D.I.Y. kids pallet play deck

[MrChad]

We moved in into our first home which was on a hill with no flat area to play. Flattening the rear yard was out of the budget so I came up with a way we could use the space wisely to achieve an entertaining play area for us and our children to enjoy. 1.5 years in the making, working on it most weekends and a few nights a week shoveling in the dark after work while only using hand tool as we couldn't get any machinery in, we now have a fun multi purpose entraining area. All materials were second hand, free or upcycled. The whole backyard was under 5K.

Here's a before photo.

Materials

Treated deck pallets, treated posts, and obviously all your standard screws, bolts and paints etc

Tools

Hand tools and Ryobi Power tools

Steps

Step 1

First step was removing all the trees and the concrete BBQ to see what I was working with. The lawn areas was made first so we had something to start enjoying and made it less muddy during winter. 

Step 2

From there I measured up the deck area to a height and length we could still watch from the loungeroom window as well as measuring how many decking pallets I would need. 

Step 3

From there I resourced all the pallets, treated post, cubby, slide etc from marketplace, or give aways until I had all the items to start building.  The cubby was transformed and painted and the pallets were all screwed together in sections ready to screw to the posts. 

Step 4

22 concreted treated posts hold the deck up in sections all bolted together and stained to protect the wood. From there the trampoline and cubby was lifted up ready for the railing.

Step 5

We then install the railing posts and safety wire to protect the kids from falling over.  Then it was time to enjoy.

Step 6

Step 7

Step 8

Step 9

[KatieC]

Hi @MrChad,

First, let me extend a warm welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community! It is awesome you have joined us and thank you for sharing your fantastic kids play deck. Also, CONGRATS on your first home! That is an exciting adventure on its own but you have faced challenges and through your resourcefulness ingeniously developed a plan to make the most of your sloped backyard. If someone finds inspiration from your project and wishes to embark on their own, would you be able to offer any advice or guidance?

Projects similar to yours often receive recognition in our Top Ideas articles, such as our Top 10 most popular kids projects. Perhaps your project will be showcased there someday! We hope Bunnings Workshop continues to be a great source of advice and inspiration for you.

Katie

[MrChad]

Hi @KatieC 

Thank you for the warm welcome and kind words towards my project. I really appreciate it. I absolutely love Bunnings, Ryobi and D.I.Y upcycling. Its an obsession now.

This project was definitely a challenge and a lot of hard work with blood sweat and tear throughout the whole process. My wife was so patient throughout the process as the yard wasn’t always tidy and had so many materials sitting around at times.  Apart from the actual deck and post installation, everything was completed by myself. I feel we have made such a great space for the size and slope.

Sure, I’d love to offer any advice or guidance to anyone else wanting to try a D.I.Y project like this. I have so many more projects I’d love to share. I would feel honoured to have my project featured in the Top 10 most popular kids projects. That would be amazing, Fingers crossed.

Thank you once again for reaching out.

MrChad.

[KatieC]

Hi @MrChad,

That is really wonderful! We cannot wait to see your next project. 

Katie

[Dave-1]

Afternoon @MrChad 

Now that is reusing to the max! Love the fact that you have gone through and reused a bunch of products. 

Thats a huge amount of effort to have done, from the holes for those 22 pots to even leveling the ground, let alone buiding that type of deck. Would you build another like it or have you learnt things tha you would change for next time?

I also like how you drew up plans and then worked out what you needed. A nice way to build up a project.

Worth the effort for sure!

Dave

[MrChad]

Hi @Dave-1 ,

Thanks mate. It was definitely a challenge. Having an idea on paper is one thing, actually constructing it was another. The lawn area was done on the fly with just a mental vision, and the deck area was constructed as we went based on a drawing with no real dimension guide. That’s what D.I.Y is right. I had absolutely no knowledge on structure reinforcement or legal rail requirements before this, so a lot of research was done as we went. The hardest part was digging the holes getting every post level in rock hard clay so the pallets could slide over the top in the correct spot.  (thank god for string line and long timber beams). The other hard part was getting under each section to bolt the decking pallets to the posts. There was not much room on the left side. The deck is joined together in 3 double sections with timber reinforced beams through the pallets holding them together, so lining it all up under neither to bolt up was frustrating.

The front is also in sections so if I need to get underneath, I just remove one pallet section. The built in trampoline is also removable so once our little ones grow out of it I can detach and replace with full pallets to now have an adult BBQ entertaining area. We’ve had 5 adults and 6 kids up there with no issues or movement.

Would I do this again?  Absolutely, though I would make the structure more simple like a traditional deck with frame and decking boards. Being unknow ledged I thought joining pallets and putting them on posts would be easy. That was not the case.