# footing to use in a round pen?



## Marecare

A nice medium sand is the best.
Sometimes it is called 5/16ths minus.

If the sand is too fine it can compact too much and become hard over time and also the wind can blow it away.

If it is a bit too course it is a bit rough on the hoofs.

If manure is left in the pen the sand will mix in with it when the rain comes and make a mess.

Check with your local gravel plant or hauler for the availability in your area.
It should take a full truck and trailer load for the size you are planning.

You want good drainage and plan for a crown in the middle and something to keep the sand smooth.


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## BackInTheSaddleAgain

Depth is important to, right? Does anyone have advice on that as well?


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## Marecare

I would say 8 to 12 inches depth depending on the material and compaction.


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## emwiss86

what about rubber mulch or shreddings?


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## Marecare

emwiss86 said:


> what about rubber mulch or shreddings?



They are expensive and they float if it rains and that means that they can float away and make a mess.
They also mess up the ground if you ever want to grow something there in the future because the ground is full of rubber.


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## Left Hand Percherons

You don't want anything much over 4" for a big horse. Anything over that is too much work and can pull muscles and tendons. At 4" you can use it for basic RP work but it's too deep for riding. As far as size, 60' is norm. Big enough to canter comfortably and small enough to be able to put pressure on your horse in a nano second. 80' allows your horse to get too far away from you. As the horses get smaller they need less depth of footing. (a mini would die working in 4")

When I did mine, after grading, I put down 3" of road base, packed and rolled it. Watered it and packed it again. Added 4" of the largest grain sand (call it different thing different places). The road base makes a barrier and doesn't allow the dirt underneath to work up to the sand. It also sheds the water by stopping it from soaking down. The footing is always good, never have any wet spots and other than harrowing it, it has stood up to 10 years of use. To figure out how much sand you need, 1T covers 220 sq ft 1 inch. Roadbase is about the same.


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