Lighting a backyard rink

[NuggyBuggy 0]

I've built a frame for a backyard/cottage rink. Right now it is 24' x 54' (but I'm considering adding another 18' to 36').

The near end of the rink is about 30-40' from the nearest electrical outlet, which I believe is GFCI protected.

What are my options for lighting the rink, short of burying wires ?

I'm thinking I could run 100' extension cords and place some standing floodlights on the side of the rink, but is such an arrangement "safe" ?

How much light would I likely need for a rink of that size ? It doesn't need to be rink-level lighting, but I want to be able to see the puck ;).

[number21 3]

I don't know why extension cords to floods wouldn't be safe. As long as the cords are heavy duty and made to withstand the cold. You may want to wrap connections in electrical tape to keeps any melting snow/ice out.

There are some tips here

http://www.backyardicerink.com/safety.html

I would say elevate the extension cords somewhere out of the way. High enough to keep them out of harms way but low enough you could pull the cords when you're gone or if heavy ice is coming.

I am jealous of your outdoor rink. I did find one here in Milwaukee (a flooed soccer field) that allows hockey at night. So I hope this coming cold sticks around and they get a jump on flooding the filed instead of waiting until mid-jan.

[Jason Harris 31]

Ultimately, I think you should bury wire underground in conduit and essentially move an outlet to your rink; I had to do that for wires and timers for Malibu lighting along the driveway. In the interim, you could utilize the same method by running extension cords within some type of piping, such as PVC.

In terms of lighting, what would probably work quite well -- if you can figure how to rig them -- are white, icicle lights. We put them up the first Christmas at our house, yet ended up changing them the next year because they were too bright. Maybe you could stagger vertical 2x4's every X feet to have something to which you staple the wires.

[Ahriman 1]

In the interim, you could utilize the same method by running extension cords within some type of piping, such as PVC.

This would definitely cover things as far as safety is concerned if by safety he means "you dont step on it with a skate and set everything on fire."

As far as power draw, I would absolutely get the thickest, highest load rated outdoor extension cord you can for now (being sure to plug it into a circuit that can handle the draw) and would absolutely be looking forward to the future of digging and laying wire for an outlet close by the rink on its own circuit next season.

[NuggyBuggy 0]

Thanks guys. What about low-voltage lighting options.... can they produce enough light to light a rink ?

And - is it possible to electrocute yourself in the snow ? i.e. can an exposed wire electrocute you if it's in the snow, but you're not right next to it ?

Jason - are icicle lights another name for regular old Christmas lights ? If so, I'm guessing those ought to be safe in the snow - after all, they're designed to be outdoors, right ?

[Jason Harris 31]

Yes, the icicle lights have become the common Christmas lights nowadays. Basically, they are a horizontal wire with vertical offshoots about every four inches, each of which have about six to seven bulbs of any color you want. For your application, you'd want to buy icicles that come with clear bulbs, and essentially create a "wall" of lights around the rink. I'm pretty sure this would throw enough light to see the puck.

The downside will be when you put them up each year, you have to check each strand to make sure it's working, since one loose bulb creates an open circuit. But as long as you do this on a warm enough day, it's not too bad to jiggle the bulbs until you come across the culprit.

[CAmmon 2]

This is what he means by icicle lights.

[NuggyBuggy 0]

Thanks guys. That would look beautiful, though I would have to erect posts to hold the lights.

One bad bulb kills the whole chain ? I thought the last set of christmas lights that I bought (not icicle style, though) no longer were susceptible to the single bad bulb problem.

[Jason Harris 31]

Yes, you would have to erect posts, which I why I suggested vertical 2x4's. Without knowing how your rink is designed, I don't have any idea how to affix them, although you should try to figure a way that allows the posts to be unattached for storage each summer.

Most icicle lights have a simpler design electrically, so they're still susceptible to the "one bad bulb" problem.

[NuggyBuggy 0]

I built my frame with 2x10x18s, screwed together on end with 2x10x1 pieces. I was going to build boards with plywood but decided to skip that this year as I was running out of time last weekend.

I have put some ~2' stakes on the perimeter, but will likely shore that up a lot this weekend on the low sides if the ground is not yet frozen. Also probably will pound the stakes down farther so my kids don't hurt themselves if they faceplant onto one of them.

I ended up buying 100' of LED bulbs. The only store I can find that has xmas lights in stock, doesn't have enough of the icicles to cover the maximum size of my rink (54' now, but thinking about going to 72' or 90' if it's not too cold).

I bought a pack of 15" light stakes (longest I could find) which I might use to hold the lights up close to the perimeter. Or, I could do as Jason suggests, and screw in some 2x4s onto the outside of my frame.

I'll post some pics once it gets done.

[Ovie17 0]

This is off topic with the whole lighting thing.. but i want to build a rink to and i'm wondering if i can just use Tarp instead of Plastic Liner or Plastic liner the way to go? Sorry for brining off topic but i didnt see anything about backyard rinks

_chris_

[westcoastsniper 0]

I would have gotten a 2-3 strings of work lights 4-5 lights per string (there might be ones that have more lights/longer length) and strung them up 8-10 feet above the rink with 4x4's (or supported 2x4's) then run guide wires the other way for support. Of course that's a lot of work, but with a couple of dudes and some whiskey I'm sure it could get done in a couple of hours, specially with the option of going for a skate afterwards.

personally, I would have called up my gaffer and got him to throw up a couple of 18k lights and run them off his genny truck... but not everyone has access to film lights and a hockey crazy gaffer :)

[NuggyBuggy 0]

This is off topic with the whole lighting thing.. but i want to build a rink to and i'm wondering if i can just use Tarp instead of Plastic Liner or Plastic liner the way to go? Sorry for

Ovie - AFAIK you can use tarp - in fact, that's what I'm trying to use now. Several companies around me - including Home Depot - sell white tarps specifically marketed as ice rink tarps. Whether they are better or worse than liner, I can't say. I have built a MUCH smaller rink with 6mil poly liner, and I'm guessing that the liner would have a lot more give - which could be good.

[Trippingblue 1]

Use 12/3 SJO cable for your extension cords, with L5-20A NEMA connectors and GFIs to the breakers.

[NuggyBuggy 0]

Use 12/3 SJO cable for your extension cords, with L5-20A NEMA connectors and GFIs to the breakers.

Not sure what those acronyms mean - looks like I have some googling to do.

I ended up stumbling upon a warehouse sale which had a deal on low voltage landscape lighting. I bought 2 sets, each with 10 x 16" high lamps, a couple of floods, 75' feet of low voltage wiring and the powerpack, for $25 each. I also ended up buying 2 extra 100' lengths of low voltage wiring.

Since these are designed for outdoor use, I'm assuming these are safe in the snow. I'll probably run them through conduit in the areas where we'll be walking with skates. My boards are 10" high, so some of the lamp light will reach over the boards. For the price I figured it was worth a try.

My attempt to run LED xmas lights didn't work so well. They weren't nearly bright enough.

[biff44 0]

You don't need all that much light! I used to do a pretty big sized rink with just two big floods.

I would make up a rig that looked like this:

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xr5...catalogId=10053

Except I would make the poles much higher and out of 2X4 wood (less chance of electrocution with the wet ground.

Would run the wires up in the air between the light and the house, so no one can step on them with their skates. And like they say, use a GFCI outlet! You could have 2 lamps, or 4 lamps in two locations.

[NuggyBuggy 0]

biff44- thanks for the idea. I did buy a similar unit from a local hardware store to help light my initial rink building attempt. Wouldn't you know it, after setting it all up, it didn't work. It's still sitting in my garage because I didn't have the energy to pack it up and return it.

Turns out all that the low-voltage thing didn't work for me either. The bulbs are far too weak to illuminate much more than one or two feet around them.

[wcerin 0]

My rink is almost exactly the same size as yours and 1- 500 watt Quartz fixture hung about 15 ft above the rink

lights it up great. Two of those would be lit up awesome.