Artificial grass-is it good and worth it?

[sunny88]

Good news. The city rebate now includes artificial grass as well! You can therefore get up to $3.50/sqft in rebates if you combine the city and the SoCal rebate program.

http://www.sandiego.gov/water/conservation/rebates/grassreplacement.shtml

[CA renter]

[quote=zk][quote=svelte][quote=no_such_reality]I’m not a fan of artificial grass. I think there are other alternatives like xeriscape or buffalo grass.
.[/quote]

Kinda depends upon what you want to do in the space.

Buffalo grass may work, but weed control is an issue.

But its kinda hard to kick a soccer ball around a xeriscaped area.[/quote]

We had “UC Verde buffalo grass” for a while. It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t work for us. The water savings was less than I expected. It spread by runners, and if the runner hit established grass, it just died. So you’ve got hundreds of dead runners blowing all over, making a bit of a mess. Plus it’s brown in the winter. Just a couple things to keep in mind.[/quote]

Bumping this topic in hopes that someone will have some info about the Eco-lawn product.

Also, what did you use to replace the UC Verde, zk?

[OwnerOfCalifornia]

Recurring theme that one should plan on spending money for “quality labor and materials” for artificial turf.

What does this translate to in ~~~ $/sqft (contract cost, pre-rebates)?

TIA

[LAAFTERHOURS]

[quote=OwnerOfCalifornia]Recurring theme that one should plan on spending money for “quality labor and materials” for artificial turf.

What does this translate to in ~~~ $/sqft (contract cost, pre-rebates)?

TIA[/quote]

Cheap Material can cost upwards of 2 dollars a sq ft. Quality material can go as low at 2.50-2.75 a square foot but you need to hunt for it.

Labor varies a lot. If you call up some of the larger mainstream companies, their total price includes their labor and its the only way to warranty the product. You will pay a premium for that warranty and I am not sure the value of it is worth it. Or you can hire someone that says they do it and save a buck. The last approach (recommended) is to use the turf company’s recommended vendor list.

I looked at roughly 10 different companies material companies, some of which were a one shop outfit all the way up to looking at synlawn and easy turf. I didnt see the value in dropping 9-10 per sq ft to get synlawn or easy turf.

[montana]

We replaced all of our grass in our backyard with about 600 square feet of artificial turf last fall. We used Tiger Turf Marquee Pro Natural and we love it. My wife and girls now spend 2-3x more outside because it is hardly ever wet, never muddy, no bugs, etc. (I have a very picky five year old).

We had our landscape contractor perform the work and he did fine. However, he had not installed turf in a backyard where he had to worry about Low-E reflective windows. The day after install I had four or five melted streaks across the yard as the sun reflection from my windows was coming back in a laser beam and melting the turf. The turf itself can withstand 240 degrees!

After a long four month battle, my window manufacturer replaced half of my windows in my house for free (no more laser beams), the turf store provided new turf for free, and my contractor re-installed for free.

Initially I thought I was paying a little more than I wanted to spend, but after all that I went through with the melted turf which ended up not costing me an additional dime, I am fine with the original amount!

At the time, we qualified for the SoCal water rebate. As another posted stated, take the relevant pictures and get approved prior to starting the program. We ended up with a $2300 check where we replaced turf with artificial turf and other plants/shrubs.

We now save $80/month on a gardner and probabaly $40/month on water, so it will breakeven in ~4 years with a +/-20% IRR after 10 years. No brainer for us.
[img_assist|nid=20814|title=Artificial Turf|desc=|link=node|align=left|width=100|height=75]

[ljinvestor]

So what was window manufacturer solution…no Low-E glass?

[zk]

[quote=CA renter]

Also, what did you use to replace the UC Verde, zk?[/quote]

We replaced it with regular old fescue. I made the lawn lower than the surrounding concrete and very level, and capped the drains. Therefore there’s zero runoff. Which helps a bit. Still more water then the buffalo grass. But it’s green in the winter, doesn’t shed runners, and it’s softer. It feels softer to me anyway.

[scaredyclassic]

anybody ever try just old used carpet on the ground for weed control?

[CA renter]

[quote=zk][quote=CA renter]

Also, what did you use to replace the UC Verde, zk?[/quote]

We replaced it with regular old fescue. I made the lawn lower than the surrounding concrete and very level, and capped the drains. Therefore there’s zero runoff. Which helps a bit. Still more water then the buffalo grass. But it’s green in the winter, doesn’t shed runners, and it’s softer. It feels softer to me anyway.[/quote]

That’s why I was wondering if anyone had any experience with the Eco-lawn product. It’s composed of a variety of fescue grasses, and it’s supposed to be about as drought tolerant as the UC Verde.

Is your grass fairly drought tolerant relative to the UC Verde, or might there be different types of fescue grasses that are specifically selected for drought tolerance?

Sorry to bother you with these questions. We’re just trying to figure out what to do with our grass as well.

Also, did you DIY, or hire a contractor? We would prefer to go the contractor route if/when we change it out because our DIY lawn just doesn’t look anywhere near as nice as the lawns that were installed professionally.

[montana]

[quote=ljinvestor]So what was window manufacturer solution…no Low-E glass?[/quote]

The window manufacturer replaced the windows with Low-E glass, but the new windows were 3/16″ thick vs. 1/8″ in the original windows, as well as putting in “capillary insertion tubes”. The thicker glass reduces the “flex” of the window and significantly reduces the laser beam effect and the “capillary insertion tubes” help regulate the pressure in the double pane window to match that outside of the window. The reflection of the sun is now a perfect replica of the window vs. the laser beam that melted our turf and previously had burned a number of our plants/shrubs etc.

[LAAFTERHOURS]

Resurrecting this discussion because when many of us signed up for the rebates, there was nothing discussing the Fed taxing the rebates as income. Tax season is upon us and MWD asked for W-9 to send out income statements.

The MWD has not fully disclosed whether these are to be taxed as federal income. Considering the money spent to pay someone to remove lawns was paid for by taxed income, the rebate was used to pay a contractor to install a permeable replacement for said lawn and that individual pays income taxes, it seems like the IRS is trying to triple dip on tax revenue asking for the rebate to be considered income.

I know the federal energy conservation rebates in terms of whether they are income or not are specific to everything other than water so the argument seems to be that water conservation doesnt apply (which seems silly considering its the worlds most valuable resource).

Can any tax experts weigh in on this?

[Author]

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