[Closed] Artificial grass

My parents have it - it's awful

I've got it - it's great

I've seen it - not sure

I've had it - didn't grow on me.

Your'e planting the seeds here...

There's a variety of different qualities, I've seen some, costs around £30/sq.m, looks very convincing as it has slightly ragged pale strands just like a lawn that's been cut recently. Very thick and plush, I'd happily replace the crappy grass I have out the back with it, if I could afford it.

Don't do it. All these people getting rid of real grass, bushes, hedges etc in their gardens are contributing to the demise of birds. Destroying their habitats.

Worked in a few houses, a terrace with an artificial grass rear yard, a large house with Artificial grass front and back, made clearing up the doggy turds easy, as they didnt kill the lawn and a hoseing down every few months soon got it looking good.

The grass comes in rolls with small perforations to allow water to leak out, so base prep is important, eg somewhere for the water to drainaway to, and a solid base all help.

And when you leave just roll it up and take it with you, throw some grass seed down and leave.

We have some to give colour to a courtyard garden. It works well and as has been said there are various degrees of looking natural. I think it looks best in small areas (where you wouldn't really want to bother with a mower). Prep is important.

Watching as currently thinking this too!

Just do something creative - I really don't get the British obsession with having a lawn. Having a plastic lawn is worserer than vegan sausages washed down with nonalcoholic beer

No. Why have artificial grass when you can just concrete the floor?

Otherwise leave it natural ...

Also last night's there was a news about football field using artificial grass contributing to health issue.

Hateful stuff. Makes baby robins fall from the sky 🙁

I'm closing this thread as astroturfing is against the forum rules.

The convincing stuff is crazy expensive, still thinking about it myself though. I can't actually use my garden at the moment, after putting some of that ground sheet stuff down and a few tons of chippings it's now (several years later) about 6ft high in brambles. The main thing putting me off artificial grass is if the brambles can get through thick rubber matting presumably they'd get through artificial grass to. And yes, I'm lazy...

Don't do it. All these people getting rid of real grass, bushes, hedges etc in their gardens are contributing to the demise of birds. Destroying their habitats

^ Thus

How does it hold up against dog poo and pee?

I can recommend these guys, good stuff and reviewed well in [i]Which?[/i]

www.lazylawn.co.uk/ are the same people as
www.evergreensuk.com/

The good stuff is pricey (if you have a large/awkward shape) but in our situation we're adding fake grass to an otherwise concrete back yard.

Against forum rules I have it out back for the kids to use all year round.

I bought it from http://www.firstclassgrass.co.uk although they appear to have changed their grass names, and fitted it myself, was fairly easy.

Thanks for the replies.
We currently have paving slabs so there will be no destruction of baby robins' habitat involved.
The garden is small (about 15 square metres) and doesn't get the sun. We're thinking artificial grass will look nicer than paving slabs and will be nicer for our girls to play on and fall over on. I don't mind paying for one of the more expensive ones if it looks better.

I'll have a look at those recommendations.

On a clearly related note - how do I get rid of 15 square metres of paving slabs? I guess I can lift them myself but I'd need 40 trips to the dump to get rid of them. Do I really need to hire a skip (and pay the council to suspend the parking bay)? Seems excessive.

Lots of stuff inhabits the bits between and under slabs so you are kind of killing baby robins although indirectly.
But yeah, crack on.

Freecycle and local Facebook buy/sell etc would be good for getting rid of slabs, stating you want them picked up. Also perhaps get in touch with any local allotments who often use them for paths etc.

Thanks kayak, I'll look into those.

Ok so if I am indirectly killing baby robins, what can I do to offset my murderous intents? Put up a bird table?

On a clearly related note - how do I get rid of 15 square metres of paving slabs?

We could just leave them in our back lane and some pikey will have them away before the end of the week 😀

Also works for momentarily unattended rhubarb plants during the middle of the day while you have a tea break 👿

When you see the price of the grass you may also reconsider getting rid of all 15 m2 of slabs! you might need some to fill gaps and create a rectangular space to better correspond with the 2m or 4m wide rolls it comes on.

Alternatively a couple of trips a week to the dump wouldn't cause the guys at the dump to give you hassle.

You might also want some padded underlay stuff to give it a softness and bounce for a play area.

Andrew at Beechwood Garden Centre in Blackburn supplies a range of artificial grasses and is a mountain biker so will give you a decent price if you ask nicely.

I wouldn't have it myself but our friends (with an autistic daughter) have it as part of their disability-friendly garden (which also includes a cool sunken trampoline). They also put in an underlay and I have to say it does feel pretty good to walk on – so my tuppence-worth is that you ensure you do it properly (especially if you are thinking of laying it directly on top of the paving slabs).

Edit: Missed this bit

On a clearly related note - how do I get rid of 15 square metres of paving slabs? I guess I can lift them myself but I'd need 40 trips to the dump to get rid of them. Do I really need to hire a skip (and pay the council to suspend the parking bay)? Seems excessive.

Freecycle (or similar local Freebies Facebook group) will see them gone in minutes - especially if you list them in the spring.

Edit to my edit: I am not reading previous posts very well am I?

Yet another edit:
I really am not am I?

You might also want some padded underlay stuff to give it a softness and bounce for a play area.

Not in the garden but a local shared trail has some. No idea why other than round here in the land of the kangaroo there is a pretty enthusiastic use of weed killer on the path edges and this is next to a creek

[URL= http://i432.photobucket.com/albums/qq47/robertedj/2016%2001%2008%20%20ridewithgps%20pics/IMG_20160522_162530_zpsewil4qjp.jp g" target="_blank">http://i432.photobucket.com/albums/qq47/robertedj/2016%2001%2008%20%20ridewithgps%20pics/IMG_20160522_162530_zpsewil4qjp.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]

we have it. where before there was only gravel. looking at the state of the grass over the fence either side of ours i can see why the previous owners got rid of it. soft, muddy, mossy mess. doesnt get enough rays or the soil is shit I dunno? but we wanted somewhere the kids and dog could run around without getting wet & muddy feet so we went for artificial. i went for the most expensive stuff they did, its not a massive area, and it looks alright. not as nice as a well kempt lawn of course but was the best option for us an we like it.

We're getting it laid in next month to replace a lawn that has been killed by trampoline/children/dog/rabbits and turned to mud in less than 18 months (grass really is quite a fragile thing!).
It's about 30sqm and will be costing us just shy of £1k fully fitted.
Nice stuff with the fuax thatch effect in it that looks pretty realistic.
Should give the children (and small farms worth of animals that the wife has snuck in to my life!) somewhere robust to play all year round.

Go for the Eddie Jordan range. The down side is you have to change it every couple of weeks to give the illusion of growth.

Additional bonus question to all fake grass owners:

Sand infill or not?

Does it stick to your shoes and get brought into the house?
Is it an irritant?
Does it help the strands of fake grass stand up easier?
Does it provide UV protection for the base and help it last longer? (that's what the guy today was saying)

I have:

a conscience
an IQ over 90
love for our children

so no we don't

I have:

[s]a conscience
an IQ over 90
love for our children[/s]

an insatiable desire to post useless [i]and[/i] insulting messages onto an internet forum to prove how vast my IQ is

Well done

Personally I prefer nature to be natural.

Huh, never even knew this was a thing.

Personally I prefer nature to be natural

I have:

a conscience
an IQ over 90
love for our children
a snooty attitude

so no we don't

MY back yard is concrete. It doesn't see much sun and is the way in and out of the house when with bikes. Please tell me o wise and condescending ones, how do I make it more natural and grassy?

You don't have to mow the lawn but you do have to hoover up leaves and wash off the bird poo. If you get the good stuff it will need regular (every other year or so) deep cleaning by a special cleaning company which is not cheap.

Having said that, my friends who have it are very pleased with it.

I've got some under the kids swings. Did have bark chippings but it kept getting kicked all over the place and looked shit. Also was a magnet for cat shit.
The fake grass looks ok in this setting I think, don't think i'd have it as a main lawn though.

[img] [/img]