In terms of storage, the design is very practical. The handles are foldable, as well as height adjustable, and the grass bag can be removed. At 11.5 kg, it’s reasonably lightweight and easy to move around. There are many lawn aerators to choose from and all are built with a particular type of garden in mind. To help you decide I have outlined the different types of lawn aerators below, and explained who they are best suited to. For more tips on Lawn Aeration see my article Lawn Aeration Tips. Benefits of Lawn Aeration The shoes have anti-slip pads on the bottom to help prevent them from slipping off your boots on wet grass. Plus, the shoes come with a steel shovel you can use to clean out dirt from between the spikes when needed. Overall, we think this aerator might not be the best option for a large lawn, but we think it's great for smaller lawns as long as you don't mind the extra effort. For smaller lawns and irregularly-shaped grass spaces, choose a push aerator, handheld model, or aerator shoes. We think the Yard Butler Lawn Coring Aerator is a great manual option for small yards with clay soil.

One that’s pretty sensible is the BMC Lawn Aerator: BMC Lawn Aerator– worth a look if you’re interested in a spike roller Plug lawn aerators can be more tiring to use than rotary spiked aerators. Pushing a plug lawn aerator into the ground can require quite a lot of force, as can pulling it out again. A certain amount of upper body force is required, and this method can be too physically demanding for some people.

Sarel Rolling

The handle on the Einhell RG-SA lawn aerator is both height adjustable and foldable, so getting a comfortable working position isn’t too hard, and the folding helps to make storage much easier. For more high maintenance patches, the aeration process breaks through the thatch layer of interwoven dead and living stems, roots, and leaves that grow between your grass and the soil feeding it underneath. The maximum working width of both attachments is 32 cm, which allows the aerator to make wider paths in one go and cover bigger areas in a shorter amount of time. Don’t overlook the possibility of adjusting the working depth, an ergonomic handle with a non-slip grip, and manoeuvrable wheels for hassle-free navigation.

These types of aerators are best suited to those with small gardens as they do require a bit of manual work, but are well worth it because they are cheaper than electric/petrol machines. You can either use a normal garden pitch fork or hollow tine pitch fork to make the holes (with the pitch fork you’ll get little spikes in the ground, whereas with the hollow tines you’ll dig up plugs of turf). Hollow tines will open up the soil much more effectively so if your soil is heavily compacted or if you want to do a more thorough job then it is better to go with this option. Wait until your grass plants have established a deep root system – so wait until year two before you aerate a new lawn for the first time. Is aerating the same as scarifying? Loosening the soil, improving the supply of oxygen, and creating good drainage creates a good environment for new grass seed, whilst benefitting any existing lawn.

Lawn Aerator Sandals or Shoes

I 100% recommend lawn aeration, but I don’t see the need to do it more than once a year, and in my opinion, it will benefit lawns that are hard and compacted the most. All other kinds of soil need aeration only once every three years, though be sure to keep an eye on your lawn, as unhealthy, growth-stunted grass is usually a sign that it needs aeration. All lawns are not created equal, so different turfs need different levels of care and aeration to stay in tip-top shape. If you want to have a decent looking patch, this process really can’t be ignored. The 27-pound, ETL-approved de-thatcher features a single-handle, five-position depth control, from less than half an inch below the soil to just under half an inch above. This way you can be sure you set the machine to remove what you want removed and not an entire swath of sod. The scarifying blade is pre-attached, but you also can swap out a rake attachment (included, but you need an adjustable wrench). The handles require minimal assembly, with included hardware.

Whether this will be beneficial for your soil or not can depend on what type of soil you have. Adding sand to clay soils can cause it to lump together more, not less. Choosing the Right Type of Aerator Priced sensibly, I wasn’t expecting much quality-wise, but the BMC Lawn Aerator isn’t at all what I would call flimsy. The metal roller and prongs all seem to be strong and robust and they do exactly what they are supposed to- poke neat holes in the grass and soil without tearing it up. Thatching is a particularly sore point for lawn-owners that aeration helps with, as the action brings thatch-decomposing micro-organisms from deep in the soil up to the top layer. Roots, of course, grow underground – but that doesn’t mean that they don’t benefit from some exposure to the sunlight. This allows for the grass and the nutrient-rich soil to resume their symbiotic relationship without the problems and issues that thatching causes.In smaller gardens, you can use hand-tool plug aerators to save money . These are relatively slow to use, but work well on small patches of lawn. You might even consider spiked shoes so you can walk around the garden whilst aerating the soil. Well-trodden paths help compact the soil, which means that there’s probably areas of your lawn that are heavily compacted and parts that are less affected. Because the spikes on the soles of these seemingly ingenious shoes are solid instead of hollow, they more often push the soil sideways or downwards when they’re in the ground, which compacts the ground even more. Make sure you carry manual lawn aerating when the soil is moist, as it will be very difficult to do when the soil is really dry and ineffective when it is waterlogged. When it comes to the frequency with which you should be aerating your lawn, that all depends on the grass itself. Newer lawns need more aeration because their root systems are less than mature, a process which is boosted by regular aeration. If you have a new non-established lawn, it’s prudent to aerate twice a year.