Does astroturf put you off?

[GingerBeverage]

If you're looking at family houses, would astroturf (fake grass) put you off viewing/buying?

I'm seeing it a lot in city terraces and semis these days. There seems to be a resurgence from being out of fashion decades ago.

But before I put in proper drainage and Astro turf my garden was under water pretty much from October to March. I agree that ripping everything out and only having Astro turf isn't a good look but that's not what I've done. I have flower beds, pots, wall-climbing plants, a paved patio area and gravelled areas + an Astro turf lawn. People on here seem to think a garden has to be stripped completely bare if you use Astro turf. Not so.

Anyway - the question was would I be put off buying a house if it had Astro turf. My answer is no.

@JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn

But before I put in proper drainage and Astro turf my garden was under water pretty much from October to March. I agree that ripping everything out and only having Astro turf isn't a good look but that's not what I've done. I have flower beds, pots, wall-climbing plants, a paved patio area and gravelled areas + an Astro turf lawn. People on here seem to think a garden has to be stripped completely bare if you use Astro turf. Not so.

Anyway - the question was would I be put off buying a house if it had Astro turf. My answer is no.

but if you took the same effort with an actual lawn in most cases it would work the same way. i.e. stop the poor drainage and mud bath.

@JustGotToKeepOnKeepingOn

But before I put in proper drainage and Astro turf my garden was under water pretty much from October to March. I agree that ripping everything out and only having Astro turf isn't a good look but that's not what I've done. I have flower beds, pots, wall-climbing plants, a paved patio area and gravelled areas + an Astro turf lawn. People on here seem to think a garden has to be stripped completely bare if you use Astro turf. Not so.

Anyway - the question was would I be put off buying a house if it had Astro turf. My answer is no.

where do you think that water your garden held goes now? Down the drains, quickly. Which contributes to flash flooding.

Vegetation like grass, trees and shrubs hold an enormous volume of water and slow the flow of it into the water table and drains.

Yes horrendous stuff.

@minipie

Lots of haters on MN OP, less so in RL.

I would say 50% of the houses round us have it. Many of the houses which don’t have fake grass have fully paved gardens instead - very few real lawns around. Small gardens, terraced houses, real grass won’t grow well and gets full of weeds and ants nests.

If you were house hunting round here and wanted a real lawn you’d be looking a long time.

50%?! What a horrible thought. It's no wonder the planet's in so much trouble. Hedgehogs are getting closer and closer to extinction, they'll have nothing left to eat at this rate :(

@EvilPea

Does that not apply if a garden is paved too?

[quote Reallyimeanreally2022]@EvilPea

Does that not apply if a garden is paved too?[/quote]
The flooding, yes.
The fact it takes centuries to degrade into micro plastics, no.

Lots of haters on MN OP, less so in RL

Im too polite to tell people what i think of their fake grass in real life.

There is a strong argument being discussed at the moment for it needing planning permission due to its impact

So @EvilPea

Your flooding scenario really doesn’t stack up, as you then must criticise those with paved gardens.

And as for recycling
* new equipment is able to successfully remove the sand and rubber, leaving a clean plastic carpet to be put through the recycling process individually. Finally, the processed turf can be repurposed or recycled into other products. *

It would seem that festering on landfill is no longer the case

Don’t get me wrong. I think it’s aesthetically (and from a sensory perspective) utterly ghastly

But I think it’s wrong to start spouting about flood risk when the same applies to those, of which there are many many many (especially in cities and densely populated areas) that have paved outdoor space

Lots of haters on MN OP, less so in RL

Last time I checked I was a person in real life too . Although when I friend had it fitted I told her it looked lovely, because I knew she’d spent lots of money on it and was very happy with it.

I'm a real life person too @ThePoisonousMushroom and like you have lied to a good friend and also to a neighbour and told them it looked lovely whilst judging them harshly inside!

From an environmental perspective, I really can't understand how anyone defends it at all.

I think in certain places there are times when astro turf ( or whatever the similar thing is ) or paving over lawns can be looked at by the council because of drainage - apart from that I think a personal choice & if I found a house I really liked but did not like fake grass - well as a previous poster said - a bit like changing the bathroom or carpets - in no way would I not go to view. Just a thing to factor in. For some people it will be a very positive thing.

I have clay soil and I have a beautiful garden and lawn. Clay soil is rich in nutrients and you do not need a lawn specialist to ensure your garden lawn is nice and useable. We play football and badminton on our 200ft heavy clay lawn.

I have genuinely never seen good fake grass. Maybe I am a garden snob. However, it would not put me off. I’d just rip it out.

I like the natural environment and have always found the idea of plastic grass strange. A Western world invention to further destroy the planet.

Nope. we have a dog and Astro turf is great for us. no more horrible patches of dead grass. i don't like the cheap stuff some people put down but it wouldn't put me off I would just change for w better quality one.

I could see past it if the price was right. Generally though I hate the stuff.

@Reallyimeanreally2022

So *@EvilPea*

Your flooding scenario really doesn’t stack up, as you then must criticise those with paved gardens.

And as for recycling
* new equipment is able to successfully remove the sand and rubber, leaving a clean plastic carpet to be put through the recycling process individually. Finally, the processed turf can be repurposed or recycled into other products. *

It would seem that festering on landfill is no longer the case

Don’t get me wrong. I think it’s aesthetically (and from a sensory perspective) utterly ghastly

But I think it’s wrong to start spouting about flood risk when the same applies to those, of which there are many many many (especially in cities and densely populated areas) that have paved outdoor space

It’s not wrong about flood risk though and completely relevant to why it might put someone off a house in the same way paving might. But that wasn’t the question

It’s actually really hard to recycle into different materials due to how it’s processed, it also has to get to the right processing plant for it to happen where it uses resources to be processed.
It also will still exist as plastic in some form centuries from now. That’s not an issue with a shrub or grass.

And yes. I did recently (inwardly) roll my eyes when someone I know was complaining about “it always floods outside my house, it didn’t when we moved in”
Because they’ve concreted the whole lot, it does cause flooding and I would criticise it if that was the question.
But it wasn’t

A modern class differentiator.

@OriginalLilibet

A modern class differentiator.

What class is that then?

Hideous stuff.
Who would even sit down and think 'I know, I'll cover my garden in shit looking plastic and pretend it's grass'?

@EvilPea

And yes. I did recently (inwardly) roll my eyes when someone I know was complaining about “it always floods outside my house, it didn’t when we moved in” Because they’ve concreted the whole lot, it does cause flooding and I would criticise it if that was the question. But it wasn’t

Essentially You are rather keen on criticising!

@Kendodd

Hideous stuff. Who would even sit down and think 'I know, I'll cover my garden in shit looking plastic and pretend it's grass'?

Plenty of people. Obviously.

Yes! Total tack and plastic landfill waiting to happen

I have AstroTurf in the back garden because it's super tiny (maybe 7m square or so) a lawnmower would take up half the garden. I have a raised bed and lots of plants, shrubs and trees in pots as well to reduce the plastic feeling. I don't love the idea of plastic but it's great for the kids to play on all year round and should last for a decade at least.

I honestly don't think it would reduce the value of the house compared to the tired gravel full of crap that was there before.

How is 7m square super tiny? Do you mean 7 metres squared or 7 square metres?