synthetic sports surfaces Archives

Artificial Grass Maintenance

Posted on 19th September 2013 by Sweepfast

With the huge amount of artificial grass surfaces now in use, and with more being installed every month an in house maintenance regime coupled with a professional contractor maintenance plan has never been so important. I know this works out as an unexpected expense but there really is no other option, and bad advice from poor quality contractors can be even worse. I’ll give you one recent example.

The recent spell of wet weather has brought home once again just how important maintaining artificial sports surfaces is. On a recent visit to a customer where the maintenance regime had simply been regular drag brushing. What is worrying is that more recently a “contractor” had advised that power brushing off the top surface and replacing a tiny amount of old sand with new would “revitalise” the pitch. But within one month the pitch had started to retain water once again, now rendering the facility totally unsuitable for use.

The only procedure to discover exactly what is going on beneath the surface is to take samples of the infill then return them to the warehouse and set about processing them. So after giving them this advice and at the request of the customer we took 9 samples from locations all over the surface, from high use areas to areas where there was very little foot fall. These have now been sampled and analysed and the results indicated that the contamination levels are way in excess of the standards for safe play, and the continuous free draining of the surface.

The conclusion of my report is going to indicate a spend in excess of £10,000.00 now to put things right, where if they had been given the correct information and acted on it the pitch would have still been playable now, with an annual spend of less than £2,000.00 and no loss of play and earnings.

It’s so frustrating in this industry that there are so much bad advice from convincing salesmen leading to spending money for the wrong reasons, with only one consequence, the customer has to eventually pay twice.

This is why at Sweepfast we pride ourselves in taking care to visit every site to assess its requirements whether it’s a small private tennis court or a university multi sports complex. We take every measure to ensure the advice we give is based on truth and not on assumptions, and we know then that we can rest easy.

For professional synthetic sports surface advise and service from the first site visit to completion of the works call 0121 747 9255 visit www.sweepfast.com or email sales@sweepfast.com

Extracting Sand From Astroturf

Posted on 25th February 2013 by Sweepfast

How do you extract the sand infill from an Astroturf pitch? The most successful way to extract contaminated sand and the associated contamination from a sand filled synthetic grass pitch, or tennis courts is using a high pressure injection system to displace it to the surface for collection. Sweepfast has developed the Hydrofast System which utilises high pressure water delivered at a precisely controlled height from the surface to lift out the material and also to wash the fibres of the synthetic grass clean as it goes. The system is built around an Avant telehandler which travels across the surface at around 0.5 km/hr lifting out the material as it goes and leaving it in a line to be collected by the following machinery.

The results can be very dramatic as demonstrated with the Sweepfast Infill Contamination Test Kit, with a total contamination ratio of around 70.49% on an extremely badly maintained pitch we have reduced that down to 1.38% in just 5 days, see the two images below for examples.

Before:-

And After:-

To see more of this impressive system visit www.sweepfast.com or call 0121 747 9255 for a free site visit, assessment and quote.

Cleansweep

Posted on 20th February 2013 by Sweepfast

Maintaining an artificial grass tennis court is no easy feat, and it’s so easy to ignore the leaves etc etc until they decay and can’t be seen any more. But do this at your peril because this WILL BE the kiss of death for your artificial grass pitch or tennis court. If left to decay on the surface the leaf and tree litter will cause the infill material to become clogged, causing more problems as the water refuses to drain through. Black sludge patches rapidly begin to appear as the water which by now is lying on the surface brings this decaying matter to the top, and suddenly you will notice the results of your neglect. When this begins to happen there is only one way forward and that is a full refurbishment, where the sand infill is completely removed and replaced with new. This produces great results and you’re left with a virtually new surface that drains and plays as good as the day it was first installed.

But take this back a step, if the surface was maintained in the first instance this procedure would probably not be needed for many years, instead of after just a few. Brushing with a stiff broom was the traditional way to keep an artificial grass surface looking good, but brushing dead leaves across a synthetic grass tennis court is not good practice and will simply grind in the debris and push it into the sand infill. So what is needed is something light, easy to use but still collects the leaves as it goes.
Enter the Cleansweep synthetic grass cleaning mat.

The Cleansweep Artificial Grass Maintenance Machine

This device with a little forward motion provided by a reasonable walking pace will sift through the sand infill and separate it from the debris, working it back in as it goes. The debris can be shaken off every few passes and the court will be swept clean in about 10 mins. If done every time before play then the risk of walking the leaf litter into the surface will be almost completely removed, and with no noise created or additional cost input from fuel it rapidly becomes an economical piece of equipment despite its initially high purchase cost. There’s simply nothing else on the market that does what this device can and they are always in stock in the Sweepfast Midlands Depot.

Astroturf Cleaning

Posted on 16th January 2013 by Sweepfast

New Products

It’s not everyday a new product comes into this market that customers have been crying out for, but that’s just what’s happened with the introduction, by Sweepfast, of the ATC1400.

Interim cleans or Powersweeps on full sized 3G pitches are effectively done with the ATC2000 machine, and a full sized pitch takes about 2 hours with one man and a small tractor or quad bike to complete. But the problem comes when you try and get this service into 5 aside 3G pitches, with their smaller area and tighter access the width of a standard ATC2000 makes it difficult to manouver between pitches and getting into the corners is nigh on impossible. However with the introduction of the ATC1400 the reduced width and lighter chassis makes 5 aside pitch regular maintenance a breeze.

This new machine like its bigger variant will de-compact, clean and level up the infill on a 3G pitch all in one pass, the only input needed is a small tractor or quad bike to pull it at a reasonable pace (10-20 km/hr).

The rubber infill granules are lifted onto the reciprocating sieve by the forward motion provided by a tractor or quad, large particles of debris and fibre are retained and the cleaned rubber falls back onto the pitch.

48 x 3mm infinitely adjustable spring tines set behind the sieve relieve the compaction at every pass, these can be set to penetrate the upper most layer where the compaction occurs (10-18mm) and an adjustable specially designed brush is set behind that to leave the infill level and even, making for a safer cleaner playing surface.

The machine complete only weighs in at 46 kg so moving it around isn’t such a back breaking job, yet it’s still heavy enough to be solidly built. It’s constructed from powder coated aluminium, stainless steel and bright aluminium. It measures up at:

1,510 mm Deep
1,500 mm Wide
290 mm High
46 kg Weight

Call or email via the website via this link

Sweepfast Sports Surface Maintenance & Machinery

Artificial Turf vs Natural Turf

Posted on 15th June 2012 by Sweepfast

From reading various posts on turf management message boards and hearing some groundsmen’s opinions, although not necessarily the opinions of the industry as a whole, it seems artificial sports surfaces have accrued an unpopular reputation.

These views, however, are usually from diehard “old school” groundsmen who see them as the arch nemesis of natural turf. A view borne from either the notion that such a surface will not require their services and, therefore, render them redundant; or the simple fact that they do not want to admit that they don’t know how to maintain them.

My own experience in sports turf stems from a golf course background, and I freely admit I didn’t know what was required to maintain an artificial surface. Like many others I thought they required minimal maintenance inputs.

Several years ago I found myself sharing a portakabin for three years at Cranfield University with Dr Andy McLeod, who was conducting research into the maintenance of artificial sports surfaces. It was from here, through various discussions, that I developed a greater appreciation for artificials and their nuances; either that or I was the innocent victim of an indoctrination process!!

Nevertheless, however it came about; I left the ranks of the non-believers and became completely open minded about artificial surfaces. I say “surfaces” plural, as there are a range of surfaces to meet the different needs of sport, with surfaces such as acrylic, tufted (both sand filled and rubber crumb filled), woven, asphalt, and water based. The one thing that they have in common with natural turf surfaces is that they require good and regular maintenance to maintain good playing characteristics.

Joining Sweepfast has given me the opportunity to learn the skill set required to produce a top quality playing surface, and has further opened my eyes to the different methods, machinery and techniques available for every situation.

Typical problems encountered are very similar to those experienced on natural turf areas, namely poor drainage, moss infestations, compaction (of the infill), surface debris – primarily leaf litter which leads to contamination of the infill – and sunken or raised areas due to tree roots crossing beneath the surface. Other problems include seam failure, worn areas, and capping of the surface where carpet fibres have bent over and, after a prolonged period, literally become welded together.

In general the company is called in for annual maintenance or where a surface has been poorly maintained and has got to the point where it requires specialist treatment.

Some surfaces encountered are so bad, due to neglect or ignorance, that you can’t actually see the playing surface. It never ceases to amaze me that what looks like a basket case, can be transformed into a first class playing surface, with playing characteristics as good as natural turf. As the nature of this kind of work is very specialist the company travels far and wide, up, down, and across the country, literally to all points of the compass, both in the UK and overseas.

I have also been surprised at the broad spectrum of the company’s client base, ranging from a privately owned tennis court in someone’s back garden, through to Premier League training facilities.

Artificial surfaces are usually constructed for year round play, and can be located in areas where they receive lots of wear, which a natural turf surface could not sustain, such as a local authority pitch in a built up area. And, when I say a built up area, they can be exactly that, built up, to the point where we have to employ a crane to be able to access the pitch with the machinery.

In cases like this, it is not viewed as a problem, but as a challenge. As with any playing surface, natural or artificial, the timing and speed at which the maintenance operations are carried out are very important, as the surfaces are usually fully booked up, whether they are a local authority pitch, private tennis club or school.

There are lots of pros and cons in the natural verses artificial debate, and that is a discussion that could go on and on. Which one provides the best playing surface, I could not say, as it depends on more than the skill of the groundsman. The finished surfaces are dependant on the initial performance characteristics specified for them, the design and build quality, the budget allocated for their maintenance, the environment in which they will be located, and how much wear they will be subjected to.

What is apparent is that no two surfaces are the same, and the nature of the problems encountered is dependant on the type of surface and the maintenance it has or hasn’t received. Research into the optimum construction method and the ideal maintenance regime is ongoing for both natural turf and artificial surfaces.

The development of new technologies for the maintenance of artificials is where I step in at Sweepfast but, due to commercial sensitivity, I can’t explain the new technology we are developing, but watch this space!

Written By Dr Colin Mumford

Artificial Grass Cleaning

Posted on 18th May 201227th February 2018 by Sweepfast

When William Blake penned the phrase “in England’s green and pleasant land” I don’t think he had an old Astroturf tennis court or synthetic grass hockey pitch. After, in some cases, just a few years they can turn into a nightmare for the owner, with brown sludge in patches all over and dead moss deeply rooted into the sand infill. For the owner of such a facility it must seem as if all is lost, as every effort to brush the surface clean produces no noticeable effect with the sludge appearing again at the first heavy downpour, of which there has been more than just a few this Spring. Then when they do get a break in the weather and succeed in killing off the moss and algae it all re appears with, wait for it, yes even more rain!! I can imagine the feeling of despair as the owner of a beautiful country house looks over the garden in the morning, from their kitchen window, and sees the tennis court like a blott on the landscape.

Sweepfast have had more than just a few such situations to deal with, and I’m sure more than once has a potential customer been scornful that nothing can be done and that replacement is the only way forward. This is brought on by installation companies only interested in selling a new surface and condemning the old one to the grave, or the skip!! And there’s another valid point to be made here, as we’re all doing our best to minimize landfill and re-cycle, why is it that old surfaces like these are ripped up and sent to the tip when with a bit of effort and money they can be back in service again in almost as new. The thing with many private synthetic grass tennis courts and a lot of synthetic grass hockey pitches is that as long as the seams are intact they will show very little signs of wear, and the only issue is the infill which is contaminated and refuses to allow any rain water to pass through.

Sweepfast have developed this Hydrofast System of refurbishing these surfaces using high pressure water which is fed into a machine that travels up and down the court or pitch very slowly driving out the infill, and contamination and removing it from the surface and even washing the fibres clean as it goes leaving behind an almost as new tennis court or hockey pitch. When the job is just half way through and the customer can see the comparison between the old and the new the difference is just staggering, but the best of all is the look on the owners face when their beautiful artificial grass sports facility handed back looking pristine, is extremely rewarding.

Once completed these sand filled surfaces can be easily maintained by a little effort every week or every day during Autumn and Spring, with such tools as the Cleansweep which will enable the user to clean a tennis court of litter, leaves, blossom, twigs etc etc in just 10 minutes, then use of a either a hand pulled weighted dragbrush or for the larger surfaces a towed weighted dragbrush, then regular moss and algae treatment with a suitable chemical will go a long way to keeping it free of contamination for years to come. Then once yearly it must be deep cleaned by a contractor using such machinery as the Hoerger SKU to remove deeply embedded debris and lift the fibres upright again.

Sweepfast can be contacted on 0121 747 9255 for a free site visit to discuss a rescue package to restore your facility.

See the gallery below for examples of the whole process:

Moss and Algae control

Posted on 15th March 2012 by Sweepfast

Moss and algae are becoming an unsightly persistent nuisance to anyone who manages outdoor areas for public or private access. The slippery surface created when damp can also be a health and safety issue too. The search is continuously in progress to find / create a product that treats both types of growth without being a hazard to wildlife and humans alike. Many good products such as Algon will produce a safe, almost instant kill on surface moss without being a hazard to users and wildlife, although this product, like many others, is intended to be used as a surface cleaner, some are intended to be used as a wood preservative but have found favour in the treatment of moss and algae.

Sweepfast Ltd have been trialing, for some time now, in conjunction with RBT, a new variation with their existing RBT247 product. There have been mixed successes with this product in the past but it seems that now the way is clear to market a product that really works and, possibly the most exciting aspect of this product is that over time, it keeps on working! We have seen in the past with the previous blends of this product, where the sprayers have been filled up, there is no sign of moss and algae returning even after 6 months of damp weather, and with the new blend this will be a major influence for commercial users to switch to this product. It will mean that after an initial dense treatment then further treatments at a reduced rate moss and algae will be under control, and as time progresses these periods of treatment can be extended making it an economical product to use.

Further trials will continue and any results will be posted here

Cleaning Football Pitches

Posted on 13th February 2012 by Sweepfast

Cleaning 3G Football Pitches.

With most top level football clubs now feeling the need for 3G training pitch to train on when the weather’s poor, regular maintenance is essential to retain the playing characteristics it had when installed. Maintenance has never been high on the agenda for any synthetic grass facility in the sporting sector and the football clubs are no exception. But once the procedure is in place the benefits are immense, even the most inexperienced player can’t ignore the benefits from an even clean surface, more feel under foot and no smell!!! The smell from an indoor pitch can make you feel breathless and this can be remedied by treating with a santising product such as RBT247 Sanitiser, applied once then again within one week will kill off the bacteria that produces the odour and all that is needed is regular treatment to maintain this level.

The infill needs to be regularly cleaned and de compacted with an ATC2000 or ATC1400 surface cleaner, this will keep the infill free from larger debris such as studs, bottle tops, broken plastic, pens, grips cigarette ends etc etc, it also keeps the infill loose and even, avoiding the risks from torn ligaments, twisted ankles etc etc associated with uneven surfaces.

Once or twice yearly depending on the usage the pitch will need to be deep cleaned with a Hoerger SKU machine to lift out the infill make it free from dust introduced by the players from skin, from foot transfer and from blowing in through the open doors. It will also separate out the more coarse debris and store this safely on board. then it will re introduce this back into the pitch and work it back into the fibres. The SKU machine will also, once this has been done allow the operator to work the machine right down to the bottom of the carpet and relieve the compaction deeper down. The finished result is a pitch that looks, feels and smells clean.

Hoerger SKU1500 3G Pitch Cleaning Machine

For more details on this and any other service follow the link below:

Sweepfast Sports Surface Maintenance & Machinery

Maintaining Sports Surfaces

Posted on 13th February 2012 by Sweepfast

Outdoor sporting surfaces MUST be maintained constantly to provide a uniform surface to allow players to compete safely and effectively, and synthetic sporting surfaces are no exception. With the standard of maintenance demanded on all surfaces getting higher the demand on machinery and contractors is increasing. Sweepfast Ltd. are fortunate with the back up that they have from the major manufacturers in the synthetic sports surface industry from all around the world and constantly keep ahead of machinery and maintenance process demands

Sweepfast are in an enviable position of being able to offer a wide range of artificial turf, Astroturf™ or artificial grass maintenance services to many sports facilities, specializing in synthetic hockey pitch maintenance, synthetic football pitch maintenance, synthetic tennis court maintenance, whilst also providing hard surface refurbishment with many applications. We also now have the facility to install long lasting synthetic lines on natural grass pitches.

With maintenance historically being the last thing on the mind of many owners of synthetic sports surfaces, problems are arising where a pitch or tennis court is left unusable simply because it hasn’t been looked after correctly.

With the purchase of some costs effective equipment and a regular maintenance contract tailored to suit the purpose, location and usage this should never happen.

Sweepfast Blog

Tag: synthetic sports surfaces