When building a new arena, you should start with a minimum of a 6 inch clay type base, not gravel of your "BASE LAYER". Because the clay will give you a better cushion for your training, and most of all, it will help retain the right amount of moisture for your "TRAINING LAYER". It is best to put a layer of salt on top before you compact and roll this clay "BASE LAYER". That way the salt will stay in the clay and not on your horse. The salt will actually suck the moisture out of the air and help eliminate dust problems without effecting the performance of your horse. The best and most economical way to apply salt is to hire a snow removal contractor with a salt spreader on a pick up truck. Use pure salt without the sand mixed in it. An even ¼ to ½ inch should be enough, and will last indefinitely. At this time you might need to wet the arena down with a little water. When you get done compacting the clay and salt it should look as flat and smooth as a concrete parking lot, but not as hard. Whenever you groom the top layer you should "NOT" go down into this clay "BASE LAYER". !!!!

The "TRAINING LAYER" on top is a special blend of finely screened crushed limestone. Clay, and silica particles. The best way to describe crushed limestone or a silica particle, is that it is like manufactured sand. The difference between manufactured sand and natural sand is that, natural sand is round, and manufactured sand is cubical. That is why dry natural sand is always lose and makes a poor "TRAINING LAYER" because it is like trying to train your horse on a layer of microscopic marbles. The right amount of clay gives the "TRAINING LAYER" its body and texture and helps retain the proper moisture content to help eliminate dust problems. The ag-lime acts like a disinfectant to help eliminate odors, mold, mildew, and other bacteria that are found in other types of "TRAINING LAYERS" and especially in wood chip, or organic type "TRAINING LAYERS."

Ag-lime has calcium in it, which is good for your horse and other farm animals. That is why when you dump a load of ag-lime in the barnyard all the farm animals want to roll around in it, because they know it is good for them! ! Try that with a load of sand. The sad part about sand and wood chip type "TRAINING LAYER" is the bacterial dust problem. "you" will never notice it, but your horses will. Unfortunately they will not be able to tell you exactly what the problem is, so they will just all under-perform. The general rule of thumb, is that if you can "see" the dust in the air while you are training, it is too much. "All" the dust that your horse breathes in is trapped inside the moist cavities of their lungs and airways, and can only be eliminated by over stressing the other bodily functions of your horse. Meanwhile you are spending all kinds of time and money going in the wrong direction trying to figure out why your horse is not performing up to its true potential. Maintaining the proper moister content of your "TRAINING LAYER" is critical, and an on-going process. An overhead self draining sprinkler system is the best, but may not always seem practical for most situations, most people use a lawn sprinkler. The problem with lawn sprinklers, is that it is just too much work, and takes too much time, so it does not get done right ! ! ! In the long run it is best to put in an over head or permanent side mount system. In most cases the outside perimeter of your training arena will have a higher moisture content, because of the moisture that comes in through the ground form the side of your building. Grooming the "TRAINING LAYER" is very important, to get the proper texture for "your" horse.