If you own or operate a playground, you know how important it is to provide the children who use it with an area for play activity and exercise that remains as safe as possible at all times. But no matter how carefully you maintain your playground equipment to avoid injury or mishaps, there’s another element in your playground that can also present a danger to children of all ages.
The mulch that you use to provide landscaping that makes your playground more attractive ( Look at this playground in Queensland for example) in addition to providing ground cover in and around assorted playground equipment can often become moldy. This happens especially in communities where the climate is naturally hot and humid or if improper drainage makes your mulch covering retain water and moisture, attracting the growth of mold. So it’s important to remain vigilant about the problem of mold in your playground mulch. There are simple steps you can take to kill it and eliminate it from any mulch playground surfaces in addition to taking action to help prevent its future growth.
Removal
Attend to mulch removal as quickly as possible after you notice any growth. Pick a time when there are no children, pets or adults using the playground to avoid having them get any contamination from mold being stirred up into the air. Before you begin a mulch mold removal project, be certain that you and your maintenance crew have assembled all of the equipment you will need for this process ahead of time.
Everyone involved in the mold clean-up project should be wearing rubber gloves as well as a mask to avoid breathing in mold-contaminated particles. Garden rakes and pitchforks are the tools you need to help stir through every inch of mulch surfacing so that the clumps of molded mulch can be brought up to the surface. Lift up these clumps and deposit them into a dumpster or special container for proper disposal.
Once you have removed all mold clumps from any plot of mulch, you then need to spread out the remaining mulch and begin spraying it with a mold-killing spray that has been EPA-approved for safe use around playground equipment. Spread out the mulch again and re-spray, then allow the spray to dry completely. Depending upon the type of spray utilized to kill off any remaining mold, you may need to keep any mulch surfaced areas closed to public use for a limited amount of time in order to allow the spray to dry properly and the mulch to be safe to use again.
Clean up
Throw away any used gloves and masks directly into the trash and don’t re-use them. Use a bleach solution to disinfect and clean your rakes and pitchforks and don’t forget to disinfect the shoes or boots you are wearing. Change your clothing and launder whatever outfit you were wearing during the decontamination process. Remove your container of dumped mold residue as quickly as possible to prevent re-contamination. Double check all drains around your playground to discover if any of them are getting clogged and contributing to the formation of mold in your mulch. Having an efficiently operating drainage system that quickly removes excess moisture from your playground property is one of the most important ways to help prevent mold from forming in your mulch again.
Sarah is a small business owner, and is currently learning about pest control, using the internet. Aside from working on her own business, she likes to use social media, and read travel books.
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