# Round Pen Footing



## Chevaux (Jun 27, 2012)

I have grass in my round pen also. I don’t use it enough to justify going to the expense and effort of changing the footing. I use it for the first couple of rides after a winter off then it is out and about for me.

I’ve always liked a sand footing. To keep it in the pen you can put low boards around the bottom of the pen panels — I’ve seen some people who are resourceful and handy use rubber stripping in lieu of boards. 

If you are going all out with a reno of the pen flooring and money is no object (by that I mean exceeding your $1,200 budget) the ground should be worked up, levelled (including consideration for proper drainage which may require gravelling, weeping tiles, etc.) and harrowed before putting in the sand. You might even want to look into putting down a layer of clay before putting in the sand — that would help with stability. You can put down a herbicide to kill off any plant material or if you would rather leave it — sand is not the best growing material for plants so you won’t get much coming up and it wouldn’t be too hard to deal with the occasional intrepid weed. Were you thinking of something like landscaping fabric when you mentioned a barrier? I would question whether it would hold up.

If money is a consideration, the cheapest way to go is cut the grass short, do nothing about levelling (assuming you do not already have the equipment to do it yourself) then hire a local contractor to bring in a load of sand and dump it in the pen after which you would shift it around the pen yourself and rake it smooth. That way would/should cost just a few hundred dollars leaving plenty money to buy boards for the bottom of the pen.

Good luck with the project.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

Sand grows great grass. It is frequency of use and compaction that determine growth. You'll work a track if used often enough. I just don't like to see a horse in the pen for that amount of time. If you have several horses that you are starting or refreshing or youngsters (the human kind) just learning to ride that you need a place to teach the basics then you'd see the wear. 

Other than that ask yourself - Is it level? What is the soil type and structure? Does it need clay or sand or both? What percents of each based on what is there unless you plan on digging that out/scraping it off and replacing?


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