Creating the Ultimate Synthetic Turf Maintenance Plan For Sports Fields
Athletic facilities from San Diego, CA, to Garland, TX, are adopting synthetic grass for their sports fields. Not only does turf grass provide the same great look as real grass, but the low maintenance levels make it easy to preserve the perfectly-manicured green while cutting costs.
However, you will still need to perform routine turf maintenance for your athletic facility. After all, sports fields often harbor a lot of germs, and inadequate synthetic grass maintenance can leave your players with illness, injuries and more. Luckily, artificial grass maintenance is easy when you have a comprehensive plan. Here are a few tips for creating the ultimate synthetic turf maintenance plan for your sports field.
Keep the Turf Cool & Comfortable
If the temperature of your synthetic grass field is too high, it can be uncomfortable for players and even cause health and safety issues such as burns, blisters and heat stroke. To keep your artificial turf cool and comfortable for players, hose down the surface before practices or games to prevent overheating.
You can also opt for synthetic grass products manufactured with UV inhibitors that keep surface temperatures cooler than other turf products or natural grass. These turf products require the same maintenance as standard artificial grass, so it’s a worthwhile investment for sports fields in warm climates.
Don’t Neglect Proper Sanitation
Thorough cleaning and disinfecting are crucial for keeping players safe from germs and bacteria. Sports fields can be a breeding ground for bacteria-borne illnesses, so make sure that you are performing all essential turf maintenance steps and disinfecting thoroughly.
Flush your field with a cleaning solution or apply a turf disinfectant to kill all surface germs. Top up your antimicrobial infill to further protect against germs, bacteria, mold and other hazards. Make sure that this infill is always evened out after topping it up, as uneven infill can cause athletes to lose their footing and injure themselves.
Know the Schedule
It’s important to know not only the game schedule for your field but the practice schedule as well. Your field should always be safe for gameplay, and this includes practice sessions.
Knowing the schedule will help you create a maintenance schedule that ensures the field is clean before it’s needed but avoids scheduling conflicts where you are still performing turf maintenance when practice starts. Turf maintenance tools and equipment can be a safety hazard for players, so you’ll need to work around their games and practices in an efficient manner.
Don’t Underestimate the Time Commitment
Although synthetic grass is much lower maintenance than natural grass, it still requires a time commitment to ensure it’s properly cleaned and sanitized. This is especially important in athletic applications where bacteria runs rampant, and athlete health is imperative.
Make sure that you’re aware of how often you’ll need to clean the turf and how long it will take. In addition to ensuring that you don’t interrupt players during practice, this will also ensure that the turf doesn’t get neglected and that corners aren’t cut during cleaning.
Ideally, athletic fields should be thoroughly cleaned daily, so ensure you have staff available to perform all the necessary duties. If you don’t have the time to perform all of the proper maintenance yourself, consider hiring a turf maintenance professional that can come out daily, weekly, or however often is necessary to maintain your sports field to the necessary standard.
Artificial grass maintenance is a non-negotiable if you run a sports facility with artificial turf. If you need the proper equipment to maintain your synthetic grass, visit the TurFresh online store for a wide range of turf cleaning products specially created for artificial grass, including our famous TurFresh BioS+ turf deodorizer. If you don’t want to have to worry about routine maintenance, or if you don’t have the time to do it yourself, consider professional artificial grass cleaning services. TurFresh’s 10-point cleaning process can be scheduled as often as you need us, whether that’s once a week or twice a year. If you’d like to learn more about TurFresh’s artificial turf maintenance services or book your first appointment, give us a call at 520-277-7844 or fill out our online contact form today.