Instructions for Building Monkey Bars

Monkey bars are an excellent way to keep kids playing outside.

Monkey bars may be one of the few backgound amenities that may keep the kids outdoors instead of inside, distracted by computers and videogames. For young children, monkey bars can improve motor skills and agility, creating a foundation for other strenuous activities in the future such as gymnastics. Monkey bars can be made inexpensively in one day.

Things You'll Need

• Tape measure
• Post hole digger
• Level
• Cement mix, 6 cubic feet.
• 4 Cedar posts, 4" x 4" x 9'
• 2 Cedar posts, 4" x 4" x 8'
• Drill
• Screw gun
• Drill bit, 1-inch
• 8 Metal rods, 1" diameter x 26"
• 6 Cedar boards, 2" x 6" x 30"
• 16 Wood screws, 4-inch
• Ladder
• Drill bit, 3/8-inch
• 4 Lag bolts, 3/8" x 8"
• Wrench

Instructions

1. Measure out 30-inch by 8-foot rectangular area where you would like your monkey bars. Dig a 1 1/2-foot diameter hole at each corner that is 2-feet deep.

2. Pour your cement mix into the holes, and place your 9-foot cedar posts in the cement. Use your level to make sure the posts stay perpendicular, and use your tape measure to ensure the posts have a perimeter of 30 inches by 8 feet. Let your cement dry while you work through the other steps.

3. Drill eight holes that are 2 inches deep in your two 8-foot cedar posts. Start 2-inches from one end and space the holes 1-foot apart. All the holes should be on the same side.

4. Lay the two 8-foot cedar posts parallel with the holes facing each other and lined up. Place the metal rods in the holes creating your monkey bars. Screw two 30-inch cedar boards to the ends of the cedar posts, one on each side. You will be screwing through the 6-inch by 30-inch side into the 4-inch by 4-inch ends of the posts. All the corners should be flush.

5. Drill a 3/8-inch hole through the ends of the cedar posts that will be used to hold the metal rods. Drill 1 3/4-inches from the end, and 1 3/4-inches from each side. The hole should be perpendicular to the metal rods, and you should have four holes. Pick up the money bars and set the corners on the posts that are in the cement. Drive a lag bolt through each hole into the ends of the cedar posts.

6. Screw your last four cedar boards to the cedar posts that are in the cement. They should be perpendicular to the posts, and flush with the sides. Place one board one foot off the ground, and the other one foot above the first board. Repeat this process on the other two cedar posts.

Tips & Warnings

• Never have more than one child on the monkey bars at a time.

References

• Action Climbing Frames: Monkey Bars Climbing Frame
• Scholastic: The View from the Top