Temperature for making outdoor ice?

[tokes 0]

My Uncle bought an acreage this summer, and we built a full size rink behind the house with boards and a little bench with a propane warmer. Now, do you need to let the ground totally freeze for a week or so before you start flooding it to make ice? Or as soon as temps drop to below zero and you're sure they're not coming back up again can you start flooding it? Not really that hockey related but I didn't know where else to put it.

[Eazy_b97 1]

I believe the ground has to freeze first

[Aussie Joe 0]

Water freezes at ZERO celsius........Sub temps to make it hard.....no more than 4 to keep in in a mostly frozen state. The rink near me is at 3-4 all the time

[biff44 0]

I hear the Zamboni company lawyers are coming after you for patent infringement!

Seriously, though, you did not tell us an important thing. Are you using a liner between the ground and the ice? If so, go ahead and pour the water and let it freeze. If not, you want to proceed slowly so that you do not end up skating on rocks and sand in the ice--wait till the ground freezes, and build up the ice slowly in layers.

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

1800faceoff.com have a little thing like at the back of the little car.

I saw this in their catalog, I don't know if they have it on their website.

I'll take look.

[Kovy_Ribs_Fedo 3]

we can put a liner, but we can do it without one and wait until the ground freezes.

[biff44 0]

Down in Massachusetts, a liner is absolutely required. But in colder climates, like upstate NY and north one is not necessary. I have seen a complete soccer field flooded in Troy NY for a skating rink, and it worked fine.

[LkptTiger 1]

...Even so, I (live in WNY) use a liner. We (my father and I) will usually get two large, white tarps and tar/seal them together, to create one "ginormous" one. Then we screw the tarp to the top of the boards that we put up (make sure you leave enough slack to allow for significant stretching when you flood it and when the water freezes).

[biff44 0]

When I made rinks with liners, I would attach them to the boards AFTER the water was poured in. Liner always stretches more than you would think.