We’re considering a property that has a finished pole barn with a concrete floor with drains. I’d like to consider repurposing it for a riding arena - I know we need to fully secure the drains so no dirt gets into them, but what sort of footing would we need in order to make the space cushioned enough? It would be for basic schooling, no jumping, games, reining etc.
IIWM, I’d talk to someone who installs riding arenas.
I could be wrong, but I can’t see how a concrete base would be doable unless you kept those drains workable.
Or installed a sub-base of gravel (for drainage) & then your footing over that.
My excavator pout in a 9" gravel base over leveled & compacted earth, then 3" sand over that.
So you’d lose 1’ of headroom - are the ceilings high enough?
My barn builder suggested ceiling height of at least 14’ - base to joists - I went 16’ so I could set jumps.
Some competition arenas in the SW are concrete floored huge warehouses, that they add special flooring for events, like parquet for basketball, ice for hockey and special flooring for rodeo and performance horse shows, dirt/sand they then take back out for the next event.
I don’t see why you would not be able, if you have a high enough ceiling, fill in with whatever you choose for footing.
A local trainer filled all but 20’ of his old 60’ x 100’ concrete floor quonset barn with deep sand, added a pro-cutter wire system and started his cutting horses there.
The front 20’ had a couple stalls, in case he wanted to put a horse in.
As Bluey said,
Madison Square Garden has concrete floors and they haul in footing and have horse shows.
Heck they haul in footing and have Monster Truck Shows.
How high is the ceiling? When you add 10 inches of footing you don’t want to hit your head on a beam.
It is doable, but may be spendy.
How big is the building? I know many folks ride in fairly small spaces, but too small can be like riding in a shoebox. Ventilation issues, and wall type? Will you put in wood kick boards/walls? Horse vs. metal siding can be horrific. It can be done but height needs to be considered, and careful calculation of footing type and depth would be next.
[QUOTE=csaper58;8943546]
As Bluey said,
Madison Square Garden has concrete floors and they haul in footing and have horse shows.
Heck they haul in footing and have Monster Truck Shows.
How high is the ceiling? When you add 10 inches of footing you don’t want to hit your head on a beam.
It is doable, but may be spendy.[/QUOTE]
This is true but it is not used for more than a couple of days. Something that will stand the test of time of daily use needs to be well thought out and installed.
Just guessing but I would think it will need, should be engineered like any area, ring base build up. I think it will need a lot more than just adding X amount of surface footing to it. The base has to, should have a certain amount of “give” to it in addition to the footing.
I would bet to do properly it is not going to be inexpensive. Working within the confines of the existing structure is going to add to the cost. Much easier and quicker to construct, install the base before the building is erected.
Let us know what you find out after talking to someone who has done this.
My recommendation…
http://www.ottosport.de/public/en/products/otto-perforated-mat
I had friend who put footing into a barn with a concrete floor. It was not the best success. they put tons of footing into it an it got dusty very fast…
If I would have an indoor with a concrete floor I would use these…
I used to have them in my ring in Germany and loved them. I had my ring for 20 years and never had any problems…
Thank you for all the input - lots to consider! The walls are 16’ high so we could add a foot of base without concern for height. We would add wood kick boards for safety, and possibly add some plexi panels for natural light. As it was used as a shop, it is heated and well ventilated, as well as very well lit (artificially) so it could work. I know of a number of arenas in the city that do host horse events in concrete arenas so I’m hoping to be able to talk to some of the sites and find out what they do. Always something to research!
[QUOTE=gumtree;8943609]
This is true but it is not used for more than a couple of days. Something that will stand the test of time of daily use needs to be well thought out and installed.
Just guessing but I would think it will need, should be engineered like any area, ring base build up. I think it will need a lot more than just adding X amount of surface footing to it. The base has to, should have a certain amount of “give” to it in addition to the footing.
I would bet to do properly it is not going to be inexpensive. Working within the confines of the existing structure is going to add to the cost. Much easier and quicker to construct, install the base before the building is erected.
Let us know what you find out after talking to someone who has done this.[/QUOTE]
Western shows last easily a week to ten days of heavy traffic in the arenas, during competition and the rest of the time, all night too, warmup area.
Many exhibitors reserve time at 2-3 am as the only time it is free for their horses to practice and stay fit and exercised.
Those arenas with haul in dirt, most times just sand, are probably used more than a private arena would.
As for dust, that is a question of management, will be a problem in any arena, no matter what the base is and there are ways to control for that.
I think this is a totally do-able project.
I wonder if the GGT butterfly arena base mats would work in this case? Might give some stability to your other layers of footing and reduce concussion. (I do not work for them. I just looked at them for one of my projects.)
The dust issue mentioned earlier, I would think is more of a top layer management issue.
