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does anyone have artificial turf?

jamesconnor7

I'm interested because I am considering getting it for my garden as it will be easier to maintain. 

Because I am often away, I find it difficult to maintain it and often find the grass looking yellow and generally unappealing. If i could find fake grass that looked realistic enough I would consider investing.

The 4th one is particularly appealing to me http://www.tigerturflandscape.co.uk/products.aspx?category=lawns-gardens

 
Dec 9, 13 11:10 am
SneakyPete

I would suggest investing in a drip irrigation system and a timer for it instead of purchasing something that will likely not be as nice as you hope.

Dec 9, 13 11:43 am  · 
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x-jla

I hate artificial turf.  It always looks fake.  If you want your house to have the feel of the neighborhood in Edward Scissorhands or the Black Hole Sun video by Soundgarden then go for it, but I personally hate it.

Dec 9, 13 12:47 pm  · 
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curtkram

there have been a few articles praising this stuff.  one of my alma maters used it for their football field (football is played with your hands over here).  i bet it's expensive.

http://www.fieldturf.com/

Dec 9, 13 1:20 pm  · 
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gwharton

I have a 12-foot square piece of SynLawn with a padded backing I use as an area rug in my living room. It's actually quite realistic-looking.

http://www.synlawn.com/

Dec 9, 13 1:37 pm  · 
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Oooh gwharton I love that idea.  I've used Synlawn in interiors, but never residential.  I may steal your idea.

Dec 9, 13 1:46 pm  · 
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gwharton

It makes a pretty cool rug. My house is a 1950 mid-century ranch that I completely gutted out and rebuilt in 2006. As part of that, I played up a lot of the indoor-outdoor living that single-level ranch homes are so well adapted for. The living room has a "grass" rug (on an engineered bamboo floor), and there's a big new patio area out front that is an "outdoor living/dining room". The 'living room' area of the patio has 18" pavers laid out in a pattern more reminiscent of a stone tile floor, with polished black mexican river pebbles to pick out the joints in contrast. And the 'dining room' is a concrete slab painted aquamarine blue. We have some outdoor-rated area rugs we put out in the summer with furniture, and the whole thing looks pretty good.

If you have dogs, you'll need to train them to stay off the 'grass' rug, though. Fair warning. It's not a problem once you make it clear it's a "no-go" zone, but they have a little trouble figuring that out at first. Fortunately, SynLawn is both washable (you can powerspray it clean if it gets dirty - how many persian carpets can you do THAT with?) and has an anti-microbial coating. :)

Dec 9, 13 2:57 pm  · 
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No, I have all my own hair.

Dec 9, 13 5:08 pm  · 
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chatter of clouds

...no, wrong post

Dec 9, 13 5:19 pm  · 
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snooker-doodle-dandy

I always liked the way Bruce Goff used in his Tucson House....It was used on the underside of the roof eaves (soffitt). The stuff he used was orange if I recollect.   The house has gone thru a couple of hands and the original stuff is gone.

Dec 9, 13 7:53 pm  · 
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i use it as floor mat in my flat.  its almost realistic, and a leftover from a small meeting area i threw together in our lab at the university. The realistic stuff costs more so we didn't go for it, but it isn't entirely bad even if it looks a bit fake.  I wouldn't recommend it for use outside somehow, though i can see the appeal of low maintenance.

Dec 10, 13 3:22 am  · 
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Perhaps, OP, you should rethink lawn. Your lawn is evil.

Dec 10, 13 9:35 am  · 
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rfuller

I build houses in a semi-arid climate, so we frequently use artificial turf in lieu of real sod.  Especially now that Texas has been in this sustained draught, causing our aquifer to drop, all leading to new water usage restrictions.  There are a few things to know.  

First, it's costly up front.  If you plan on staying there for 5 years or more, it will more than pay for itself, but if the game plan is just waiting out capital gains, then go with Sod.  In my area artificial runs about $8-10/sf installed.  Sod and sprinkler in my area are about $3/sf.  

It gets crazy hot in the summer time.  Have you ever gone to check the mail barefooted in the summer time?  And the concrete is blazing hot, so you step off on the lawn for relief?  There will be the opposite of relief from turf.  You will be astonished how hot it will get in direct sunlight in July.

Pets and leaves.  They both make messes on your lawn.  Right now you probably don't notice because you can just mow it all up.  (At least I do.  It turns into mulch, so I don't have to put a bunch of harsh fertilizer on my lawn).  That's now how it works when you can't mow your turf.  Some companies sell an attachment for a weedeater that works as a brush.  Either way, you're going to have some issues because raking can mess up the leveling sand that holds down the turf, and while they say you can just hose down the dog mess, that only works if you catch it while it's fresh.  

It looks all kinds of awkward in the winter months.  While you may have the neatest looking lawn on the block in August, people will get a chuckle as they drive past in January.  

 

All that said, you save tons of money in the long run.  It's cheaper than long-term lawn maintenance.  You don't have to water it (although some people do in the summer when they want to be outside without burning their feet).  And you don't have to hire a lawn guy or plan your lawn maintenance around vacations in the summer time if you take extended trips.  And there are some very realistic looking products these days.  In the summer time, lots of times I have a hard time distinguishing between a well manicured lawn vs. a turf lawn.  They've really come a long way.  

 

Hope all this helps.

Dec 10, 13 12:41 pm  · 
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Wilma Buttfit

One of my neighbors has artificial turf, it looks ridiculous. My yard is xeriscape - no grass and no sprinklers. 

Dec 10, 13 12:48 pm  · 
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rfuller

Xeriscape is against deed restrictions in much of my city.  Enough people put up really ugly stuff early on with no regards to design, or location appropriate plant selection.  So there are a few lawns in the older part of town that looked like Tuscan puked lava rocks and they completely ruined it for everyone else.  Many of the new commercial buildings have it, and no one knows that it's xeriscape because there are no lava rocks or cactuses.  I wish I was kidding.  A properly done xeriscape can be absolutely beautiful.  

Dec 10, 13 12:54 pm  · 
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Wilma Buttfit

I know what you mean, but that is too bad. For the record I only have 2 cactus and no lava rock. :)

Dec 10, 13 1:57 pm  · 
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Oh my god.  Xeriscape criminalized and people watering plastic to keep it cool? WTF, Texas?!? 

Dec 10, 13 4:55 pm  · 
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snooker-doodle-dandy

lol.....everyone should be reading  Jens Jensen....to set them straight about native landscaping.  It is not rocket science.  Thinking   plastic grass in not in my architectural  vocabulary. Thinking our front yard lawn is out  the window this coming year. I say this because I don't think my lawn mower will fire up in the Spring. It is currently held together with  duct tape and aluminum tape.  Front yard is going to be and extension of a large planting bed we have in place. We are going to harvest some of the plant from the large  planting bed and move them to our new cultivated area.  Then we will do a wild flower mix and toss in some  herbs and veggies for the cause.  None of these require watering and we no longer have to mow the lawn at  $4.69 a gallon nor buy the new lawn mower.

Dec 10, 13 5:44 pm  · 
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@snooker I always preferred weeding/to mowing. although driving a riding mower a'int bad...

shaping a yard via selective reduction/uprooting.

Dec 10, 13 8:46 pm  · 
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gwharton

I take a purely Nietzschean approach to landscape maintenance: what doesn't kill it makes it stronger.

Dec 10, 13 10:17 pm  · 
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Volunteer

Get the kid next door to mow your lawn when you are gone. A decent new lawnmower only costs about $300 at Lowes and can be used to mulch leaves in the fall as well. Either leave the mulch on the lawn or switch the attachments and or go over the lawn again and bag the mulch. People who install artificial grass are the same ones who repair their house's beautiful copper plumbing with the plastic s---.

Apr 2, 14 8:47 am  · 
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Volunteer

So, we are supposed to be soooooooooo concerned with global warming but waste oil making plastic grass that is used to replace real turf. Real turf which converts CO2 to 02?

May 9, 14 7:23 am  · 
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gwharton

Volunteer,

Don't you know that the whole point of sustainability/green design is conspicuous moralism? If you can't obviously show off how "green" you're being to differentiate yourself from those with lower status, what's the point?

May 9, 14 2:08 pm  · 
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Volunteer

Gwharton, Like LEED! Worse heating and cooling and maintenance bills for more money and aggravation initially, but the LEED owner gets to put a plaque on his wall. Think I have got it now.

May 9, 14 4:15 pm  · 
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Jason Harper

Artificial grass is very convenient to set anywhere u want. But there are many factors involved regarding your selection and your requirements. There are many kinds of grass available according to you needs and pocket. So determine first what u need. There is no doudt that an artificial turf make your settings look very modern and contemporary . moreover u dont have to mow it. 

Oct 31, 14 3:18 pm  · 
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proto

my FIL in socal has it

it looks pretty good and even feels pretty good underfoot

Nov 14, 14 12:10 pm  · 
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Larchinect

Unfortunately, landscape (or landscaping) as they tend to call it serves little more purpose than garnishment (parsley around the pig) in some architects/builders/engineers eyes. This mindset can lead to very wasteful sites--unnecessary water usage, less efficient buildings, unnecessary maintenance, added strain to infrastructure and uselessness.

we also need to reduce front yard setbacks--no one uses them, Wastes water. If you have a front yard already, consider a Xeric garden. Native plants can be much more beautiful than lawn, have more seasonal variety, require almost no maintenance. Take a look at the book, the new American meadow garden.

Artificial turf requires maintenance too by the way--I've never installed it but I believe it is secured with sod staples. Lastly, consider hiring a good landscape architect--the cost for a plan will save you in the long run and give you a more sustainable, beautiful solution. 

Feb 28, 15 11:42 am  · 
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Larchinect

By the way, there are also native and warm season turf alternatives. Don't install plastic.

Feb 28, 15 11:46 am  · 
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hanrysmith

I think this is a matter of convenience and hitching, if the first lawnmower was from EGO, then the likelihood that you will use this brand is even higher, given that in fact, all these brands are not so different, everyone has Both successful and unsuccessful models.

Feb 14, 18 11:49 am  · 
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JLC-1

yes, the president - I'm balding, but I wouldn't think of getting artificial turf ever

Feb 14, 18 12:44 pm  · 
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turfbusiness

As of late I have been hearing a considerable measure of good things about artificial grass. I didn’t understand that it was winding up so
well known! One of the advantages recorded is self cleaning. How is
manufactured grass self cleaning? I would love to learn m mineral about
this, I should do some more research.

Apr 14, 18 4:00 am  · 
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splinesbetweentheplace

Current commonly available commercial artificial grass is quite wretched. Expensive and a pain in the ass to clean. "self cleaning" my ass. They can't make dog turds magically disappear.


Xeriscape/local climate appropriate landscaping is the way to go, Americans need to get over this whole lush green lawn fetish.

Apr 14, 18 8:12 am  · 
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BulgarBlogger

Forever Lawn

http://www.foreverlawn.com/?gc...

Apr 14, 18 8:36 am  · 
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Non Sequitur
Asphalt is the new grass.
Apr 14, 18 10:23 am  · 
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joseffischer

That's what our school systems always say. I swear, if we listened 100% to their landscape department, they'd put themselves out of a job. Asphalt the fields, cut down the trees, etc

Apr 19, 18 12:20 pm  · 
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justavisual

I suggest a nice wildflower mix - it is native planting and should manage to survive on its own https://www.americanmeadows.co...

Instructions: https://tucsonbotanical.org/de...

Anyway this is from 2013 - what did you end up doing?

Apr 19, 18 5:30 am  · 
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nabrU

My friends do, they also have a cat, he does not shit on it.

May 12, 18 7:21 pm  · 
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SneakyPete

Archinect, please consider nuking any thread older than a few years that is resurrected by a bot.

May 21, 19 11:48 am  · 
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Volunteer

So, how much CO2 does the fake grass absorb and make into new fake grass, water vapor, and oxygen? How much oil does it take to manufacture the amount of fake grass produced every year? 

Aug 12, 19 9:30 am  · 
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x-jla

To the contrary, real grass is actually very good at trapping co2.

Oct 21, 20 10:55 am  · 
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SneakyPete

This thread is spam bait, please purge or lock.

Jun 29, 20 12:14 am  · 
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apscoradiales

Hire a landscape maintenance contractor to cut and maintain the lawn.

Oct 12, 20 9:34 am  · 
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