The Sandbox (sand)
Jan Dominquez
A few months ago, I decided I was tired of having to redirect our almost three-year-old son from my (then dormant, but soon to be planted) raised garden beds. He was overwhelmingly attracted to the 8' x 4' plot of dirt to the point that the area became replete with sand toys and multiple baths were required each day.
So my husband took a weekend and built a 6-foot square sandbox in a small corner of our yard and I set to work sourcing sandbox sand. Let's just say he was done with his project weeks before I finished researching sand. If you've ever looked up "play sand" on the internet and followed any of the links down the various rabbit holes, then you know that it's a very slippery slope toward deciding to never let your child anywhere near a sandbox ever again with a dose of potentially prohibiting them from the beach as well.
The "problem" is that in most cases, play sand is manufactured by crushing quartz, which creates a product that is a great consistency for playing and making castles; but when dry, also has a pretty severe warning to go along with the silica dust it kicks up. Depending on your source, the inhalation risk is for those using the sand in commercial applications on a long term basis (think sandblasting) and not when just playing. However, most bags of play sand carry a big, scary warning in bright red letters: THIS PRODUCT IS A KNOWN CARCINOGEN IN CALIFORNIA. Which would lead most parents to then wonder, if it's a carcinogen in California, why isn't it one here in [fill in your state] and what the heck are we doing marketing this for kid's play?!
What it boils down to is that California has stricter labeling requirements than other states for children's play materials. The play sand in California is the same play sand available for sale everywhere else.
There are a few companies that claim that their sand is safe sand that has either been treated or collected from a sand farm in the Caribbean Sea; but that sand is frightfully expensive -- as in, more than quadruple the cost of run-of-the-mill play sand you can grab from your local big-box, home improvement store. And there's no guarantee that it is silica-free or won't kick up dust when it is dry... because, well, it's sand. Here are some helpful resources I collected for you:
- If you are up for academically oriented reading, check out this article from the Winter '99 issue of Pace Environmental Law Review: From the Sandbox to Sandblasting: Regulation of Crystalline Silica
Ultimately, we chose to use the play sand. We have been very cognizant of the moisture level of the sand, and really, we've had so much rain that the sandbox has never been dry enough to kick up dust. And as for the beach -- well, you couldn't keep me away at this time of year no matter what the sand is made of!
I would love to dye the play sand in our sand box blue or green for my girls. They got a small (10 inch square) box full of colored sand with toys two years ago and have played with it until we've lost it all. I have looked at how much it would cost to fill up their outdoor sand box with Crayola colored sand and I was shocked! :001_huh:
We never dyed sand for a full-sized outdoor sandbox -- how much sand would that be? -- but last summer we did have a lot of fun coloring large bowlfuls of colored sand that the girls (a) poured into little plastic bottles [sand art], (b) played with in the tub, and spread all over the grass when they were done with it. KWIM? ;) We also colored pasta and THAT really was a fun project -- my mother came up the driveway and wondered why there were colored noodles spread all over the place. :lol: The girls are still stringing those noodles into necklaces and "dog-leashes."
When we dyed our sand we just used food coloring and rubbing alcohol -- pour some RA into a large ziploc bag, a few drops of food coloring, and a few cupfuls of sand. Zip the bag, PUT IT INTO A SECOND BAG, and let the girls mix it all around. They did wear their art smocks and this was an outdoor project. Same with the noodles -- outside with smocks. Oh, and we tie-dyed T-shirts, too.
Well, thanks, ladies. :) Both girls have some stories for school in the fall that suggest sand play for oceans and river banks. I just thought I would liven up their boring box after I clean it out from the spring rains. It is just a smaller plastic crab from a chain store. Got it at a garage sale. It takes four or five bags from Lowes to fill it up.
I love the idea of dyeing noodles. They would get a kick out of it. I bought some t-shirts at Michael's sale last week for $1 a piece. We are going to dye those when I get the energy to be out in the blistering heat.
What if you put a bucket of colored sand in the regular sandbox? It would probably be a while before it's all mixed in. I know mine would sprinkle it carefully as decorations & shapes on top of the tan sand, and swirl it in to see the contrast. You could even surprise them with a bucket of a new color every couple weeks, just to keep them on their toes. Of course by fall you'd have a food-coloring rainbow in your sandbox, and I'm not sure it won't stain their clothes if they sit in there.
And if you were thinking you would sneak some from the beach, know that beach sand is silica, too, though the fine dust would have been washed away by the water. Aside from the guilt you will feel for adding to the erosion problem, a study shows that beach sand is full of contaminants from birds, sewage and urban run-off.
So the bottom line is this. Worms, junkies and potentially poisonous dust are apparently just part of city life. Accept it or move. Let them play. Unless you have them digging ditches in the sandbox twelve hours a day, they are going to be ok.
Proper maintenance of your sandbox will cut back on the number of times you have to do an outright change of sand. Apply a water-based sealant after assembly and then maintain it. Rake the sand every few weeks with a quality bow rake to remove any rocks, sticks or leaves that may appear. Keep the box covered when not in use. As much as possible try to prevent the eating of snacks and drinking of sugary liquids inside the sandbox, as these can lead to insects. It may also be beneficial to impose a no-shoe rule in your sandbox.
Kids can\u2019t resist the fun bright colors of our Play Sand. Parents love knowing that our safe and non-toxic sand is from a name they\u2019ve trusted since they were kids. Make a big splash with our colorful Play Sand by using it for your arts & crafts projects, sandcastles, sandbox play areas, wedding decor, school projects, fish bowls, terrariums, floral arrangements, kids\u2019 activities and more.
I worked in the oil fields of North Dakota. We used millions (no exaggeration, upwards of 3 million pounds of sand per well) of pounds of sand. Silicosis is a serious condition, but is no danger from the exposure levels that kids experience.
I discovered the tremolite asbestos in Quickrete play sand. It was taken off the market but still may be in some sandboxes. There is at least one case of a man who contracted mesothelioma and his only known asbestos exposure was the sand, who was exposed around 1986-1990 and is likely dead by now.
Great information, I actually never realized this. But I just wanted to add, even though river sand or beach sand is not made of 100% crystalline silica, aka quartz; it has quartz in it. Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral on Earth and is found all over (even in the dirt in your yard). Yes, it is crushed for the play sand, it also gets crushed at the beach and in your yard over the years. So eventhough using river sand or beach sand would have less quartz,still will contain it and could also contain other bacteria and harmful things unless it has been treated and cleaned.
I actually looked up some alternatives and one place suggested oatmeal (Not sure how that would last overtime outside even in a covered sandbox), rice, crushed walnut shells sold at pet stores, flaxseed from a horse & feed store, fish rocks from a pet store, corn, and also have heard of using rubber mulch (but I would think would be kind of toxic since most are made of used tires).
The toxins come from the dust of the quartz, so breating in the dust is the problem. I have read that if you get a good quality play sand it is treated to minamize the dust but of course that does not get ride of it 100%. Any time you breat in dust from any dirt you will be breating in 100% crystalline silica, aka quartz. I have read that the amount you would have to breath in to actually be effected would be a lot more then the average person breaths in. The hazard comes from constant exposure, such as someone who mines quartz for a living.
I had the same issue a few years back. My dad made my son a sandbox for his first birthday and it sat empty for a year as I tried to find sand! We ended up getting river sand from a landscaping place (I think it was here for those in Central CT -center/). It worked out well and we had extra that we just kept in a trash can in case we ever needed to refill the box.
When building a sandbox for our kids, I was quite picky about the kind of sand I wanted. I didn't want beach sand, as that's too fine, but I wanted something that could be shaped and molded when wet. After looking at play sand from several other places (which all had the same beach sand), I finally happened upon this. I love it! It's the perfect consistency, not too fine but still very soft, and moldable when wet. My husband calls it brown sugar sand, which it definitely resembles when wet. I think I like playing in this sand more than my kids! The delivery guy was great too, very capable and careful. I'm a very happy and satisfied customer!
4a15465005