# scalping..



## krubs (Jun 24, 2018)

I have 11k sq ft of common bermuda and a 21" mower and did my first scalping this year as I'm a new home owner.. holy cow I didn't realize how much work goes into it.

Pretty sure my grass was at 3-3.5" or so going into fall last year (bad decision)

First I did 2.5" and bagged the clippings.. took me 3 hours and 8 full yard waste bags.
Then did 2" and it took me 3.5 hours and 15 yard waste bags full of clippings
don't even get me started on the dust flying around..

was going to do 1.5" now but I don't know if I can survive lol. can I just leave it at 2 inches?


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## N LA Hacker (Aug 17, 2018)

What height do you want to keep your yard at during the growing season?


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## J_nick (Jan 28, 2017)

Take it down to the last notch :mrgreen:

It's not glamorous work but it is worth it to start off as low as you can.


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## krubs (Jun 24, 2018)

ha i probably will end up doing it


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## ram82 (Dec 19, 2018)

thats a lot of abuse on your mower.buy a used one next year if you dont have a backup and use that to scalp.


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

ram82 said:


> thats a lot of abuse on your mower.buy a used one next year if you dont have a backup and use that to scalp.


I don't believe it's a lot of abuse to the mower itself but the blade takes most of the abuse. So It may be a good idea to just have a blade you use in the Spring for scalping.

I would recommend going as low as you can go because come Summer time you will be regretting not going lower when the clippings were lightweight and it was still reasonably cool outside :thumbup:


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## tcorbitt20 (Aug 31, 2018)

Mightyquinn said:


> ram82 said:
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> 
> > thats a lot of abuse on your mower.buy a used one next year if you dont have a backup and use that to scalp.
> ...


My scalping/dethatching blade


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## Colonel K0rn (Jul 4, 2017)

tcorbitt20 said:


> Mightyquinn said:
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> > ram82 said:
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 :lol: Wow, that blade has *definitely* seen better days.


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## tcorbitt20 (Aug 31, 2018)

Colonel K0rn said:


> tcorbitt20 said:
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> 
> > Mightyquinn said:
> ...


Absolutely. Got an old blade and added the bolts to the ends to handle the dethatching. It worked pretty well, and it was a whole lot cheaper than buying a dethatcher.


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## high leverage (Jun 11, 2017)

Usually the only abuse suffered other than the blade is the air filter. Make sure to at least blow it out.


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## driver_7 (Jun 28, 2018)

I feel your pain! I only have about 5,000sqft and I filled 10 bags scalping from 2.5in down to 0.5in. On the first pass taking it down to 1.5in with the Honda, I filled the grass catcher after two rows... that was painful! It got better and now I'm really happy to be starting down low for the season. I wish I could've gone lower, but a major leveling project needs to happen first.


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## Mightyquinn (Jan 31, 2017)

high leverage said:


> Usually the only abuse suffered other than the blade is the air filter. Make sure to at least blow it out.


+1 Definitely blow out the air filter between each mowing session :thumbup:


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## krubs (Jun 24, 2018)

Good call on the blade.. I didn't even think about how much wear it would put on it.

As far as filters and stuff go I use an EGO battery powered mower so don't think I have to worry about that. I do blow it off with my leaf blower after using it though.


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## jdpber (Mar 19, 2019)

Scrapped last weekend. An acre filled up my 14'x7'x2' trailer (compacted). This entire week has been top dress leveling (12 yards of screened sand). I am getting my shovel muscles pumped up! I could not find a crew to do it for me in the time frame that I wanted. It took me right at 7hrs setup to completion including a trip to the dump.


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## gpbrown60 (Apr 7, 2018)

That is a load of thatch right there! :thumbup:


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## driver_7 (Jun 28, 2018)

Looking at that trailer makes me miss my hometown and their lawn waste pickup that occurred every Monday. We have no such thing here, even the dump wants a truckload of money just to put it in a hole. Sucks that stuff can't be composted here.


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## McCulley 77 (Feb 6, 2019)

I just scalped my yard today. My first time as well. I agree with you Krubs, it's a lot of work. We have around the same size yard. I use a 21" push mower. I'm around 1.5" in height now. I want to go lower but I'm tired. Hiring someone next year to do it. I plan to aerate. What's the best organic fertilizer out there? I just bought some Innova 7-1-2.


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## hcrum87hc (Apr 1, 2019)

I scalped about a week and a half ago. I only have a rotary Toro, so I took it down to the bottom notch, which I believe is 1". I left it a little high at the end of the season last year, which I regretted pretty quickly. I only have about 5,000 sq ft to mow, but I ended up with 5 32 gallon bags worth.

@t@tcorbitt20, can you elaborate on the bolts in the blade? I've never dethatched, so I'm not familiar with the process.


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## tcorbitt20 (Aug 31, 2018)

hcrum87hc said:


> @[email protected], can you elaborate on the bolts in the blade? I've never dethatched, so I'm not familiar with the process.


Not much. My friend at the sod farm said, "Bring me an old blade, and I'll get the guys to weld a couple of bolts on it and balance it for you. Then cut it low enough for the bolts to scrape the dirt."

So that's what I did.


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## Sbcgenii (May 13, 2018)

jdpber said:


> Scrapped last weekend. An acre filled up my 14'x7'x2' trailer (compacted). This entire week has been top dress leveling (12 yards of screened sand). I am getting my shovel muscles pumped up! I could not find a crew to do it for me in the time frame that I wanted. It took me right at 7hrs setup to completion including a trip to the dump.


 :thumbup: Please Do a Lawn Journal. I would like to see how you take car of a yard that size. I have a similar sized yard to take care of and I have just been winging it so far.


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## jdpber (Mar 19, 2019)

[/quote]
:thumbup: Please Do a Lawn Journal. I would like to see how you take car of a yard that size. I have a similar sized yard to take care of and I have just been winging it so far.
[/quote]

If people would be interested, I could put something together and keep it up to date. I also have a 2,500 sqft putting green next to my creek with waterfalls in the back yard.

I will organize some thoughts and details of what I have done in the past year since we moved in.


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## jdpber (Mar 19, 2019)

Sbcgenii said:


> jdpber said:
> 
> 
> > Scrapped last weekend. An acre filled up my 14'x7'x2' trailer (compacted). This entire week has been top dress leveling (12 yards of screened sand). I am getting my shovel muscles pumped up! I could not find a crew to do it for me in the time frame that I wanted. It took me right at 7hrs setup to completion including a trip to the dump.
> ...


If people would be interested, I could put something together and keep it up to date. I also have a 2,500 sqft putting green next to my creek with waterfalls in the back yard.

I will organize some thoughts and details of what I have done in the past year since we moved in.


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## Dowdall (Jun 6, 2018)

Scalped on my own for the first time last year and had a very similar experience. Paid a local lawn guy $60 to do it this year and haul away the clippings. Money well spend IMO.


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## jjepeto (Jan 27, 2019)

jdpber said:


> If people would be interested, I could put something together and keep it up to date. I also have a 2,500 sqft putting green next to my creek with waterfalls in the back yard.


Would love to see some pictures of this. Is the putting green bermuda?


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## TN Hawkeye (May 7, 2018)

jdpber said:


> Sbcgenii said:
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> 
> > jdpber said:
> ...


I'd love to see pictures of this waterfall backed putting green. I imagine mermaids frolicking in the water and fresh coconuts being split on demand so you can quench your thirst with fresh tropical water. Or a big beer cooler. Either one.


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## dpainter68 (Apr 26, 2017)

I hate scalping... but you should go as low as you can. If you're lucky enough to have the city come by and pick up your bags of clippings, I'd recommend buying a 10' x 100' roll of plastic from Lowe's/Home Depot, cut it 10' long so you have a 10'x10' section, and dump your clippings in the middle. Fill it up until you can just barely tie the opposite corners together and then drag it to the road. Sure beats filling up 20 or 30 garbage bags.


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## jdpber (Mar 19, 2019)

jjepeto said:


> Would love to see some pictures of this. Is the putting green bermuda?


yes the Green is Bermuda... i have contemplated doing Bentgrass.

Ill take some good ones once things green up. As the ones i have are not appealing with the creek. Last summer it took me a few months to clear the edge brush and tidy up the creek.


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## JRS 9572 (May 28, 2018)

jdpber said:


> Scrapped last weekend. An acre filled up my 14'x7'x2' trailer (compacted). This entire week has been top dress leveling (12 yards of screened sand). I am getting my shovel muscles pumped up! I could not find a crew to do it for me in the time frame that I wanted. It took me right at 7hrs setup to completion including a trip to the dump.


what part of SC are you located? Just wondering if where you purchased the sand would be local to me. Thanks


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## jdpber (Mar 19, 2019)

JRS 9572 said:


> jdpber said:
> 
> 
> > Scrapped last weekend. An acre filled up my 14'x7'x2' trailer (compacted). This entire week has been top dress leveling (12 yards of screened sand). I am getting my shovel muscles pumped up! I could not find a crew to do it for me in the time frame that I wanted. It took me right at 7hrs setup to completion including a trip to the dump.
> ...


Greenville


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## raymond (May 4, 2018)

dpainter68 said:


> I hate scalping... but you should go as low as you can. If you're lucky enough to have the city come by and pick up your bags of clippings, I'd recommend buying a 10' x 100' roll of plastic from Lowe's/Home Depot, cut it 10' long so you have a 10'x10' section, and dump your clippings in the middle. Fill it up until you can just barely tie the opposite corners together and then drag it to the road. Sure beats filling up 20 or 30 garbage bags.


Is this not unmanageably heavy?


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## dpainter68 (Apr 26, 2017)

raymond said:


> dpainter68 said:
> 
> 
> > I hate scalping... but you should go as low as you can. If you're lucky enough to have the city come by and pick up your bags of clippings, I'd recommend buying a 10' x 100' roll of plastic from Lowe's/Home Depot, cut it 10' long so you have a 10'x10' section, and dump your clippings in the middle. Fill it up until you can just barely tie the opposite corners together and then drag it to the road. Sure beats filling up 20 or 30 garbage bags.
> ...


It's not that bad. I guess it depends on how far you have to drag it.


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## Brackin4au (Jun 13, 2018)

I filled up 56 separate 33gal garbage bags in my scalp... not fun..


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## raymond (May 4, 2018)

Brackin4au said:


> I filled up 56 separate 33gal garbage bags in my scalp... not fun..


Yup... i have about 10k square feet of Zoysia... i've already filled ~35 bags and probably have another 10 to go. Craziness.


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## Brackin4au (Jun 13, 2018)

raymond said:


> Brackin4au said:
> 
> 
> > I filled up 56 separate 33gal garbage bags in my scalp... not fun..
> ...


I'm done scalping, but not done dethatching. So I've got quite a few more bags to go as well haha. Yippie!


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## raymond (May 4, 2018)

@Brackin4au - What are you using for dethatching?


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## Brackin4au (Jun 13, 2018)

I jumped on the Sunjoe bandwagon to give it a try. I've only been able to do about a 1k section, but I'm pretty impressed so far. It's going to take a while because it's so small, but it's definitely worth the cheap price tag on amazon, in my early opinion. One bonus I didn't expect is the dethatching tines are picking up rocks I hadn't seen. Which will save my reel when mowing.


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