Building Your Own Ballpit
Building a ball pit is a very simple process. Once you've determined the materials to use, the next step is to figure out how much of everything you need.- Determine the dimensions of your ball pit
- Determine the structure type of your ball pit
- Calculate the total quantity of balls needed
- Buy the materials
- Put it all together
- Measuring the Dimensions
- Determine which structure type you'd like The next step is to determine what type of structure you'd like for your ballpit. All ball pits have the standard 12-sided cube as a base. However, you can add cross sections for both comfort and stability. You do have a choice as to how many cross sections you want: no cross-sections, single bar cross-sections, or double bar cross sections.
- Calculate the total quantity of balls needed First, choose which ball pit balls are best. Then see the ball pit calculator.
- Buy the materials If you're unsure of what materials you'd like to use, see the materials page for a detailed list of which materials are best. Once you've done that, just buy the materials. It's not that hard. This section is the most expensive section...unless you broke something while measuring in step 1.
- Put it all together Detailed construction of a ballpit
Measure the area in which you are planning to put the ball pit.
To get a sense of dimensions, a ball pit that is 4.5ftx5.5ft can comfortably fit three adults laying side by side. Despite being only 5.5ft long, the container bows out with the weight of the balls, which allows those taller than 5.5 ft to fit in relatively comfortably.One downside of the container bowing out is that it lowers the ball level. This can all be adjusted with the way you tighten the tarp around the ballpit. If the tarp is very tight, the balls will not be able to press out as far. If you're okay with the tarp bowing out, keep in mind that you'll have to buy more balls in order to get the same depth.
Note: Fittings will lengthen the size of a side by about 1 inch per fitting. If your ballpit is going to be a tight fit in the area, determine how many fittings you'll need on a side and subtract that from the total desired length of the side to determine how long the PVC should truly be. This is especially relevant if you decide to use a different number of cross-sections on consecutive sides.
Determine where to put the ball pit
It is recommended that you place the ball pit in a place where it is relatively easy to get underneath (and not completely surrounded on all four sides). This will help with any stray balls that fall out of the pit. It will also make it easier to fix any Tarp that may come undone, or pipes that may come apart. If you decide to glue your ball pit together, this is not nearly as a big of an issue.It's also recommended that you place the ballpit in a place where you can take a running leap into the ballpit.
If you choose to use a cross section, keep in mind that if you place it at the right height (h in the above diagram), it can also be used as a back rest.
Before cutting PVC pipe, consider the best height from the ground for your cross section if you want the ball pit to be even more comfortable.