To ensure success with your liner purchase, keep the following tips in mind:

1. Buy the right size liner: Once you have determined the size of rink you want to build, take into account the height of the boards or other sides that your are using, and add an extra two feet to ensure you have enough. For example, if you are making a 20x40 foot frame from 2x10 wood boards, then you will need a 24 foot wide liner. Be sure to add four feet extra in the length dimension also. A foot of extra liner is fine. Being one foot short can cause difficulties with setup of your rink.
2. Do not walk on the liner. The liner is a durable membrane designed to hold water, but it is no match for sharp objects or debris. Be careful with it to help ensure success with your rink.  And don't shovel the liner - you will cause damage.
3. Do not drag the liner – it can and will snag on objects, which may result in tears, rips and cuts.
4. Do not set up your rink on a windy day. Wind adds to the challenges of setting up the rink, as the liner can act like a big sail even in a mild breeze.
5. Keep tools and any other sharp objects away from the liner setup work.
6. Have enough help to lay the liner out. More people involved reduces the risk of dragging, cutting and walking on the liner. Call some people outside for five minutes.
7. Make sure that the liner is not supporting the weight of the water. Tuck the liner down into the corner where your boards meet the ground to ensure that your boards are supporting the weight of the water and avoid blow-outs.
8. Fill your rink in stages, and let it freeze. This reduces strain on the liner, and allows for earlier identification of any problems with the liner. This applies to both the RinkMaster Rink Kit and lumber or plywood setups.
9. Do not set up your rink too early. Wait for the ground to freeze. Setting up too early may result in debris, leaves, pets and other objects that can cause problems with the rink setup process.
10. Avoid setting up over a septic bed - they emit heat, and the rink will not freeze as well.
11. Don't shover your liner!  If snow has fallen and remains on the liner, go  ahead and put water in, which will melt some of the snow.  You may end up with a slushy mess, but it will freeze and you can continue on flooding the rink.
12. Slope - be sure to know how much slope you are dealing with.  Water will always flow to a low side.  We wish we could change that, but we can't.  Take into account when building your rink frame or your RinkMaster Rink Kit.  See our page on Dealing with a Slope