Building a new horse arena can be overwhelming. You might be confused about the best materials to use in building your arena without breaking your budget, where to build your area, materials to use, and so many other things. It would be better to look for the right horse arena builders who are trustworthy and can do a good job.
Here are tips to help you in building your horse arena:
1. Test your contractors.
It would be a good thing to test your contractor’s skills by giving them a small project to work for you before giving them the big project of building your horse arena. For example, you can get the contractors you are thinking of giving them your horse arena building job to work on small jobs on your farm like a smaller excavation job. You will know how they are right for the big project by handling the small project regarding how they keep the job deadline, effectiveness, and quality.
2. Obtain planning permissions.
Even if the land is yours, you still have to follow your state building restrictions. Every town has different restrictions. Visit your town government officials to know the rules you need to follow when building your horse arena. Different towns have different rules on how many horses per land. Ensure you are well prepared before you start your horse arena construction.
Getting planning permission for your arena is easier if you have not ignored neighbors or footpaths. Arena lighting can be a reason why your planning application is rejected.
3. Choose the right location for your arena.
The location of the horse arena is very important to choose well. You should consider things like the slope of the area, type of soil, size of the site, and local building restrictions you need to observe when building the arena. One of the most crucial factors to consider is the horse arena’s drainage. You might not want the water to flood your arena. Pools of water can damage the ride quality on your arena. You need to build your arena in a location that has good drainage.
Some soils are easier to drain than others. Build your arena on a higher point on your land to prevent water pools on your riding circle. Put a roof to cover your horse arena to reduce the effect of the heavy rains on the arena surface. Choosing a good location for your horse arena will save you drainage expenses.
4. Parking space.
When building your horse arena, you need to leave space for parking, and the horse turns out area and a riding area. Use a map to sketch how everything will be laid out. You can use different color flags to mark the arena’s edges and see how much space it will occupy.
5. Develop a realistic budget.
Plan for the costs such as blanket bars, light fixtures, stall doors, etc. You can decide to cut on the horse arena building costs by doing some of the work yourself. However, the work is not easy, and you can take a lot of time to get it done if you do it yourself.
6. Look for financial backup.
Building the horse arena has a lot of expenses. If you are unable to pay for all the expenses, you can look for a trusted lender and take a loan. Look for a financial institution that will help you get the right loan for your arena construction. Most banks shy away from giving loans for nonresidential constructions.
7. Search for horse arena building advice from your neighbors.
Talk to your neighbors or someone who has built a horse arena recently. They will tell you about their experience in the arena building process, difficulties they came across, and you might experience it. They will advise you on how to go through the process to overcome the difficulties. However, it is good to talk to them softly if you want to know every horse arena building information. If your plan to use the horse arena for business, your neighbors might not be happy to help you as they will see you as a business competitor.
8. Plan on the engineering work.
When building your arena, there could be engineering work required depending on your land’s soil type. You need to know you might spend a lot of money on the site work and plans. It would be better you plan on the engineering costs to estimate the money you need for your project. Engineering work will also depend on your town requirements, type and size of your arena, and its use.
9. Pick the right materials for your arena base.
You need to build several layers for your arena base. To construct the ring base, you will start by excavating the compacted soil. You will add a layer of gravel and sand which is then crushed, and on top of it, you add a layer of lime.
However, some different areas have different materials available for you to use in your horse arena construction. It is good to find out what materials are available in your area for your arena construction. Some areas have gravel while others lack it. It can cost you a lot of money to import construction materials that might not be available in your area. Transport can be expensive to deliver construction materials.
1o. Get the right fall.
The fall is the slight sloping of your horse arena. A slight slope helps to prevent water pooling on the arena surface. If your arena is on the side of the hill, ensure the fall is sloping away from the top of the hill. Ensure you have a slight fall as the water pooling can affect the riding on your arena.
Bottom line.
Completing your horse arena is exciting. It would be better you keep the maintenance routine for your horse arena to make it last longer. If you build your arena correctly, you will reap good benefits. It important you plan well for every step of your arena construction.
Laila Azzahra is a professional writer and blogger that loves to write about technology, business, entertainment, science, and health.