How Much Playground Chip Do I Need?

How much playground chip do I need? It’s a question where the answer is unfortunately not a straight forward one. The answer relies on several different factors.

So, in today’s guide, we’re going to go through every individual factor with you. By the end, you’ll have everything you need to know to properly estimate how much playground chip you need for your playground.

Now, it’s important to remember that these will always be estimations so it’s best to lean on the side of caution here. There is inevitable wastage during the installation process and each bag of playground chip is approximately 1m³ but not guaranteed. Therefore, it’s always best to order more than you anticipate needing.

Surface area

The first thing that you need to calculate is the overall surface area that you want to cover. This can be as simple as multiplying the length of the two sides of the playground together if your play area is rectangular in shape.

However, if you’ve got an irregularly shaped playground, it might need a little bit of more complicated calculation to get a more accurate estimate. Try breaking the area up into manageable squares.

Calculating the area

In this example, our play area is 25 meters wide, by 30 meters long. In order to calculate the surface area, we simply multiple 25 by 30.

25m x 30m = 750m2

From this, we know that our playground has a surface area of 750 meters squared.

Depth

Next, you need to multiply the surface area by how deep you would like your playground chip to be, in order to give the total volume of playground chip needed.

Our British Standard Playground Chip is tested in accordance with BS EN1177 to a height of 30cm. Play Chip should be filled to a min. depth of 20cm. In this instance, we’ll be playing it extra safe and filling to a depth of 30cm (more on why in a moment).

So, we multiply the surface area by the depth. However, this is where it’s important to pay attention to your units of measurement. If we were to multiply 750 by 30, we could end up over purchasing by a factor of 100. So remember to convert your units to be the same.

30cm is 0.3m.

750m² x 0.3m =  225m³

As a volume, we know that we need to fill 225 meters squared with playground chip. However, there are a few extra things that you will need to take into account before putting in an order.

Shift

Playground chip is a fantastic, clean and safe product for playground surfaces, however, it’s still a loose particle. It’s going to shift around slightly under use. Therefore, we gave ourselves a buffer of 10cm extra depth, so there’s less chance of an area not having enough coverage after a few years of play.

Replacement

As a natural and environmentally friendly product, Playground Chip will begin to degrade over time. It’s the price we pay for having an environmental, clean, and non-toxic product on your playground. So, as time goes by, it may need to be “topped up” or replaced.

We highly recommend that you take the time to consider the refreshment needs of your playground chip installation. With use, you can expect to get 2-4 years out of your playground chip. At which point, a 50% top-up of material will refresh the look and keep the playground safe. However, more frequent 25% top-ups can be beneficial to the aesthetics of your playground.

To discuss your playground chip requirements contact our friendly sales team.