How to Design a Sandbox in the Shape of a Bulldozer

Draw out a plan to scale onto a piece of graph paper for your bulldozer. Keep the shape simple, opting for the general look of the outline of a bulldozer rather than the details. Use only the outline of the bulldozer in your design so that the final product will be a wide-open space to play in without small intruding walls between areas of the sandbox.

Clear out the ground clutter from the area where you wish to install the sandbox. Remove all vegetation from the area and any loose objects as well. Dig a foundation of about 2 feet in depth in the outline of the bulldozer drawn on your graph paper using a spade. Level out the soil at the bottom with a piece of 2-by-4-inch plank. Tamp the surface to compress the soil.

Cover the base and sides of the foundation hole with a sheet of landscape fabric, overlapping the sides by 3 inches. Cut the fabric to fit with a utility knife. The fabric will prevent weeds from growing beneath the sand.

Place a flexible rubber border about 4-inches in height around the edge of the foundation to highlight the shape and hold the sand in place. Lay the border onto the overlapping fabric, holding it down. Cut the border as needed with a hacksaw to fit the end of the rubber against the beginning of the strip once you’ve completely outlined the hole.

Insert a 12-inch steel spike into the mounting holes of the rubber border. Drive the spikes into the ground with a mallet, securing the border in place and in the bulldozer shape.

Fill the hole with sterile sand up to a point about 2 inches below the top of the rubber border.