DIY outdoor rink (ODR)
5min read
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Self made ice skating rink in your backyard - fun for the whole family
What you’ll need:
a flat surface at least 2 x 4m
a white liner or light coloured tarp
some 2x6x8in. lumber, garden bricks or pvc pipes for the frame
a couple of days in a row of below zero temperatures
ice skates
Ice skating is fun for the whole family no matter if you play hockey, figure skate, or just skate for pleasure. A great way for your little ones to make their first steps on the ice is on a self made backyard ice skating rink. It’s quite easy to make and you don’t need a lot of materials to build one, as you can see in the supplies list above. Here are the 3 steps for building your own outdoor rink:
As soon as the weather forecast indicates a couple of days of below zero temperatures, you can start building the frame. It does not need to be fancy, but at least 10 cm (4 inches) high and strong enough to withstand the process of the water expanding during freezing (so as not to cause damage). If you don’t have some pre-existing natural borders, you’ll have to build a square or rectangular frame yourself with some 2x6x8in. lumber or pvc pipes, making sure there are no gaps where the water could leak out. We used our backyard patio space that is surrounded by the deck (one side) and a garden retaining wall (on two sides) so we only had to build a border on one side with 2x6x8in. pieces of lumber. We secured the lumber pieces with some wooden stakes and some heavy stones to make sure the water would not be able to push it open when the freezing process began.
Cover the frame with a liner or tarp. White would be best to keep the ice cool as long as possible, but any tarp will do as long as it has no holes in it. If the liner is large enough and covers the frame with some additional material leftover, it is not necessary to secure it. In our case, however, the tarp used was a bit short and needed to be clipped to the frame with metal spring clamps to make sure the water would not pull it down.
Fill the frame with water and then wait and let nature do its thing. Depending on the height of the frame and the overall size of the rink, it will take several days to freeze solid. Our little rink was frozen solid in three nights of well below -20 degree celsius temperatures.
To smooth out the top ice layer after each ice skating session, you can go from super simple to building your very own home made zamboni (homeboni) - ice rink resurfacer. For our little ice rink, a kettle with hot water usually does the trick, but with a big bucket, some small pvc pipes and a rag, you can build your own homeboni in an afternoon. The article on how to build a homeboni in one afternoon will be posted soon - sign up for our newsletter below so you don’t miss any updates.
All we needed for our odr were some metal spring clamps, some wooden stakes and pipes for the homeboni, all of which we could find at our local Home Depot for about 50 CAD. All remaining supplies were already lying around in the garage.
As you can see, a small backyard surface (2m x 4m) works out well for little kids aged 3 to 5 to take their first steps on the ice.
The tarp we used worked out okay, but for the upcoming season we will try a larger liner in white (see affiliate link below) so we can forego the clamps. We found that over time they easily get lost in the snow and start to rust.
If you have the space and really want to push the boundaries, you can try this rink from EZIce [affiliate].
On the Youtube channel from Coach Jeremy, you can see the step by step setup and how to build an ice rink the Canadian way (including a winter BBQ) and much more...
We can also recommend the skate assist, even though it can be tricky to assemble in a way that it stays together. However, it also makes for a good hockey goal or a play tent for the kids! And if you are looking for those ‘Frozen’ adjustable hockey skates (can be adjusted to the growing feet of your toddlers for at least a couple of years, so it’s not necessary to replace them every year), skate trainers, blade covers, metal spring clamps or the white liner, look no further:
For all of you who are also learning to skate or teaching your kids how to skate, we can recommend Marcel’s Hockey school Youtube channel. Not only for beginners but also if you want to improve your hockey stop or your hockey stick handling you will find a lot of helpful videos there.