Looking for a fun and creative way to keep up on your hockey training all year long? Why not build a synthetic ice rink? This is a great activity for families and can be enjoyedall ages! In this article, we’ll provide you with the necessary information to get started.
This is a concept that not everyone is quite familiar withNot because it’s necessarily new, but it’s not as common as it should beToday, we’re going to be going over good places to build your synthetic ice skating rink and some information about what synthetic ice is.
We’ll also include some tips on how to make sure your rink is a successSo read on and get ready to have some fun! By the time you’re done reading this article, you’ll be ready to have ice skating days whether it’s the middle of July or the middle of December!
Whether you’re a new hockey player, an old hockey player, or just someone that really enjoys ice skating for other reasons, today’s article is going to be absolutely jam-packed with information that will help you be sure that you’re ready to install your very own artificial ice rink in your own home!
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Why Use Synthetic Ice?
We get the question “why should I bother using synthetic ice?” a lot around hereWhile synthetic ice is really something incredible, not everyone understands the purpose of using this kind of ice for their homeThere are a lot of reasons why someone might be interested in this kind of thingFor example:
- The ability to use artificial ice all year round.
- Weather-proofed tiles mean that you can leave your rink up rain or shine.
- The ability to have a rink that stays in good condition even on the roughest days.
- There are also many people who use synthetic ice because they find it is more environmentally friendly than using natural ice because of all of the water that can be wasted with true ice.
Ultimately, the decision to use synthetic ice comes down to personal preferenceSome people find it easier to work with, while others feel that natural ice is a more authentic experienceIt can be hard to say for sure which you would prefer because there is no accounting for taste, but there is something that can be said about synthetic ice that cannot be said about true ice.
That is that synthetic ice doesn’t meltIt’s made out of a complex type of plastic that is resistant to heat and waterTrue ice, on the other hand, will start to melt if it’s even a little too warmYou could find an outdoor true ice skating rink reduced to puddles even in 40-degree weather.
Synthetic ice, just like true ice, isn’t affected in cold conditionsThat just gives synthetic ice a much larger range of temperaturesAnywhere from -50 to 120+, odds are your synthetic ice will be just fineThat is, assuming you get something with at least ok quality.
All of this is without mentioning the price differenceMaintaining a true ice skating rink is expensive and typically isn’t a good idea unless either you’ve got that much disposable money or you’re making a business out of renting out the rink.
If you want to get a solid ice skating rink that will save you both money, an artificial ice skating rink may be the best choice for youThis is especially true for people that want to get their skate on even in the hottest weather conditions.
Good Places to Place Your Synthetic Ice Skating Rink
Figuring out the right place to put your synthetic ice skating rink can be a hard task, especially if you’ve never done this kind of thing beforeSo, this section is going to be dedicated to helping you decide where you should set up your synthetic ice tiles.
The first thing you need to decide is how large of an area you want your synthetic ice rink to coverYou also need to think about what kind of surface you’re using for it-hard or carpetedIf the floor is hard, then a synthetic ice rink will work just as well as a regular oneHowever, if the floor is carpeted, then it might not be very durable and could potentially result in damage to your carpet.
After that, you’re going to want to determine the size of the space that you want to useThis helps a lot with ordering your tiles, you’ll just need to do a bit of math for thatOnce you’re sure about the kind of surface you’re going to be working on and how much space you want to use, you can start ordering.
If you’re worried about the surface that you’re using not being hearty enough for the task, you could always use some plywood as a base to help protect the surface as well as to provide a more suitable foundation for the rink itself.
If you’re at a loss for where to put your synthetic ice skating rink, here are a few places that could work wellWe’ll also include some drawbacks for certain ones:
In your backyard.
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- This is probably your best bet, especially if you have somewhere out of the way where you can put the rink.
In your garage.
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- This option isn’t as good as your backyard, especially if you want to park in your garage stillThat being said, this is one of the best options.
In your basement.
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- Basements are rare in some parts of the country, and where they do exist they’re typically used for storage roomsThat being said, if you have a basement you don’t use for anything this could workJust be wary of damaging the walls.
In your driveway.
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- If you want to put your rink in your driveway, odds are you’re going to have to move it a lotIf you don’t mind that, this can work fine.
In a spare bedroom.
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- We can’t recommend this one unless you take a lot of precautionsIf the room is carpeted you run the risk of damaging the carpet, and you also have a higher risk of punching holes in walls and breaking windowsBe careful if you choose this one.
At the park.
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- You cannot permanently set up your synthetic ice skating rink at a local park, but you can definitely set one up to play on it in the afternoon.
In the middle of the road.
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- Don’t do thisThis is just a bad ideaIf you want to get skating practice in public, use inline skatesYou could not move the synthetic ice skating rink out of the road fast enough for this not to be a major inconvenience both for you and anyone who drives down the road.
If you have some other non-conventional kinds of space in your home you can use those too, just be aware of breakable things that are in the areaEven someone who’s just 90 pounds could easily fall into a wall and damage it while injuring themself in the process.
The Ease of Setting Up a Synthetic Ice Skating Rink
If you’re considering putting your ice skating rink up somewhere where you’d have to move it pretty frequently, you might be wondering how realistic that is from a time and effort perspectiveSet up and tear down of this kind of rink isn’t too hard, but it can take some time.
Look at it this way, let’s assume that you’re working with tiles that are 1 foot1 foot, or 1 square footThe area that you’re working with is about 250 square feet, so you’d need a total of 250 tiles to fill up the entire space.
Set up would involve interlocking all 250 tiles and making sure that they’re aligned properly to fight off accidental trip and fall type accidentsTear down would require pulling apart all 250 tilesThat means that each time you set up and tear down, you’d have to do that.
That can take some timeSo, if that’s something that you feel like you’re up to it could be worth itThat being said, we know most people would prefer to set up their rink and forget about it entirely until it was time to move.
That’s why we recommend finding a good spot in your backyard for this projectThat’s going to be the easiest place to set up this rink without ever having to move it, which will save you a great deal of time and effort in the long run.
Building Your Dream At-Home Ice Skating Rink
Many people, especially hockey players and figure skaters, dream of having their own ice skating rink so they can get some practice in no matter what time of day it happens to beIn the past, this was nothing but a dream, but we have the technology to make it happen now.
All you need is a bit of space and some money to put into this and you could be well on your own to having the ice skating rink at your home that you’ve spent your whole life dreaming of, and then no one can tell you when you can and cannot skate, not even mother nature herself
