Artificial Turf

FuzzyDunlop | Mar 18, 2010 |

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Artificial turf has long been used in sports grounds, as it is a fantastic alternative to real grass. It is sturdy, low maintenance and very hard wearing, making it the perfect choice for most field sports pitches. Over the years artificial grass has started to look more and more realistic, making it very difficult to tell that it is actually fake until you are up close. Artificial turf comes in a few different types, with the main difference being the way they are laid. There are three main types of artificial turf, sand filled, sand dressed and unfilled. The type of sport that is to be played on the pitch is one of the main determining factors as to the type of artificial turf that is used.

Sand filled artificial turf is one of the hardest types of pitches that are created using fake grass. The pile of the turf is filled in with sand, almost completely to the tips of the grass. This type of pitch can result in a slower speed for any ball travelling across the pitch, and it will also be very abrasive on the skin of any player unfortunate enough to slide across it!

Sand dressed artificial turf has less sand, and is only filled to around 6 or 7mm from the tipes of the grass. The sand isn't easily visible, and sometimes a sand dressed pitch can be mistaken for an unfilled pitch. The sand that is used is very fine, as with a sand filled pitch, however it will still have an abrasive action on anyone sliding across it.

Unfilled artificial turf is sometimes also called water based artificial turf as the grass has no fill of sand, but does requires to be well watered in order to keep it in place . It is not uncommon to see a water based pitch being watered during half time of a match, particularly if it is a very hot day. Unfilled turf is probably the most commonly used type of artificial grass in sports grounds as the absence of sand also means an absence of abrasion injuries for those that slide across it.

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to choosing the type of artificial turf that is to be used on sports pitch, however you will find that any game that requires a lot of contact between the players and the pitch, such as rugby, will be played on unfilled pitches, whereas games such as hockey may will be played on a sand filled artificial turf pitch.