Warmer weather, lingering sunsets, baseball season, family vacations at the beach are some of the classic pleasures of summertime, but nothing says summertime like lazing away the day in a rope hammock in your own backyard.
Over the last few generations the classic rope hammock has become a garden icon, and in many ways one of the ultimate back yard accessories. The rope hammock is a fun and unique piece of outdoor furniture that can provide relaxation and entertainment for the whole family. Kids love hammock and are naturally attracted to things that swing, for many people it’s a commonly shared childhood memory of spending summer times in the garden playing on the rope hammock. Teenagers find a place to hang out with their friends getting them away from their parents and out from in front of the television. For mom and dad it can provide a great place for some relaxing time together, and brining us full circle, grandparents can revisit their childhood memories.
A good quality rope hammock should last outdoors for a number of summers, but please remember that if you live in a northern state it is important to store it away in the winter time, the first step in storage is to make sure the rope hammock is completely dry as putting away a wet hammock will encourage mold. Then place the hammock in a cool and dry location, a couple of good option would be in the garage or the garden shed. Please make note that rodents, insects and birds love the soft fibers that a rope hammock is woven from so make sure your storage location is protected from these types of animals or you are likely to find a damaged hammock when you try to hang it in the spring time. For the longest lasting rope hammock please check out the duracord hammock
We feel it is important that a rope hammock should provide enough space for at least two occupants, as a rule thumb the wood spreader bar should be a minimum of fifty five inches wide. Fifty five inches will give one person plenty of room to spread out but also be roomy enough for two close friends.
A rope hammock can be installed safely between two sturdy trees by using ropes, chains or special straps called tree huggers, it is probably better and safer to go around tree trunks then it is to put hooks into a tree. Not only will the hooks damage the tree there is also a chance that with constant swinging motion the hook could be pulled out. Look for two trees that are spaced at a minimum of 12 feet apart, this will give you adequate room to successfully hang a typical rope hammock. If you don’t happen to have two trees in the perfect location then you could put two six by six posts into the ground or purchase a specially designed hammock stand.
There are two basic materials that hammock stands are made from. The most common is the metal hammock stand made from high quality tubular steel pipes, a good metal hammock stand should have a powder coat finish to protect it from rusting, be very easy to assemble quickly without the use of any special tools, and light weight enough that it could easily be moved around the garden from one location to another so that you can best enjoy the sun , the shade or the view. A wooden hammock stand is often more visually appealing than the metal variety, often times they are a beautiful arc shape. Make sure it is made from a hard wood like eucalyptus or cypress, and make sure the wood is treated to protect it from exposure to sun and rain. Also consider how much weight you will need it to carry, generally the larger the size of the wooden beams the stronger and more stable the stand will be. Customer reviews suggest that the cheaper less expensive wood stands do not have the same standards of quality or finish.
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