We want to put soft playground material under the feet of every child to catch them when they fall down.

How to judge fall protection

The best way to judge fall protection is the simple eye test. This isn’t anyone’s favorite especially in our world of data and results but it can work in extreme circumstances. You don’t have to be a genius to see that the hard, compact dirt surface your child is playing on will not be too forgiving to anyone who falls down. Same thing goes with a nice engineered wood fiber surface. If there is a soft playground surface with absorbent and safe materials, the simple eye test makes you feel better about the latter example here than the former.

Contact The Right Person

 I’d be willing to bet that if you walked up to another mom in the park while you are watching you kids play on the playground and sit down next to her and say, “What do you think this material’s fall protection is?” you would get a weird look. We said at the very beginning of this article that there isn’t an easy formula that you can just do in your head to find out the fall protection of your playground surfacing. While this is true, someone somewhere has to know how safe these playground materials are. 

The beginning point for each person and each playground is going to be different but ask yourself, who would know the answer here. If it is your community playground, contact someone in the local government. If it is your child’s playground at school, talk to someone in the administration. People will either know the answer or be able to find someone to get you the answer. 

Do Your Own Research

Like most things in today’s world a simple Google search will prove very telling. Most dealers and playground surfacing manufacturers post information about their products. For example, Sof’Fall is proud to share the fact that our engineered wood fibers boast a 25 foot fall protection. We are also happy to answer any other questions you might have about our product. Do some research and we promise you’ll at least get a little bit better understanding about what your children are playing on. 

If you are researching soft playground surfaces then you have probably heard about engineered wood fiber. And rightly so might we add.

What Is Engineered Wood Fiber?

Engineered wood fiber is made from the 100 percent virgin soft wood at the heart of the tree. These soft fibers are cut to one to two inch lengths. They’re soft enough to cushion a child if she falls from playground equipment.

They’re also firm enough to enable wheel-chair bound children to play on the playground surface. Since they’re fibrous, rain passes right through them, enabling children to play on them directly after a rain. The wood fibers are then placed around the play equipment.

How Engineered Wood Fiber Works

A playground is usually covered with a layer of gravel for drainage and to prolong the life of the engineered fibers. A layer of landscaping textile is placed atop this to add to the drainage.

Because they’re fluffy upon delivery, the fibers will need two to six weeks to settle. In this state, the fibers aren’t handicapped accessible. Once it’s compacted, however, the playground will be ADA compliant. Playground owners can have the fibers compacted upon delivery, but it takes a little extra to accomplish. After that, though, the playground will be good to go.

Engineered wood fiber playground covering should be installed to a depth of nine inches for optimal benefit. The life of the wood fibers is estimated to be about eight years or more, providing proper maintenance is observed.

This constitutes raking the scattered wood fibers beneath the playground equipment. Topping it off with a layer of wood fibers is recommended to maintain a soft cushion upon which children can safely play.

Benefits Of Sof’Fall Engineer Wood Fiber

Wood fibers are ideal for playground materials due to not including hard parts like bark and twigs. They’re all natural and not chemically treated. Children can play on them without becoming ill. Other benefits include:

• Easy on the budget with lower installation costs
• Attractive appearance
• Safer for children to play on as opposed to synthetic or other types of soft playground surfacing
• Supportive of children in wheelchairs, on crutches, or using walkers
• Fully tested and IPEMA certified with a ten year warranty and ten million dollars liability insurance
• ADA compliant

Your Best Option

Children are amazing. They launch themselves off any available surface, tumble about, climb anything worthy of adventure, and fall often. Having something soft to fall on is what is most important here.The amazing part is that, nine times out of ten, they don’t break their bones. All that launching, tumbling, and falling is indicative of great imagination and the search for fun.

As parents, we all want to see our children having fun. It makes sense to provide them with a soft carpet upon which to have it. Engineered wood fibers were invented with little ones in mind. Superior protection is  the name of the game

 

There are more than one good option when it comes to playground surfacing. At Sof’Fall we strive to be the best option because we believe when it comes to where our kids play and their safety while playing you can settle for nothing but the best.  

Hard Materials

In the 20th century playground surfacing was made out of whatever you wanted to put there. This lead to a lot of dangerous playground materials being used. Hard materials include things like cement, concrete, and asphalt. Oftentimes (but not always) these tend to be a cheaper option but they are certainly less safe.

“Simply put, hard materials do not meet playground safety standards anymore.”

Hard materials provide the worst fall protection for our kids. Children are going to fall down and when they fall on these hard surfaces their chances for serious injury skyrocket. Minimizing these chances is what Sof’Fall is all about.

Dirt or Grass

We almost want to count dirt as a hard surface because of its total lack of fall protection. On top of this, dirt will eventually wear down and uneven surfacing will present itself. An uneven surface opens the door for twisted ankles, tripping, and all kinds of injuries. It is not an ideal playground surface. 

Loose Gravel

Loose gravel is a bad idea for a number of reasons. While it has a tiny bit better fall protection than other hard materials they are still rocks. They can be scattered and abused by unruly children and can be used to cause harm. Not only this, but loose gravel will not allow you to be an ADA compliant playground.

Safe Playground Surface Materials

Lest you think we are extreme critics and pessimists we want to leave you with a safe playground material. Engineered wood fibers are non-toxic, hydro-friendly, and have the highest fall protection on the market. If you are building a playground, look into getting Sof’Fall engineered wood fibers for the sake of your children.

Falling down is part of childhood. Sof’Fall wants to be there to catch our kids when they fall. Not if they fall, but when. Our engineered wood fibers can provide the safest area for you children to play (and fall.)

Safe Playground Surfacing

One our biggest goals can be summed up in three words: safe playground surfacing. Sof’Falls engineered wood fibers are one of the absolute safest options when it comes to playground surfacing. Sof’Fall has a 25 foot fall protection, the gold standard when it comes to playground safety. Having Sof’Fall there to catch your child when they fall is one of the best ways to minimize the damage that can be cause by an accident on the playground.

Landing on a soft surface

We work hard at Sof’Fall to make playgrounds as safe as we can. Their are so many benefits for children when it comes to playing outside that we cannot afford for parents to give up on the idea of taking their kids to a playground. By having the right, soft playground surface you can feel good about your playing on your local park. With Sof’fall, compaction of your playground surface is very important. When these standards are followed the way they should, they offer a great and safe place for children to play. 

When a child lands on Sof’Fall it doesn’t mean that they will stand up giggling and smiling. What it does mean is that when they fall they have a much better chance of getting back up unharmed. On top of this, Sof’Fall is a non-toxic playground surface that is made from recycled materials. It is a win for the enviorment, a win for the parents and most important of all, it is a win for the children.