What is Power Brooming?
Think back to the very first time you had your lush green artificial turf installed. Your installers likely rolled out a giant sheet of green and let it air out for a while. Eventually, it fluffed up a bit, and the installation process got underway. Then, just when you thought they were finished and about to pack it up, they pulled out a tool that looked like a combination between a vacuum and a drive-through car wash part.
Installers rolled this device over your grass to make each blade stand up straight and help settle the infill down into the base. When finished, your already nice-looking lawn looked even better. It was given the appearance of being rich and full, with blades that looked natural and dense.
This process is called power brooming, and it is necessary to make your artificial lawn look its best. The process is always completed upon installation and is needed periodically throughout the life of your lawn to lengthen its life, keep it looking great, and perform as well as the day you put it in.
What is a Power Broom?
A power broom is a unique tool known only to the artificial turf community and created specifically to install and improve artificial lawns.
At its most basic level, the power broom is a round broom with plastic bristles that rotates on a drum. The rotation speed and plastic bristles are formulated specially to work with artificial turf. With a power broom, you can:
- Fluff up and restore matted down areas of turf
- Remove traffic and wear patterns
- Clean your lawn of dirt and debris
The power broom is a versatile tool when it comes to artificial turf and is necessary to maintain the life, look, and performance of your turf. It must be appropriately used, however! If operated incorrectly, a power broom can actually do more harm than good to your lawn.
Can a Power Broom Ruin Your Synthetic Grass?
When it comes to power broom usage, the tool must be handled by artificial turf experts who know what they’re doing. Turf installers are the best when it comes to ensuring that your grass will gain all the benefits with no damage during the process.
If used incorrectly, a power broom can damage your synthetic grass. Here are just a few things that turf installers check before they start the power brooming process.
- They check to see how the turf was laid out and how the blades naturally sit.
- They check to ensure the turf perimeter is adequately nailed down, and no edges are loose. This ensures the turf stays in place and doesn’t lift or wrinkle.
- They ensure all seams are properly nailed down, glued, and secured. Loose seams could cause turf to lift, wrinkle, buckle, or stretch.
- They check the turf itself. If blades are damaged, weak, or old, extra care must be given during the process. Too much pressure and the grass blades could rip out, permanently damaging the turf.
Power Brooming Words of Caution
Power brooming is both an art and a science and is a technical skill that must be understood in order to be done correctly. If you hire a proverbial “Jack of all trades,” to do a power brooming job on your turf, you could end up irreversibly damaging your turf. If damage occurs due to the actions of someone that doesn’t know what they are doing, you will likely void your turf warranty. Most warranties cover things like manufacturer issues, fading, discoloration, and material problems. They do not, however, cover improper usage due to excessive power brooming.
In addition to only having power brooming handled by a trained professional, you should never use a metal rake or brush that isn’t intended specifically for use on artificial turf. These tools will break down the blades of grass, making them weaker, prone to fraying, matting, and failure. Metal rakes and brushes can also void warranties since they will not cover issues such as excessive wear and tear when improperly cared for.
Over Power Brooming Will Diminish the Life of Your Turf
Excessive power brooming is sometimes referred to as over-defibrillation. Defibrillation, or the process of power brooming your grass, must be done in such a manner that your grass is restored back to its natural luster, but not over broomed. Over power brooming, or over-defibrillation, can result in the following:
- Matting of your turf
- Excessive wear
- Memory Loss
- Blades of grass fiber splitting
- Voiding of Warranty
If done improperly, power brooming absolutely can hurt your turf and, sometimes, irreversibly. At best, you’ll need to have an installer come back out and re-nail, tack, and infill your grass. At worst, you might end up with entire sections of turf that need to be fully replaced. If this occurs, the expense will fall directly on you, as warranties will not cover misuse or improper care and maintenance.
Power Brooming Done Right
When you hire our team of experts at Dirty Turf to rebloom your turf, we’ll send members of our qualified and trained installation team to bring new life to flattened, matted, or lifeless areas in your turf. Whether you need to renew your front lawn, back yard, doggie run, or putting green, we can do it all. We make it our goal to restore your artificial turf to its original glory, luster, and thickness. Our team applies their years of experience working with artificial turf, the latest technology, and just the right amount of Power Broom strength. We’ve worked with all shapes, styles, and ages of artificial turf, so if you think you’ve got a challenging lawn, call us up! We’ll come out, evaluate your turf, and get your lawn looking thick and full once more. Don’t leave your lawn care to chance. Call our team of pros at Dirty Turf and make sure the job is done right!
