Knowing how to lay artificial grass should be second nature to those who install artificial grass regularly. If you’re new to the skill and enjoying some DIY, then this is a pretty essential tip to making sure an installation looks its best.
It’s all about pile direction and the impact this has on appearance if laid the wrong way.
Prepare the lawn…
The first step is to plan out and measure your garden to determine how much artificial lawn, weed membrane and joining materials you will need. Do not underestimate the power of a tpe measure, because sometimes these fancy apps aren’t too accurate!
Make sure that you know all your bends and corners before you lay artificial grass. Measure twice, cut once.
Best way to lay grass…
Establish from where the grass is most likely to be viewed, in most cases this is from the property looking outwards onto the lawn.
Lay your grass so that you’re looking into the pile. So you want the grass to be curving towards you, rather than away from you.
Another way to tell is the colour of the grass. If the grass is curving away from you it has a lighter, shinier appearance. This is not the side that you want to be facing every day.
Can you see the difference?
This is the same garden from two different angles, one looking outwards from the property, the other looking back towards the house. Which do you think looks better?
I’m hoping you said the picture with the cat statue and NOT the table and chairs!
Can you see how the picture with the table and chairs has more of a lighter colour? That’s because the light is reflecting off the back of the blades of grass. With cheap grasses this can give a ‘carpet’ appearance which is one to avoid.
Now for the picture with the cat statue. This has a much deeper green colour because you’re looking into the pile, where the light does not reflect as easily. This has a more natural appearance and is the best direction to lay it.
What about wastage?
You might get in a situation where it would be cheaper to lay the grass a different direction to save on wastage, or the customer would like to avoid having a joint in a particular place.
Obviously you want to provide the most cost efficient method for your customer but make sure to explain the appearance of the grass when making plans to lay it.
I hope you found this informative, or at the very least a bit of peace of mind regarding your own method! Don’t forget if you have any questions you can always contact your trade manager. Or call our office on 0800 2100 461 for more information.
