Wood or Rubber Mulch, Which is better?

Whether you’re setting up your own backyard play area or building a community park, keeping children safe is a top concern. To start with, making sure you have a sturdy, safe swing set or play set is crucial, and choosing the right type of playground mulch is also key.

While wood mulch used to be popular, parents are now wondering if rubber mulch might be safer. In this article, we can help you understand the safety aspects of any of those two choices.

Even on the most secure swing sets and play sets, kids can still tumble. The National Program for Playground Safety says that 80% of playground injuries come from falls. Although this doesn’t mean that kids can’t have fun on swings, slides, monkey bars and all those other fun features, it does mean we need to take extra care to avoid serious accidents.

How Safe is Wood Mulch for your Playground?

If you compare having no protection at all and leaving your play set on the ground or grass, then we can consider wooden mulch fairly safe. When it is placed correctly and abundantly around a play set, these wood chips are able to provide decent protection for your children; The Consumer Product Safety Commission rates wood mulch as an above-average playground surface in terms of safety, however, wood mulch is not the top choice among available materials, especially when we consider what homeowners, schools and parks require. Due to its drawbacks, we cannot wholeheartedly recommend wood mulch when there are superior options available on the market.

Disadvantages of Wood Mulch

Even if wood mulch is ok when there is nothing else to protect from a fall, it does have some clear setbacks which concern its use around kids and the maintenance it entails, for parents.

Advantages of Rubber Mulch

When it comes to children’s safety on a play set, rubber is a super-safe playground material:

 

• Rubber mulch is splinter-free.
• It is resistant to mold, ensuring a safe and clean play area for your kids.
• It is long-lasting and will not need replacing.
• More importantly, it offers top-notch fall protection for children.

Adventure World Play Sets Rubber Mulch

At Adventure World Play Sets, we consider that vinyl and rubber have to mean safety, that is why our play sets and swing sets are covered in a vinyl sheath to ensure that the wood won’t mold and that hands and fingers remain splinter-free, and that is also the reason why we have mulch as our recommended, super-safe playground material.

Our rubber mulch is the safest, most stylish and best playground material on the market, plus, it comes in five coordinated color choices. Also:

• It is made from 100% recycled tire rubber.
• It is non-toxic and meets federal flammability standards.
• Retains cushiony softness year-round and will not freeze.
• Stays in place even in windy conditions.
• Drains and dries quickly after it rains.
• Odor-free, non-staining and non-abrasive.
• Will not rot, attract insects or promote insect breeding.

While both wood mulch and rubber mulch can protect kids from a fall, it’s clear that rubber mulch is the optimal choice for several reasons that include safety, durability, longevity and eco-friendly qualities. 

For the coolest mulch that covers all these benefits, find and Adventure World Play Sets dealer near you today!