Arena maintenance

What actually happens to a surface

Riding moves material. Every circuit pushes surface outward and forward, so it thins on the track and builds in the corners and along the fence line. That is why an arena that was laid perfectly level rides deep in some places and hard in others eighteen months later.

At the same time the material itself changes. Fibre breaks down slowly, sand grains round off and lose the angularity that made them lock together, and organic matter blows in and starts to hold water where it should be draining. None of this is a fault. It is what use looks like.

What good maintenance is

Regular levelling with the right harrow, set at the right depth, going in the right direction. A harrow set too deep pulls the surface apart and drags the membrane. Set too shallow it simply polishes the top. Most owners we meet are running a harrow that came with the arena and have never had it set properly.

Beyond levelling, a surface needs its edges pulled back in periodically, its depth checked against the specification rather than by eye, and watering in a dry spell if it is not a waxed surface.

• Level regularly, and more often in the weeks you ride most.
• Vary the track you ride so wear is not concentrated in one line.
• Pull the edges back in before the middle goes thin, not after.
• Check depth with a probe once or twice a year rather than trusting the ride.
• Keep leaves and organic debris off it, particularly in autumn.
• Keep the drainage outfall clear, which takes ten minutes and prevents the expensive failure.

Top ups

Every surface loses material. It leaves on hooves, it blows away and it degrades. A surface that has lost depth feels hard, because the horse is effectively working on the sub-base, and the usual response is to conclude the arena needs replacing.

Often it needs a few tonnes of matched material and a proper level. Matched matters: adding a different sand or a different fibre to an existing surface can give you two materials that behave differently and never quite integrate. We record what went into an arena we built so a top up years later is the same specification.

Service plans

For yards that would rather not think about it, we run an annual or twice yearly visit: professional level, depth survey against the original specification, edge reinstatement, drainage outfall check and a written note of what we found and what it will need next.

It is not an expensive service and it substantially extends the life of a surface. It also means somebody is looking at the drainage once a year, which is how a small blockage stays a small blockage.

This is what the Arena Care Plan is: frequent scheduled visits booked a year in advance, rather than a quarterly visit that slips until the arena has not been seen in five months.

When maintenance is not the answer

There is a point where a surface is genuinely finished and no amount of harrowing helps. Fibre that has broken down and sand that has fully rounded off will not knit together again.

We will tell you when you have reached it rather than selling you another year of visits. Equally, if your arena rides badly and the surface is fine, the problem is underneath and maintenance will not touch it.

The equipment, and having it set correctly

A surface is only as good as the harrow that levels it and the person setting the depth. Most arena harrows have adjustable tines, a leveller bar and often a roller, and most of them are being towed round at whatever setting they were on when they arrived.

Tines set too deep drag material out of the base and can catch a membrane, which is an expensive way to level an arena. Too shallow and you are grooming the top two centimetres while the compaction underneath gets worse. The leveller and the roller then decide how firm the finished surface is.

We set it up with you on handover if we built the arena, and we will happily look at an existing setup on a maintenance visit. It is usually the cheapest single improvement available to an arena that rides badly.

How often, realistically

For a private arena in regular use, level after every few sessions rather than to a calendar. If you can see the track, it is already overdue. In practice that tends to mean weekly in a busy period and less in winter when you are riding less.

Pull the edges in every few months. Check depth twice a year. Clear the outfall in autumn once the leaves are down. That is the whole job, and it is perhaps an hour a week plus two longer sessions a year.

The care plan you were given

Every arena we build is handed over with a care plan written for the surface actually installed: harrow settings for that material and depth, how often for the amount you ride, the seasonal jobs, and where to get matched material for a top up.

That last point matters more than it sounds. Adding a different sand or fibre to an existing surface leaves you with two materials that behave differently and never quite integrate, and it is a common and entirely avoidable way to spoil a good arena.