How To Install Artificial Grass
Read about how Easigrass professional artificial grass installation can transform your outdoor space
Artificial Grass Installation
The Easigrass™ artificial grass range is fully porous, UV-stabilised, and suitable for placement on soil, tarmac, concrete, and decking. The fully porous system is used for most outdoor artificial grass installations on top of a soil sub-base.
All our Easigrass™ installation teams are certified and highly trained, and are ready to transform garden lawns across South & Southern Africa. Rest assured, this is done with the utmost care for your property, and with a minimal amount of fuss, mess, or noise.
When it comes to laying an artificial lawn, you are assured of highly skilled professional installers and designers with Easigrass™.
Step 1: Remove existing earth/dirt/sand down to the required depth.
We want to ensure there’s no damage to your property, and that starts with our irrigation experts. They usually arrive before the main installation team to cap off any irrigation pipes and test the system to ensure there are no leaks. Once everything is secure, the main team begins the first major step — the Easigrass installation process.
This is the most time-consuming stage of the installation. While we use a range of tools to help us move efficiently, we work with care, as lawns often contain irrigation pipes and electrical wires. We dig down to the required depth, usually around 6cm, and remove all existing grass and vegetation. This ensures that nothing living remains that could grow back and spoil your artificial lawn. We thoroughly clear out any weeds and grass roots to prevent regrowth beneath the new surface.
Standard sand and soil won’t work with artificial grass, as they don’t offer the stability required. These materials are also removed and replaced with a more solid base that ensures a level surface and reduces the risk of trips and uneven areas.
Step 2: Water and compact remaining earth/sand/soil.
Once we’ve removed all the existing earth, we’re left with a rough, bumpy surface. To ensure your artificial grass looks as even and natural as possible, we flatten and compact the ground until it’s firm and stable — creating the perfect foundation for the rest of the base. The surface remains permeable, which is important for proper drainage, but it becomes solid, flat, and ready for installation. For this part of the process, we use the Easi-Wacker plate to achieve a smooth, compacted finish.
Step 3: Install Edging
This is often the stage of the artificial grass installation that confuses our clients as it looks as if we are adding an extra edge to the lawn. Well, actually we are, but it’s not an edge anyone will be able to see. We install the edging as per your selection. In South Africa, temperatures can fluctuate so much between day and night that the grass will constantly try to expand and contract. To prevent the grass from rippling, it must be securely fixed at the edges to stop any movement. If not properly secured, it can start to curl and ripple within days.
*Please note that installation times during this stage may vary.
Step 4: Geo-textile layer
Once the earth is nicely compacted and the new edging is in, we fit a heavy-duty geo-textile membrane to act as a weed barrier. This Geo-textile layer is like a thin paper sheet which acts as a barrier to prevent any organic matter that has managed to survive from growing up through your artificial grass installation. It also helps prevent any growth by acting as a stabiliser, separating the compacted earth from the aggregate base — the next layer in the system
Step 5: Base material
We now introduce a crushed rock aggregate to form the new base. This material is easily compactable and creates a solid, stable base, perfect for artificial grass. We spread it out over the geo-textile membrane and then carefully level it by hand, making sure it is perfectly flat and even.
Step 6: Compact the new aggregate base.
Once the base has been levelled by hand and watered thoroughly, we compact it over and over again in order to get the perfect finish. Once it has received enough attention, you’ll find that it is incredibly even and will feel extremely solid whilst still remaining porous.
Step 7: Check the new base levels are perfect
We use a straight edge to check the base levels, ensuring the artificial grass is laid on a perfectly flat and even surface.
Step 8: Supply and fit your chosen Easigrass™.
Now comes the fun part, your Easigrass artificial grass is ready to go down. First, we work out the best direction for the pile of the grass to face as all fake grass products will tend to lean a fraction in one direction or the other. Some products will do this more than others, and some you can hardly even tell, but all products will have a direction. The area where your artificial grass will be installed is assessed to minimise visible seams and ensure the best overall appearance. Once the uncut rolls are placed, we will then roughly cut the grass so it’s easier to handle. We make sure to trim your artificial grass to the perfect size, making sure it’s the perfect fit for the new base and edging.
Step 9: Gluing and preparing the seams
We’re now ready to prepare the seams of your artificial grass to make it easier to insert our gluing tape. Glue is applied to the specialist seaming tape using our in-house gluing machine. Once applied, the glued tape is stretched out along the seam, and the grass edges are then carefully closed onto the tape. This ensures a perfect fit and helps make the seams virtually invisible.
Step 10: Close the seams
This is where experience and product knowledge come into play. When the seam is closed, it should be around 97% invisible. In some cases, under the right conditions, the seam can disappear completely. However, in most instances, if you know exactly where to look, you may still be able to detect it very slightly. The technician will look for areas along the seam that are more visible than others and trim the grass accordingly. Our most experienced installers work on the seams, ensuring you’ll be happy with the final product.
Step 11: Apply artificial grass glue to all edges
Once all the seams are closed and have been meticulously checked, we then move on to gluing the edges of the system to make sure there is no movement once the installation is finished. Once the glue is in place on the edges, we attach the grass and apply pressure to create a strong bond.
Step 12: Apply the sand Infill
Once the grass is cut into place and all the edges and seams are glued, it’s time to get the sand on as quickly as possible. The sand does three important things: It weighs the whole system down to stop it from moving. This can be from shrinkage, wind or heavy use. The sand infill also helps to keep the fibres upright for as long as possible while simultaneously protecting the backing of your artificial grass. The sand we use isn’t something you’ll find at your local beach. It’s a special kind of sand called silica sand – a broken down mineral called quartz. This type of sand is very clean andround, making it the perfect product to protect your artificial grass blades and its base.
Once the sand has been applied to the grass, it needs to be massaged into the fibres so that it sinks to the bottom and sits on the backing material. We use a blower and a power brush to complete this step, which helps distribute the silica sand evenly throughout the installation. Once we’re done, you’ll never notice the sand, it’s completely invisible and will remain that way for the lifespan of the grass.
Step 13: Silica sand levelling
Once the silica sand is in the grass, we find any areas that feel slightly uneven. Using a blower, we evenly distribute the sand throughout the installation so that the grass feels nice and even underfoot.
Step 14: Clean up
Lastly, we give the installation a light spray of water followed by a final brush with the power broom, working against the direction of the pile. This removes any dust that may have settled on the grass fibres, leaving the lawn fresh, clean, and glistening in the sunlight—perfectly ready for handover.
The beauty of Easigrass is its quick, simple laying process. A 50 square metre garden can be laid in a single day.
To guarantee the highest quality and finish, we recommend that our artificial grass is installed by our professionally-trained installation teams.
If you’ve been unlucky and your artificial lawn is damaged, just call our team who may be able to carry out some patch repairs.
Every garden is different, but the average size of a domestic garden we install is between 50 and 60 square metres.
The Easigrass team is well-skilled at laying our artificial grass over a diverse range of surfaces, including soil, concrete, brick, wood and even plastic. We’ll devise a solution and make the proper preparations to ensure a seamless laying process, tailored to the surface we are laying on.
Take measurements across the longest and widest points of your area. You will then need to round these measurements up to the nearest metre. Next, multiply the width by the length and this will give you your square metre requirement.
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