28 Free DIY Playset Plans for Your Backyard

The Ultimate Collection of Free DIY Outdoor

Playset Plans

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There are plenty of different playhouses and backyard playground sets to choose from in the stores today, but sometimes it is actually better to build this kind of thing on your own.



Building a playset for your child or children brings with it many benefits

• They’re scalableà so you can add extra features à like slides, swings, climbing walls,

and more as your kids develop.



Building a playset for your child or children brings with it many benefits

They can be customized to fit within your space.

They often cost less than a complete, all-in-one kit.



But the main thing that you need to think about when it comes to these kinds of custom playsets is the pride and satisfaction that comes along with building something unique and fun for your family.



If your children are old enough, you may even want to have them help you with the building process – you’ll need all the help you can get with some of these projects.



Buildeazy Play Fort

• This is a pretty cool little fort/hut that has an attached tire swing, and slide.

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http://www.buildeazy.com/newplans/playfort_1.html


Playhouse with Climbing wall

These plans elaborate on how to add a climbing wall structure to the fort above, which reminds me of a tree house, minus the tree.

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http://www.buildeazy.com/newplans/playfort_1.html


The Wendy House

Check out this fort made with girls in mind, featuring a stylish front porch area and a feminine touch that most playsets lack.

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http://www.buildeazy.com/wendyhouse.html


Eccentric Playhouse

• Here’s another one for the girls, with a creative shape that looks like something out of Alice in Wonderland.

• It’s a whimsical design that’s would delight any young girl with an active imagination.

• It definitely requires a bit more experience, with some very long and angular cuts best handled with a mitre saw.

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http://www.buildeazy.com/workshop/plywood-playhouse-1.html


Coolforts.com

Coolforts has a couple impressive set of plans and instructions for military / fantasy / frontier style forts, available in PDF downloadable format.

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http://www.coolforts.com/


Double decker playhouse

• From DIY Network, this fort is pretty large, and definitely requires a lot of time and skill.

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http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/how-to-build-a-double-decker-playhouse/index.html


Double decker playhouse

• Recruit one of your friends, or get that lazy teenage son of yours to help.

• If you can pull it off, the payoff would result in a giant fort that provides tons of fun for your kids.

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http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/how-to-build-a-double-decker-playhouse/index.html


$100 Scrapwood Playhouse

This was a toss up on whether or not to include here. On one hand, here’s an example of

what NOT to do when building a fort, unless you like mixing splinters and possible structural collapse with your kids’ playtime.

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http://qryztufre.livejournal.com/243777.html




$100 Scrapwood Playhouse

However, it’s a great creative effort that was done for super cheap using a lot of household leftovers

You be the judge.

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How to put together a play fort

A great series of videos by carpentry and woodworking expert Ron Hazelton on how to assemble your own fort.

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http://www.ronhazelton.com/projects/how_to_put_together_a_backyard_play_set


Two story fort and playhouse

A very nice looking, double-decker fort/playhouse.

Would be really neat to build this one as a tree house.

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http://pages.areaguides.com/ubuild/FortPlayHouse.htm


Raised fort

This is an exceptional fort, crafted with raised legs that elevate it off the ground by about six feet.

It features a secret trap door for a secret entrance, and a ramp that extends from the floor.

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http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Raised-Fort/


Raised fort

This plan by is very well documented, and could easily be extended to include a number of optional accessories and features.

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http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Raised-Fort/


Log Cabin Playhouse

A rustic, and very well put together playhouse made from logs.

Would be a perfect addition to the backyard of your vacation cabin.

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http://pages.areaguides.com/ubuild/BackYardLogCabin.htm


The “Squarris Wheel”

Feeling a bit more adventuresome?

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http://www.vintageprojects.com/kids/squarris-wheel.html




The “Squarris Wheel”

This ferris wheel type of playset features four spots for your kids to sit in, and a design that takes safety into account, which is a good thing!

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Simple see-saw

Perhaps you need an additional feature for your backyard playground.

This easy to follow set of instructions lays out how to build a simple see-saw that’s safe and fun to use

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http://pages.areaguides.com/ubuild/SeeSaw.htm


Swinging see-saw

If you like the simple see-saw, but want something a with a little more style, try this swinging version.

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http://www.buildeazy.com/newserve/swinging-seesaw-1.html


Tree house plans

Good ol’ Ron Hazeton comes through again.

What can’t this guy build?

----- > I think every kid dreams of having a mini-fort/house to escape to in a tree, and this great outlines in great detail everything you need to build a safe tree house.

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http://www.ronhazelton.com/projects/how_to_build_a_tree_house_or_tree_fort


Homemade wooden playhouse

Ehow brings us this outline explaining how to build a sturdy wooden play structure using 2x4s and some plywood.

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http://www.ehow.com/how_6329122_homemade-wooden-playhouses.html


The adventure tower

• This unique structure offers tons of options for playing, swinging, and climbing around.

• Kids will love the unique design, which both looks good and is highly functional.

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http://www.teachmeteamwork.com/adventure_tower/


Biggest play fort ever

• Here’s an exceptional example of dedication and pride of craftsmanship.

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http://landoflafroths.blogspot.com/2010/09/utah-part-1-grandpa-grandma-mcallisters.html


Biggest play fort ever

This structure has it all, from a zipline, to multiple rooms/levels inside the fort, swings, and much more.

An incredible playset that must have taken a long time to create.

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http://landoflafroths.blogspot.com/2010/09/utah-part-1-grandpa-grandma-mcallisters.html


Adding a playground slide to a fort

If you have the inkling to build a basic four post playset, then why not follow these instructions to add a slide to the unit?

It’s an easy way to enhance the structure and provide more fun for the kiddos.

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http://extremehowto.com/build-a-playground-slide/


Landscaping pole playhouse

Built using round landscaping poles, this version can be expanded or slimmed down to your needs and features a crawl tunnel connecting the two units.

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http://www.railwaysleeper.com/Play%20houses%20-%20Belton%20hall%20adventure%20playground.htm


How to build a DIY playset with tower

• Kelly of “View along the way” provides a great outline that’s well-documented, showing how to build a playset with a tower.

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http://www.viewalongtheway.com/2011/07/our-diy-playset-part-1-the-tower/




Outdoor playset plans

• My Outdoor Playset has a very well put together guide to building your own fort.

• They include great images and instructions to build a set that includes two tire swings.

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http://myoutdoorplans.com/playhouse/outdoor-playset-plans/




Firehouse playset

• A unique twist on the normal four post playset, this structure resembles a firehouse, which is sure to get your kids’ imaginations going.

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http://ana-white.com/2011/11/firehouse-playset

http://ana-white.com/2011/11/firehouse-playset


Market style playset

Do your kids have an entrepreneurial spirit? When I was little, I remember “borrowing” most of the fruit and veggies from my parents fridge, and hocking them by the side of the road from a Fisher Price table.

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http://www.thedesignconfidential.com/2013/03/free-diy-furniture-plans-build-market-playset

http://www.thedesignconfidential.com/2013/03/free-diy-furniture-plans-build-market-playset


How to build an outdoor playset of your dreams

The name says it all. This is a fairly large, multi-section fort connected by a narrow bridge up high.

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http://builtbykids.com/how-to-build-an-outdoor-wood-playset-of-your-dreams/




The Pallet Playhouse

Perhaps you don’t have the time or money to build something like the “dream” playset above.

After all, you still need to buy that of Busch for the weekend.

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http://builtbykids.com/how-we-built-our-pallet-playhouse/


The Pallet Playhouse

• Well, feast your eyes on the pallet playhouse, a structure that looks more like a chicken coop.

• This plan, while very basic, offers at least a basic foundation to start with along with plenty of exciting splinters to keep you on your toes.

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http://builtbykids.com/how-we-built-our-pallet-playhouse/


Cardboard playhouse

• Let’s get down to the basics.

• When I was a kid, the best thing about getting a new appliance wasn’t the number of BTUs it put off, or the the amount of cubic freezer storage.

• All that mattered was that the box remain intact so we could use it to build whatever our imagine could conjure up.

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http://innerchildfun.com/2012/08/diy-cardboard-construction-play-set.html


Cardboard playhouse

• We’ll end this list with

the cheapest DIY playhouse you can build – the cardboard one.

• This is actually a great guide, with solid instructions on how to create not just a playhouse, but a train, and a boat.

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http://innerchildfun.com/2012/08/diy-cardboard-construction-play-set.html


Deluxe playhouse

• DIY Network comes through again, with very detailed instructions on how to build a deluxe playhouse.

• They include a set of PDF plans as well.

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http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/how-to-build-a-deluxe-playhouse/index.html

http://images.diynetwork.com/webdiy/2010/playhouse/playhouse.pdf


• There you have it! • With these resources, you should

be able to pull together a great playset for your children.



Don’t forget that once built, you can customize it in all sorts of ways; make it your own by adding swings, climbing walls, fire poles, telescopes, and much more. Visit http://www.totalplaygrounds.com for all your playground equipment needs


http://www.totalplaygrounds.com/

http://www.totalplaygrounds.com/


Browse our collection of residential playground equipment to get more ideas.

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28 Free DIY Playset Plans for Your Backyard

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Transcript of 28 Free DIY Playset Plans for Your Backyard