Does Artificial Grass Get Dirty or Muddy?
Choosing artificial grass means never again spending hours weeding, watering, aerating, fertilizing and mowing a natural grass lawn. It means enjoying the inviting, verdant look of natural grass without the many headaches that come along with it. And it means having more time to spend enjoying your grass with your family, pets or friends.
We are beginning to see synthetic turf in more residential, commercial and municipal settings as people become more aware of these benefits. However, this growing trend is still in a nascent stage where lots of folks have lots of questions.
Two of the frequently asked questions we get about artificial grass are:
1. Does artificial grass get muddy?
2. Does artificial grass get dirty?
To help you determine if synthetic turf is right for you, let’s take a look at these two questions.
Does Artificial Grass Get Muddy?
While mud may be tracked onto your grass by pets or children who step in mud elsewhere in your yard, your artificial lawn, itself, will not get muddy.
This is one of the many benefits of opting for fake grass over natural grass: There is no soil at the surface; therefore, there is nothing for water to mix with to create mud.
Artificial grass is made with a permeable backing that has lots of small holes to ensure proper drainage. The water runs through this backing material and into the base layer beneath the grass. On top of that backing material, there are blades of synthetic turf and infill but no dirt. Because there is no dirt, there is no mud.
This, of course, means that there is no mud to track into your home, soil your children’s clothing or keep them from being able to play outside after rain or excessive irrigation.
Does Artificial Grass Get Dirty?
Yes, artificial grass can get dirty – just like any other hardscape or softscape in your yard. Similar to paving stone patios, concrete driveways, wood decks and natural grass lawns, synthetic turf can get dusty or cluttered with debris.
How dirty your synthetic lawn will get and how quickly it will get dirty depend on your particular situation. For example, if you have a lot of bare dirt in your backyard, live next to a farm or ranch, or have other sources of dust near your home, your grass will likely become dusty faster.
Just like on a natural grass lawn, debris can fall or be tracked on your synthetic turf, which is another way it can become dirty. The most common types of debris you might see on your lawn include leaves, twigs, blossoms and other items that might fall from trees, shrubs and plants near your lawn.
It is also possible that your lawn can get dirty from children (or adults) spilling substances like soda or ice cream, or it may become dirty in certain areas that your pets use as a restroom.
While it is impossible to keep your synthetic lawn from getting dirty, it is easy to clean it when it does. Debris can be raked or swept, pet restroom areas can be cleaned and deodorized, and dust can be removed simply by spraying your lawn with a garden hose.
For a more complete education about how to maintain artificial grass and how to clean it when it gets dirty, we recommend these two posts: