An irreverent, inclusive, alternative parenting community
Trampolines
The Dragon is desperate for a trampoline. A big one. We told him we could get a swingset or tree house for the backyard but no dice. He has his heart set on a 10- to 14- foot trampoline. Now may be the only time in our life that we actually have the money for it.
I love them myself but am a little afraid of, you know, six or eight kids all jumping ten feet in the air in a ten foot radius of each other.
Anyone here have experience with trampolines? What do you think -- in terms of safety, maintenance, liability for other people's kids? Annoyance factor for the next door neighbors? Specific product recommendations? Etc.
I love them myself but am a little afraid of, you know, six or eight kids all jumping ten feet in the air in a ten foot radius of each other.
Anyone here have experience with trampolines? What do you think -- in terms of safety, maintenance, liability for other people's kids? Annoyance factor for the next door neighbors? Specific product recommendations? Etc.
Tags: trampolines
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Madame Ellie on -
I remember many a bruise and scrape and bonk from trampolines as a kid.
Also watch out for soap and water on it. We were "washing" the trampoline (read: sliding around like fools in the soap) and I slid off, got hooked in the springs, flipped backwards over the edge and was dangling upside down by one knee. OW. No real damage, but it was enough that I remember it and wouldn't let my kids play on one now unless it was one at a time and very closely monitored.
Maybe you can find a bouncy slide or something for the same amount of money? I know they sell those inflatable bouncy water slide thingies, and you could deflate that one and put it away to avoid the attractive nuisance factor.
-
Permalink Reply by kommishoner on -
Our next door neighbors have their own bounce house. They plug in the fan on nice days, it's up in 5 minutes, and they can deflate it and fit it in one of those big plastic tubs when they're not using it. It's not huge, maybe the size of a king or queen bed with walls? I've never asked an ER nurse how bad they hate bounce houses, though, so maybe there are dangers I'm not aware of.
-
Permalink Reply by sarah on -
There are dangers in everything, but a bounce house is a lot safer than a trampoline. The biggest thing is that there are no places for a person to get caught (In the springs, between the net and the trampoline) and it's a lot harder for someone to fall off/out. And if they did the risk of injury would be a lot smaller b/c they're closer to the ground.
But they'll pop easier and need to be fixed, but most camping stores have a great little 'paint' that goes over a hole and fixes it solid in seconds.
If the kids really wanted something to jump on, then a bounce house is a better idea, safety wise.
-
Permalink Reply by hotmama on -
That is exactly what I was going to say. My parents had one about 10 years ago and their insurance company made them take it down or risk being dropped.
Trampolines are AWESOME to play on though! :)
Mamawho said:Owning a trampoline can also be an issue with your homeowner's insurance. Some policies exclude any injuries on the trampoline from coverage, and some policies will even deny or cancel coverage if you have a trampoline. It would be worth a phone call before buying one.
-
Permalink Reply by mightyninjamom on -
I will reiterate mamawho and hotmama - our homeowners insurance was dependent (in part) on us not having a trampoline.
Also, ditto to the ER nurse thing. I have never met anyone who had a full size one that did not come away without injury to some part of their body.
We got the kids their own little bouncy house, complete with the set of 100 colored balls and they loved it. It actually lasted quite a while.
-
Permalink Reply by kanachick on -
We gave my 6 year old one of these for Christmas and I love it. We keep it inside and it has slowed down the jumping on the furniture. I use it for my 9 year old when he gets frustrated as well - 10 minutes of jumping does wonders for his mood.
KiwiBttrflyTy said:
1st and 2nd Kid have a 36" Mini Trampoline they were given as a gift a few years ago and they love it. I enjoy that that
A) its small size makes it portable so it can be used indoors and out
B) they really can't get that much air jumping on it and only 1 person can jump at a time
C) On a rain day if you turn on some upbeat music they can really wear themselves out jumping
-
Permalink Reply by Ylimemagic on -
I will say that I did break my neck on a trampoline when I was in first grade. And I wasn't a crazy daredevil or anything. Just one of those wacky trampoline injuries that resulted in a big collar on my neck for a long time.
Wild thing was I was jumping at my teacher's house. I was a part of this accelerated readers group and we would go to her house and read/jump on her trampoline. Apparently this was back in the 80's when people didn't sue everyone for everything.
Because of that injury, my kids will never have one. Maybe a teeny tiny one, but not one of the big honkin' ones. I'm a meanie.
-
Permalink Reply by LeastLikely2Breed on -
I know a kid who got a trapoline spring stuck in their eye ( landed on the edge) Ewwwww and Owwwwwch!
-
Permalink Reply by The Oracle on -
Wow, thanks everyone. This is a LOT of great information. And ... ouch.
Armed with all this info, we were able to scare the Dragon enough away from a trampoline and get him super excited about a bounce house. Which I love because you can put it away when you want. And which he loves because it comes with lots of cheap plastic colorful balls!
I feel a lot better about this decision than about the trampoline. Thanks so much. Offsprung saves the day!
-
Permalink Reply by mcglory13 on -
Now I feel lucky to have escaped childhood and trampolines relatively unscathed.
-
Permalink Reply by Daddy Geek Boy on
-
All I know about trampolines is what I see on AFV every week. Though I disagree with HBD that the show keeps them in business, cause after watching people get hurt all of the time I don't ever want one.
-
Permalink Reply by G to the G on -
I'm in the camp no for trampoline. But I totally think of the Man Show every time I hear about one.
The occasional visit to a bounce house are enough for me, thankyouverymuch. ;)
- ‹ Previous
- 1
- 2
- 3
- Next ›
© 2013 Created by Offsprunger.
Powered by
