So with a lot of labor and a little money, I built a playable volleyball court. I still need to improve it (lighting is the priority), but it did the job. Here's the rough cost rundown, excluding my "free" labor:
1) Posts: $30
2) Net: $40
3) Lines, stakes: $20
4) Hooks, fasteners: $20
5) Site prep: $50 (including weed killer)
6) Sand: $360
7) Fence, metal stakes: $50
8) Lighting: $60 (but used existing owned lighting, extension cord)
9) Plastic sheeting: $60
10) Watering: $20 (hose + sprinkler)
So that's about $710 total! I don't think one can build a working court much cheaper than that.
Possible enhancements:
1) Permanent, better lighting (working on this right now)
2) side fencing (balls roll to side more often than I thought)
3) perimeter sand (there is very little sand left for out of bounds)
4) water/sprinkers (currently I use a 100' foot hose)
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Playing surface protection
In the long-run, I imagine weeds will grow through the sand, since the court will be seldom used. And I imagine it's possible a flooding could wash the sand away. So I opted for some black plastic landscape sheeting. I figured it would prevent weed growth by blocking both sun and water. I found some rolls measuring 10'x100' for $20 each online, so I bought two (totaling 2000 square feet). I then laid them out length wise (so two ~65'x10', two ~35'x10' in on strip). I realized that the wind will easily blow it away, so I grabbed any heavy or large object I could find and placed them on it. I also ran rope across the middle.
Post-play notes:
1) The material has done a very good job at eliminating weeds. There are no weeds underneath it, while there are small weeds in the unprotected parts.
Post-play notes:
1) The material has done a very good job at eliminating weeds. There are no weeds underneath it, while there are small weeds in the unprotected parts.
Fencing
I bought some "temporary" plastic fencing from Home Depot, 4' high, 100' long for $25. Here's what worked:
1) 50' of fence at each end
2) About every 10', drive a metal stake in to the ground. This metal stake should fit inside 3/4" PVC pipe. Rebar seemed to be too thin.
3) Place PVC over the metal stake.
4) Attach fence to each PVC pipe using screws and zip ties.
Post-play notes:
1) It's not perfect, but it seemed to do the job.
2) I put the fence about 6-8 feet outside the court. I probably should have them 10 feet outside, since balls bounced over a bit too often.
3) I may add fencing on the sides too, since errant shots liked to go that way.
1) 50' of fence at each end
2) About every 10', drive a metal stake in to the ground. This metal stake should fit inside 3/4" PVC pipe. Rebar seemed to be too thin.
3) Place PVC over the metal stake.
4) Attach fence to each PVC pipe using screws and zip ties.
Post-play notes:
1) It's not perfect, but it seemed to do the job.
2) I put the fence about 6-8 feet outside the court. I probably should have them 10 feet outside, since balls bounced over a bit too often.
3) I may add fencing on the sides too, since errant shots liked to go that way.
Lighting
Lighting is probably the biggest challenge right now. My original idea was to attach floodlights to 2"x4" wood, and then attach that to the volleyball posts. The supplied power was via 100' outdoor extension cables (temporary at this point). In the below picture, the floodlights are about 15' high. When I tried it at night, the lighting was quite inadequate.
I added a halogen worklight just above the post, which made it better, but not great. Also note in this picture the metal clamps affixing the 2x4 to the post. The clamps allow the 2x4 to be removed, since the floodlights are not permanent.
Post-play notes:
1) In the end, I added another floodlight at the end of the court and another worklamp on the other post. While it was "playable," the lighting still could be improved upon. It was also difficult to see when looking directly towards a floodlight.
2) I'm looking into getting two more powerful lights higher at each post. I'm thinking about a sodium vapor light attached to a long metal pole (20'+ high). I am also looking into permanent wiring solutions.
I added a halogen worklight just above the post, which made it better, but not great. Also note in this picture the metal clamps affixing the 2x4 to the post. The clamps allow the 2x4 to be removed, since the floodlights are not permanent.
Post-play notes:
1) In the end, I added another floodlight at the end of the court and another worklamp on the other post. While it was "playable," the lighting still could be improved upon. It was also difficult to see when looking directly towards a floodlight.
2) I'm looking into getting two more powerful lights higher at each post. I'm thinking about a sodium vapor light attached to a long metal pole (20'+ high). I am also looking into permanent wiring solutions.
Sand installation
Sand is the most expensive part of the volleyball court. Soft "playground" sand can cost well over ten thousand dollars! Another variable is the sand depth. Some sites recommend 12" of sand depth, which obviously can get costly.
Given my minimal budget, I decided to get locally sourced sand. This sand is typically used for concrete, so I inspected it first. It wasn't pure, soft sand, but it seemed similar to beach sand with lots of small pebbles in it. I ordered a dump truck full of sand, which turned out to be about 12 tons of sand. At $30 per ton, the total order cost $360 delivered.
The sand, delivered:
I spread the sand with rakes and shovels. It was quite a workout and took some time (about five hours, including breaks). In hindsight, I would have had the dump truck operator spread the sand out a little more.
Eventually, sand is spread and the net is adjusted to the correct height:
Post-play notes:
1) The sand is about 4" deep in the middle area and maybe 1" on the edges. Very little sand was left for outside the lines. But the sand was soft enough to dive in, and no one was hitting the ground under the sand.
2) It certainly would be nice to have sand in the out of bounds area, but the priority is the playing surface.
3) There were some skinned knees and elbows from the sand's coarseness, but no significant injuries. Obviously better quality sand would avoid this.
Given my minimal budget, I decided to get locally sourced sand. This sand is typically used for concrete, so I inspected it first. It wasn't pure, soft sand, but it seemed similar to beach sand with lots of small pebbles in it. I ordered a dump truck full of sand, which turned out to be about 12 tons of sand. At $30 per ton, the total order cost $360 delivered.
The sand, delivered:
I spread the sand with rakes and shovels. It was quite a workout and took some time (about five hours, including breaks). In hindsight, I would have had the dump truck operator spread the sand out a little more.
Eventually, sand is spread and the net is adjusted to the correct height:
Post-play notes:
1) The sand is about 4" deep in the middle area and maybe 1" on the edges. Very little sand was left for outside the lines. But the sand was soft enough to dive in, and no one was hitting the ground under the sand.
2) It certainly would be nice to have sand in the out of bounds area, but the priority is the playing surface.
3) There were some skinned knees and elbows from the sand's coarseness, but no significant injuries. Obviously better quality sand would avoid this.
Surface preparation, net installation
Other volleyball court construction sites recommended digging about 12-24" below the surface. At the bottom layer is gravel (for water drainage), then some porous landscape fabric, and then sand on top. For this to happen, I would have to hire someone with a bulldozer or backhoe to do this, which would be costly. And I would also have to fill this with costly materials too.
I instead opted to clear the existing site of any rocks or grass, and then place sand directly on that. I imagine there could be long-term issues with this, but my budget necessitated it. I hired the local landscaper to scrape the ground as best he could with his existing farm equipment. This service cost was about $30-50. Afterwards, I removed any remaining rocks and used weed killer on any remaining grass.
Next, I installed the net. I bought a standard size net online for about $30. It had a metal wire with loops on top. I attached some D-ring hooks to the posts and then affixed the net to the D-ring hooks. I used cheap ratcheting tie-down to join one side of the net to the D-ring. I then tightened the net down and attached the bottom of the net with D-rings and rope.
For the lines, I used some cheap plastic stakes in the corners and standard yellow rope. I found difficultly getting the corners in the correct place. I basically just estimated where the corners should be and then made small adjustments from there, using the net as the guide. I'm sure surveyors have better methods ;-)
The court, pre-sand:
Post play comments:
1) Once the sand was placed and spread out, I had to reinstall the D-hooks on the posts because the net end up to be too short. But it was a pretty simple fix and probably difficult to get exactly right the first time.
2) The bottom of the net wasn't tight enough (I just used rope and knots), so balls would not recoil very well. Bungee cords are probably a better idea.
3) The cheap yellow rope works just fine as lines. I can always replace them with "standard" volleyball lines in the future.
I instead opted to clear the existing site of any rocks or grass, and then place sand directly on that. I imagine there could be long-term issues with this, but my budget necessitated it. I hired the local landscaper to scrape the ground as best he could with his existing farm equipment. This service cost was about $30-50. Afterwards, I removed any remaining rocks and used weed killer on any remaining grass.
Next, I installed the net. I bought a standard size net online for about $30. It had a metal wire with loops on top. I attached some D-ring hooks to the posts and then affixed the net to the D-ring hooks. I used cheap ratcheting tie-down to join one side of the net to the D-ring. I then tightened the net down and attached the bottom of the net with D-rings and rope.
For the lines, I used some cheap plastic stakes in the corners and standard yellow rope. I found difficultly getting the corners in the correct place. I basically just estimated where the corners should be and then made small adjustments from there, using the net as the guide. I'm sure surveyors have better methods ;-)
The court, pre-sand:
Post play comments:
1) Once the sand was placed and spread out, I had to reinstall the D-hooks on the posts because the net end up to be too short. But it was a pretty simple fix and probably difficult to get exactly right the first time.
2) The bottom of the net wasn't tight enough (I just used rope and knots), so balls would not recoil very well. Bungee cords are probably a better idea.
3) The cheap yellow rope works just fine as lines. I can always replace them with "standard" volleyball lines in the future.
Site location, pole installation
A standard sand volleyball court is about 30 feet wide by 60 feet wide, which is 1800 square feet. Typically there's about a five foot boundary outside the court too. So the court area really needs about 40'x70' of space (2800 square feet).
My family has a 2.5 acre property in mountains of Arizona. Fortunately I had plenty of room to put a volleyball court. I found a site free of any trees or bushes, pretty flat, and plenty of room for an out of bounds area.
The next step was to install the volleyball posts. I chose two 4"x6" wood posts 10 feet long (about $15 each). Other sites recommended 12-foot long posts, but it was difficult for me to transport posts that long. The volleyball net is a little under eight feet high, so as long at the post is at least that, it will work fine. I also avoided 4"x4" posts, since other sites doubted the strength of it (and 4"x6" posts cost a just a few dollars more).
So I dug a hole a little shy of two feet deep and about 8" in diameter. I also spaced the posts about 40 feet apart, since the net is 30 feet wide. I painted the posts (to help seal them) and then set the posts in concrete, checking for levelness and plumbness.
Post play comments:
1) My site location turned out to be excellent. I did find people would run a lot farther than five feet outside the court, so it's good that no obstructions existed anywhere close to five feet.
2) The post concrete footing has begun to develop cracks but is still working fine. I blame that on my lack of concrete mixing skills. In hindsight, I wish I had the premixed "just add water" Quikcrete (I only had pure Portland cement at the time)
3) It would have been nice to rough-in an outdoor electrical line and water supply line before the concrete pour.
My family has a 2.5 acre property in mountains of Arizona. Fortunately I had plenty of room to put a volleyball court. I found a site free of any trees or bushes, pretty flat, and plenty of room for an out of bounds area.
The next step was to install the volleyball posts. I chose two 4"x6" wood posts 10 feet long (about $15 each). Other sites recommended 12-foot long posts, but it was difficult for me to transport posts that long. The volleyball net is a little under eight feet high, so as long at the post is at least that, it will work fine. I also avoided 4"x4" posts, since other sites doubted the strength of it (and 4"x6" posts cost a just a few dollars more).
So I dug a hole a little shy of two feet deep and about 8" in diameter. I also spaced the posts about 40 feet apart, since the net is 30 feet wide. I painted the posts (to help seal them) and then set the posts in concrete, checking for levelness and plumbness.
Post play comments:
1) My site location turned out to be excellent. I did find people would run a lot farther than five feet outside the court, so it's good that no obstructions existed anywhere close to five feet.
2) The post concrete footing has begun to develop cracks but is still working fine. I blame that on my lack of concrete mixing skills. In hindsight, I wish I had the premixed "just add water" Quikcrete (I only had pure Portland cement at the time)
3) It would have been nice to rough-in an outdoor electrical line and water supply line before the concrete pour.
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