How To Fluff Up Artificial Grass (5 Easy Ways!)

Everyone wants a good looking garden and yard, but not everyone has the time, money, or knowledge to maintain a real lawn. 

Artificial grass fills up this gap, allowing homeowners to have a beautiful looking lawn without the backbreaking maintenance that goes into it. 

With that, maintaining an artificial lawn isn’t a matter of installing and forgetting about it.

While it doesn’t need the same level of care that real grass does, you do need to look after it every now and again. 

What new artificial grass owners tend to realize after installation is that the lawn doesn’t look as good as it once did a few months ago. It looks flat and not as vibrant.

Learning how to fluff up artificial grass lets you take care of this problem, and is easy and quick to do!

1. Raking And Brushing

The most effective, and perhaps the simplest way to fluff up artificial grass, is to rake or brush it. 

All of the traffic that your turf sees tends to flatten it out. People walking on it, garden furniture, pets, and kids all play a part in flattening the lawn down.

For your artificial grass to look its best, you want the fibers to stand up like real grass. 

To achieve this, use a brush or a rake that has plastic, synthetic bristles. It’s important that you use these types of materials over metal or wire, as using those can permanently damage the fibers of your grass. 

Ideally, you want a brush that has bristles that are at least five inches long. You can get brushes and rakes like this at any average gardening store, or you can have a look online for them, instead. 

When you’re brushing, make sure that you brush against the grain. This is called cross-brushing. If you brush with the grain of your grass, all you’re going to do is reinforce the flattened look.

By brushing against it, you help return the fibers to an upright position. 

Brushing like this also helps to redistribute the fibers in your artificial grass. This means that your entire turf is going to wear more evenly, helping to maintain a uniform look and avoiding any patchy spots.

2. Defibrillate Your Lawn

Defibrillation refers to a method that rapidly brushes and makes your artificial grass stand up. 

You’re going to want to use a power broom when you’re doing this. Using a push broom, while possible, is going to take you a lot longer and yield a poorer result. 

By using a power broom for defibrillation, not only are you achieving the same effect as you would with a brush or rake, but you’re actually cleaning the grass, as well. 

Over time, your artificial turf is going to collect bits of dirt, debris, pieces of trash, and dead plant matter. A power broom is going to get rid of all that.

Therefore, not only are you getting straight and even looking grass, but you’re making sure it’s clean, too!

You only need to do this once or twice per year, but it’s very important for the long term well-being of your lawn.

TIP: We suggest waiting until you have a nice and sunny day to get the job done – The grass fibers will stand up a lot easier on a warm day!

3. Rinsing And Cleaning

Rinsing and cleaning are just as important as brushing when it comes to unflattening artificial grass. 

The cheapest and most effective type of rinsing for your grass is the rain. If you live in a particularly rainy area, then you’re going to have an easier time keeping your artificial grass looking nice and healthy. 

For those that don’t have that ironic luxury, you’re going to need to use a hose. You might be tempted to dust off the power washer for a quick and easy job, but that would be a mistake. 

Artificial grass fibers, while resilient, can be damaged by pressure washers very easily. Thus, make sure any time you clean it, you’re using a regular garden hose and not any kind of specialized equipment. 

You can even pick up a non-toxic turf cleaner to help the process, and get rid of bacteria buildup quickly. These are widely available online or in your local garden store, or you can grab a recipe from online and make a batch yourself. 

Rinsing and cleaning your grass is especially important if you have pets, and can help clear off bacteria from urine and prevent your turf from becoming discolored. 

4. Preventing Weeds And Debris

Believe it or not, artificial grass can get weeds, too!

Although it is not close to being as prominent an issue as it is with real lawns, it can really hurt the appearance if left unkept.

Every now and again, you should use a pet-safe weed killer.

You may also have to get down and dirty and do some de-weeding by hand – Just make sure to pull up the root!

If you find that your turf has a lot of debris littered around the place, use a leaf blower to clear it off. While you might be tempted to use a vacuum, this can end up doing more harm than good to your artificial grass!

5. Choose A Good Material For Your Artificial Grass

How well your grass responds to being fluffed up actually depends on the type that you chose when you purchased it. 

The two main materials that artificial grass can be made from are nylon and polypropylene.

Nylon is by far the better option of the two. The fibers are more resilient than the alternative by 22% percent, and it even has a higher melting point. 

Obviously, if you’ve already purchased your artificial grass and you didn’t get nylon, then there’s not much use in letting you know about it now.

However, it can be a helpful bit of information to keep in the back of your mind for any future repairs or replacement.

By making smart choices when you first install your grass, and by maintaining it after the fact, keeping it up straight and fluff is going to be a lot easier.

Look after your artificial lawn and it should look better and last longer.