Indoor footing renovation

[MsM]

BO wants to upgrade the indoor and is going batty considering options! SO she has asked me to help research and here I am! This is a boarding barn and indoor gets used for maybe 2 - 5 rides per day, mostly lower level h/j stuff (and dressagy me!)

Currently the base is uneven. She had it levelled a couple of years ago by neighboring farmer but I don’t think they added anything or rolled it hard and it quickly became uneven again. In addition the footing packs down hard ridiculously quickly. Would like to add cushioning (especially me with horse with navicular changes!)

SO she wants to have the base done and new footing added. It is a budget situation (boarding stable!). She has a company that should know how to do the base but they are not primarily equestrian so she needs to think about how to do the footing. She wants to do primarily sand (washed and angular?) but she is considering additives if they are not difficult to maintain. Has anyone used this product: https://www.performancefooting.com/product/foamfooting/ ?

Other suggestions and things to avoid to get a decent footing on a budget?

[Bluey]

Most any construction company should have a smaller grader that will fit smaller spaces.
One way t fix it would be to grade the footing to one side, level, water and pack it, then put footing back on the other side and fix the rest the same way.

Or, with a loader, they can haul footing off, do the whole at once, then bring footing back.

I am surprised the base is getting wavey so soon, it should be good for over a decade at least, if the footing above it is kept loose, watered and worked regularly.

We have bare good, clean dirt, packed and compacted for the base, leveled with a laser, then added triple washed sand, about 3" and leveled that.
We water and use our rake regularly and it has been staying in very good shape.

[MsM]

Bluey, the last time they pulled back the footing, leveled and replaced footing. We think the problem was that they didnt pack the base enough and that there is a problem with the footing that causes it to pack down really quickly. She would like to reuse some footing but is concerned that putting it back will be putting back one of the problems.

[Bluey]

We used the company that takes care of big event centers, takes footing out to make ice rinks, puts it back in for rodeos, adds more for cuttings, takes most off for barrel races, adds some more for horse shows, etc.

Maybe you can find who does that where you are and ask them what they think?
Here they are glad to help, even if they don’t do the work.

The footing is plain river sand, triple washed, is what they told me.
They had some left over that was still good, not spent yet and, for our use, is perfect, we get plenty of compliments, horses work happily and not one has been sore riding in there.

Don’t know what may be available in your area, or what is best under your conditions, but someone that does that regularly should be able to look at what you have and help, maybe?

[Bogey2]

I have footing from the USDF book called “under foot” I think. The base is bluestone, wet down and then rolled. The sand is Mason sand with green sawdust and Mag Chloride. It is 15 years old and I just added more sand mix on top but the base has held up wonderfully!

[MapleLeaf]

I have an indoor set up similar to what you have – slightly uneven base and it was very compacted. I added some sand (too much – ugh) and the performancefooting foam. So far I am not a fan of the foam. In my opinion, it did not change any qualities of the sand. Maybe I did not order enough, but I regret putting it in my arena and wish I would have installed fiber instead.

I think there are lots of budget friendly options, but some require certain types of sand. A friend put in futuretrack footing with fine sand and it’s quite nice. I also saw this site gives estimates based on size of the arena: https://premierequestrian.com/horse-arena-footing/products/

[Lucassb]

@MapleLeaf

I have an indoor set up similar to what you have – slightly uneven base and it was very compacted. I added some sand (too much – ugh) and the performancefooting foam. So far I am not a fan of the foam. In my opinion, it did not change any qualities of the sand. Maybe I did not order enough, but I regret putting it in my arena and wish I would have installed fiber instead.

I think there are lots of budget friendly options, but some require certain types of sand. A friend put in futuretrack footing with fine sand and it’s quite nice. I also saw this site gives estimates based on size of the arena: https://premierequestrian.com/horse-arena-footing/products/

I have futuretrack in my (outdoor) arena and while it is really lovely to ride on, it takes a TON of water to maintain. Something to be aware of.