3
GENERAL COMMERCIAL PLAYGROUND SAFET Y GUIDELINES
(Page 2 of 5)
Never overlap the safety zones of adjacent equipment. All separate play equipment must have
its own safety zone, and these
cannot overlap. If you have an existing structure with a slide exit oriented toward your new one, add a minimum safety zone to
that of the existing slide to determine how far away you need to be.
Never install playground equipment near, around, or in conjunction with swimming pools, ponds, lakes or any other bodies of
water.
CHOOSING RESILIENT SURFACE MATERIAL:
Playground equipment must be installed on a soft, resilient, energy-absorbing ground surface.
NEVER INSTALL EQUIPMENT ON
CONCRETE, ASPHALT OR EVEN GRASS!
A fall on a hard surface from even as low as a 3 foot high deck has been found to result
in serious injury to the user. For most play equipment, these surfaces should contain a minimum of 12 inches of wood fiber or
other loose fill material intended for playground surfacing use. For more information on the proper surfacing materials, call the
CPSC hotline at 1-800-638-2772.
Soft, resilient surfacing should be placed in the use zones of all equipment, as specified for each type of equipment, and at
depths to meet the critical fall heights as specified by the U.S. Product Safety Commission, ASTM standard F1487 and Canadian
Standard CAN/CSA-Z-614. Equipment should be placed to eliminate conflicting traffic patterns.
Tip:
If your surfacing is of the loose variety, checking for proper depth over time can be made easy by applying a non-removable
fluorescent tape of paint in a bright color at the proper level on each upright post. Thereafter, as the resilient material compacts
or washes away, the person responsible for regular maintenance inspections can easily see it must be replenished as the marks
become visible.
OVERHEAD OBSTRUCTIONS:
Overhead obstructions within the use zones of playground equipment that are not part of the play structure (for example, tree
limbs) shall be at least 84 inches (2130 mm) above each designated play surface or 84 inches (2130 mm) above the pivot point
of swings.
All overhead utility line clearances above the use zone areas shall comply with all local, state, and national codes, such as the
National Electrical Safety Code. For specific overhead obstruction requirements, refer to the CPSC and ASTM F1487 and use the
more stringent of the two.
