Product Review: Sunray Premium Playgrounds

Summer is now upon us. Kids need entertainment and love to play outside. After deciding to purchase a climber set, my husband and I researched various models and their prices. There is a vast range of options available, starting with a basic metal swing set for a few hundred dollars, to a small amusement park in your own backyard for more than $20,000. We looked at models from toy stores, department stores, tools stores and even online catalogs. A climber set is an expensive purchase and we wanted to ensure we were selecting the proper equipment for our family.

The play equipment we chose to buy was a Sunray Premium Playground from Costco and was $1,399.99 (Canadian dollars before tax). It is a solid structure built of wood with safety handles and heavy gauge steel hardware. The product comes with a 15-year warranty and is suitable for children ages 3-11. Features include a double wall wave slide, a rock wall with climbing rope, a trapeze/rings combo, a toddler swing, 2 sling swings, a tic-tac-toe panel, a rope climbing ladder, a pirate ship's wheel, a clubhouse, a picnic table and a sandbox. What more could your children desire? The structure is 14' wide x 17' long and 12' high. A large level backyard is required. My husband had to build up our property with wood beams, lots of earth and new sod.

Assembly for this unit was a long and complicated process. There are 35 steps in total, 5 boxes of equipment and what seemed like a million bolts and pieces to put together. My husband, who is a handy guy, along with my father, assembled this structure in two days, approximately 14 hours of work. Complications with assembly included constantly ensuring the equipment was level (most holes were not pre-drilled for this reason), the spacing for gaps between some of the boards was not always clear and the ropes for the ladder were not long enough to double knot as was indicated in the instructions.

Even with the complication of assembly, the Sunray Premium Playground is an excellent choice for any family. With so many features, it can entertain multiple children of varying ages. Plan to assemble this equipment when you have a few days available and don't lose the hardware chart! Once it is assembled and you see your children's smiling faces, you will know you have made a good choice. Happy playing!