Experts advise: if you have a sandpit in the yard of your apartment building, you need to maintain it regularly

Experts advise: if you have a sandpit in the yard of your apartment building, you need to maintain it regularly

One of the most popular outdoor activities for the youngest residents of apartment blocks is playing in sandboxes. They are also a favourite with parents, as they keep little ones safe and develop their creativity and motor skills. However, improperly maintained sandboxes have dangers that can lead to health problems for the whole family. Rūta Aglinskaitė, works manager at Civinity Namai, a company that provides maintenance and management services to apartment buildings, explains why and how to take care of the sandboxes in the courtyards of apartment buildings.

Sandboxes are a potential health hazard

Sandboxes can enrich children’s play in the courtyard of a block of flats, but they can also be hazardous to their health and that of the whole family. If not properly maintained, sandboxes breed parasites of all kinds, which children can easily transfer from the sand to their bodies.

According to the National Health Centre, about 60-100 people are registered with toxocariasis every year in Lithuania, and children aged 4-6 years are among the most affected. This infectious disease is caused by roundworm larvae in cats and dogs, which are spread through the faeces of dogs and cats that have the disease.

Other parasites not visible to the naked eye, such as ascarids, hairworms and others, can also be found in unattended sand patches.

Residents of blocks of flats must take care of their own sand bins

The municipality takes care of the sandboxes in city parks and public playgrounds, organising and carrying out inspections, replacements and cleaning of the sandboxes.

“The Civinity Namai specialist warns that the procedure is different for sandboxes in the yards of apartment blocks. It is the responsibility of the residents of the block of flats themselves to decide who will take care of them and how.

“Many owners of flats in an apartment building do not realise that they are responsible for the sandbox in their yard and its contents. We recommend that this responsibility be entrusted to the apartment administrator or, if there is no administrator in the building, to the association,” says R. Aglinskaitė.

The sand must be replaced every spring and maintained throughout the year

According to the current hygiene standard, the sand in children’s play boxes must be replaced at least once a year, and experts recommend that this should be done in spring.

“Although toxocariasis remains dangerous all year round, the warmer months increase the chances of infection. Warmer temperatures create ideal conditions for micro-organisms to multiply and increase the number of mature parasite eggs. In addition, in spring, the boxes fill up with children after the winter, so they need to be taken care of immediately,” says the Civinity Namai specialist.

In addition, the sand should be replaced before next spring if a parasitological test of the sand shows that it contains eggs of ascarids, hairworms, toxocarians and other helminths. The sand must also be cared for throughout the year by picking up any debris that may be found there, and by regular dredging.

According to R. Aglinskaitė, the best way to ensure that the sandbox is properly looked after is to have it maintained by professionals.

“We only use high-quality sand in the sandboxes we maintain for apartment blocks, which we buy from reputable sand quarries with strict quality control measures and sand inspection certificates. If the sand to be replaced does not have such a certificate, it must be subject to a parasitological test carried out by the National Public Health Laboratory”, says Aglinskaitė.

The requirements are not only for sand but also for boxes

When it comes to the safety of children playing in the yard, it is important to pay attention not only to the safety of the sand but also to the safety of the sandbox itself.

“Sandboxes must be in good working order and not broken, so that children playing in or near them do not get hurt. In addition, children’s play bins installed in public spaces must have a non-slip cover to cover the bin when not in use. This helps to keep the sand clean and prevents dogs or cats from wandering in,” says Ms Aglinskaitė.

Fines can be issued for those who fail to maintain sandboxes

The hygiene standard governing the safety of sandboxes obliges the legal or natural persons who operate them to take care of their safety, and if they do not, the owners of the sandboxes are liable for their maintenance.

Failure to ensure the safety of the sandbox in time risks the health of the children playing in the sandbox, which can be punished administratively with a fine of up to EUR 140, and repeated offences can result in a fine of up to EUR 600.