The biggest misconception surrounding artificial sports pitches is that they involve zero maintenance. Whilst that sounds truly amazing, unfortunately this isn’t totally true.
Yes, Synthetic Sport pitches, artificial grass and play surfaces involve a lot less maintenance than the alternative of natural grass. However, they do still require regular maintenance to keep them looking and performing their best!
Whether you have just installed a brand-new surface, or had repair/ renovation works carried out, the longevity of this will, on the most part, depend on a good maintenance plan.
With new advances in the industry, the surface technologies are doing a lot of the work for you, through their quality and durability.
However, it is important that you still have a budget and plan for the basic weekly/ annual upkeep of your facilities. This will ensure that you are then able to offer only the best sports/ play surfaces for your users.
There are 3 main types of maintenance for you to think about;
Regular weekly/ bi-weekly Housekeeping
Carried out easily in-house.
Interim maintenance
Carried out in-house or by a specialist contractor depending on the scale of work required.
Major maintenance work
Carried out by specialists, when damage has occurred, or upgrades are required to meet safety/ usability requirements.
Many sports clubs and play facilities undertake a mixed approach when it comes to maintenance.
When we install surfaces, we always suggest and explain to the client about the importance of having a maintenance schedule & how it will help keep your surface in excellent condition and extend its life expectancy.
Regular Housekeeping
There are several things which can be done quickly and easily in-house, to keep your new/ renovated surface looking and performing at its best!
As a rough guide, we recommend every 40-50 hours of use would warrant a check.
A few of these best practices are listed below;
· Regular litter picking, including moss, leaves and any other debris. If your court is surrounded by trees, you may notice moss, leaves and other debris gather in the shaded areas. This can create a breeding ground for mold and mildew, so ensuring that you remove any debris will help in maintaining your court.
· (Where applicable) Keeping the grass surrounding the surface cut short.
· Checking the surface on a regular basis for signs of wear and tear.
· Brushing the surface to keep its structure.
· Preventing food or drink to be taken onto the surface.
· Ensuring appropriate footwear is always worn.
· Prohibiting bikes, roller blades or skateboards to be used on the surface.
Interim Maintenance
Interim Maintenance is more periodic (commonly on an annual basis) and often carried out by specialists, although with the right equipment, this can be carried out in house too.
The key elements of this type of maintenance include, but are not limited to the following;
· Decompaction of the infill material and topping up where / when required.
· Deep cleaning of the surface to remove any dirt and debris which may have built up over time, be it from lack of regular maintenance or just general build up.
· While rain showers can help to clean outdoor courts, standing water can also allow dirt and debris to accumulate, leaving stains on your surface. If this is left to build up the dirt and debris can act as an abrasion on the surface, so this needs keeping at bay.
Major Maintenance
These types of maintenance / resurfacing works will be required either if a regular maintenance schedule hasn’t been carried out/ not performed efficiently, or once the surfaces life span is coming to an end.
The scale of “Major Maintenance” works can vary in scale from small patchwork/ seam repairs, right through to an entire removal and replacement of the surface.
Large scale deep-cleaning can also be classed as major maintenance when the surface has become heavily contaminated by debris/ moss & algae etc.
In general, the more your surface is used, the more likely major issues may arise, especially if regular maintenance isn’t followed.
Here at Bingham Ground Services, we can help design a specific cleaning plan for your play surfacing / sports pitch, to keep it safe and to maintain the playing qualities.
To further prevent damage and disruption to your court it’s important to be aware of the type of surface that you have and follow guidelines given by the manufacturers. Such recommendations will be dependent on the type of surface and vary depending on the type of court.
When we install surfaces, we always suggest and explain the importance of having a maintenance schedule and how it can keep your surface in excellent performance condition and extend its life expectancy.
Make sure to contact us if you need any advice about maintenance for an outdoor activity court or pitch. We offer helpful information on the costs and the work that needs to be done for each surfacing type.
The benefits of keeping up to date with surface maintenance means that in the long run you will reduce the overall cost by potentially preventing costly damage to your tracks and sports courts.
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For older blog posts from Binghams Blog, please follow the links below;
20th January 2021
24th June 2020
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22nd May 2020
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19th March 2020
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9th January 2020
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11th December 2019
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20th November 2019
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15th August 2019
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7th July 2019
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16th June 2019
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26th May 2019
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26th April 2019
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