How to remove grass or sod effectively without renting a sod cutting machine or special tools.DIY

Рет қаралды 150,967

Күн бұрын

I tried a few hacks for removing grass. Here is what I found out and what worked best for me.
I tried removing grass with a homemade sod cutting setup, I tried to remove grass with a saw, I tried to remove grass with a chainsaw. What worked best was removing grass with a yard fork. There is a lesson about removing grass, if you are looking for a shortcut to clear grass for a patio, there isn't one. Harsh reality, it's hard work no matter how you look at it.

Пікірлер: 129

@gonzotronn 10 ай бұрын

Dude, thank you so much. Who needs a gym when I decide to spend my weekends like this?

@Jussayne 5 ай бұрын

Thank you Finally a worth while video with no BS music blasting no talkin no sales crap just a Excellent idea Thank you

@buddycurrie8523 Жыл бұрын

Been using a shovel for years, and been cutting with a saw as well. This does it easier than any way Ive found so far. You have to do a little work after the removal because this does not leave it as neat as other methods but good lord, the time you save with this method. Thanks Anthony

@featheredcoyote5477 2 жыл бұрын

Sod cutter rental for me

@tdz69 2 жыл бұрын

Exactly. F that noise

@featheredcoyote5477 2 жыл бұрын

@@tdz69 that's what 🎧's are for

@jessiewilder4921 Жыл бұрын

😂😂

@utah2nyc250 6 ай бұрын

Well if you can get it to work let me know 😂

@irenegresham1519 5 ай бұрын

Me too sit back and have a drink of Tea

@user-sd8bz2zr5j 7 ай бұрын

I train everyday. Been landscaping my property the last day and can't believe how sore I am. Really respect the work landscapers do.. can't imagine doing it day in and day out.

@leogourdin394 7 ай бұрын

Thank you sir!

@MatthewDavis-co6xc Жыл бұрын

Works like a charm! Thanks for the video Anthony!

@68brizzle Жыл бұрын

Only a minute in, I like it already. Good job man.

@australorpfarm8501 7 ай бұрын

Awesome! I am clearing a strip of grass that has cement around it with a garden pick. The wide side dug well into the soil and the pointy side was good for clearing the sides. I am going to try the pick now. Thanks so much!

@lukemwp Жыл бұрын

Dude was listing all the things I was thinking of doing haha

@renewauters8687 9 ай бұрын

I wish all instruction videos were as clear as this one, much love ❤

@Newfrankyj21 Жыл бұрын

First video I watched and now I'm headed to get the pitchfork. Thank you!!!

@marye8624 2 жыл бұрын

Good video. You make it look so easy. I'm a woman and worried about lugging the sod cutting machine to back of my property, looks very heavy. I tried the shovel, too hard. I tried tilling it in with cultivator, doesn't work. Now the fork!!!

@122436Joe 2 жыл бұрын

the gas-powered sod cutter is self-propelled--you can just "drive" it to where you want it. See videos....

@katylowe3504 Жыл бұрын

So, what are your plans this weekend? You could come to Texas for the ALCS and move sod, too. Will try your method but since I'm 73 and weak it might take a while. But its only a 1' x 60' strip.

@heyjonbray 2 ай бұрын

I have to do this a lot for removing grass under raised garden beds, and a stirrup ho works incredible. If you dig the ho into the grass just beneath the roots and pull with a smooth motion you easily peel up strips of sod just between the roots and the soil. Much much quicker than digging or pickaxe.

@LiabilityDiscourse 6 ай бұрын

Pulling out all those different tools reminded me of carrot tops comedy set with all those wacky props 😂

@Davestrong420 8 ай бұрын

You definitely saved me a lot of research time, I don’t mind the work and I can copy your technique. Thanks!

@jessiewilder4921 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks! I was definitely going to try the circular saw thing lol... But now I know

@steverome5853 Жыл бұрын

Thanks, I have a pitch fork and a shovel but I got a blister on my palm after 20 minutes slicing with the shovel. BTW it is hard to concerntrate on the vidie with a brewery across the street!

@victornorman890 Жыл бұрын

Never thought about the pitch fork. I always used the matic to do it thanks for the tip

@jeremystone3186 Жыл бұрын

Solid. 100%. Two thumbs up. Thank you.

@steventhury8366 6 ай бұрын

Looks like it works. A little hard work is good for body and soul. I wanted to remove sod, then place it back in. I'm digging a 150 ft trench for a yard drainage pipe.

@taskmasterbrainmaster 7 ай бұрын

very helpful. I'm going to be adding a raised garden bed and removing one of the better areas of grass in my yard. I was looking for a way to preserve that grass to transplant to a bare area. Using my own sod is what I was looking for. thanks

@fastone371 6 ай бұрын

Rent a sod cutting machine, not a sod "ripper", I never heard of that before. You can adjust how deep you want your sod cutter to cut, cut the sod, then go back and roll it up. It will look just like rolls of sod you buy from the store. Be forewarned, the roll of sod you cut will be heavy. It also leaves the soil below nice and flat.

@AngelGarcia-xi8id 8 ай бұрын

I’ve done this, but after a few years it becomes more of a time/efficiency thing more than a strong back/hard work kinda thing. Work smarter not harder is the idea when you know seeds have to get into the ground. This’ll be my first year renting a sod cutter machine so I’ll get to compare in the next few weeks.

@fastone371 6 ай бұрын

After using a sod cutter you will find out there is no better way.

@mme4173 Жыл бұрын

Thank you!! I’ve been going at mine with a spade and it takes forever… going to try my pitch fork for the rest of the job!!

@Liz21988 Жыл бұрын

You are hilarious! Thanks for making me laugh, while learning, something important and useful!

@wmshannahan 3 ай бұрын

Good job Anythony, that works for me. I like your no bull video and you have a new subscriber.

@kathyburger1063 7 ай бұрын

lol. Or an electric carving knife. I’m glad nobody saw me doing it. I’m being very methodical about it and it’s working. I’m 75 and wanted the grass gone today. Might not be today but I’m determined.

@Miketweets 7 ай бұрын

Reciprocating saw I liked if you’re trying to cut a line. But I used an electric edger after scalping the grass first and tilled it so I could keep the top soil. I bought a cheap corded tiller on Amazon

@sweatygamergainz870 3 ай бұрын

Where do you dump the leftover soil?

@joejarzabek2508 7 ай бұрын

You got this right . No easy way. I spent hours shaking soil away from removed sod to lighten load for street waste pick up . Used spade previously but am going to try pitchfork this time. 😅

@jakefriesenjake 4 ай бұрын

I load dirt/junk sod into plastic containers, load it on my truck, and in the middle of the night, I find a ditch that's too big, and dump it. Bye bye. I tried one day to bring a load to my dump and it was $30 Canadian or like $22 usa. Fak no

@katemcbride1071 7 ай бұрын

My soils a little to clay for this but worked for other areas in my yard. I used an extremely similar method but with an edger tool. Like one solid blade I cut into the sod and cut under to get it up.

@debrahoward7321 Жыл бұрын

OMG compared to what I have been doing that looks like a breeze! Thanks for the video!

@texaspoontappa1200 4 ай бұрын

Thanks bro. I fucking love these videos of just a dude. Not a you tuber. Just helping fellow dudes looool

@Miketweets 7 ай бұрын

Reciprocating saw and tiller then a Metal rake worked well

@pbondcasa 7 ай бұрын

That what I am thinking of trying!

@km.nowicki 5 ай бұрын

Going to try a machete and a flat shovel. Will have the fork nearby too! Mahalo :)

@josephcollins3447 2 жыл бұрын

Square mouth spade, then the fork to load. Or manual sod cutter. IMO.

@Christian-cw9mp 6 ай бұрын

I use that long, flat small shovel. The scoop is about 18 inches. It has the foot things on it. I cut pieces the length of the shovel and twice the width. I sit on my knees to relax and scoop away.

@GodofPainBelial 9 ай бұрын

I had a few questions. I'm looking to remove some grass in my patio area (small area), but I know nothing about landscaping. Would I just remove the top grass (sod) like this, then tamp it down, put landscaping fabric over it, put landscaping staples into it, and then cover the top of that with gravel? I keep looking for answers, but no one has been very helpful yet in their responses to me. Also, sometimes when it rains it kind of floods a couple inches, so is it okay to use the landscaping fabric then? Thanks for any help.

@CP-nf9my 2 ай бұрын

First, use glyphosate. Wait 10 days. Landscaping fabric traps water and eventually traps weeds, so I never use it. If it floods, you definitely don't want it. I would try to drain it. As for adding gravel, same thing. It attracts ants who go underneath it, eventually gets covered in weeds unless you treat it constantly, and it's a pain in the butt when you decide to remove it. You might try putting in a bed, but make sure it drains, and I used newspapers to kill whatever was left, covered with mulch. It lasted 10-yes, ten years, when I decided I wanted to do something else there. When I uncovered it, I was surprised that the newspaper was still there. I had used several layers.

@Sledhead 7 ай бұрын

Knew it was gonna be hard work, guess I gotta go get one of those

@irmagarcia8266 7 ай бұрын

Pitch Fork!! On my way to Home Depot 👍😎 Thanks

@jessecamping 7 ай бұрын

Yes good stuff, Straight Up! I tried the saw once and its a horrible idea.

@diorpratt5333 2 жыл бұрын

Lol I saw the first video you mentioned 😂 This girl is going to try to rent a sod cutter.

@68brizzle Жыл бұрын

My only thing is I am just relocating the turf. Do not want to buy more sod, and I do not want to wait for the seed to well, you know.

@unclejerm7692 Жыл бұрын

To rent a sod cutter is only $95 in my area. You could do all the grass in that camera shot in an hour or two at the most! You’d save yourself from possible back injury and dehydration, you’d cleanly cut the grass away from the soil too which is much better for the grass if transplanting. And how important is your time you’d get back with friends family or making money on other jobs? There is no reason to do a large area like this manually.

@KatBradley-1968 Жыл бұрын

He clearly said unless you have a strong back, the sod cutter isn't worth it. I've watched several videos on how to use one and it looks like a fight. Even the people demonstrating them say they're not easy to use.

@fastone371 6 ай бұрын

@@KatBradley-1968 Then they don't understand how to use the sod cutter. The cutting is done by the machine, the machine is self propelled. The hardest job is picking up all of the rolls of sod you cut because they are heavy unless you roll them very small. Using a sod cutter is equivalent to using a snowblower. I have used shovels, pitchforks, grub axes, etc and sod cutters are by far the easiest.

@davephsal 7 ай бұрын

Nice honest video. Thanks man.

@tracybrayton6800 6 ай бұрын

Nice!!! Not in my clay yard though...😭

@wfk19841 Жыл бұрын

You can easy cut with a gas powered edger

@Dom-pf8wd Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the video.They want $500+ for the manual "kick" style sod cutter....Cra-Zee!

@x2for10x 10 ай бұрын

I use an electric dethatcher on the lowest blade setting... Works like a charm.. cost 100 bucks ...saved me hours of manual labor

@CP-nf9my 2 ай бұрын

Trying to imagine how this just doesn't dethatch the sod?

@karensabolcik2511 Жыл бұрын

Do you wet down the soil before pulling the grass up? I have heavy clay that water doesn’t even absorb into - Arizona

@mrficxit1785 Жыл бұрын

Yes. I would certainly advise that very thing. Even then it will be very difficult to do. You may already know this since you asked 4 months ago. 😊

@dustinclark8946 Жыл бұрын

good video man, I have one of these

@TheCureThatKillz Жыл бұрын

Sod cutters are only like $75/day to rent.

@JamieR2077 7 ай бұрын

Yeah but are like 300lb machines that you need a truck for... The home depot trucks have a bed thats like 5' in the air so very precarious to load

@jerrymccurry9372 2 ай бұрын

@@JamieR2077 trailer with a ramp or tilt bed

@gillieken 6 ай бұрын

Pitch forks are great

@zeusmarquez6356 4 ай бұрын

Just got a quote for my back yard and front… 3,100…. Wish I did had the money but I don’t so I’m gonna f it up but hopefully it’s not to bad. I’ll try and make a video of my whole work if not I’ll just comment back.

@124manr 9 ай бұрын

I would think a reciprocating saw would work great? 🤔

@drdeathkitty 6 ай бұрын

Damn, i been sitting with a sawzall removing sod from a 45x45ft area... this is going to speed it up so much.

@brandonnorris4146 Жыл бұрын

i watched the saw video right before this one; that's pretty funny he referenced it.

@jnasty_og1641 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the video… and the reality check!

@Islandbreeze00 8 ай бұрын

That looks like New London CT

@tonycordero955 8 ай бұрын

Where can you get rid of it

@FUSEStudentMin 8 ай бұрын

I dumped mine on the side of a hill we have that was eroding.

@theincrediblebulk7040 6 ай бұрын

Use a sawzall

@nobutur 5 ай бұрын

The existing grass doesn't look all that bad to me though?

@jonathansmith8006 8 ай бұрын

💪knowing zero about sod removal, I thought this was a comedy sketch when the saws came out 😂, read the comments and apparently saws are a thing. I have a little pitch fork, going to give that a try instead of the shovel. THX for the video

@KimPham1966dalat Ай бұрын

What the saw for

@ruckinehround6965 5 ай бұрын

Did this too. It’s hard work but hard work makes hardy men….

@billytrack 6 ай бұрын

It must be hard to get any work done with a brewery right across the road

@jasondeftones1 7 ай бұрын

At least you can say you have nice loam in your yard. I’ve seen some horrible stuff out there 👍🏻

@powertech6816 5 ай бұрын

use an edging blade to cut sections first the fork it up much better for the back ! use the leverage from fork not your backpower 💪

@brucebwatson Жыл бұрын

Why not just use an edger?

@Toddzilla11 Жыл бұрын

Good idea!

@chelseaclerke3582 Жыл бұрын

It doesn't work well, at least not the edger I have. You can use it to cut and something else to lift but edgers are meant for cleaning up the edges of garden beds that already exist and doesn't get deep enough. It doesn't work anywhere near as well or as fast as a nice sharp spade with a long handle for cutting and a pitch fork for getting under the grass and lifting.

@JamieR2077 7 ай бұрын

What kind of grass is this? Bermuda, fescue, something else?

@farrellanna Жыл бұрын

Awesome, thank you!

@nursesusu1508 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing!

@cameo360 8 ай бұрын

Thank you

@popalock85 8 ай бұрын

Bro... Did you make this video for the clicks? Or for people in remote areas without access to power tools? You turned a 2 hour job to a 2 weekend job...

@playersmallz Жыл бұрын

LIFE SAVER!!!!

@kathyburger1063 7 ай бұрын

Bravo! I didn’t have a fork.

@mxgr194 Жыл бұрын

Reality. Thank you.

@annaravenhand5536 7 ай бұрын

"I live downtown so I already look dumb"....LOL well at least there's water across the street instead of a crack house

@maemaire82 Жыл бұрын

Thank you. This is exactly what I was looking for.

@mozee01 8 ай бұрын

only works for certain types of grass

@arkanglegeibriel Ай бұрын

is that really your soil under that dirt?!?! Consider this man jealous.

@robertsandidge441 5 күн бұрын

I live across the street from a rental. The yard was always crap. Finally the H.O.A. Forced a new yard. The 4 guys used the fat, flat part of a pick ax and flat shovels. Actually I was surprised at how fat they completed the job in one afternoon.🤷🏻‍♂️

@donofarrell3188 Жыл бұрын

CHAINSAW!!! LMFAO!!

@mattb.6057 7 ай бұрын

Kudos to you. Anybody born after 1980 will probably have to take an extra Xanax before attempting this kind of "hard work."

@traciberg5309 Ай бұрын

It’s about to be me 😅

@pulkpuller Ай бұрын

1980 rflmao more like 1995

@rasheedatalks5579 9 ай бұрын

Do that, ALL DAY LONG😂😂😂

@darth609609 2 жыл бұрын

lol still doing it wrong. so.. you can use a reciprocating saw with an old blade to cut the lines. then use a square shovel to get under the roots. you push the shovel under the grass from the area you've cleaned out last. not from on top of the grass. that's only for the first couple shovels full.

@tdz69 2 жыл бұрын

Where’s your video? Lol

@cutlassrkt Жыл бұрын

Good Idea. I'll try this.