Forum

Replies

• 

  Kieran Ray October 1, 2010 at 12:01am

  Where are you hiring it from? If it a local reputable company all should be ok.
  
  You can lift the turf in the rain just cut it a little deeper if you plan on keeping it.
• 

  AndyCharles-EnborneGardeningCo October 1, 2010 at 12:35am

  Thanks Kieran
  
  I've used the company a few times before and all has been OK (plus they've been in business for years), so hopefully it'll be OK this time too.
  
  What sort depth are we talking - from what i've read the machines either cut at a fixed depth, or with two choices, the deepest being 35mm. I obviously need to check with the supplier, but will that be deep enough?
• 

  Neil Bishop October 1, 2010 at 7:33am

  We hired one last year to remove a whole lawn. IMO it was cr@p, it never cut at the same depth, kept wanting to dig deeper and buried itself and was generally a pain in the backside! We imagined lots of neat strips of turf that we could roll up but in reality we got bits and pieces which made the job a nightmare!
  
  If it's a small area I would instead use a half moon to mark out the area and use a specialist turf spade(or a sharp flat spade) to take it up in sections. 
  
  Maybe I just had a bad experience with one or got a crappy hire machine???
• PRO

  Will - WB Design & Construction October 1, 2010 at 7:40am

  Hi from my experiance unless you go for a top quality machine which is designed to lift turf to be relayed like you would find on a golf course you aren't going to be able to save 100% probably about 50%. From my experiance with hired in machines make sure you have one with the drive working, the turf wants to be fairly wet so that it is easier for the machine but not too wet that it ends up like a mucky mess, roll each roll up before cutting the next and as you are trying to save it probably go as deep as it will even if you have to take it off like they do in alot of America, in sods.
• 

  David P Fisher October 1, 2010 at 12:24pm

  My advice is to aviod the lightweight ( usually yellow ) machines. If you can pick it up on your own it is not the machine for the job. The blade/blades must be sharp and whilst it is good to for the soil to be moist and soft it is better to cut with a dry surface for improved grip. Your turf will only lift and roll up if the lawn was in good condition and even then you will loose 5 - 10% of the area in the process.
  Good pedestrian machines are Ryan, Brouwer and Groundsman.
• 

  James Gardner October 1, 2010 at 3:35pm

  Turf strippers are only as good as the turf they are stripping, if the ground is uneven, has dips or ridges, you will end up scalping some bits whilst missing others. Also they are hard work on stoney ground.
  Still better than stripping by hand no doubt of that but, questionable as to whether it is worth trying to re-lay.
  Good quality turf can be bought from suppliers for about £1.80 all in so may be better to use that.
  
  
  Pro Gard said:

  I will always hire one rather than strip by hand, anything over about 5m2..... i absolutely hate stripping turf and a turf cutter cuts thinner tthan by hand thus saving on disposal costs.
  
  My tip is to stand on the back of the machine and ride on it as it were, otherwise they tend to just bump about and dont sink in enough. If you stand on the back then even the yellow gardenmaster type work.
• 

  AndyCharles-EnborneGardeningCo October 1, 2010 at 9:30pm

  Thanks all - I'm picking the machine up tom. morning, so I'll let you know how I get on. Fingers crossed!
• 

  AndyCharles-EnborneGardeningCo October 8, 2010 at 1:54am

  Well, I did it. It was a yellow one. Nice sharp blade though. Tried it out on my lawn. Wheels went round. Cutter stayed still. Pushed it. Wheels went round, blade went in, machine shot forward. Blade came out. Grass ripped. Blade went back in, came out again. More mangled grass. Drive lever stuck. Runs into flowerbed. Leaves two long tire-width smears on lawn. Add poppies and you have Flanders Fields.
  
  Pause for thought. Oil drive lever. Add ballast (thanks Paul). Seems to work OK. Move to client. Cross fingers, toes etc. Off we go. A bit fitful, but actually did the job well in the end. Nice clean cuts, and I've managed to relay almost all of the grass. There is damage from the wheelspin, but I'm fairly sure the lawn will recover (any tips for helping it to do so would be very welcome).
  
  The ballast, however, did not enjoy the experience. She informs me that making her balance, half bent over for correct weight distribution, facing the wrong way on an unstable turf cutter is not only highly dangerous, it is also most unglamourous and possible grounds for divorce. Plus the clients, unbeknownst to me, were watching and thought it was very funny ("like something out of Monty Python" apparently). I'm sorry they didn't video it so I could share it with you all.
  
  I blamed Paul for the idea. If I were you, i'd be afraid. Very afraid...
  
  So, in conclusion, they do work reasonably well if you weigh them down a fair amount. You will get damage from the tire tracks (weight and wheelspin), but if you can put up with that, it beats the hell out of cutting and lifting with a spade.