19 October 2023

What tools do I need to assemble my climbing frame?

To assemble your Dunster House climbing frame, you’ll need to buy, own, beg, borrow or steal (please note, don’t steal) the following good quality DIY hand tools.

Tools Needed to Build Climbing Frame

Screwdriver

A good quality electric screwdriver is best. We are fanatical about safety. You could say our climbing frames are almost over engineered from a safety point of view. This means lots of screws. It will save you a lot of time using an electric screwdriver rather than a hand screwdriver.

Hammer

Timber is a natural product that expands and contracts, especially the timber we use for our climbing frames as it is pressure treated. This means the predrilled holes for the bolts may have got smaller. We recommend redrilling holes in this situation, but you may find you want to gently “persuade” a few bolts through.

Drill

Large holes for bolts are predrilled, but the smaller screw holes are not. It is best practice to predrill so that timber doesn’t split. Luckily, if you have a good quality electric screwdriver (see above), it can also be used as an electric drill.

Socket Set

A lot of the major joints are bolted together on our climbing frames, not just screwed, for extra strength. Only down side is, the extra tools you will need. You will need a 10mm socket for all of our climbing frames, and an 8mm socket for our climbing frames with monkey bars. But you may need others for other configurations and optional extras, so best to get your hands on a set.

Adjustable Spanner

We use wrap around swing hooks that brace the timber, rather than bolt through swing hooks that pass through the swing beam and risk weakening it. You’ll need an adjustable spanner to tighten these.

Level

To check that your Play System is level when you assemble it.

Spade

We use large ground anchors with a large disc at the end of each, to properly anchor down your climbing frame. Unless you have loose soil that these can just screw in to, you will need to dig down a few holes for these. It might seem like more work, but it is worth it when your climbing frame is secure and safe for your little ones. The harder it is for a ground anchor to go in, the more force it will take to pull it out. Some companies use plastic pegs as ground anchors which are very easy to drive in to the ground. But if it goes in that easily, it will come out that easily too!