Artificial Grass for Dogs

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Choosing Artificial Grass for Pets

Many dog owners will start to investigate artificial grass as an option in the wetter months of the year and it’s easy to see why.

Whilst owning a dog is a joy there are certainly other aspects of looking after a dog that can be seen as a chore and other aspects, which can be extremely frustrating when you sometimes feel you are constantly cleaning up after your dog. Clearly, not all dogs are the same and we are not just talking about breeds we are talking habits too.

Starting with play habits – does your dog run around vigorously in the garden to let off a bit of energy or does your dog have a tendency to play roughly with some toys? If you can relate to any of these, and the first being the most common, it's very likely that when your garden has been subjected to British wet weather, your dog is going to come back into the house with some degree of mud on its paws. Now we have seen the odd dog trained to wipe its feet but this is a rare skill. Most will simply dash back in, especially if it is still raining outside – so unless you’ve been keeping guard at your back door awaiting the return of your four-legged friend with wiping towel in hand your dog is going to bring in some dirt into your house. This can then lead to muddy paw prints across your floor, carpet, rug or even sofa depending on the distances involved and the surfaces your dog crosses.

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Artificial Grass for Pets

Clearly, your dog is doing nothing wrong but this scenario will leave you with a clean-up exercise and on days when the outdoor weather has been less than kind day after day this can become a tiresome chore, which you can’t wait to see the back of.

The other activity, which can’t be avoided, is your dog going to the toilet. Unfortunately, dog’s pee will discolour your lawn, or more specifically will kill the grass. So why does this happen? Dog pee is different from human pee but not because it has a higher acidity level which is what most people assume is the reason why the grass is killed. It’s down to having a higher level of nitrogen which kills the grass. Where it is highly concentrated this will leave a dead brown patch but at the fringes where a lesser amount is it will actually nourish the grass and that’s why you be left with a dark green ring with a light brown centre.

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Best Fake grass for Dogs

So what’s the solution to all these issues? Simply replacing your grass lawn with artificial grass will eliminate all those issues. The key is ensuring good drainage so laying a good sub-base and ensuring that the grass you’ve selected is one of the better once (more drainage holes) for dogs will allow you to say goodbye to these challenges.

The only maintenance you may need is a simple hosing in the height of summer when your dogs pee may smell stronger than unusual due to the heat and will dry out on the grass before having a chance to drain but you can quickly sort this out whilst watering your plants without worrying about creating a mud patch!

In terms of selecting a grass most suitable for dogs, typically we would recommend a height of around 35mm. If you have one of the higher grasses this may prove to be a little more difficult for cleaning up a number two – especially if your pooch has a tummy upset. Grasses below 30mm will look a little less ‘real’ so a 35mm grass is a really good ‘all-rounder’.

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Frequently Asked Questions

  • How to lay artificial grass?

    Usually, an aggregate sub-base is laid to provide efficient drainage followed by a weed membrane followed by a layer of sand. The sand is then levelled off to provide a flat base on which the artificial turf is laid out. If you have a seam, a joint tape will be laid down between the seams onto which adhesive is spread and then the grass edges are laid over the seam. Additional special fake grass pegs are also used to fix down the edges.  

  • Which artificial grass is best?

    This will all depend on how you will be using your artificial lawn. For a luxurious looking thick lawn then a 40mm+ lawn will give you a good bouncy feel - but may not be so good if you are planning on leaving lots of heavy items on your lawn. Also if you have pets - dogs, you would want to choose a 30mm height at this will make clearing up after your pooch a little easier whilst still retaining a fantastic looking lawn.

    If you looking to provide a play area or add some artificial grass to decking to provide a non-slip topping then a budget, sub 10mm pile would be best

  • How much is artificial grass?

    This all depends on your individual installation and the actual grass that is chosen. Grass prices range from the budget end, which looks like green carpet rather than grass, from around £5 per m2 to longer luxury pile grasses which can be £40+ per m2. For a supply and fit of a good mid-range grass can range from around £70 per m2, for small shape installations where they may be much wastage, to £45 per m2 where there is a large uniformed area being installed.

  • Can artificial grass be laid on decking?

    Yes, it can and we've done it several times with s special underlay. We've found that this will mostly be requested on timber decking. There a two main reasons for this firstly once the artificial grass has been fixed to the decking it means that you won't be able to get to your decking to clean it - saving you cleaning chore. Whilst this may seem like a big plus side it does mean that water will have more difficulty in draining away after a downpour. So whilst water will run through the artificial turf it will run onto the decking. If the decking is in a very slight slope to assist water run off this will help. The underlay we use will also help protect your decking If not done properly, you will run the risk of shortening the life of your decking as it will not be treated regularly. 

    The other and main reason is that fake grass is fitted onto decking is that it is visually more colourful and you don't have to work about slipping if the surface does get damp - especially if you have not been good at keeping on top of decking maintenance and moss and algae have built up. 

    Before applying artificial grass on top of decking we would recommend a final clean and good quality decking treatment is applied first.

  • What is artificial grass made from?

    The quality in terms of colour fastness, durability and realness has improved dramatically in the last 1o years.  This has progressed to such a level that at first glance it can be very hard to distinguish between real grass and fake grass. 

    Most modern grasses are made from polyethylene - this is for the actual grass blade. The base to which it is attached can be made from either  polypropylene, polyethylene or nylon. For all three the process of attaching is very similar to that used for modern carpets, which is why you can now even find artificial for sale in carpet shops. A needle, or rather large sets of needles push the blades through the base to which they are attached. Additional adhesives are also used to keep the blades in place.

  • Will artificial grass fade over time?

    With the advances in astroturf manufacturing UV inhibitors are added to the artificial grass and as a result, you should expect your artificial lawn to look good for 15-20 years depending on the intensity and duration of sun exposure.

  • Which is the best border for artificial grass?

    This again similar to the question about the best artificial grass will come down to a number of factors. Firstly it will depend on where the grass will be going and what it will be butting up to. For artificial lawns surrounding trees, timber sleepers are going to be too rigid and therefore laying of bricks or stone blocks allow circles and curved edges to be used. If this is the style and design of your landscaping you don't want to be compromising on the flow of borders and lawns so this is a popular finish. When you do have long straight edges sleepers are a good option as they allow you to have a slightly raised bed, which helps bring some different levels to a garden. It's not uncommon to use a combination of the two. Part of our service is to talk through the design aspect of your garden and what features you already have so as to complement your garden design as much as possible.

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