Choosing a Synthetic Turf that is right for you
Turf is an excellent alternative to grass if you're looking to save water and avoid costly maintenance. There are many types and styles to choose from. When scheduling a free on site consultation, make sure to mention your interest in turf and we will bring you all of the different samples to choose from.
Typical Artificial Turf Installation
Synthetic turf installation has different phases depending on how prepared your area is:
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Remove old grass/weeds if applicable
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Install edging material if none exists (Bender board, paver, concrete, brick, steel, stone, or aluminum)
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Remove dirt if there isn't at least 3" of clearance from top of edging to top ground level
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Re-fill with a minimum of 2" of 1/2" base (for drainage) and top with Crusher fines, DG, Engineers fill or sand (for packing)
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Level, compact, fill, and repeat until surface is solid.
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Once area is compacted and desired surface is achieved, carefully lay out synthetic turf over the surface and if there are multiple sections, overlap them by at least 6" and be sure the grass blades of all sections are facing the same direction and make sure you have just a little overlap on the outer edges of the area to tailor later.
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Let the sun bake over the laid out turf for a couple of hours to let it warm up and stretch out a little.
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If you do have sections to seam, each side must be cut in a specific way to avoid a visible seam: One piece should be cut up against the seam row and the other piece has to be cut leaving a full backing section out so when they but up to each other, the space between them is exactly the same as the space between the other seam rows (rows of grass blades). Once this is done, be sure to shift each piece so everything buts up exactly. From here, it's safe to peel the sections back (without disrupting the entire piece's position) , lay the seaming tape and apply the turf glue to the seaming tape. After the glue is applied and still wet, carefully lay the two sections down at the same time into the turf glue slowly while keeping any turf blades out of the glue (a turf nail is a nice tool for this). Continue this until the seam is fully down into the turf glue. From here, check the seam for any accidental turf submergences into the glue and correct. After the seam is
"married", feel free to place a straight board on top of the seam (or multiple boards if its a long seam) to keep it from comping up while drying. Repeat this process for any other seams. -
Once seams are dry (if applicable at this stage) check the turf area for any ripples or inconsistencies and move the turf if needed to straighten them out.
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Once the turf is seamed and or laid out without any ripples or defects, you're ready to cut your edges. To do this, have a sharp razor blade ready. The turf has to be cut from the back side (not the side with the turf blades sticking up). Peel the turf back starting on any edge that you'd like to start with and cut in the direction of the edge at the edge line. Do a small section first to gauge your accuracy for the remainder of the cut. Once you're satisfied with your accuracy, continue your cut (and keep double checking along the way) all the way around your edging.
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After you've tailored the edges, hammer 5 or 6 inch nails around perimeter only every two fists apart or so making sure to separate any potential grass blades from getting hammered underneath the nails to avoid nail divots.
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Now that the nails are in, it's safe to add your infill with a material spreader to get an even distribution. The typical infill amount to add works out to about 1 pound per square foot evenly distributed.
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After your infill is spread, this is when you'll want to power broom the turf to work in the infill, tease the thatch (makes turf appear a little thicker), and to extract installation debris, providing a professional finished look.
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Clean it all up and you're done :)