Synthetic lawns are very popular among the sports crowd. Synthetic grass have been used in sports field ever since its invention. Years later, regular households have been opting to use this kind of decor for their lawn instead of the real grass. Synthetic grass is normally made up of polyethylene and rubber crumbs from recycled tires. The material is then processed to look like grass which is easy to install in any lawn or field.
Why choose artificial over the real thing? Isn’t the natural grass looks and feels better than that of man made synthetic material disguised as grass?
There are pros and cons to these practice. Before overhauling your lawn overgrown with weeds and other eco-friendly species that lives in grass, you better be knowledgeable in terms of the advantages of real versus fake.
The Pros
1. Maintenance.
First of all, maintenance of synthetic grass is much easier than that of real grass. Imagine no more mowing, trimming and watering. It automatically saves you time and resources. Synthetic grass is easier to maintain in this aspect.
2. Cleanliness
Even get tired of mud from grass and puddles being dragged on the house floor, leaving prints of dirt on the otherwise clean floor? The days of trying to clean the floor in the wake of mud is over.
3. Water savings
Since plastic needs no watering, your water bill dramatically goes down when you opt for synthetic materials. And without water, your lawn becomes puddle-free. This means no more dragging mud and water towards the house. Saves you time and resources. In case of rain, the synthetic grass is installed in such a way that draining is easy even with heavy rain.
4. Safe play
Natural grass gets damaged through continued use. If you intend to play sport, synthetic grass offer more durability, maintaining the surface as level as possible, without puddles and muddy patches that may be causes of sprain and other injuries when you step on them during playing.
5. Pesticides-free
Since plastic lawn is, as the name implies, made of synthetic materials, you don’t have to spray pesticides to get rid of unwanted lawn dwellers that normally lives in natural grass. If you have no qualms about losing your “backyard friends,” then synthetic turf is the way to go.
Cons
1. Heat hazard
Plastic lacks the ability of the natural grass to absorb heat, making it very difficult to play on very hot days.
2. Toxic
Studies show that plastic and polyethylene normally contain levels of lead. Whatever the amount of lead being brandished by plastic lawn manufacturers, it being very small and can be bypassed, lead is still lead and its dangerous to your health. Lead is normally used to brighten up the color of the synthetic grass.
3. Asthma
If you are an asthma patient, or if any of the family has asthmatic problems, synthetic lawn may not be a good idea. Breathing ground rubber and plastic may worsen asthmatic conditions.
4. Bacteria
Studies show that certain types of dangerous bacterias such as staphylococci dwell on synthetic materials for ninety days. Other than that, since the lawn is not watered regularly, bacterias from blood, open cuts and bruises may survive for a long time. Not a very safe place to play for one with open cuts and bruises.
5. Permanence
An artificial field will remain artificial for a long time. When plastic is installed, the ground beneath is poisoned and treated to abolish living creatures and make way for the artificial grass installation. No living thing, grass or creatures, will survive in the ground for a long time when it is treated with pesticides and other chemicals.