near us always has one setup outside the store. I wasn't impressed by it. We love, more importantly DD7 loves, the one we bought from TRS. It's sturdy and the price wasn't too bad. Only draw back was putting it together. There was absolutley nothing preassembled.

 

[ohiosam74]

Another vote for Home Depot here, they have all different kinds, kits you can buy or individual parts to make whatever you want. For a few hundred dollars you could make a very nice, very sturdy set.

 

[Dizneydaz]

Oh, and if you really want one of the sets, have you checked craiglist? When people want to get rid of them, a lot of times they'll sell them for a good deal. You usually have to disassemble and haulaway but you'll save a lot.

ADDED-I just checked craigslist for Illinois (I picked Chicago-not knowing your area) and there are several sets listed, along with pic. check it out.

 

[wall*e2008]

Try craigslist. Sometimes owners are happy to just have you remove it.

 

[KJF]

For the ones from Home Depot or Lowe's, how's the maintenance? I'm concerned about splinters on the kids - DD had a nasty one from the wooden set at the in-law's house & I've been worried about getting a wooden one now. But, I really think it's time for the plastic kiddie one to go!

 

[Vacation Lover]

Great suggestions above. We looked at Lowes and Home Depot and thought those were good quality. Craigslist is another good option.

Do you have a locally owned swingset place near you? We have a mom and pop place that sells swingsets, wooden sheds, patio furniture, etc. Anyway, we ended up buying a demo model off of their lot for a significant discount. The new models are out and they wanted to move the old ones to make room for the new. It was still pricey, but there might be sets in your price range. We ended up with a $2800 set for $1500. You probably will need to negotiate; she originally offered me the set for $2200; when I told her $1500 was our limit, we were able to work something out. This included delivery and set up.

 

[mommybrown]

I have checked craigslist- Chicago is about 2 hours away and we do not have a truck so hauling would be difficult. We are in central Il- so not much listed around us.
We do have a Lowe's & Home depot so I will check them as well. I though that I remembered wal-mart's not being as sturdy in the past. Thanks for the suggestions!!!

 

[mjkacmom]

We have a rainbow, which cost about $3000. We bought a $500 one from ToysRUS when my oldest 2 were little, but it just wasn't sturdy enough once they got bigger, and more kids played on it. A stronger, simple swingset is better than a fancy, flimsy swingset. When dd10's friend come over, I'm glad it's not going to tumble - they're pretty rough on it!

This swingset is probably the best investment I made. It's 6 years old, good as new, and gets played on every single day!

 

[mrudman]

I second the pp about looking at BJ's or Sam's club...

We bought ours from Sam's Club about 4 yrs ago.. it all came pre-drilled, just spent a full weekend putting it together (mostly just my dad and I), and it is EXCELLENT quality.

Where a lot of the sets from walmart/toys r us are 2x2's or 4x4's planks, ours is 4x6's at the swing/monkey bar side, and 4x4's the rest of it. All made out of cedar and redwood. It is an extremely sturdy set, and DH and I both play on it also, lol!

DD's have never had any problems with getting any splinters... it has held together perfect so far, and was a fairly decent price (if I remember right, we paid about $1200 tax and all).

Tried to find a pic I had taken during better weather times, but couldn't find one, so just ran out and took a pic... enjoy the snowy view if you're not from an area where ya get any, lol!

 

[melc0305]

We bought ours at Costco a few years ago for about $1300. It is very good quality for the price. They still sell it - we see it in there every spring for about the same price. It is cedar with a rock climbing wall, slide, "fort", 3 swing spaces and monkey bars.

Only downside is that you have to assemble it yourself. It was pre-drilled, but still a PITA.

 

[mommybrown]

MRUDMAN- Thanks for the pic- I think with dd's size I will want to have something that has larger pieces of wood. We have had snow but today it is a balmy 56!!!
I like the idea of being able to add on to the set as money allows. Now I just need to get dh on board. I know my kids will get the money's worth and it is nice to have a yard that the kids want to play in. I told dh that instead of buying birthday presents we would buy the swing set. My kids get so much from family that they wouldn't miss getting a wrapped present from us. He just seems to think they won't use it. Thanks for the tips. I am hoping to get something by the end of March/early April.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

Definitely check Costco or Sam's. You will get the most for your money. Costco sets are by Sun Ray, which I read somewhere are made by Rainbow. Couldn't swear to it, though, since I can't remember who told me that. As a PP said, they are about $1300 in the warehouse. If you don't have a Costco near you, you can order online but it is a bit higher.

 

[mrudman]

I think your kids would be ecstatic to get a swingset as a b-day present! I'm sure it would get years of use... my dd's still play on theirs almost every day (as you can see, lol)... and lots of times, they'll have little "girl meetings" with their friends in the clubhouse.

We have several additional "swing-type" pieces that we swap out too.. i do like that most of the nicer pieces sold can just clip right on the carabiners with this one.. We so far have bought a 2-person glider type, a baby swing (for my niece & nephew) , and my dad made dd's a rope ladder that can also hook up on 1 of the swing spots.

 

[Bren's Mom]

We got our Creative Playthings set from a dealer about 2 years ago. It was the end of the season and we got it, delivered, for $1000. The set had to be put together by us but dh and dss had no problem doing that.

 

[wishtdream]

Has anyone purchased a swing set in the last year? We moved into a new house last summer and I am hoping to get our kids ages 8,6 and almost 3 a swing set. We had a metal framed set before but I am leaning towards a wooden one this time. My only concern is that dd 8 is almost 4 feet 8 and weighs 85lbs. I want something sturdy. I would love a rainbow or gorilla set but the price is way up there. I am hoping to stay under 1000. Any suggestions?

These are the ones I am leaning towards:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=8222491

http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3436594

My favorite but too pricey
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=9124330

Thanks for you help!!!!

Can you swing $1169

We just bought this one from BJ's http://shop.bjs.com/Adventure-Plays...VproductId44521334VVcatId433589VVviewprod.htm

It was delivered to our back yard yesterday. it is almost identical to the walmart one.

 

[mommybrown]

We do not have BJ's around where we live. I have looked into Sam's and they have some priced well. We haven't set a budget but I know my DH and he will not want to spend a lot. I would pay more for a quality one that all my kids could play on. I just haven't gotten DH to commit to a dollar amount. I am still checking craigslist daily for a good used one. We have a little tykes climber that I am planning on selling to offset the cost as well. I may have to get creative to help defray the cost.