Tuesday, January 1, 2013

DIY Water Ramp

This was a fun project! Last year (2012). I discovered a baby/toddler show called Eebee's Adventures. I wrote a post about it here The Amazing Eebee. I was really inspired by all of the wonderfully creative props they used in the show for play. First,  I decided to make an inspired version of their wood ball ramp. You can see my DIY 2 in 1 ball and car ramps here Wood is good part 1 and here Wood is good part 2! I really loved the clear ramp they were using for water play. So I searched all over town and online looking for something like it, but found nothing. So one day I thought to myself, "why not call the Eebee company" and I did! I had a really pleasant conversation with one of the creators of Eebee's adventures. He informed me of how they created the clear ramp used in their water play DVD. So, I decided to finally get the materials together and make it! It turned out great and I love it as much as the kids do!! It was very easy. I just purchased clear acrylic from Lowes, had them cut it for me and then I took it home and assembled it! I used the acrylic glue sold where the acrylic paneling is in Lowes, then let it dry for 24 hours. The next day, I went over the dried glue with hot glue on the inside and outside and in any cracks or crevices. Basically you have one wide bottom piece and two shorter side pieces that you glue to the bottom piece to create a rain gutter like ramp. I used a chair and another piece of acrylic to hold it in place while it was drying. You will need a helper to hold up the pieces while you glue them. Then use things to prop the sides while they dry for 24 hours. It is such a hit with my kids that I plan to make another one for indoor play with balls and such. They are really a lot of fun. I have a few indoor things planned for it for this week! The overall cost of the materials cost me a total of $40. From time to time I know I will have to re-glue it, like the Eebee company said they did as well. But it is so worth it! Let me know if you want any specific information about it or have any questions. Feel free to comment on this post or email me at twinsrock@cfl.rr.com Let me know if you make one too!


Check out my masterpiece!





























9 comments:

  1. Wow, I'm impressed at all you did to put this together! This is great, and I've pinned it! Maybe when summer comes around again I'll try something like this with my kids.

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  2. That looks like so much fun for indoor or outdoor play! I think I need to make one and maybe try coloring the water! What were the dimensions for the acrylic you got at Lowes? Thank you for going on that information gathering mission :)
    henrettafam@gmail.com

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    Replies
    1. thanks!! The water was actually colored but didnt show up in the pics. lol

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  3. Am curious where you got your red water container with spout?

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  4. This looks like so much fun! I featured this post over on my blog for the weekly kid's co-op. You can check it out here:

    http://www.homelearningjourney.com/the-weekly-kids-co-op-110/

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  5. How does it stay on the table? It looks like the kids are pressing the sponges down and I would think this would cause the ramp to slide off the table. What are the dimensions so that I can have Lowes cut one for me? bowers1201@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete

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