How do I peel back sod?

[ricosuave]

OK, so I've got a corner of my yard up against the house that has eroded a bit, and last year during the June rains, I suspect helped direct water towards my foundation.

I've got a supply of dirt that I wanted to use to buid up the corner, and slope it correctly.

Because the are in question is grass (sod), is there an easy way to peel up the area that I need to raise, put down whatever dirt, and then lay the sod down and have it still remain somewhat healthy?

[Clarkey]

I found that if you take a spade and cut around the area you want out you can usually peel it tug it back using your hands.

[ken0042]

Do it today- don't let the sod fully wake up from it's winter sleep.

How long has the sod been down? Because after a year it really isn't sod so much as it is a lawn.

[ricosuave]

yeah, its been down for a long time, so definitely more lawn than sod...

[Dion]

Depending on how large the area is, you could lay down the dirt over that section of lawn and throw grass seed on top. I had a small corner section of my lawn that neded raising and i did this trick and it worked out fine.

[badnarik]

you can probably rent a sod cutter at home depot

[old-fart]

Originally Posted by Dion

Depending on how large the area is, you could lay down the dirt over that section of lawn and throw grass seed on top. I had a small corner section of my lawn that neded raising and i did this trick and it worked out fine.

Depending on how deep the depression is you can just put the dirt on top of the grass and wait for it to grow through. It will, grass is one tough ass weed.

[HotHotHeat]

Related question...Where in Calgary can you rent an aid raider?

[Sylvanfan]

I had to rent a sod cutter last year to strip out an entire yard and it worked beautifully. Cost me $60 for two hours and that was delivered and they actually let me have it for 4, although 2 was plenty. I've had times where I spent an hour and a half with a spade and square edge shovel trying to strip out 15 to 20 square feet of yard and busted my arse doing so. The sod cutter was 100 times better and easier to use!

[4X4]

Sod is a loose term. It can mean grass or 'sod'. Your other post indicates that it's grass. I have no experience with sod cutters, so you may want to look into them first. If they're not designed to actually cut nice, square strips of sod, then instead of wasting money trying to save that grass, buying new sod or grass seeds might be the better option.

If you tried to cut it out by hand and replace it afterward, I doubt you'd get a nice flat (sloped) surface. It'd likely end up pretty lumpy.

If it's in a low traffic area (and if you have no dogs), grass seeds are pretty easy to grow. It'll be filled right in in a couple/3 months with meticulous watering. New sod is more expensive, but all it takes is a couple weeks of watering instead of the 2 months of watering that seeds need.

I know I didn't answer your question about salvaging existing sod. I'm just looking past it because I've done enough concrete work to know that old sod is rarely salvageable.

[ricosuave]

Thanks for the help all.

[Jayems]

Cutting out the sod shouldn't be a problem if it's just around the house. Sod cutters are great, but they can be big and bulky and depending on the design of your house, you may not be able to cut it properly.

As for cutting it out, if you want to salvage it, get the square shovel, and you don't really need to dig it too deep. Just make your 4 cuts, then peel it back. How old the grass is, and what's underneath will determine how easy this process is. If it's fairly new grass, it should come up fairly easy.

Grass is a weed and is very resilient. It will grow back, just don't leave it too long.

I put irrigation in my parents place last may, and we got 1/2 way through before it rained. Problem was, we had the back yard all dug up. Because all my friends had gone, I had to finish the rest and once the rain finally stopped and I finished it a few weeks later, the grass came back no problem.

I like to dig in with the shovel, and press it forward and then up a little when underground. This loosens up any small roots or hard dirt under the grass and makes it easier to peel afterwards.

You'll need a tamper though to even the dirt underneath out, though. A 4x6 is nice. 10x10 for big jobs.