Indoor Sandbox

[ChetMC]

Has anyone built an indoor sandbox?

We're thinking about doing this. I'd like to hear about your indoor sandbox if you've got one.

[leighi123]

We use one of those 'under the bed' tupperware type boxes that I keep under the bookshelf.

It is a HUGE mess every time he uses it.

If you dont mind sand all over the house, go for it! It is a lot of fun, but a lot of cleaning up afterwards. I put dry beans or rice in there sometimes instead and that is slightly easier to clean up

[thelocknestmother]

Same thing...we used a plastic shallow container with lid and put it in the rec room/storage room where we didn't mind the sand spillover...was great to have through the winter.

[muldey]

We have a step 2 sandbox.It's like a little table.It's this http://www.step2.com/product.cfm?product_id=1347.It is filled with moon sand.It's a little easier to clean up I've found.It actually came that way off of craigslist($20!I got a good deal).The kids love it,even at 9 and 12!All ages that come by love it.

[nwatt]

I was just thinking about this today. I was thinking that I might fill a big bin with rice, beans, or something like that instead. That the mess might be easier to clean than sand. She wouldn't be able to make castles, but she really isn't able to do that yet anyways. Has anybody used things besides sand to fill a "sensory table/bin" before?

[ChetMC]

Larger Scale

I'm thinking of something on a larger scale. We're imagining a box that it at least six feet square and maybe three feet deep... in the basement.

[jammomma]

I don't have an indoor sandbox, but I was the cleaning person for a children's school that did have a large indoor sandbox. I spent a lot of time vacuuming up sand. Make sure you have a really good vacuum you'll need it!

[lifeguard]

We have a large bin with raw wheat in it. It's fantastically messy though so I must admit I don't let him play with often.

[leilamom]

That sounds so cool! I'm not sure it needs to be 3 feet deep though...that sounds pretty deep. The big ones I've seen are only about 18 inches of sand. I would just use inexpensive 2X4's and brace them together. I would put some sort of bench ish thing around the top, I think that would help keep the sand in the box. The more effort to get it out, the less will get out

I would be hesitant to fill a space like that with anything perishable, just because basements tend to get damp and buggy...which is something that rice, beans, bird seed and pasta would attrach, not to mention mice. I've seen lots of ooky sand boxes with this stuff in it...gross.

The children's museum in our area sells (or at least they used to) these little plastic bits that you could sift, pour, scoop, and dump. I tried to find an example, but can't find one online. They are like the tiny plastic pieces that hold like plastic car model pieces on that plastic frame, does that make sense?

I would just do sand though. It'd easy to get, not super expensive. Plus, the kids will have a good time with it.

Good luck!

[philomom]

Only if I had a sunroom or converted garage type room to keep the sand from spreading all over the house.

[ChetMC]

Thanks

Originally Posted by leilamom

That sounds so cool! I'm not sure it needs to be 3 feet deep though...that sounds pretty deep. The big ones I've seen are only about 18 inches of sand. I would just use inexpensive 2X4's and brace them together. I would put some sort of bench ish thing around the top, I think that would help keep the sand in the box. The more effort to get it out, the less will get out

I would be hesitant to fill a space like that with anything perishable, just because basements tend to get damp and buggy...which is something that rice, beans, bird seed and pasta would attrach, not to mention mice. I've seen lots of ooky sand boxes with this stuff in it...gross.

The children's museum in our area sells (or at least they used to) these little plastic bits that you could sift, pour, scoop, and dump. I tried to find an example, but can't find one online. They are like the tiny plastic pieces that hold like plastic car model pieces on that plastic frame, does that make sense?

I would just do sand though. It'd easy to get, not super expensive. Plus, the kids will have a good time with it.

Good luck!

We're only planning to have the sand 12 to 14 inches deep. The sides would be three feet high to help contain the sand.

The box will be at the back of the basement. I'm hoping that walking twenty feet to the stairs will keep most of the sand down there.

We can't use food. We have to use sand. This house is 120 years old. It has a stone foundation, and is 300m from a rail yard. We known there are mice around. So yeah. We're sticking with regular sand.

[4evermom]

I'd try a small sandbox outside, first, and see if you can live with the sand getting tracked in before going bigger scale and inside.

My own ds isn't too sensory seeking with sand. He doesn't wallow in the sand and bury himself. But other kids do. Then the sand gets all over the house because it gets in their clothes. It gets on the floors, on the couch, in the beds... I'm thinking next time I get the urge to make a child friendly attraction in my yard it will be pea gravel rather than sand.

[ChetMC]

We've Had

Originally Posted by 4evermom

I'd try a small sandbox outside, first, and see if you can live with the sand getting tracked in before going bigger scale and inside.

My own ds isn't too sensory seeking with sand. He doesn't wallow in the sand and bury himself. But other kids do. Then the sand gets all over the house because it gets in their clothes. It gets on the floors, on the couch, in the beds... I'm thinking next time I get the urge to make a child friendly attraction in my yard it will be pea gravel rather than sand.

We had a large sandbox in the backyard at our old house. The kids miss it, and have been asking to have one here. It would be a lot of work to make a spot in this backyard for a sandbox though. There are A LOT of bugs here, and I'm also concerned that sandbox would become infested. Plus, the winter is long. If we don't put a sandbox in the basement the kids won't have one until June.

[MrsH]

I like your ideas to help keep the sand contained, and while it won't be completely contained, it will be more so than if the box was more shallow or if it was straight in your main living area. You could also have them change their clothes at the bottom of the stairs or something if they got really sandy, or have a "no shoes" rule, a special mat to wipe feet, or something like that. One thing that I didn't like about our mini sandbox was that the fine sand scratches our wood floors, but I'm assuming there's no wood floors in our basement! I'm sure your kids will enjoy!

[da-tamsta]

we have a few tubs with lids that contain dried beans, pasta, rice, etc. I get a deep big (well shallow) pan out of the kitchen (I have a big tupperware and another one...whichever one is clean) and we let him scoop from them and combine them and sort them. He really likes indoor sandbox. He would play it every day. Somedays I am just not into cleaning too much mess so I seal the bathtub drain and put him in the tubby with all the indoor sandbox. Much easier clean up. Also can also be a learning tool (colors, counting, sizes, shapes, etc). We have a water table outside, but at 115 degrees in the summer, we are limiting our time outside.

[leilamom]

One other thing to think about...If you make the sides 3 feet high, how will the kids get in and out? I would just be worried of someone falling and hitting their head on a very hard floor trying to climb over. I see your kids are a bit older and probably a bit more independent, so it's a possibility.

Have you looked at commercial toy companies online to see what they have for boxes so you could replicate that? I found this site http://www.allsandboxes.com/ that had some bigger examples that you could look at and then recreate for MUCH cheaper.

Also, if you have a cat, I would keep it out of the basement or make sure you have a tarp to cover the sand when the kids aren't using it so it doesn't turn into a large litter box.

Again, I think this is a fabulous idea, especially since you live somewhere that is cold and snowy for large parts of the year.

[eepster]

It isn't an official sandbox, but we had quite a large pile of sand in the bedroom where we took off the clothing we wore home from the beach this summer . The scary part is we had an even bigger pile of sand down in the laundry room where the swimsuits and towels got taken out of the beach bag.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by leilamom

The children's museum in our area sells (or at least they used to) these little plastic bits that you could sift, pour, scoop, and dump. I tried to find an example, but can't find one online. They are like the tiny plastic pieces that hold like plastic car model pieces on that plastic frame, does that make sense?

http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog/p...ID=xprd1131917

[limabean]

Originally Posted by 4evermom

I'm thinking next time I get the urge to make a child friendly attraction in my yard it will be pea gravel rather than sand.

Same here. We visited a children's museum recently that had a really cool playground, and their digging area was filled with pea gravel and it was great! Mostly because it was a windy outdoor area, where sand would be a nightmare, but I really liked the idea and would probably use that instead of sand if we ever get a sandbox. But my kids aren't really into castle building unless we're at the beach -- when we go to sand-filled playgrounds, they mostly just dig and fill containers, so pea gravel would be perfect for that.

[sweetpeppers]

This sounds awesome. I might have to do that too. My new house will have a basement that I want to work in, and having a great toy like a sandbox would help me get way more work done. I hate walking on sandy floors though, like when the kitchen tile floor gets sandy. Yich. sand sweeps up pretty well though, and if it was in the basement, it would always be dry, so I don't think it would spread that much to the rest of the house. I say go for it.