Using a Lawn Dethatcher For Dethatching a Lawn

A lawn dethatcher can also be called a power-rake, a thatching machine or a lawn sweeper. Try not to get to confused because all of these different title mean the same thing. They all refer to a machine that acts like a vertical lawn mower. The blades spin very quickly on the surface of the grass removing harmful yard build up but not doing any damage to the grass. The harmful thatch build up in your lawn could be caused by insects, moss or undesirable grasses growing in your lawn. A dethatching machine can remove all these items while still leaving your lawn intact.

Dethatching lawns helps the lawn by removing thatch that can compete in the lawn for air, water, and sunlight. Although the lawn may look a little worse after thatching, most lawns improve after 2 to 3 weeks.

How is a Lawn Thatcher designed to work?

A lawn dethatcher has 4 reels of vertical blades that spin on the under carriage. Thee are 20 to 30 blades on each real. The reels work the same way as a thatching rake and pull the moss and other thatch out of the lawn as they spin. There is no power assist on a thatcher but the spinning motion of the blades makes will pull the dethatcher along in most lawns. Thatching should not destroy the grass but it does thin it out a little. For a quicker recovery it may also be a good idea to reseed or fertilize after thatching.

How do core aerators help my lawn?

First of all, dethatcher are a very fast and effective way to get harmful lawn debris out of your lawn.  Using a lawn dethatcher will allow you to dethatch your lawn in 20 minutes rather then 3 days.  When the thatch layer gets thick, more thean a quarter inch, it can be the habitat for insects.  It can also prevent water and air from entering the soil.  Lawn thatch can also prevent the grass from growing if it competes directly with the lawn for sunlight. 

Possible the best time dethatch your lawn is when your grass is actively growing or soon to start growing. This will allow your lawn to recover quickly. Although lawn dethatchers are rented throughout the year in many areas of the country, Most parts of the country rent them mostly in the Spring and in the Fall. When lawns recover, they will look better then before. If lawn dethatching is combind with seeding or fertilizing it can often produce better results.

The thatching maching in the picture above is a clausen. The engine sits on top of the unit and had a verticle shaft, (just like a pressure washer or an aerator.) The shaft turns a small pulley which in turn spins a larger pulley, which rotates the blades. You can engage the blades with a lever near the handle. You can typically adjust the hieght by adjusting the level just to the right of the engine. Two trick to successfully using a lawn dethacth include always keep it moving forward at a constant seed and be careful on your turns that you don't tear out the lawn. Also don't dethatch the lawn is the grass is to soggy.

I have owned a half dozen different dethatching machines and my favorite brands include Billey Goat, Bluebird, Clausen, Ryan, and Sunbelt. If the Thatch layer is super thick or you wish to use the thatcher to pull up dead sod I reccomend the Billley Goat dethatcher for the toughest jobs.