Sneeboer Hollow Tine Lawn Aerator

I think the title says it all. For comparrison, other brands use straight steel tubing that isn't tapered. This taper punches a hole that can easily slide through the tube. I use mine on my home golf green. I keep that moist enough where this thing cuts like butter and doesn't plug. I've gone to other areas of my yard that haven't been watered yet and it's a tough deal. It works but it is a LOT more work!

We have a 3 year-old bluegrass sodded lawn. It hadn’t been aerated since it was put down, and we noticed there were some browned out areas where even heavy watering wouldn’t green it up. I saw the Sneeboer aerator at the Garden Tool Co. website and had to try it. The aerator is extremely well-made, and probably the nicest tool I own! I used it on the browned out areas and they’re now as green as the rest of the lawn. It’s pretty easy and kind of fun to use - so much so that I decided to do the entire yard. I haven’t quite finished yet, because it’s about 10,000 sq ft! A few suggestions for using it: Water the lawn areas that you plan to aerate first. It’s a lot more efficient when the soil is slightly damp than if it’s dry and hard as a rock! Because the hollow tines are tapered (from 1/2” at the bottom to 7/8” at the top, the plugs go up the tines and then out pretty freely. However, occasionally, a damp plug or clay soil will jamb a tine and have to be removed. Turn the tool upside down (resting the handle on the ground), and poke the plug out with a long narrow screwdriver. Occasionally, I’d hit an underground rock, it which case you just move the tool an inch or two and retry. Use sturdy gloves with this tool to prevent blisters or callouses. I also used hiking shoes with a stiff sole instead of lightweight walking or running shoes. Your hands and feet will thank you! I listened to a digital music player while using the tool - something with a good beat or workout music helps motivate and pace me. I also used stakes with high-visibility twine to mark off the area I was working on, and help ensure I got plugs about every 4.5” apart (the tool’s tines are 9” apart). It’s easy to get a rhythm going with the tool (and some music), and you’ll find making progress isn’t as difficult as you might think.My neighbors probably think I’m a bit crazy to manually aerate my entire lawn, rather than renting a machine or hiring someone to do it. I don’t care what they think — I'm retired so have all the time in the world. It’s great exercise, gets me outside in the fresh air, and the lawn (which is ~3/4 aerated already) looks terrific! I’d never have tackled aerating our lawn if I didn’t have a tool like the Sneeboer aerator.

This is a wonderful too; very well made. It works just as described with very little effort. I am a 4'11" woman and I was able to quickly aerate my lawn without getting tired. Two weeks later, my lawn is looking fabulous! I was tired of paying landscapers for aerating my lawn and didn't want to rent a big machine.