Artificial Grass Installation in Papatoetoe

Cost is driven by area and the quality of the turf, but the groundwork matters just as much: excavating the old lawn, laying and compacting a sub-base, adding a weed membrane and joining the rolls. Cheap quotes often skimp on the base, which is exactly where failures show up.

A typical build-up is: excavate ~75-100mm, lay a compacted crushed-stone sub-base, a sharp-sand or granite-dust screed, a weed-membrane, then the turf pinned and joined, sometimes with a kiln-dried sand infill. Skipping layers is the number-one cause of lumps, weeds and movement.

In Papatoetoe, ask to see completed installs a year or more old, get the base build-up specified in writing, and compare three quotes on groundwork depth, not just turf price. A cheap install that skips the sub-base costs more to fix later.

Good turf is perforated and, over a correctly built free-draining sub-base, drains as well as or better than natural lawn. Poor drainage — a compacted or clay base with no permeable layer — causes puddling and smell, so ask exactly how the installer handles drainage.

Far less than a real lawn: occasional brushing to keep the pile upright, rinsing, and removing leaves and pet mess. It never needs mowing, watering or feeding — the main upkeep is keeping debris off so moss doesn't establish on the surface.

A fully installed lawn runs roughly NZD 65-150 per m², with mid-range around NZD 95. Small awkward areas cost more per m²; drainage build-up on heavy soils adds to the base cost.