New Arena footing - sand too deep

[hb]

My new arena was finished Friday, and the contractor put in 2 inches of washed angular sand as the footing. Two inches of sand seems to be on the lower end of standard specifications for footing, but it is too deep. Difficult to walk in for me and for horse, even when fully wet. Measured the depth to the base and it and it does measure from 2" to 2.5" in various places.

Will it “settle” and become more rideable? If so, how long does that take? Or do I need to remove some of the sand right away?
I was planning to do rubber granules mixed in with the sand, but I think I need less sand before adding anything to it.

Thanks in advance.

[Crockpot]

Keep dragging. Keep watering

[hb]

Will that make the sand firm up? How much watering and dragging will it need? I’d like to be able to ride on it soon!

[OTTBs]

I feel you. My contractor allegedly put 2" of sand in my arena…so why are there 4" deep hoofprints and why is it so hard to walk in there? I told him it was too deep, he allegedly took some out. He made a pile in a corner but it was still too deep.

I used my tractor blade to scrape some up, that seemed to go okay at first. The last time I tried to finish off the job, though, I found spots where nearly all the sand was gone–random spots. Used a shovel to fill back in those spots from deeper areas. Haven’t gotten my drag in there yet, have watered a little bit. I do think it’s settling a bit after 2 months with some riding in there.

If you try to scrape your sand up, my advice would be to do straight lines, start at the same end and go to the other end. This is because if the sand is uneven at all, your blade will bounce up and down when the tractor goes up–so I assume my problem began when my tracks overlapped. Then you’ll have to figure out how to deal with the pile of sand at one end…

[horsepoor]

Have you asked your arena contractor about it? That would be my first call – see what they have to say. It is possible that it will settle some, as I know mine did when we built (but we also installed a mix of sand, fiber, rubber). I’m assuming we are talking an outdoor arena? You will get some of the sand working down into the base as it gets watered and used. I wouldn’t be in a hurry to pull sand out yet, I’d give it time with water and work and use, and I’d also talk to the contractor to get their take on it.

[ozjb]

I had to get my arena guy back to remove sand . . . it was way too deep after letting it settle. Not sure why this is a common theme?

[Palm_Beach]

When I did mine, I was told to start very low, and add if I needed more. The very low was sufficient.

[khall]

It also may be the type of sand used. If not angular sand that will pack then it will never tighten up to ride in. I feel your pain and had similar issue but contractor put in 4 " of sand. I ended up pulling out all of the sand, now have a big pile outside of the arena, and put in screenings for footing. Have loved it ever since.

[spacehorse]

My ring is also too deep. Told him I wanted 2" of sand. Had part of it done and I was like…uh that’s too deep! Instead of listening to me, he just kept the dump trucks coming! I have been removing it with my tractor bucket. I set it and drive backwards. Make a pile at one end. I have been shoveling it by hand into my bucket and dumping onto a huge pile I have outside the ring. Tedious and I am soooo over it.

[SnicklefritzG]

I’m shocked that some people are saying the contractors are putting in 3-4"
of sand! The farm where I board my horse is having people come in to inspect the arenas and most have said maybe 1.5" of sand if it’s sand only. they said more sand would be needed if sand is mixed with GGT or certain other additives.

[SugarCubes]

My ring was also just finished with 2" of angular sand. My first ride felt pretty deep, but I’ve been dragging it every morning and its already much better. I found some great drag patterns on youtube (search ABI drag patterns) and alternate which one I do, it has made a big difference already.

[hb]

The initial quote for the arena said 4 inches of sand. I changed it to 2 inches. I guess some of the western disciplines like really deep sand, he said his jobs usually want more sand. Contractor came out this weekend and we measured the depth. It measures 2 inches in most places, some a little lower, some a little higher.

He said the fines will wash into the base but didn’t have a timeframe for how long it will take to settle.

We’ve been having quite a few random storms and I’ve been dragging between soaking rains. Lucky for me, it’s working much better than watering with the sprinklers!

I just cannot use the arena when it’s this deep, will be using the tractor to pull off sand this weekend. I can push it off the end of the arena and pull it back later if needed.

[Showbizz]

He’s wrong - no one likes 4" of sand! I’m predominately a “western-er” and when I put in my arena, I did 2" and it was too deep for a while. It did settle over a period of months, but next time I’ll do 1" and add as needed.

[PNWjumper]

I put 2 - 2 1/2" of sand in my arena when it was built and it was perfect from day one. My suspicion would be that the sand he used was not angular enough. But based on what others have said, perhaps it will firm up a bit with dragging and watering. I definitely wouldn’t give up before giving it some time to settle.

But from a horsecare perspective I would far rather ride in an arena with too little sand than one with too much!

[ToN_Farm]

I would maybe rent a heavy roller and roll it while damp to help it compact. Don’t know if you have rental places like that where you are, but we do.

[hb]

He said western gamers (barrel racing?) in the area have asked him to put in 4 inches in their arenas. Not sure why.

If it takes months to settle I think I’ll take some out this weekend. Don’t want to wait that long. It seemed firmer after dragging yesterday, and a big storm came in last night. Supposed to rain Thursday/Friday this week, will check again on the weekend.

I walked around the arena before dragging yesterday, and got measurements from 1.5 inches to almost 3 inches. The spots with 1.5 inches were firm enough. I raked sand from the deeper side across. Probably just need to take about a truckload’s worth out.

He put in most of the sand last week, then said he’d bring one more load Friday morning and be done. I walked around the arena Thursday and almost called to tell him not to bring the final truckload. I wish I would have done that!

[SouthernYankee]

[QUOTE=Showbizz;8713831]
He’s wrong - no one likes 4" of sand! I’m predominately a “western-er” and when I put in my arena, I did 2" and it was too deep for a while. It did settle over a period of months, but next time I’ll do 1" and add as needed.[/QUOTE]

I want 4" if I’m working cows. Any less than that and my horse won’t have enough give in the footing when hes cutting them.

It’s also nice for getting him fit when loping circles.

[SnicklefritzG]

At 4" wouldn’t there be a concern about soft tissue injuries?

[Classicgal]

The same thing happened to me. My contractor did a race track and got into horse arenas. I think race tracks are deeper. He swore he didn’t put that much down but I argued that I could measure it as double. He came back and pushed it to the corners. I used that extra sand over the next several years and was glad to have it.

[Color_of_Light]

Ask to see the rock bill from the rock pit. It will have the exact units of sand, in tons or yards and how many loads the guy purchased. The rock pit can give you the formula to calculate how much sand you need for 2" based on the square footage of riding space. This will tell you if he added too much or not.

A vibrating compactor will expedite the settling of fines and help firm up the footing. Water it well, since sand needs water to hold it together.

Did this guy use a laser to level? If he did, have him come back and re-level it. 1.5" to 3" is a big difference.