PRODUCT PROFILE: Aeration Made Easy

Running a lawn aerator can be one of the most fatiguing jobs in the landscape maintenance business. Lawn and turf aeration has long been a proven remedy for relieving compacted soils and excess thatch layers, but it’s been a tough and tiring operation. That’s changing, thanks to some innovative new equipment designs that have been introduced to the market.

After buying Klumpp Flower & Garden Center, Kalkaska, Michigan, eight years ago, owner Kip Scott made the decision to grow the company’s lawn and landscape maintenance services. At first, he provided only a selective list of services and did not offer grass cutting or aeration. He soon determined that customers prefer to deal with one person for their lawn and landscape maintenance services, so he added both mowing and aeration.

Aeration was profitable and, as customers noticed the improvement in neighbors’ lawns that had been aerated, more and more requested the service. "The type of aerator we were using worked well, but it was time consuming," says Scott. "We would line up the machine, lock it down and make the pass across the yard, then lift it out, turn, lock it back down and make the next pass."

Last summer, he decided to try a new machine, just being introduced to the market – the TurnAer 26 aerator from Turfco Manufacturing, Minneapolis, Minn. The model’s exclusive DiffDrive™ drivetrain uses independent disc brakes on both wheels, allowing the TurnAer operator to use the brakes to turn corners without lifting the aerator tines out of the ground. This lets Scott run the TurnAer much like a mower, maneuvering around the lawn without having to stop and lift the machine out of the ground.

For Scott, the savings were dramatic. "For the typical 20,000 square foot yard in this area, the TurnAer cut 20 to 30 minutes off the time to aerate. So, what was a one or more hour job was reduced to half that," he says.

"Not only can you pay for the aerator pretty quickly with that kind of production, but if you charge by the job and not by the hour, you pocket extra income." Scott says replacing the old aerator that had to be lifted and turned manually each pass reduced his workmen’s compensation claims, as well. "The TurnAer just isn’t as physically demanding as the old machines."

Unlike Scott’s sandy soils in upper Michigan, Fred Freytag contends with heavy clay soils in Lincoln, Neb. That means lifting aerators up and out of the ground is even more fatiguing for Fred and his operators. Freytag started his FM Lawn Care business more than 20 years ago and, along with lawn maintenance services, offers lawn renovation, including aeration, tilling and seeding.

He too, turned to the new TurnAer 26 last year and saw immediate benefits. "One problem with our older aerators was working slopes," says Freytag. "The aerators would tend to tip and let the off-side tines come out of the ground. The operator had to struggle to keep the machine going. With its low center of gravity and fingertip operator controls, the TurnAer 26 has solved that problem."

The TurnAer was designed with front rollers built around 3-inch solid steel shafts for weight, instead of the typical water drums. That, plus the 1-inch plate steel cross members creates a lower center of gravity. "No matter which direction we aerate, the TurnAer’s low center of gravity keeps the tines in the ground and pulling plugs."

For Freytag, the most advantageous feature is the ability to steer the TurnAer around the lawn with the left and right wheel brake, without having to lift the unit off of the ground. He figures this feature alone has saved his operation an average of 30 to 40 minutes per yard because he doesn’t have to make as many passes to cover all the turf. "When you do lift the tines out of the ground, the spring-assist lift makes it a lot easier."