Preparing for your thermoplastic line marking installation

Keeping your school playground surfaces clear of dirt and debris is something that is essential. We offer specialist cleaning services for any type of ground surface but we do tend to be invited to install our car park markings or our playground markings onto surfaces which are not quite ready to receive their new thermoplastic line markings.

To avoid this we have written a guide to preparing your surfaces for installation. However, the guide below can also be used to help you with the general cleaning and maintenance of your playground or court areas.

In the spring and summer months we don’t tend to have to worry, but as we approach autumn the annual problem of falling & rotting leaves will dominate the lives of caretakers once more. Our poor grounds people will be waging one-man wars against dirt, moss and leaves to ensure maximum playground safety for the children and users of the outside space. Daily sweeping of leaves will be here once more! But really, we should pay a little attention to our playground surfaces all year round.

Here at Creative we would like to share our tips for playground cleaning, be it before a new playground markings installation, or just to keep the tarmac surfaces free from slippy debris which can become a problem if left unattended to. Specialist blasting your playground isn’t always necessary, especially if you follow a programme of cleaning and sweeping.

Cleaning tarmac is a task that should be undertaken at least once or twice each year. That might be a whole playground or just a driveway but the process of cleaning typically requires using the right combination of cleaning products and pressure to help loosen oil and other types of stains from the surface. As well as restoring the look of your outdoor areas it keeps the surface free from stains which may increase the risk of slips. Fortunately, it is possible to clean outdoor areas using equipment which you are already likely to have at your disposal. This makes it much easier to do the job without incurring a lot of expense.

Step by Step Guide

Step 1 – Remove loose residue from the playground or court surface. Its as simple as using a stiff broom or brush and sweep away the grass, leaves, loose material or moss which has settled on the surface. This makes any jet washing or cleaning much easier.

Step 2 – Get soaking! Its wise to use a steady stream of running water using a hose all over the surface (TIP DO NOT PICK A DAY WHERE IT WILL FREEZE OVER) Take your time doing this and make sure the entire surface has had a chance to become very moist. This helps to loosen any dirt or residue which has settled in small cracks or holes in the playground surface.

Step 3 – Products are available to treat stains such as oil or tyre marks and this is the time you might consider using these in particular areas before getting on with cleaning the whole area. In actual fact laundry cleaning products are good cheaper alternative. Pouring a quantity of powder onto heavily stained areas and allowing to set for a little while will help with the task of lifting stains from the playground or driveway. Even if it’s just the top layer of your surface this is a handy hint – Mix the cleaning product in a bucket. Combine 1 part laundry detergent with 3 parts water make sure the combination is mixed thoroughly. Wearing protective gloves at all times work the mixture into the stain with a hand brush.

Step 4 – Rinse! Use a high pressure hose to rinse away the cleaning product and the dirt and debris will also dislodge and be washed away. Any areas without staining will be cleaned from the hose pressure. Continue the rinsing in all areas until clean.

Heavy moss can be a tricky thing to remove and then treat. It is very important to make sure that moss treatment is applied to these areas to prevent a recurrence of the problem. Please contact a specialist if you are unsure on how to remove and prevent moss.

Our night time adventure installing at Longleat

How could we possibly pass up the opportunity of working with the fantastic people at Longleat house and Safari Park. We consider ourselves very fortunate indeed to have been asked to help with the huge Maze Markings in the main family visitor square. Key to the success of this playground markings installation was ensuring the park and all surrounding attractions remained open and that our work did not interfere with the smooth running of one of England’s most prestigious visitor attractions.

We were contacted by Dave Gillingham Head Of Operations at Longleat & Cheddar Gorge & Caves who wanted help to refresh 3 huge mazes in Longleat’s main square. This hugely popular venue is open long hours during the summer and Dave needed us to work after the park closed to visitors. We helped Dave to choose thermoplastic lines rather than painted lines as he wanted a product which would be durable and easy to maintain. With our three year guarantee we knew that thermoplastic markings would ensure that the install remained in situ despite have thousands of feet on them every single day.

We sent our team of four to the job one August Thursday evening and they shelved their fear of the dark to work through the night. Longleats tarmacadam areas are very well maintained and so we didn’t have to concern ourselves with any surface cleaning prior to getting to work. The areas needed a light sweeping to remove any surface dust ready for installation and we were ready to lay the new maze markings. We worked from 7.00 pm until 2.30 am to complete the installation ready for the public on Friday morning. Despite our Josh popping to the ladies (yes ladies) and being attacked by a scorpion!

What a privilege it was to install in such stunning surroundings with the background noises of the trumpeting elephants and the roaring of lions. We are very pleased to report that the line works went fantastically well and the operations team at Longleat are thrilled with the end result.

“From the quotation and planning in with Keeley to the work the team did on site I am delighted with the end result, it has really brightened up our main square in the park and helped restore enjoyment to lots of our younger guests with who the mazes are extremely popular. The team were professional on site and did a fantastic job doing it outside of our opening hours overnight.”

Steve Walsh, Assistant Operations Manager (Attractions & Events)

Longleat | Cheddar Gorge & Caves

We are now proud to say we have helped to entertain the children and adults who visit Longleat with our crystal clear, reflective white line markings and look forward to helping the Operations Staff with their playground, carpark and bespoke markings in the future.

Thermoplastic or Paint?

Have you ever wondered why we use thermoplastic in certain areas but paint in others? Lots of people ask us is it better to use thermoplastic for playground markings instead of traditional painted line markings? Both types of line marking have their different characteristics and advantages. They both have different features and benefits for both aesthetics and durability but knowing which is best for you can be a difficult decision.

Thermoplastic lines are applied in a specialist preformed plastic material and the colours/pigmants in the 26 colours we offer are completely organic.

Marking your play areas with the type of thermoplastic we use also minimizes the risk of skin problems and allergic reactions. Our preformed thermoplastic material has passed sensibility tests according to international standards.

The preformed material is laid onto any existing tarmacadam surface a little bit like a big jigsaw and then heated up until it melts and sticks down onto the tarmac.

Once applied, the thermoplastic line markings are very vibrant & durable as well as being dry within 30 minutes of laying. The general life expectancy can be over three years if the surface remains in good condition.

Thermoplastic will not become dull during heavy weathering so they’ll retain their colour and provide clear lines over long periods of time. Simply brushing with some warm soapy water will restore colour throughout its lifetime. These lines can be used in sports courts, demarcation areas as well as the popular use for bright fun and interactive playground and recreational area designs.

Thermoplastic can be bought in lines or can be made in sheet form enabling us to design customer logos or welcome mats for any organisation using the latest in water-jet technology. We use thermoplastic on road ways, cycle lanes, car parks, and areas were safety comes first such as transport yards or walk ways in busy airports & train stations. Thermoplastic line markings are great for recreational outdoor sports courts and school MUGAs where activities are more focused on fun rather than serious competition. Thermoplastic is applied with an anti-slip beading and glue for extra assurance that the users will be able to enjoy them for many years.

Painted lines are commonly used for marking out sports courts and playground graphics onto play areas or courts. Painted line markings are usually almost flush with the surface onto which they are applied. This ensures that the lines do not interfere with the play on the ball during a game or match.

If you tell us or if we feel your area is to be used for competitive sports, then line marking using paint really is a must.

We do not recommended thermoplastic for these areas, we wouldn’t want any users believing they were put at a disadvantage would we!

It must be noted that painted line markings simply do not last as long as thermoplastic so a regular maintenance programme should be established if this is the right choice for you.

Paint will fade more quickly dependent on the usage in the area. It makes sense for schools to choose thermoplastic as the maintenance of the graphics or lines is greatly reduced, and hassle free.

Feel free to call us if you have any questions, 01282 902558 or ask us to come and visit you in person.

The playground has changed

The playground has changed dramatically over the years however is it still an integral part of any school environment or community setting. The playground is used in a variety of ways to aid our children’s learning and social development, as well as a way to give our children access to low cost high quality activity. Our children have changed and they seem to lead more sedentary lifestyles or be part of organised sports or activities. Playground markings are a way to retain a child’s imaginative play.

  • So how are modern playgrounds utilising traditional line markings?
  • How are playground markings helping children no matter the age as they develop in their childhood and teenage years?
  • What are playground markings used for?

Playgrounds provide school or the children in our community with a dedicated space to enjoy the outdoors in safety. Most playgrounds around the UK will have some form of playground marking applied to the surface. They are usually snakes & ladders or number grids to traditional hopscotches. And as we progress we use ball courts for sport specific play.

Playground markings are used to initiate imaginative play, encourage different learning styles and extend learning beyond the classroom, giving children a unique and timeless way of enjoying and achieving during break time. A child will get lost on their own games with a set of markings that inspire or they will engage in groups if they choose. The versatility of a great playground marking is you can choose from games which are long standing or you can design your very own, your designs can cater to specific interests and ages, choose from our range of 26 colours to create unique designs to meet your own needs.

Let’s Learn

Playground markings are now used more often to provide an outdoor learning platform. In early years line markings are used to help teach in a modern and interactive way. Mathematics, English and phonics can be introduced to children using the playground.

Children can enjoy numeracy lessons without even knowing they are learning, and then by using markings to create their own games they develop these essential skills. Playground markings are a great resource for learning that can be used throughout a child’s school life as their needs develop.

For sporty types…..

Playground markings are one of the best ways to encourage an active break times. Schools and communities increasingly try to dedicate space to Football, Tennis, Volleyball or Basketball courts, as well as Multi Use Games Areas (MUGAS). Adults & Children use these in school time and in family time.

Giving children the arena to participate in physical activity is a great way to nurture crucial personal and social skills. Sport encourages teamwork and communication. Playground markings are long recognised as an effective way to nurture this away from the supervised sports hall allowing independence.

Social Development

In modern education the playground is now an accepted extension of the classroom and is the place where early social learning takes place. We see increasing levels of creative thinking of our children in the use of playground markings. Aside from traditional sporting markings, designs such as; painted mazes, maps, life-size board games, dart board targets and A to Z throwing targets will give children plenty of opportunity to work and learn together.

These types of games stimulate the imagination and encourage play in our children. Our markings will also improve hand-eye coordination, gross and fine motor skills and spacial awareness. Kandu is a marking designed to improve the fundamental movement skills of children without thrusting the child into a daunting sports specific arena.  Equally target games are perfect for this development, and even simple coloured line patterns can be used in creative ways – a modified version of chase, for example, where children have to stick to the lines.

Easy to install and long lasting

CPM are expert thermoplastic installation specialists with over 30 years’ experience in the Play & Construction industry. We are an independent professional playground, road (or any other surface!) marking company who take great pride in ensuring our customer experience is based on basic good old-fashioned customer service. I have included some images of recently completed projects.

Our services cover all aspects of educational play, safety surfacing and road markings.

  1. What do you want?
  2. Quality line markings installed safely by reliable & experienced installation experts. That’s us!

We have completed our apprenticeships working for the very best in the business. So, you can be sure that when you choose us as your installation partner you are getting the best installation quality around.

We only supply the best quality thermoplastic for our customers, so you can be certain that our work will last for three years if not longer.

Prefer painted options? That’s no trouble for us. Just ask.

We have a host of markings packaged and ready to go, you can select from our brochure products or design your own, we have access to first class designers who are waiting to help. All our bespoke games or logos are waterjet cut on site using the latest technology to ensure maximum attention to detail. You can even pay us a visit us and watch your design become a reality through our viewing window.

Want to get noticed? How about complimenting your shop front or building signage with a floor mat in your company logo to welcome your colleagues and visitors. Precision cut to your design in as many colours as you choose our mats are anti-slip, vibrant, washable and they last for at least three years. And they do not go soggy in the rain!

And if what you need are safety zone markings or demarcation lines indoors or outdoors then we are the team for you. We have worked with local and national contractors to mark out car parks, warehouses, private roads, retails outlets large or small, community centres, logistics providers and even a small village. We popped to Wembley recently and got busy there. And we are proud providers to the Royal Mail in there sorting offices throughout the North West.

Thermoplastic preformed material is laid onto any existing tarmacadam surface a little bit like a big jigsaw and then heated up until it melts and sticks down onto the tarmac.

Once applied, the thermoplastic line markings are very vibrant & durable as well as being dry within 30 minutes of laying. The general life expectancy can be over three years if the surface remains in good condition.

Thermoplastic will not become dull during heavy weathering so they’ll retain their colour and provide clear lines over long periods of time. Simply brushing with some warm soapy water will restore colour throughout its lifetime. These lines can be used in sports courts, demarcation areas as well as the popular use for bright fun and interactive playground and recreational area designs.

Thermoplastic can be bought in lines or can be made in sheet form enabling us to design customer logos or welcome mats for any organisation using the latest in water-jet technology. We use thermoplastic on road ways, cycle lanes, car parks, and areas were safety comes first such as transport yards or walk ways in busy airports & train stations. Thermoplastic line markings are great for recreational outdoor sports courts and school MUGAs where activities are more focused on fun rather than serious competition. Thermoplastic is applied with an anti-slip beading and glue for extra assurance that the users will be able to enjoy them for many years.

Painted lines are commonly used for marking out sports courts and playground graphics onto play areas or courts. Painted line markings are usually almost flush with the surface onto which they are applied. This ensures that the lines do not interfere with the play on the ball during a game or match.

If you tell us or if we feel your area is to be used for competitive sports, then line marking using paint really is a must.

We do not recommended thermoplastic for these areas, we wouldn’t want any users believing they were put at a disadvantage would we!

It must be noted that painted line markings simply do not last as long as thermoplastic so a regular maintenance programme should be established if this is the right choice for you.

My Playground

We have been wondering what impact the playground made on us as children here at Creative House.

So I’m going first. I think my earliest memory is probably the same as a million other kids who had to start nursery in 1979. My school playground was a huge expanse of tarmac that seemed like the largest space I have ever seen surrounded by iron bars! And there were what felt like hundreds of little people dashing around laughing as I clutched my mother’s hand so tightly she probably had numb fingers when I finally let go.

I stood there staring and sucking my thumb thinking I would never like this grey, noisy place.

Fast forward a few years and I watched a little person hold their mums hand in much the same way I had and I thought why would they not just start running around like we are! Short memories us kids had eh?

And then my school got a painted snake on the playground. No more meaningless running around for me! This was the most exciting thing that had ever happened. The playground wasn’t grey anymore. It was bright and colourful and we all queued to get on the thing, we ran on it, we jumped on it, we made believe it could slither away. It was the hub of the playground and each year a new wary eyed kid would awake to its mysterious charm and make it their own playtime story. We chucked out the chalk that we had to keep on reusing after every rain day (and there were many rainy days in Todmorden!) and we made that snake our hopscotch when we weren’t dreaming it was a monster!

I think we may have become far too cool for that snake at some stage as kiss chase gripped the aged 9’s and 10’s amongst us. Terrifying game that was, thankfully and very quickly replaced by my introduction to Marbles. Now at the grand old age of 41 one of my oldest friends and I still fondly reminisce about our shared dobber stash. We played for Pearl dobbers and now and again we won precious Crystal dobbers. They really were the hazy days of the school playground. Inside and outside of school time that playground was our marble arena. We played for hours and we laughed and cried at each success and loss. The playground you see was our place to go. No mobile phone to call us out for the evening. No one dared knock on the door for fear of the scary parent who might answer. So the law was if you were out you were in the playground. And if you weren’t in that playground you must have been really really ill (possibly even at deaths door from a nettle sting or something) or grounded.

And then High School came crashing into my life! Bang. Crash. Wallop. And I loved it. Netball, Hockey, Athletics, Basketball and a brief flirtation with football that was short lived, well apart from a lifelong love for Gary Lineker whom I initially researched to impress the boy I thought I loved.  We had these areas that had been made for us to not just have a great match during PE or double games, but we could have a match or a mess around whenever we choose. And I was good at it. I was good because I’d spent a glorious time growing up playing out with my friends. We hopped, jumped, twisted and fell over all the time. We didn’t even know it, but here we were teaching ourselves fundamental movement skills. These were the skills I used in the sports arena in my teenage years and I had no idea how much fun these skills could give me access too. John Barnes gave me a certificate, I mean John Barnes! I won something at school and here he was giving me a certificate because I could jump over something.

I think I want to champion that playground I played in, it should have a plaque saying “we played here” and be given an accolade for helping us achieve our high school sports success  C’mon I mean I had a certificate from John Barnes. But most of all we should all remember that our playgrounds are fantastic learning zones for our social and physical development. They’re not just a place we are held captive during rainy break times. We have to keep these bastions of our youth alive with new memories that the next generations to come will share. The playgrounds I saw my children access since the millennium are vivid and alive with colour. They have grids for leaning Maths or English, they have maps to jump from country to country and they have lines for playing. Thankfully they still have a snake that will chase the baddies away and carry the goodies to safety.

I think I might just love playgrounds