Hogs fuel/wood chip arenas

[StormyDay]

I am thinking of putting in a very small arena with footing as wood chips. Growing up in the PNW, hogs fuel arenas were common and I remember them being pretty nice to ride on; drains well, doesn’t need a ton of dragging, and best of all, not requiring a base to be put in. However, being where I am now I can’t get the traditional cedar. Instead, I would most likely use a mix of hardwood chips. I can get this for free or very low cost locally.
The arena would be for very light use. I would be lunging in there and doing some flatwork on the days when the normal arena is too flooded. Drainage is not a problem as the spot for it would be the top of a hill.

I could get sand instead, but I feel like the hogs fuel option would be better as it requires less dragging.
What does COTH think? Anyone done a wood chip arena?

[mvp]

I think hog fuel and hardwood chips are very, very different animals. I have ridden on an arena in the PNW made of “hog fuel”-- with was some coarse chips. They probably were not hardwood. But they were bad. They were slippery (as I imagine hardwood chips would be, too) and large enough that they’d never break down.

I think the success of this arena would depend, at least in part, on just how coarse the chips are. But IIRC, hog fuel isn’t from the woody part of the tree, but from the bark and hairy underside of that.

ETA: I know hog fuel was/is popular in the rainy PNW (and where hog fuel was (is?) plentiful. But I don’t remember it being well-draining. I saw it used most often in paddocks and the idea was to create a carpet that might be soaked, but which horses would stay on top of. I don’t think it worked that way except for in a couple of rare cases there there were years of it built up and the horses who lived on it were small, light and lame enough to not move around much.

[StormyDay]

@mvp

I think hog fuel and hardwood chips are very, very different animals. I have ridden on an arena in the PNW made of “hog fuel”-- with was some coarse chips. They probably were not hardwood. But they were bad. They were slippery (as I imagine hardwood chips would be, too) and large enough that they’d never break down.

I think the success of this arena would depend, at least in part, on just how coarse the chips are. But IIRC, hog fuel isn’t from the woody part of the tree, but from the bark and hairy underside of that.

ETA: I know hog fuel was/is popular in the rainy PNW (and where hog fuel was (is?) plentiful. But I don’t remember it being well-draining. I saw it used most often in paddocks and the idea was to create a carpet that might be soaked, but which horses would stay on top of. I don’t think it worked that way except for in a couple of rare cases there there were years of it built up and the horses who lived on it were small, light and lame enough to not move around much.

My experience with hogs fuel was much different. My neighbors rode and trained on one year round and I always remember it being pretty decent footing…
and they were doing pretty big jumps. Only problem I remember is that it would freeze solid!
I do agree on it in paddocks though. It doesn’t work there at all. Just becomes one poopy-muddy mess.
The chips would be ranging from 2 in at the very largest to sawdust. Most would be about 1/2 inch pieces.

[Scribbler]

Any arena or paddock is only as good as the underlying drainage. In the PNW that drainage is crucial, whether you are lucky to be in a well drained top of a hill, or whether you install French drains and rock base. Our barn has a hogfuel outdoor arena built in an actual bog, and it is functional all year round, but it also has about $50,000 of drainage installed by a skilled contractor. My runout paddock holds up well with hogfuel because I also have supplementary drainage professionally installed.

On the other hand, our sand roundpens and paddocks do not always drain that well, and some collect green algae pee water in the rainy seasons.

New hogfuel can have big sticks of kindling in it, and if that happens you have to remove them probably by hand.

But I really like a well drained and seasoned hogfuel arena, indoors or out.

I don’t think other wood chips would hold up the same as cedar, however.

[Calvincrowe]

Huge difference between shredded cedar you were most likely riding on, and wood chips made from hardwoods or fir intended for playgrounds or walkways. Those chip arenas are slick! I’m betting your old neighbors had a mix of cedar shreds and chunks. As others said, you’ll need a decent base otherwise you’ll have a boggy mess.