Rainbow Play Systems--Have one?

[disneymom3]

Well, I basically had a really crappy year in real estate which is oddly leading to a much larger tax return than anticipated. (We have more taken out of DH's check than we know we need to and then don't have to deal with the whole quarterly tax thing when I actually do make money. One thing led to another and I had a loss this last year leading to us getting all of that money back.)

So, now that we have that saga out of the way, we had been planning to get a play system for the back yard for quite awhile. We were looking at the one at Costco which is about $1300 and you have to get it to your house and put it together yourself. Now we have the extra moola coming and since DH works these looooong hours and even some weekends (thus the really lousy year in real estate.) I am leaning strongly toward having someone else construct the play system.

Right now, Rainbow is having a spring sale. The systems are 30% off and they have a coupon for free delivery and installation. The set we are thinking of would be about $2500 delivered and installed. It has more stuff than the costo one and there is that whole they would put it together thing and my kids could actually play on it the day they deliver it. What a concept.

So do you have one and what do you like about it? If you have a different brand, type, whatever, do you like it and why did you decide to go with that one?

Thanks!

 

[YourMajesty]

We have a Rainbow and it's been worth the $$$ for us. It is very sturdy and very well made. If your kids are young I highly recommend them. They have good resale value too if you every want to get rid of it.

 

[becker1123]

We have one too and we love it. It's moved with us three times and is still really sturdy. My three girls really like playing on it. They can play house up in the clubhouse, slide down the fun slide, do the monkey bars and of course swing. We got the castle style (with penthouse) with two swings in the middle, and a rope swing on the end. There is also a tire swing under the castle. At the time I thought that was more than enough. Now I realize that you can never have too many swings and wish we had the three across with one on the end. When we have someone over to play, the two regular swings (we have a baby swing on the end) are always occupied and fights ensue. So, long story short, we love it, think it's worth the money but I'd recommend getting as many swings as you can.

 

[campinggal]

Another thumbs up from us too!

We purchased one when our daughter was 3. She is now 9 and still plays on it. It has been an excellent investment.

Having them come and construct it was GREAT! I don't have the time or skills to do something like that nor does DH.

Go for it!

 

[jesszac610]

Can anyone let me know what the website is for Rainbow Play systems, I'm having a real hard time trying to find it. Thanks!!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I just wanted to say we did purchase a Rainbow and the thing I liked about it was that grownups and the older kids can play on it. That is why we bought it.

 

[disneymom3]

The website is www.rainbowplay.com

Thanks for the feedback so far. Kids are 4. just 6 and 9. But the 9 yo is pretty petite so I think she has a ways to go.

 

[jekajekalynn]

My inlaws bought my ds a Rainbow castle last year. It is REALLY nice . Very pretty and adults can play on it too.

 

[mtemm]

how do you find out the price? I was checking on their website but they don't list prices. does anybody know how much this one would run?

http://www.rainbowplay.com/PlaySystems/Index.cfm?CatId=3&Id=34

 

[Cinderumbrella]

how do you find out the price? I was checking on their website but they don't list prices. does anybody know how much this one would run?

http://www.rainbowplay.com/PlaySystems/Index.cfm?CatId=3&Id=34

I think it depends on where you live, but here in Chicago that model would run about $1500-1900 depending on what you all get.

However, we are getting the one from Costco. DH refuses to pay $2300 for the same one from Rainbow that Costco sells for $1300. Since he's pretty handy he and FIL plan on putting it together themselves. They hope to get it done over 1 weekend if they work about 10 hours per day....

 

[disneymom3]

However, we are getting the one from Costco. DH refuses to pay $2300 for the same one from Rainbow that Costco sells for $1300. Since he's pretty handy he and FIL plan on putting it together themselves. They hope to get it done over 1 weekend if they work about 10 hours per day....

AHA! You see, therein lies the problem which for us makes the Rainbow one a better deal even for the extra $1000. It would actually be put together before the children graduate from college!

 

[NikiM20]

I think it depends on where you live, but here in Chicago that model would run about $1500-1900 depending on what you all get.

However, we are getting the one from Costco. DH refuses to pay $2300 for the same one from Rainbow that Costco sells for $1300. Since he's pretty handy he and FIL plan on putting it together themselves. They hope to get it done over 1 weekend if they work about 10 hours per day....

At my house that means..............."Well lets drink a beer while we look at how this is supposed to go" Then I have to call someone to come not only fix what was broken in the first place, but to fix what they messed up. My DH and FIL have broken more things, and usually my grandpa (jack of all trades) fixes them...all the while i hear him mumbling "when is she ever going to learn not to let those 2 do things around here"

 

[clh2]

We have a rainbow too. DD will be 12 this summer, and she still plays on it. She loves to read in the clubhouse.

Probably the last summer for us with this one.

In the "extras" that were offered to us, I really regret not having the wood stained before they installed it. REALLY REGRET that. Loooking back. it would have only cost about $150 more. It is really hard to get in the nooks and crannies when I stain it.

 

[Bob Slydell]

My neighbor behind us (we share a backyard) just bought this one

 

[golfgal]

When DS13 was little the house we moved into had a Sears metal swing set that instead of going side to side with the swings, etc, went front to back, kind of T shaped. The rest of the neighborhood had these Rainbow systems, guess where everyone played, our house. We had monkey bars and they didn't.

 

[luvmyfam444]

Don't have one of the Raonbow systems..BUT my bro bought the kit from Lowe's & he's VERy handy with building things & the kit said it would take 12-18hrs (I think) & it took him & a friend DOUBLE if not triple the time to build it.....
We also bought a kit that was not as fancy as his & my dh knows nothing about building things & it sat on our carport for 1 yr or so then I finally just BEGGED my dad to build me a basic "A" frame swing set (used the wood & bolts we'd already bought) & it was done in a day...

SO my point is the kits take WAYYYY longer than the estimated time (even when you KNOW what you're doing)

I think if you've got the $$ then let someone else build it - especially since you're dh is working losts of weekends & he'll have to find someone else to help him lift & hold stuff so it can't be done alone....

 

[disneymom3]

luvmyfamily--thanks! That is just the kind of information I was looking for. You have reconvinced me that this is the way to go. There is one other place in town that has some nice playsets and I am pretty sure they offer delivery and set up. I have to go check out their actual systems and prices before I go hit Rainbow before the sale is over.

Once we get the deck built that we are also paying someone else to build after DH saying on and off for the last couple of years that he would do it, we will actually be able to enjoy our huge backyard.

 

[EthansMom]

We bought the Costco system last year. The kids love it!!!!!

It did take about 50 man-hours (4 experienced builders 2 full days) to put together. But since DH's family is in construction and owns all of the appropriate power tools, construction wasn't too bad.

If you aren't handy with tools, then pay to have it constructed and delivered.

If you buy the Costco one, there is a DVD inside the box that gives tips on how to construct it. DH watched it later and wished he'd watched it BEFORE construction.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

We used to have one at oour last one. It was very nice, however, if you live in an area with carpenter bees, they really like to drill into the wood. The company replaced several of the pieces, but then started complaining about replacing the pieces, even though we were still under warranty.

It was a nice set, however.

When we moved and had our last child our 3 older kids were too old for a play set. We bought a Costco set which was fine for our needs. I'm glad that we didn't do that instead of the Rainbow set, however.

I like the Creative sets (forgot the exact name--Creative Playthings, maybe?). I think that they are a nice compromise between the Rainbow sets and the "cheap" sets.

 

[padams]

We had a rainbow play system at our last house. When we sold that house, the buyers were most concerned about wanting the playscape to remain. DH and I had no intention of moving it to our new house because DSs were outgrowing it. Nonetheless, the buyers insisted that the playscape be part of the contract. I really do think it helped sell our house.