Playground Surfacing Calculator

Volume is area × depth. Safety standards tie the required depth to fall height, so cutting the depth to save material directly cuts the cushioning.

Your numbers

Area(m²)Fill depth (cm)(cm)Yield per bag (L)(L)

Bags needed

480

Fill volume

12m³

What it means

12 m³ of surfacing — 480 bag(s) at 25 L each.

Formula

Fill volume = Area × Fill depth (cm)÷100, Bags needed = Fill volume×1000 ÷ Yield per bag (L)

Loose sand settles after installation, so laying it 5-10% deeper than the target at first is common practice.

What to enter

Input	Default	Accepted range
Area (m²)The space a shape covers — length squared.	40	1 and up
Fill depth (cm) (cm)	30	5 ~ 60
Yield per bag (L) (L)The volume one bag makes once mixed — copy the yield printed on the bag.	25	1 and up

Step by step

FormulaFill volume = Area × Fill depth (cm)÷100, Bags needed = Fill volume×1000 ÷ Yield per bag (L)

With the default numbersFill volume = 40 × 30÷100, Bags needed = Fill volume×1000 ÷ 25

AnswerBags needed = 480

Quick reference table

Results when only Area (m²) changes and everything else stays put.

Area (m²)	Bags needed	Fill volume (m³)
20	240	6
30	360	9
40	480	12
60	720	18
80	960	24

What each result means

Result	At default values
Bags neededHow many bags to buy; they are not sold in fractions, so this rounds up.	480
Fill volume (m³)The area to cover times the fill depth.	12

Common mistakes

Loose sand settles after installation, so laying it 5-10% deeper than the target at first is common practice.

Glossary

Area: The space a shape covers — length squared.
Yield per bag (L): The volume one bag makes once mixed — copy the yield printed on the bag.
Bags needed: How many bags to buy; they are not sold in fractions, so this rounds up.
Fill volume: The area to cover times the fill depth.

Frequently asked questions

QHow is Playground Surfacing Calculator calculated?

Fill volume = Area × Fill depth (cm)÷100, Bags needed = Fill volume×1000 ÷ Yield per bag (L) — Volume is area × depth. Safety standards tie the required depth to fall height, so cutting the depth to save material directly cuts the cushioning.

QCan you walk through an example?

With Area 40m², Fill depth (cm) 30cm, Yield per bag (L) 25L, the answer is Bags needed 480.

QWhat do I need to enter?

Enter Area, Fill depth (cm), Yield per bag (L). The result recalculates as you type, and an empty box counts as zero.

QHow much does the answer move if I change a number?

Changing only Area (m²) moves the answer to Area (m²) 20 → Bags needed 240 and Area (m²) 80 → Bags needed 960. The table below lays out five steps.

QHow are the numbers rounded?

Money is shown to the nearest whole unit, percentages to one decimal place and everything else to two. What you see is rounded; the calculation itself carries the unrounded value forward.

QAnything to watch out for?

Loose sand settles after installation, so laying it 5-10% deeper than the target at first is common practice.

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Keep your length units consistent across inputs — mixing centimetres and metres throws results far off.