Customer Reviews

Exaco Trading 50001 Easy Start Sandbox with Adjustable Red Roof

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This product arrived this morning and I called Bargain Outfitters to return it this afternoon.

Why?

1. According to the manufacturer, the wood is Honduran pine which turned out to be an incredibly soft and SPLINTERY wood.

2. The wood pieces were coated in a STICKY, TACKY SUBSTANCE. Doesn't seem like a good way to coat wood that a child will be playing with.

3. The wood pieces were ROUGH to the touch and most were SPLINTERED or missing chunks of wood. They also had sharp edges.

4. The directions (mostly in pictures) weren't confusing but they were inaccurate. For instance, the pictures indicated that certain pieces were of different sizes to one another but they were all the same.

5. My set was missing one item. Or maybe not. I don't know as the picture looked different than what came in the box.

6. Not all the pieces have pre-drilled holes which means the screw can end up jutting out of an adjoining piece creating more SPLINTERS and a SCREW HAZARD.

7. The pieces didn't fit well together and I couldn't get one of the canopy beams into the base. There were also NOTICEABLE GAPS between most pieces.

8. The pieces were a little WARPED. Sturdier wood that has been properly treated does not do this.

This sandbox is not worth $150. I think it has some SAFETY ISSUES that you should take into consideration before purchasing. And I also think Amazon should reconsider selling this on their site. It just doesn't seem safe.

Bargain Outfitters is sending me a return label from UPS today. I will follow up later to confirm that Bargain Outfitters honored their return policy.

My little boy just loves this sandbox. It is priced very reasonably which definitely makes it worth the money. The only problem that I had while assembling the sandbox was with the canopy. The actual canopy pre-drilled holes did not match up with the wooden frame. This was a little discouraging but not enough to not recommend this item. Also, the canopy is a great feature because it can be raised and lowered. This is nice because it prevents the local cats from using the sand to do their 'thing', and it keeps the sand in good condition.

I found this a bit difficult to assemble and it never did go together exactly right. Instructions did not always indicate a right or left side and by the time you realize it, it's too late (unless you want to disassemble). The predrilled holes did not align correctly in some cases. Also, the roof is fairly heavy and not all that easy to crank into the up position. For the money, I found it disappointing but servicable. Maybe the roof pieces should be made of recycled plastic to make it lighter.

I bought this sandbox just under a year ago and really researched my options. I like the concept and the fact that the wood is "sustainably harvested". The sandbox did not fair well to our Cleveland winter. The screws sheared off because they're cheap and are not meant to be used on an outdoor structure. The wood seems to be VERY soft, almost like it's rotted. I fixed all the pieces this morning with exterior screws and was just going to go on with my life until..... I raised the canopy up and went to set the handle in it's "holding" slot and then... WHOOMP! The flippin' canopy came crashing back down! The little eyelet screws that hold the hoisting line POPPED right out of the wood on BOTH sides! That's when I then proceeded indoors (shaking my head in disgust) to the computer to write my review. I do read reviews on products and find them very helpful and feel they may have even saved me alot of aggravation in some product purchases. This product DID NOT meet my expectations so that is why I wrote this review, to help someone else from feeling let down too.

This sand box is constructed of very cheap, low quality wood and hardware. We've had our new sand box for less than 24 hours and it already has a split in one of the wooden slats. The cover/roof is a joke and will surely blow away or break apart with the next stiff wind. You get what you pay for. This is one of the cheaper sand boxes out there...in this case low cost equals poor quality.

We purchased this item because of the rolling cover.We expected the materials to be sturdy as it's made for children.Sadly we had to reinforce the entire frame as it was attached with staples that would come out (great for kids!).Also the wood chipped in may places requiring further reinforcement.Our hopes were high as it seems a good idea to keep rain (and animals) out of the sand ;but the quality is not something we can endorse.Of course direction are often poor for these type of items but this was special.