A manual quote is required for shipping slides from the manufacturer. Typically such a quote takes no more than 1 business day, but it may take slightly longer depending on how busy they are. Please bear with us while we calculate accurate shipping costs. As soon as we receive the shipping cost, we'll add it to your estimate and e-mail it to you. When you've authorized payment, we'll process the order.
Embankment Slides offer constant thrills of movement and speed, and are a must-have on all playgrounds for several reasons!
First, Embankment Slides are built into the ground so it’s impossible to fall off a ladder (there is none!) or off the sides (the slide is level with the ground), which means Embankment Slides are 100% safe!
Further, slides encourage scientific curiosity: climbing the hill builds up a reservoir of potential energy resulting from gravity’s pull, sliding down the hill turns that supply of energy into its kinetic form -- and demonstrates acceleration and velocity. Slides trigger both proprioceptive and kinesthetic responses; they help illustrate several branches of mathematics (geometry, calculus, and trigonometry); they help children stay active, get physically fit, and develop motor skills and coordination; and they are the most popular play element on a Natural Playground.
Our slides are made of heavyweight, commercial-grade, 1/4"+ thick low density polyethylene resin that resists fading (so they last forever), they will not buckle in the heat or with use, seams will never separate to cause safety hazards, AND the built-in foot and the support under the exit region provides the necessary anchoring and keeps the exit region at the ASTM/CPSC required height off the fall zone material!
Also, exclusive to our long slides (more than 12’ deck height) is a spring system that allows for expansion and contraction in the heat and cold. We recommend this as a precaution against the slide buckling.
Slides may be made of any length. Shown in one picture is a 35 foot embankment slide, but they range in size from a slide for a 3’ high hill on up.
The neutral gray color better fits with a natural playground theme; dye lots may vary and cause slight color variations on longer slides.
Installation instructions that meet all CPSC and ASTM safety guidelines, all slide hardware, CPSC® approved sit-down bar, and CPSC® approved foot are included.
If the hill is at the correct slope (30-35 degrees), estimated install time for a slide is usually a day or less using two people.
At the top of the slide, an entrance platform is required. We have designed one that fits around the slide and that accommodates both a sit down bar and a crib stair. See under Embankment Slide Accessories in our store.
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NOTE ON SIZING: In the industry, the height of the hill is referred to as the "deck" height. (eg: A hill with a 5’ vertical height would require a 5’ deck height slide).
NOTE ABOUT DELIVERY: Because slides are “made to order,” we are always at the mercy of the factory. Usually, delivery is from the factory and arrives on your site between 4 and 6 weeks after the order has been placed. We ask you to be patient and to plan accordingly. :)
CAUTION: Home Depot, Lowes, Child Works, Kompan, and other inexpensive "backyard slides" or "residential slides do not stand up under constant use. Seams separate, the plastic buckles in the heat, they are not treated against static discharge, they can’t handle lots of weight, and the screws/bolts pull through in one season and become a strangling hazard.
CONSIDER: There are hundreds of slides available from the marketplace, and the quality varies all over the place, so price should not be your only consideration. If you are using these slides in any kind of public situation, you should definitely buy a heavy-duty commercial slide. Ours are 1/4"+ thick, heavy-duty, commercial grade, polycarbonate. Further, the joints are tight, and the material is thick at the joints so the bolts will not pull through, thus eliminating the possibility of cracks between the seams and possible strangling hazards.
Because a sit down bar is REQUIRED by the Consumer Product Safety Council (CPSC) at the top of all slides, as is an entrance deck, regardless of where you purchase your slide, you will need to somehow fashion a sit-down bar at the top of the run. Our slides COME WITH a sit-down bar (a value well over $200), full installation instructions (which you won’t find elsewhere), and all hardware!
Final note: Should you have issues with the slide itself, take good pictures of the problem, and we will send them to the slide manufacturer for them to determine whether the issue stems from the manufacturing process or from installation.
We know we said that last paragraph was a “final note,” but we need to add one additional comment. Playground Safety Regulations are very emphatic about what is safe and acceptable, so brush up on the safety regs before you start. Sometimes contractors think that installing a slide is no big deal; what could possibly be so difficult? Well -- take a GOOD look at the photo with the big red “X” through it. There are SO many safety violations with this contractor’s installation that they can’t be corrected. This slide had to be labeled “UNSAFE” and taken out of use!