Things to look out for when slacklining:
- The diameter of the tree has to be at least 30cm at the anker, higher tensioned slacklines need wider trees
- Slings with a min with of 5cm (place the strands of the sling beside eachother for double the bearing surface)
- Treepros to stop the sling from rubbing on the tree
We advice to proactivly inform the slackliners in your community about those points – everybody benefits from healthy trees!
You can also order informational handouts and spread the word:
Detailed Information
The requirements mentioned above are derived from the DIN 79400 (Industrialstandart for Slacklines) and are valid for Slacklines rigged between two trees on jumping height.
The strain a slacklinesystem puts on trees can be simplyfied in to 3 main factors:
Tension
Tension is the force, with which a slackline pulls on a tree. The tree has to withstand the tension that occurs during slacklining without being damaged. The maximal tension a tree can withstand is not easy to estimate. That’s why you want a minimum diameter of 30cm where you put the sling aroud the tree, to ensure to not damage the tree. For medium and hihg tension we recommend wider diameters. If you want to estimate the load of your slackline, you can have a look at this handout or use this calculator!
Pressure
The pressure that is put on the tree by the slackline dependes on the tension, the diameter of the tree, the width of the sling and the qualitiy of the Treepro. A bigger tree and a wider bearing surface of the sling lead to less pressure on the rind. Trees with a thin rind are more vulnerable to pressure than trees with a thicker rinds. To protect trees, it makes sense to use slings with a minimum width of 5 cm (idealy fan out the strands).
Friction
To protecte the rind from friction, we use treepros made from sturdy materials, such as felt or carpet. Like this, the sling can rub on the treepro without damaging the rind and therefor the tree. Treepros that are 20cm wide and 2-3m long are suited best for this task.
If you don’t know how a propre treepro looks like, have a look at the handout!
Below you find detailed information, on which our recommendations are based:
Baumschutz beim Slacklinen in der Schweiz – German(2012)
very detailed, a must for informed slackliners.
Baumschutzempfehlungen von Volker Genenz – German(2009)
Imporant information about forces trees can withstand. Basis for DIN 79400
Standards beim Baumschutz von Christian Katlein – German(2010)
Elaborated explonations about the mechanisms between slacklines and trees, and the resulting recommendations.
Rindenbelastung von Christian Katlein -German(2013)
Theoretical view on different widths of slings, backing on the DIN 79400.
Study about pressure forces on trees by the ISA – (2017)
The influence of slings and treepros on the pressure distribution.