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Newsgroups: rec.skate
Path: yale!yale.edu!newsserver.jvnc.net!howland.reston.ans.net!gatech!rutgers!cbmnews!pulsar!grr
From: grr@pulsar.commodore.com (George Robbins)
Subject: Re: Need ideas on home-built ice rink
Message-ID: <1994Nov4.060308.16267@cbmnews.commodore.com>
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Organization: Commodore Electronics Limited
References: <39bsp8$rr1@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu>
Date: Fri, 4 Nov 1994 06:03:08 GMT
Lines: 68

In article <39bsp8$rr1@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu> ce726@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Lance V. Pawlikowski) writes:
> 
> I would like to build a simple, inexpensive ice rink that would be taken
> down in the Spring. Would using railroad ties and 6 mil plastic work or
> would the plastic have to be stronger than that? I'm sure some of you
> out there, lacking a lake, have done this and I would appreciate your
> ideas.


The following was posted a while back and seems quite sensible.  The other
item that came up was whether flooding an area of your yard for a rink would
kill off the grass - I *think* that the answer was that using plastic would
prevent this from happening, but I'm not sure.

' From: bnh@active.com (Brian Hess)
' Newsgroups: rec.skate
' Subject: Re: Ice Skating outdoors
' Date: 29 Sep 1994 07:02:27 GMT
' 
' Courtesy of Michael Kirby (more likely, really from Einar Jonlund):
' 
' 
' 	Suggestions for Making an Ice Rink
' 
' 1) Try to choose a large unobstructed, flat area of ground.  It cannot
' be too hilly or on a slope.  Level it as best you can.
' 
' 2) Construct a border of wood, such as 2x4 lumber, or use mounds of
' earth or snow to form a barrier and contain the water.
' 
' 3) *Sprinkle* water around the barrier first so that it becomes frozen
' solid.  Do *not* flood.  Sprinkle water from a hose or water can.  You
' may have to sprinkle many times before you have a solid border of ice.
' 
' 4) Start spraying the ice with the finest spray from your hose -- so
' fine that it is almost fog-like.  If you spray finely enough, the
' light fall of water will freeze almost instantly on the ground.
' Follow a pattern, walking all the way down one side and back and
' forth, so that if you start in one corner of the rink you end up in
' the diagonally opposite corner.  The corner where you started will
' probably be frozen solid by the time you have finished walking over
' the entire surface.  Then just repeat.  The spray will hardly be
' noticeable at first and may not begin to look like ice until there
' have been ten or fifteen coatings of this fine spray.
' 
' 5) Do not add water, however, if the previous spraying has not frozen
' solid.  Never add water to water on your ice rink.
' 
' 6) Keep spraying as finely as possible until you build up 1/4 or 1/2
' inch of ice.  Then you can let the water come out a little faster, but
' never let it come out in a straight, powerful stream.
' 
' 7) Do not let skaters start on your rink until you have two inches of
' ice.
' 
' 8) After the rink has been skated on and the skaters have caused snow
' to form, scrape off the snow before adding any more water.
' 
' 9) Choose a location for the rink which is shaded, possibly by a
' building, from both the sun and the wind.
' 
' 10) Allow space on the sides of the rink for snow to be shoveled off
' evenly.
' 
-- 
George Robbins - still working for,   work:   to be avoided at all costs...
but no way officially representing:   uucp:   no current notion!
Commodore Electronics Limited         domain: grr@commodore.com