Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

Horrible instructions! Be prepared to spend alot of time putting this together. The wood is NOT labeled and the pictures are a joke! Bolts constantly had to be tightened. After the first summer of hardly any use, a windy day in december sent it across the yard. The beam holding the swings had split and the wind then put the playhouse area up against a tree splintering several other pieces. Do not buy this playset.

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

NONE OF THE WOOD PIECES IS LABELED SO YOU HAVE TO GUESS USING THE EXTREMELY UNCLEAR PICTURES IN THE AWFUL DIRECTIONS. I AM SO UPSET! I CALLED THE BIG BACKYARD COMPANY & THEY SAID THEY WERE NEW & HAD TRIED PUTTING STICKERS ON BUT THEY DID NOT STICK OR WOULD NOT COME OFF SO THEY STOPPED LABELING!! I EVEN TRIED TO CALL BACK & HIRE SOMEONE THRU TOYSRUS TO PUT IT TOGETHER & THEY DON'T OFFER THAT. SO NOT WORTH THE MONEY, HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT!!!!

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

I started the project by myself and soon had 2 friends over to decipher the awful directions. The directions contradict themselves on almost every page! We second guessed ourselves over and over again..Sometimes we were right, other times...not so much. On day two, we basically used the directions picture alone w/ the hardware numbers called for. six hours later, we were done! Because of the terrible directions, it took alot more time than anticipated to put this set together. Once together and on level ground with the stabilizing steaks grounded in place, its not a bad swing set! My daughter loves it and that's all that really matters in the long run! FYI: The chalk board is made of a cloth like material and is not solid! I went out and bought two pieces of 1X3 and stained it the color of the set. I secured the pieces behind the chalk board so nobody can push through it and out the back. I would recommend this set to a friend with a fair warning that the directions are not easily understood!

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

This was a gift for my 2 1/2 year old. He got it at the end of summer so he did not get to play on it much. When he would swing on it the legs would rock and that made me nervous. We had a wind storm and it blew the entire set down and broke it in 5 places,and bent the bolts. I am not impressed by the thin flimsy wood that is used for the clubhouse, and the chalkboard is not a board at all. It's a tarp. Also not a safe feature because there is only screws holding the tarp in place, no additional wood on the other side. I wish we had gone with a metal swingset for half the price. Dont buy this product unless you are pretty handy, and are prepared to replace the wood every year.

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

This swingset was a gift from a family member for my son's birthday. Swingset will need to be re-tightened every few uses. Rocks when 4-year old swings, even though it is staked in as directed. Instructions are not always complete. Illustrations are mirror images causing wasted time taking things apart. You'll need to drill your own holes in some boards. You'll need to add your own extra bracing. It will void your warranty,but it is needed. Do not install chalkboard! Your kids can fall through it. Get your own wood and fill in the space. You'll need an impact driver for assembly. A regular drill won't come close to doing the job.

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

It is very nice my kids love it. The instructions were very difficult. It took 3 people over 8 hours to build. They labeled and set everything out first. Some holes needed to be drilled.

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

We've had this playset up for about 4 months. My 2.5 year old loves it, but it seems a little unstable. It rocks a bit when he swings and climbs on it. It's on level ground and staked in.

We had a storm blow through 2 nights ago, with about 30 mph wind and it blew the playset completely over, and several of the beams and wood pieces completely broke in two. The main swing beam, and a beam on the fort are completely broken.

The warranty does not cover acts of nature, but they will give you a quote on replacement parts. I'm really disappointed that it blew over and is broken in pieces. And, we'll basically have to disassemble the whole thing to replace the broken pieces. Not sure it's worth the effort, as it seems a little flimsy to begin with.

30 mph winds are nothing compared to some winds Oklahoma will see this spring, so I'm really wondering if it's worth it to repair and replace. Extremely unhappy that it completely blew over and is broken after just 4 months. What a waste of money!

It was also difficult to put together. We paid someone to do it- he did it in about 8 hours or so, but was left with some extra pieces- the instructions were not clear in many areas.

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

We got this swing set for my one year old and he loves it but the first big storm we had it blew away. It only comes with about four wood stakes which is not enough to keep it from blowing away. My advice is buy the metal stakes to anchor it down. My child is 30 lbs and when he swings on it the whole thing rocks. We got this swing set on sale, no way i wouldve paid the full [$] for it.

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

we love it

Comments about Big Backyard 1009842 1009842 Bloomingdale Wood Gym Set:

*Like other reviewers, I agree the directions aren't great - many photos are mirror images or reversed, but refer back to the finished photo and you'll be fine. If you have even basic construction experience, you'll find it an EASY build.
*My 61 yr old husband and I(58) built the play structure over one weekend, totaling no more than 8 hours. We "presorted" the screws and bolts into baggies with the correct labels for ease of use. All connector/parts are well labeled, but not the same labeling as each individual step in the instructions. None of the wood parts are labeled but most are easy to identify by size/shape. SORT the weekend before or you'll waste valuable build time.
*The "blackboard" is a joke and since it is right by the slide, we put the fence wall there and reinforced the "blackboard"/tarp and moved it away from an opening so a kid wouldn't go right through it after it rots a bit in the sun.
*Customer service is GREAT! I needed a couple pieces of wood replaced due to small cracks and they had the pieces out to me immediately!
*Al in all, we love the play structure. It looks great and the boys now have something to do when visiting Nana and Papa.