Advice on building an outdoor arena.

ticktocktick

I'm hoping some of you will be able to help. I am planning to build an outdoor arena. The space i have earmarked is 20m X 25m. I know this space is quite tight, but i don't really compete and its just for leisure / riding club kind of activities.

I have got conflicting advice on what way to do the arena and costs associated with it.

One lot of advice suggests putting drains under the arena, then hardcore, membrane, fine sand followed with surface e.g sand / rubber.

Another person has told me that there is no need for drains underneath the arena, but just make sure there is a fall on the ground towards a drain, and hardcore and then sand / rubber will suffice.

I really am none the wiser and as it is a significant investment i don't want to make any mistakes.

Can you also give a rough cost, as i don't want to be ripped off. Half the top soil is cleared and we have filling (hard core) nearby.

Also what surfaces work best for general all purpose use.

Thanks in advance for any advice.:)

hughmace

There is a spec on the DAFM web site
That's what I did it worked out great
Yes drains hardcore member sand type is v v v important Wexford ie mono silicate sand IMO

ticktocktick

Thanks for replying. I have googled DAFM arena construction template and nothing comes up, if you could give me the web address i would really appreciate it. Thanks a mill.

Also can you give me an idea on cost? What can i expect to pay?

finbarrk

There has been a few previous discussions.
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=77498525
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=61326008
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=55212952

hughmace

http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/media/migration/farmingschemesandpayments/farmbuildings/farmbuildingspecifications/pdfversions/S156November2008.pdf

hughmace

this is a whole other issue....
depends on site how level it is how much stone and sand is required fencing etc
mine is 30m X 36m no change from €20k god thats hard to write..
I did get a grant but they are no longer available.

ticktocktick

Thanks for all the help, much appreciated.

Chicken Run

just put in a small pony arena and the best advice I can give is this

Think how many drains you're going to put in it and then add more !!!

Spoken to too many people who have unuseable arenas due to poor drainage

HarrietD

The area you suggest will be a bit small even for leisure riding. Financially a few extra metres won't increase the cost but presumably the space available is the limiting factor. In theory you probably could get away without laying drains depending on the land but you will find that there will be times when it is unrideable which defeats the purpose. Also the drain laying won't significantly add to your costs but not putting them in will significantly reduce the quality of your arena and possibly waste your money invested in the long run. If you want to cut back you could omit the fibre for now and see how you get on with just sand. It can always be added later. I paid approx €24K for a 50M x 30M arena in March '09 which included all groundworks, post and rail on 2 sides, sand and fibre but I think you could probably get it cheaper now.

Tanzanite

I would definitely put in Drains,stone,membrain,sand.There are so many arenas that flood in ireland for most of the year.dont skip out on the drains!