We've just had a plastic lawn put in. AMA

[Imdunfer]

As title.

If you're going to raise climate issues please make sure you have your facts right before you post. There is a lot of incorrect PR and social media comment about plastic turf going around at the moment.

Yikes, that’s quite sensitive, do you have thar stuff then?

There will be a pause while I watch the news, but I suspect we're nearly all bored with this now anyway.

Thanks to everyone who stayed civil, whatever your views were.

Absolutely horrendous, sad and dreadful. We must look back in a couple of years thinking why TF did people do this. Are you unable to cope with nature?

No, I just have a low tolerance for unprovoked snobbery. Why are you so intensely invested in the imaginary living room of a stranger on the internet anyway? It’s getting a bit bizarre. 🤷‍♀️

Habe you the wrong poster, I didn’t ask that question, i asked why you were so defensive.

And what about plastics and chemicals in clothes and food packaging? Sorry to break it to you but it’s literally everywhere. They’ve even found micro plastics in fish and meat 🤷‍♀️

its also being worked on to be reduced. Two wrong don’t make a right. We don’t need to add to the problem,

So it's ok to just keep adding to the problem? Also, the issue with plastic grass is not just the addition of plastic; it is the removal of everything else.

We wanted flat green to make the area seem as big as possible and because we like the look of grass.

It’s AMA, move along .

I think that’s pretty rude as people with real grass have trouble managing a ‘real’ garden. Mine causes me a lot of stress, work and money and it’s not even a very big garden. I would like just a nice patio style garden, no grass.

Obviously you’re going to get roasted on here, OP!

But IMO in certain circs. they can be a practical choice. E.g. a friend of a dd had a terraced house with one of those small, very narrow, city gardens, where even so called ‘shady’ grass never does well, for lack of sun. She also had two very little dcs, so paving or gravel wouldn’t have been at all friendly for them to play on.

And we had an expensive type of artificial grass to replace the tiny lawn in a very little rental property garden. I’d had real grass down for several years, but the tenants at the time didn’t water or look after it, and eventually it was beyond saving.

After at least 6 years it still looks good. It was professionally laid, the rain drains through, and weeds do make their way through now and then! There are also planted beds with flourishing plants and shrubs. Our tenants are very happy with their little garden - not many flats in the area have one at all.

What do you think would happen if we all did it?

It’s not unprovoked. Anyone who has fake grass and thinks it ok is daft , she said ask me anything so quit moaning!

A plastic lawn really doesn't hold water better than grass.
Only 50% of the water gets through. The rest runs off or evaporates quickly.

100% of rain that falls on grass is absorbed.

Evaporation from the soil surface isn't reason real grass is cooler.
The fact that grass is almost 100% and the slow, ongoing process of transpriation via the grass plant is what makes real grass cooler.

I am just baffled that someone has come onto Mumsnet to boast they have put a hideous plastic rug in their garden and are deluded into thinking it actually looks nice Poor wildlife and poor neighbours who have to see and smell the stinky monstrosity..

So many things wrong with the post but my neighbours have a plastic lawn and are happy with it. They did have a rabbit until it got taken by a fox but I wonder what the rabbit made of the plastic lawn?

No of course it's not OK to keep adding to the problem but while millions of parents in this country never mind the rest of the world are using "disposable" nappies and almost everyone in the country wears at least some synthetic clothes, I refuse to get exercised about a one off installation of an outdoor carpet which will fuel a clean power station at some time in the far future.

I’m not a fan, but we’re not all going to do it are we so it’s a bit of a redundant question, like all ‘what if we all’ questions.

This looks gorgeous!

Well manufacturers make it so there’s a market for it.

Good for you!!

For God's sake, there's a market for heroin.

I'm not boasting, it's simply a fact that I knew in advance many people would criticise. I think it's been a very interesting discussion, personally.

It doesn't smell. It looks much better than what was there before.

How long is it expected your fake grass will look nice for? What will you do with it when it looks awful and "needs" replacing?
Ive read its much hotter than actual grass - this is bad for dogs, cats paws. Doesnt that bother you?
Are you not bothered about the obvious negative consequences of covering the planet in plastic as well as buildings and tarmac/concrete?

How is plastic grass better than real grass?