How To Build A Backyard Skatepark (For Cheap)

Most skateboarders try to skate every chance they get, but that’s not always easy to do.

When you’re young, you normally have to beg your parents to take you to the skatepark, or convince one of your friends parents to be the squads personal chauffeur for the day.

Once you get older and have your own car, you can drive to whatever skatepark or street spot your heart desires, but by then you’re busy with a girlfriend, or boyfriend, or a job, or school, so it’s hard to find time to skate.

Not only that, but we’re in a time where skateparks are getting flooded, filled with sand, and even skate stopped, so it’s harder than ever to get in a decent sesh.

This is why having a backyard skatepark is crucial for every skateboarder out there.

Now backyard skateparks can be expensive, but you’d be surprise at what you can build for just a few hundred dollars.

In this post, we’re going to go over how to build a backyard skatepark without spending a ton of money.

Backyard Skate Ledge

One of the easiest backyard skatepark obstacles you can build is a ledge.

Compared to basically every other obstacle out there, ledges are in the sweet spot in terms of how easy they are to build, and how many possibilities there are when you’re skating them.

Sure there might be simpler ramps you can make, but chances are there’s really only a handful of tricks you can do on them. With a nice ledge, there’s almost an unlimited amount of tricks you can learn.

When it comes to building a ledge, there are a few routes you can take. If you’re able to make a permanent ledge, you can use some cinder blocks, angle iron, and liquid nails to build a standard ledge that you’ll find at a lot of DIY’s.

A great way to save money on this is to try to find some cinderblocks for free, which usually isn’t too hard to do. Then you just need to go to home depot or Lowes, buy some angle iron for around $10, get some $2 liquid nails, and you basically have a ledge for under 15 bucks.

Now if you can’t build a permanent option, you can always use wood instead. Of course, wooden ones aren’t going to last as long and they’re a little harder to cut costs on, but they do have the added benefit of being portable. If you can find some scrap wood and screws to use that will definitely cut down on cost, but you might have to be a little resourceful to find some.

Depending on which style and size of ledge you build, it usually only costs $50-$100, which is a pretty good deal considering how much fun they are.

Backyard Miniramp

The mini ramps is the holy grail of backyard skateparks.

Growing up, just about every skateboarder dreams of having a backyard miniramp. Even the ones who can’t skate quarterpipes.

Basically every kind of obstacle can be fun to skate, but miniramps just might be the best.

The only real downside to building a backyard ramp is that they can be a bit expensive. Also your neighbors will probably start to hate you but for most people the expensive part is what matters.

As far as how much it costs to build a backyard miniramp, it really depends on a lot of factors. Whether or not you use wood or concrete, the size, and the quality of materials can all make the price vary.

A normal price range for a miniramp is between $500 and $2000 dollars, but again, it really just depends. At first this might sound like a lot, but that’s only about 2 months of working a part time job which really isn’t that bad.

Since a backyard miniramp is one of the more expensive things you can build, one of the best ways to save money is by thinking of it as a long-term investment. This means spending the extra money on quality materials, and choosing wisely where you plan to build it.

If you’re going to build it outside, just spend the extra money to build a concrete one. There’s a reason why every single pro with a backyard skatepark builds it with concrete. It’s guaranteed to last longer, and there’s a 100% chance a wooden ramp is going to require way more maintenance, which will add up over time.

If you can build your ramp indoors, a wooden one can be worth it, but don’t don’t cheap out on materials, because again, it’ll end up costing way more in the long run.

Kicker

A good old fashion kicker is for sure one of the best ramps you can build in your backyard.

Ever since skaters started using launch ramps in the 70s and 80s, kickers have been one of the best ramps for skateboarding. Kickers are fun to skate, they’re easy to build, and they really don’t cost that much either.

As with most backyard skatepark ramps, it’s hard to give an exact estimate on how much it costs because it really just depends on the size, and the materials used.

If you use some old wood you found in a dumpster, you can basically build one for free. On the other hand, if you build a massive concrete kicker like what you see at skate parks, it can easily cost a few hundred dollars.

The cool thing about kickers is that if you get creative when you build it, you can end up with a lot more than just a kicker. You can turn the opposite side of it into a wallie, or add angle iron to the top of it to make a ledge, or even turn it into a bump to flat.

Kickers can be a great foundation to any backyard skatepark, and even if you already have a few ramps, it can be worth it to make one.

Manual Pad

Manny pads are one of the easiest things you can build to skate, and they’re also one of the cheapest.

A normal manual pad usually costs around the same or sometimes even less than a ledge. Unless you put angle iron on the sides, or make it massive and oddly shaped, all you really need is a little bit of wood and a few screws.

Of course, if you want to a concrete manual pad that’s a completely different story, but the majority of people aren’t going to build a concrete manny pad in their backyard.

Regardless if you go with wood or concrete, a decent manny pad isn’t that expensive or hard to build, so if you want something to skate at your house it’s at least worth considering. Manual pads are pretty low impact, there’s an unlimited amount of manual tricks you can learn, and it’s something simple that you can just have fun skating.

Anyone who’s tried a manual trick before, know just how long a manual pad can keep you occupied, so it’s definitely one of the better obstacles you can build in your backyard.

Flatbar

If you want to build a backyard skatepark on a low budget, you should definitely consider getting a flarbar.

Flatbars are a staple at just about every single skatepark, so it only makes sense to have one in your backyard. With flat bars you can do grinds, you can do slides, you can do, well that basically all you can do, but they’re super fun to skate.

The great thing about flatbars is you can actually buy them online for pretty cheap. Keep in mind though that a lot of flatbars you buy online are poor quality, so make sure you get a good one that’s going to last.

If you want to save money while still making sure you get a good flatbar, it’s actually not too hard to have one built. All you need to do is pay for the metal, and you can have a welding shop make one in just a few minutes. If you happen to have a friend or family member that knows how to weld, you might even be able to have one made just for the cost of the metal.

Flat bars are arguably one of the best obstacles for a backyard skatepark, because they really have the best of everything. They’re relatively cheap, they last forever, they’re portable, and there are thousands of tricks you can learn on them.

Backyard Bowl

Aside from building an entire backyard skatepark, a backyard bowl is by far one of the most expensive ramps you can build.

With that said, it can be a lot cheaper than most people realize. It’s not too expensive to rent an excavator for the weekend and buy some quick crete, and if you’re willing to put in the time, you can have a pretty nice bowl without spending too much money.

Think about all of the DIY’s out there. Skateboarders build concrete quarterpipes for just a couple hundred dollars all the time, so there’s no reason why you can’t do the same in your backyard. It seems like an unobtainable thing that isn’t possible, but you’d be surprised just how many skateboarders have backyard bowls.

Of course, the bigger is it the more expensive it’s going to be, but for a basic bowl that isn’t too deep, you could build it yourself for a couple thousand dollars.

Once it’s built, you’ll always have something to skate, and you’ll never have to worry crowded skateparks again.

Misc Objects / Ramps

If you want to build a backyard skatepark on a super small budget finding some miscellaneous obstacles is the way to go. Things like traffic cones, parking curbs, and plastic barriers can all be great options for anyone trying to find something skateable on a low budget.

You can find a lot of these things for free, and even if you do need to buy them, they’re usually super cheap.

Sometimes people get so caught up worry about a massive backyard ramp that they forget how fun it can be to skate some random obstacle. If you look at some of the most creative skaters, a lot of times they’re skating the most simple things.

The point is, you don’t always need a ramp that cost thousands of dollars to have fun. A lot of times something simple can be the most fun to skate, and you can spend hours playing around on something that a lot of other people wouldn’t even think about.

Now you definitely shouldn’t go creeping around construction sites looking for things to steal, but if you keep an eye out, you’d be surprised how much skateable stuff gets thrown away that people are willing to give to you for free.