Calculators and checklists
Tools that turn the rules into numbers you can act on, and the numbers into a list you can walk with.
Short answer
Use the calculators at the design stage, before equipment is chosen: fall height drives surfacing depth, surfacing depth and use zone area drive cost, and cost drives what the project can actually contain. Use the checklists after opening, on a fixed interval.
Guides in this section
- Surfacing depth calculatorEnter a fall height and a loose fill material to get the depth the CPSC handbook tested it at, the volume to order, and what to check before buying.
- Use zone calculatorWork out the protected surfacing footprint for a swing bay, a slide, a composite structure or a spinner, including the front and rear clearance a swing needs.
- Surfacing cost calculatorPrice surfacing by the square foot and compare install cost against a ten year total for wood fiber, rubber mulch, poured rubber, tiles and turf.
- Playset fit checkerEnter your yard dimensions and a playset footprint and see whether it fits once the required clearance and the swing arc are included.
- Playground budget plannerBuild a first pass playground budget: equipment, surfacing, site work, shade, installation, design fees, contingency and the annual operating cost.
- Playground inspection checklistWalkable inspection checklist for surfacing, structures, swings, slides, hardware and the site, with the thresholds that turn a finding into a closure.
- Entrapment and hazard checklistField checklist for head entrapment, protrusions, entanglement and crush points, with the gauges and thresholds each hazard is measured against.
- Mulch quantity calculatorWork out cubic feet, cubic yards, bag count, delivered cost and pickup loads for playground mulch at 6, 9 or 12 inches, with a settling allowance built in.
- ADA play area scoping calculatorCount your play components and see what Table 240.2.1.2 of the 2010 ADA Standards requires on the accessible route, including when a ramp applies.
- Playground capacity calculatorEstimate how many children a playground serves at once, throughput per 20 minutes, where the queues form, and the site area the equipment list needs.
Which tool you need
Playground decisions run in a fixed order, and the tools follow it. The footprint comes first, because use zones set how much ground has to be surfaced. Fall height comes next, because it sets how deep that surfacing has to be. Cost comes last, because it is the product of the first two.
That order matters more than it sounds. A project that picks equipment first almost always discovers that the surfacing bill is larger than expected, and the usual fix at that point is to cut shade, seating or the accessible route, which are the three things that decide whether people stay.
| If you are | Start with |
|---|---|
| Designing a new public playground | Use zone calculator, then surfacing depth, then cost |
| Buying a backyard playset | Playset fit checker, then backyard surfacing |
| Costing a project for a committee | Budget planner, then surfacing cost calculator |
| Responsible for an open site | Inspection checklist, then entrapment and hazard checklist |
What the calculators are built on
Every figure the tools use comes from a published source named on the page: critical heights and use zone rules from the CPSC Public Playground Safety Handbook1, performance requirements from the ASTM standards2, and cost figures given as broad planning ranges with the year and basis stated.
Checklists that save their place
The checklist tools keep their state in your browser, so you can work through a site in sections and come back to it. Nothing is uploaded, and the progress is tied to the device you are using, which also means it does not transfer to a colleague's phone. For a shared record, copy the findings into whatever system you keep, as described in records and documentation.
What to read alongside them
The tools give numbers. The reasoning behind those numbers sits in playground safety, the material choices sit in surfacing, and the money sits in planning and cost. If you are working on a home playset rather than a public site, backyard playsets is the section to read first.
Frequently asked questions
Are the calculators free?
Yes, all seven, with no account and no sign-in. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere: the calculations run in your browser, and the checklists save their state in your own browser storage so you can work through a long list in sections.
Which tool should I start with?
For a new project, start with the use zone calculator to get the footprint, then the surfacing depth calculator, then the surfacing cost calculator. For a home playset, start with the playset fit checker. For an existing site, start with the inspection checklist.
Can I rely on these for a compliance decision?
No. They are planning tools built on published guidance, and each page names the source it uses. A conformance decision belongs to a qualified inspector working against the current edition of the applicable standard and your local code.
Sources
- 1Public Playground Safety Handbook. US Consumer Product Safety Commission, 2010Publication 325
- 2