How to Prevent Fire in Playground Wood Chips

You want to believe that your children can always be kept safe at the playground, but many hazards exist that you may not even be aware of. You know to teach your children basic safety skills to ensure that they aren't seriously injured while using playground equipment. However, one risk you might not be aware of is that playground wood chips are a fire hazard.

Things You'll Need

• Wood chips
• Signs
• Hose

Instructions

1. Inspect the area and remove any potentially flammable materials before placing the wood chips down.

2. Lay down the wood chips loosely on the surface. When wood chips are packed too tightly, the heat around the chips on the bottom may have trouble escaping, leading to increased temperatures, notes WalterReeves.com. Hose down the wood chips if you see them steaming on a hot day.

3. Remove all weeds, grass and other vegetation from the area surrounding the playground wood chips. Unmaintained plant life is at a greater risk of catching fire due to its increased dryness, warns FosterCity.org. Don't use an open-flame weed burner when removing vegetation.

4. Don't cover a playground that is longer than 150 m with wood chips unless there are hoses installed that can reach both ends. If not, you will not have the capacity to extinguish a fire in every area of the playground.

5. Erect signs throughout the playground warning adults about the dangers of flammable materials coming into contact with the wood chips.

Tips & Warnings

• Don't allow smoking in the playground, especially around the wood chips. This will greatly decrease the risk of fires.

• If the playground is enclosed by a fence, the gate needs to be at least 3.5 m wide. Otherwise, fire department vehicles won't be able to enter the playground to put out a fire.

References

• Office of the Fire Marshal: Storage of Wood Chips
• Foster City: Weed and Debris Control
• Walter Reeves: Wood Chips