Swing set question

littlestjerry

We just ordered a swing set for DS, and my FIL is gonna help us put it together. He wants to dig out a square around it and put mulch or something down. I greatly appreciate his help, but FIL has a tendency to make things more difficult than they need to be. I feel like this will make the swing set installation take forever and add expense. Not to mention, DS will just throw the mulch or whatever all over the yard. Can't we just put it on the grass? 

Any input from swing set owners? 

littlemermaid

We had one of those Rainbow Playsystems and we had it for 10 years and it sat right on the grass.   To me, mulch is messy and then they  can't crawl around it on their hands and knees when they are playing.

NotSharknado

We just built one this weekend and plan on putting the mulch around the already built set.

Eta: you can also do wood chips, we haven't decided. Also with our last set we didn't put anything and the grass eventually wears down and turns into mud.

littlemermaid

shanado:

We just built one this weekend and plan on putting the mulch around the already built set. Eta: you can also do wood chips, we haven't decided. Also with our last set we didn't put anything and the grass eventually wears down and turns into mud.

Does your backyard have poor drainage? Our grass looked like the rest of the lawn, nice and green, we have Kentucky Blue grass and it definitely never turned to mud or get wore down.   All of our neighbors also just put their sets on the grass and they've never had the problem you are describing.

NotSharknado

littlemermaid:

shanado:

We just built one this weekend and plan on putting the mulch around the already built set.

Eta: you can also do wood chips, we haven't decided. Also with our last set we didn't put anything and the grass eventually wears down and turns into mud.

Does your backyard have poor drainage? Our grass looked like the rest of the lawn, nice and green, we have Kentucky Blue grass and it definitely never turned to mud or get wore down.   All of our neighbors also just put their sets on the grass and they've never had the problem you are describing.

We do, but underneath the swings I feel it wouldn't matter with the wear and tear?

NotSharknado

Either way, it just makes more sense to build it first and then put whatever you like down. You can't build it on mulch.