Rolls came out surprisingly well. But your neighbors must have thought you lost it when you first started circular sawing your lawn. I raise my glass to you weird human🍻
ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!! Holy Cow! All these videos on how to use machines, special cutters, dang, you name it and all I need to do is cut a slash in the grass with my circular saw and then roll it up! YOU ARE A DIY GENIUS! Your so good, that I'm subscribing right now - you earned it!
Hey I second that. I just spent 20 looking over 30 TH-cam clips on how to fix my turn signal issue but it took me that long to take the information from 6 clips it's so simple. I hate the BS and stories 😂
Just have to comment that we used your method with our zoysia that had invaded and filled up an empty flowerbed. Our yard guys had been taking care of that bit of "yard" and it was gorgeous grass, but we decided to return the bed to the flowers. It took almost no time to roll up our zoysia and transfer it to another location. We were absolutely dumbfounded at how easy it was to do! I don't think it took more than 20 minutes. Thanks for the DIY!!
In a past life this guy helped design the pyramids. If you made this method up you a have to be an engineer. If you’re not an engineer let’s talk. I would put money into any idea as savvy as this. You should patten this method and see if any companies would buy it or make it and give you a fair cut. This is great for an average homeowner who doesn’t want a machine or to spend 300 for a day. Well done sir.
This. Is. Frigging. Brilliant. I've spent the past 3 days trying to pull up the sod in my front yard - I have blisters on my blisters. I'm totally stealing this idea. Thank you!
Sounds familiar - my wife and I were exhausted after going chunk by chunk ripping up just the first 10 feet. Plus it nearly filled the compost bin. I hope it helps. Thx!
This is arguably the cleverest idea I’ve come across in 25 years on and offline. It is lateral thinking on a totally different level. The tools needed are simple and very straightforward. I will be using this method to lift the turf for the path I am laying in my back garden from the patio to the Arbour at the the corner of the garden. Thank you so much for sharing. I OWE you a pint of beer and a pizza if you ever visit England/U.K.
You're too kind... thanks! Pizza sounds good as long as it doesn't come with the mushy peas. JK - I actually like the mushy peas at most pubs. I hope it works out well for you. Cheers!
Sorry to hear about the pain. I'm old enough to know what you're talking about, but young enough that the pain is still mild and manageable. Hang in there. I do appreciate the feedback - thanks!
Genius! This works like a champ, even in FL with St. Augustine sod. My neighbors actually thought this was genius as well. MUCH better than renting the sod cutting machine.
Hell yeah! I have a small front lawn that I want to convert to garden beds and was dreading the process of tearing it up. This is amazing and really simple - plus I already have all the tools for the job. Thank you so much for posting!
What a great idea. We've just moved into a house where the lawn is full of weeds and clearly been down for years. I haven't used a circular saw but your method works well, is quicker and more satisfying and I'm a five foot woman. So if I can do it... Many thanks
Heck yeah!! 😀 I was fretting how I was going to remove my lawn to redo into a meadow and this just made me eager to get started, thank YOU! Brilliant 💡 🏆⭐
Nice, my mother-in-law is building a new addition and there would be a lot of grass that I could potentially use in my yard so this will help if we go down that route. Thanks so much for showing how to make your own sod.
DUDE!! This is by far the best of TH-cam video I've ever seen!!! It's quick, to the point, VERY INFORMATIVE w/ tips I've never even heard of and you're quite hilarious!! THANK YOU FOR NOT WASTING ANY MORE BRAIN CELLS LOL !! 12/10 WOOT WOOT !! 🙌
Replacing my lawn grass with beneficial native plants. I ripped up a section w/hand tools, shook out the dirt (I needed it there), and now have a pile of decomposing grass with my compost. Can't wait for the plants to grow in the spring. 😊🌱
Great idea- it worked really well. I used a 9" angle grinder along a batten of wood rather than a circular saw. It worked fine, you need to be wary of kickback keeping body parts out of the line of fire. Thanks
Tested this out in a small area. Works great. I didn’t have rebar I just used the Maddox to help lift up the excess stuck grass. Now I just need to continue down my drive and re route my sprinklers
You're a genius. Thank you for this. Probably just saved my neck and back some serious pain, and a good 50% of the hours I was about to lose working on this. Hopefully i don't hit any big rocks with the sawblade :P
Wow. Pretty cool Great idea and thank you for sharing . I'm in the middle of doing my first sod job for a neighbor and I'm removing old sod that isn't in great condition with pick axe and pitch fork . Shaking the dirt out then throwing pieces of old sod into garbage . It's hard work but it feels good . Again thank you for sharing this , I will remember this and probably use it in the future
@@IsomEric oh no I'm just throwing this stuff out. It was sod that was laid two years ago but never really grew well due to my neighbor being in his 80s and was taking care of his wife as well. So he couldn't do the necessary watering and what not in the following weeks after laying the sod . This time im gonna water the grass and take care after I lay it out since he lives right around the corner from me . Ty again , Be well and have a great summer
Great idea for removing sod! I have about 240 sq. ft. to remove and I may give this a try. I think I will try a piece of 4" PVC pipe (since I already have some) in place of the 4x4. When it comes time to remove it from the roll it will slip out much easier than the 4x4 having to be beaten out with a hammer. A PVC coupling or a cap on one end and drill your 3/4" hole through that for the turning lever/handle. The coupling is as thick or thicker than the pipe and drilling through it and the pipe should have enough strength to support the lever. Most big box stores sell short lengths (2 foot long) of 4" SCH 40 PVC pipe for less than $10, I believe 3" pipe would work also. You don't even need glue so don't buy any if you don't have some already, just get the pipe cap fully seated on one end. When it's time to remove the pipe pull it out from the end with the cap using the lever as a handle and centering it on the pipe. The end with no fitting should slide through the sod roll with little effort. You should not need a hammer or other tool to drive it out. Wetting the outside of the pipe with a little water before rolling up the sod may help if the sod is very dry, but the grass should slip fairly easily on the smooth plastic pipe without it. For cutting I will try my edger rather than mess up my circular saw. If using a circular saw be aware that any stones which the blade finds (and there WILL be some) can be ejected upwards with significant force to don't be hanging your face over the saw or let people get in front of you when cutting. Safety glasses are a good choice here.
PVC might be worth a try - always nice when you can use something you already have lying around. I agree that it'll be easier to pound out, but I wonder if the pipe will spin inside the roll of turf as you're cranking it along pulling up the grass. Not sure what will happen. I hope it works out for you.
Great video. I have already sprayed and killed the areas of zoysia that I'm converting shrubs and flowers. I'll see what this method yields given this difference. Thanks for the ingenious and money-saving idea.
Really good technique especially for grasses like Kentucky bluegrass. I've started a similar area and thought there would be an easier way. This definitely makes the sod nicer especially if you are going to let someone else have it. Alas, no matter what you try, it's still going to be tedious and time consuming. Great vid!
You make a good point - it is still a fair amount of work no matter how efficient you try to be. Maybe I shouldn't have used the word "easy" in the title. Thx.
That was going to be my question. I have a gas edger and was wondering if the blade depth would be sufficient. Seeing it done with a circular saw blade seems to answer my question!
That was very creative and it seemed to work well. I recently just used a manual sod cutter that I rented for $35 for the day and did 1500 sq ft. All is required is to kick it and hold on to the handles and the blade and roller does the rest. :)
I do like the look of those manual machines, but I've never tried one to compare the level of effort required. They are probably just as good as what I did, plus you do get to stand up while using it - that helps some. I have some foot problems, so the kicking looked rough to me but most users would likely be ok. Thanks for the input.
Great idea. If you have a Stihl Kombi and the bed edger attachment you can use that in place of the circular saw. You will loose like a inch of sod when you cut your lines.
Good point - a powered edging tool would spare you the embarrassment of using the saw. I suppose you could cut the lines by hand with a hatchet if you don't have any power tools.
@@mattmcd2803 The half-moon edger would work fine if you have one. There are lots of ways to make the strip cut other than the circular saw. A sharp ice spade would do it. You could get down on the ground and use a hatchet. As long as the cut is fairly straight/clean it should be fine.
We converted the irrigation to a drip line and installed a nice shrub bed surrounded by rock. Uses less water now and makes mowing a bit faster. I made this video before we got the new stuff in. Thx
Yep, I used one of those all the time as a kid doing yard work with my folks. I no longer have one, but many viewer have said the same thing about using edgers (powered or manual) instead of the saw. Whatever gets the job done! Thanks
If you go the powered sod cutter route, don't forget to rent a truck or a trailer to transport the machine. Oh, and be sure to install a trailer hitch on your car/suv if you do the trailer option. Also make sure you have an equipment ramp to load/unload the cutter because it weighs about 300 lbs. If you rent a manual kick-type sod cutter, then be sure your feet are in good shape because it is high impact. You won't be able to use one of those for long if you have foot problems like I have. Good luck. Thanks!
Totally! Many viewers have said they used an edger to make the straight cuts. I don't have one of those. Tried using a line-trimmer, but it just couldn't cut deep enough. Thx
This is a crazy method.. I just rented a sod cutter for $78 from HomeDepot.. Very easy to use only took about 2hrs to cut and remove the sod from a 25x15foot area. Yes you need a truck or small trailer to get the sod cutter.. But the sod cutter is the way to go!!
"Crazy good", maybe... am I right!? Yeah, I don't even have a trailer hitch, so I was looking at a truck rental as well as renting the cutter. Decided to go the Red Green route instead.
Question for you... Where would you say the break-point is in terms of square footage of sod to be cut between this DIY method and renting a sod cutter from a big box hardware store? ($87/4hrs, $124/day) (E.g. 300sqft? get the sod cutter.) Great video, by the way!
Great question. Hard to answer since there are a few to consider. In my case, I had no truck nor trailer hitch to use to transport a sod cutter, so I might be willing to sweat my through more sod by hand than a truck owner would. Another big factor is your age - I'm in my 50's so I can't grind through hard labor like I used to. Also, my helpers (kids) were pretty young, so they couldn't add much in the way of brute strength. Looking back, I think I easily could've done about twice what I did in the video (so 2 x 200 sq ft = ~400 sq ft total). Beyond that, the machine would probably have been looking like the better option. Hope this helps. Thanks!
Ah, the use of the wood roller is a clever idea, thanks for sharing. I think that if you have time to plan, you could repeatedly scalp the area in the preceding weeks during spring. Scalped grass quickly catches up to taller grass, that energy has to come from somewhere- the roots. If you do it multiple times while it's growing, it will burn through its roots, and you will not have to slash through it while rolling it up. If the grass has stopped growing, it won't work because it'll just stay short instead. Probably worth a try. EDIT: I tried this while doing something else- trying to remove the soil completely (the morons who installed the sod left the plastic netting buried beneath my whole yard). Killed the grass with glyphosate (Roundup®). Scalping repeatedly during spring compared to not scalping is an advantage, but not a huge one.
Shortening and/or weakening the root system to eliminate the slashing would reduce the overall effort dramatically. I didn't even know that was possible. Thanks for the insight.
@@IsomEric Would like to post an update, as I did this after posting the comment. Long story short, it sort of works. I scalped a section repeatedly in spring. First time, it caught up to the rest of the lawn in a few days. After the second, it slowed down a lot, probably ate up the energy from its roots. I kept this up for a month before it went dormant in summer, then late summer I killed it with glyphosate/Roundup®. (I am trying to remove the plastic netting that was left behind/buried by the careless morons who installed the sod, not make my own sod. Destroy all then reseed.) Overall, with the grass scalped and roots weakened, it was moderately better/easier than when I did the same thing without scalping. Probably worth scalping it twice, but after that it's diminishing returns. Also, type of grass will likely make a big difference.
This has helped a great deal. Luckily I do own a circular saw and will be putting that to good use! The area I'm doing as the same size as your lawn so this gives me a good idea of what I have to work with :) Thank you!
Great tip. I’m thinking of removing 50 sq ft of Saint Augustine sod from my front yard and transfer it to a small patch in my backyard. I was thinking of scraping through underneath the sod but st augustine sod roots are too thick and heavy with the moist soil. It’s possible but it would be a pain in the rear to do it. Your method seems silly but better than breaking your back or paying hundreds of dollars for machinery or landscapers
after I commented, I felt stupid thinking the string would be too weak on the roots, but surely those rigid/serrated blade attachments would be perfect for the task....
My wife wanted it done immediately, so I had to come up with something. As the great DIY legend Mr. Red Green often says - "If women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy." Thanks.
Yeah, just perfect if ya don’t care about all the 15 dollar blades you gonna be destroying, did it ever occur to anyone to use the intended tool for lawn cutting--little thing called an “edger”?
Great question! It was too small for my kids to use to play on - we have a bigger stretch of turf in our backyard for that. The small size also made it hard to water efficiently - a lot of overspray on the surrounding pavement and rock. We replaced it with a nice rock/mulch/shrub area that looks better and requires only a small amount of drip irrigation to maintain. It was easy to get someone else to take it because it was in nice useable condition - the guy who picked it up said he would be reinstalling it in his yard to give his kids a soft spot to play on. Thanks!
Rolls came out surprisingly well. But your neighbors must have thought you lost it when you first started circular sawing your lawn. I raise my glass to you weird human🍻
Yeah, I had a lot of explaining to do.
Neighbor: why is he cutting the Earth and filming it!!!! Honey we need to move!
@@IsomEric Around here, Karen from the HOA would have called the cops.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!! Holy Cow! All these videos on how to use machines, special cutters, dang, you name it and all I need to do is cut a slash in the grass with my circular saw and then roll it up! YOU ARE A DIY GENIUS! Your so good, that I'm subscribing right now - you earned it!
Thanks for the support! Hope it's useful.
This video is perfect. Super helpful, super concise. No BS.
It would be heaven if all DIY videos on TH-cam were like this! You just made my day!
It would be heaven if all comments were like this one. Thanks!
Hey I second that. I just spent 20 looking over 30 TH-cam clips on how to fix my turn signal issue but it took me that long to take the information from 6 clips it's so simple. I hate the BS and stories 😂
Just have to comment that we used your method with our zoysia that had invaded and filled up an empty flowerbed. Our yard guys had been taking care of that bit of "yard" and it was gorgeous grass, but we decided to return the bed to the flowers. It took almost no time to roll up our zoysia and transfer it to another location. We were absolutely dumbfounded at how easy it was to do! I don't think it took more than 20 minutes. Thanks for the DIY!!
Happy to hear it work well for you. I had to look up what zoysia is - I guess there's lots of grass types out there. Thanks!
"when your neighbors are at work, or at night, or with a bag over your head" LOL I feel you brother
Thx
Oh that was a good chuckle ...
I snorted when he said that part. Too funny. 😂😂😂
That’s what I do. If I do Anything DIY that would look stupid I just wait for my neighbours to be at work before getting started lol
Lol.. I died 🤣
Everytime i touch my yard i imagine my neighbors saying to themselves "how can he possibly make it look any worse" 😅😅😅
That is so funny. I love it.
Do r worry about what they think!
LOLOL
Particularly my case! 😂
🤣🤣🤣🤣 I can relate!
In a past life this guy helped design the pyramids. If you made this method up you a
have to be an engineer. If you’re not an engineer let’s talk. I would put money into any idea as savvy as this. You should patten this method and see if any companies would buy it or make it and give you a fair cut. This is great for an average homeowner who doesn’t want a machine or to spend 300 for a day. Well done sir.
I am an engineer... well spotted!
This is one of the best tutorials to remove sod that I have ever seen. Well done on this. Great help!
Thx for sayin'... hope it helps!
I'm literally about to remove about 600 square feet of sod by hand and I'm so glad I found this video!!! You're awesome!
I hope it works out for you. Thanks!
Did you remove it? I am thinking about 600 sqft myself, and need to estimate the time.
@james90755 my grass had to many weeds so I ended up renting a sod remover and it helped out a ton
This. Is. Frigging. Brilliant. I've spent the past 3 days trying to pull up the sod in my front yard - I have blisters on my blisters. I'm totally stealing this idea. Thank you!
Sounds familiar - my wife and I were exhausted after going chunk by chunk ripping up just the first 10 feet. Plus it nearly filled the compost bin.
I hope it helps. Thx!
If you keep on doing it, like for the next 5 years straight, those blisters turn into hard calluses. You'll be stronger than ever!
This is arguably the cleverest idea I’ve come across in 25 years on and offline. It is lateral thinking on a totally different level. The tools needed are simple and very straightforward. I will be using this method to lift the turf for the path I am laying in my back garden from the patio to the Arbour at the the corner of the garden. Thank you so much for sharing. I OWE you a pint of beer and a pizza if you ever visit England/U.K.
You're too kind... thanks! Pizza sounds good as long as it doesn't come with the mushy peas. JK - I actually like the mushy peas at most pubs. I hope it works out well for you. Cheers!
This is amazing. Very clever way to remove sod. I read about cutting with reciprocating saw, but this is genius rolling it up on 4x4. Great video.
This is genius! I'm too old and in pain to do it, but I'm in awe of how clever this tip is. Thank you!
Sorry to hear about the pain. I'm old enough to know what you're talking about, but young enough that the pain is still mild and manageable. Hang in there. I do appreciate the feedback - thanks!
Stick with weed killer. You do not want to try this with a bad back especially if your lawn is in bad shape.
Genius! This works like a champ, even in FL with St. Augustine sod. My neighbors actually thought this was genius as well. MUCH better than renting the sod cutting machine.
I really appreciate the feedback. My neighbors think I'm nuts... and so do many of my viewers. Glad to hear it worked out for you. Thanks!
Hell yeah! I have a small front lawn that I want to convert to garden beds and was dreading the process of tearing it up. This is amazing and really simple - plus I already have all the tools for the job. Thank you so much for posting!
Thanks! I hope it works for you.
This is a great video. It takes an engineer’s mind to think of this process. Very helpful. Thank you
Much appreciated. Yes, my background is in engineering - well spotted. Thanks!
2 years later and still a very good video. Thank you for posting.
Thanks - I'll take it. Hope it's helpful.
What a great idea. We've just moved into a house where the lawn is full of weeds and clearly been down for years. I haven't used a circular saw but your method works well, is quicker and more satisfying and I'm a five foot woman. So if I can do it... Many thanks
Good to hear - glad it's useful. Thanks!
Heck yeah!! 😀 I was fretting how I was going to remove my lawn to redo into a meadow and this just made me eager to get started, thank YOU! Brilliant 💡 🏆⭐
My pleaseure - Hope it goes well!
This isn't really what I was looking for, but I had to watch the whole thing because it's just too funny. Great ideas by the way.
Glad it was entertaining. Hope you found what you we're looking for elsewhere. Thx
@@IsomEric I did, thanks.
WOW! I don't think I have the strength to do this, but this is genius and so helpful! I knew someone had to have a logical way to do this!
Nice, my mother-in-law is building a new addition and there would be a lot of grass that I could potentially use in my yard so this will help if we go down that route. Thanks so much for showing how to make your own sod.
Glad it's helpful - your situation is perfect for this approach. Hope it goes well. Thx
DUDE!! This is by far the best of TH-cam video I've ever seen!!! It's quick, to the point, VERY INFORMATIVE w/ tips I've never even heard of and you're quite hilarious!! THANK YOU FOR NOT WASTING ANY MORE BRAIN CELLS LOL !! 12/10 WOOT WOOT !! 🙌
I appreciate the feedback - hope it's useful. Thanks!
Extremely educational you gave franchise directions on how to get rid grass
Replacing my lawn grass with beneficial native plants. I ripped up a section w/hand tools, shook out the dirt (I needed it there), and now have a pile of decomposing grass with my compost. Can't wait for the plants to grow in the spring. 😊🌱
Every TH-cam video should follow this man’s lead.
I wish all TH-cam comments were like this. Thanks!
What a great idea. The only issue is that it's a two person job, but still the best option I have seen. Great video.
This was really helpful. I really appreciate that someone else could use it. Reduce reuse recycle right👍🏽
Agreed. Less work for me and it helped the guy who picked it up - he said he just needed a small amount of turf for his kids to play on.
Great idea- it worked really well.
I used a 9" angle grinder along a batten of wood rather than a circular saw. It worked fine, you need to be wary of kickback keeping body parts out of the line of fire.
Thanks
Sounds good. Power tools rule over hacking and chopping by hand. Thanks for sharing.
What is 9” angle grinder along a better of wood. I don’t have circular saw.
This is incredibly clever. It helps to have an edger and an ice chisel to start the edge. Thanks!
Great idea for when I have to install underground sprinklers. I'll use your method to dig up narrow channels of sod before digging my trench.
Tested this out in a small area. Works great. I didn’t have rebar I just used the Maddox to help lift up the excess stuck grass. Now I just need to continue down my drive and re route my sprinklers
Good to hear! Thx.
Oh my goodness!!! You’re a meticulous genius and I thank you for sharing! Here I go. Wish me luck 😊
Thanks for saying. Hope it goes well for you!
Awesome video! I wish I came across this yesterday, before I rented a sod cutter for the weekend to do a small area.
You're a genius. Thank you for this. Probably just saved my neck and back some serious pain, and a good 50% of the hours I was about to lose working on this. Hopefully i don't hit any big rocks with the sawblade :P
Thanks for sayin' - Hope it works out!
Wow. Pretty cool
Great idea and thank you for sharing . I'm in the middle of doing my first sod job for a neighbor and I'm removing old sod that isn't in great condition with pick axe and pitch fork . Shaking the dirt out then throwing pieces of old sod into garbage . It's hard work but it feels good . Again thank you for sharing this , I will remember this and probably use it in the future
Yeah, if the turf is in bad shape you might have a hard time getting someone to come and take it. Good luck!
@@IsomEric oh no I'm just throwing this stuff out. It was sod that was laid two years ago but never really grew well due to my neighbor being in his 80s and was taking care of his wife as well. So he couldn't do the necessary watering and what not in the following weeks after laying the sod . This time im gonna water the grass and take care after I lay it out since he lives right around the corner from me . Ty again , Be well and have a great summer
Circular blade attachment on your trimmer also works well but an excellent process that you have devised
Agreed - a cutting blade attachment on a trimmer works nicely for making the linear cuts if you have one. Thanks!
Great idea... probably use an edger to cut the grass if you have one
Agreed! Thx
Excellent idea. I never would have thought of using a circular saw, brilliant. Thanks for making the video!
Hope it helps. Thanks!
This is some ingenious outside-of-the-box thinking! Great idea!
Thanks - hope it's helpful!
Try using a reciprocating saw, faster and easier. Good idea!
my thoughts exactly
My favorite landscaping tool! Cuts limbs, roots, stumps like no other! Cheers 🍻
@@jaynook4980 Cuts limbs? 😲 The fuck you doing with that recip saw man? 🤨
@@talksickgamer😂😂😂
This is the most brilliant way ever seen. Great job !
Thanks for saying so - hope it's helpful.
Great idea for removing sod! I have about 240 sq. ft. to remove and I may give this a try.
I think I will try a piece of 4" PVC pipe (since I already have some) in place of the 4x4. When it comes time to remove it from the roll it will slip out much easier than the 4x4 having to be beaten out with a hammer. A PVC coupling or a cap on one end and drill your 3/4" hole through that for the turning lever/handle. The coupling is as thick or thicker than the pipe and drilling through it and the pipe should have enough strength to support the lever. Most big box stores sell short lengths (2 foot long) of 4" SCH 40 PVC pipe for less than $10, I believe 3" pipe would work also. You don't even need glue so don't buy any if you don't have some already, just get the pipe cap fully seated on one end. When it's time to remove the pipe pull it out from the end with the cap using the lever as a handle and centering it on the pipe. The end with no fitting should slide through the sod roll with little effort. You should not need a hammer or other tool to drive it out. Wetting the outside of the pipe with a little water before rolling up the sod may help if the sod is very dry, but the grass should slip fairly easily on the smooth plastic pipe without it.
For cutting I will try my edger rather than mess up my circular saw. If using a circular saw be aware that any stones which the blade finds (and there WILL be some) can be ejected upwards with significant force to don't be hanging your face over the saw or let people get in front of you when cutting. Safety glasses are a good choice here.
PVC might be worth a try - always nice when you can use something you already have lying around. I agree that it'll be easier to pound out, but I wonder if the pipe will spin inside the roll of turf as you're cranking it along pulling up the grass. Not sure what will happen. I hope it works out for you.
This is brillant idea. I need to remove the grass about 2m×2m size. I will let you know in a few days if it works well. Thank u for sharing idea.
Hope it works out. Thanks!
Great video. I have already sprayed and killed the areas of zoysia that I'm converting shrubs and flowers. I'll see what this method yields given this difference. Thanks for the ingenious and money-saving idea.
Hope it's useful. Thanks!
What a great way to cut sod! Very ingenious! I need to cut 308 sqft. of sod for a gravel shed pad and I will try your method. Thanks.
Sounds like a good fit for this method - hope it goes well!
Wow that was genius! I’m going to rent the machine at Home Depot for $100 because I’m not quite that patient but what a great tutorial!!
Really good technique especially for grasses like Kentucky bluegrass. I've started a similar area and thought there would be an easier way. This definitely makes the sod nicer especially if you are going to let someone else have it. Alas, no matter what you try, it's still going to be tedious and time consuming. Great vid!
You make a good point - it is still a fair amount of work no matter how efficient you try to be. Maybe I shouldn't have used the word "easy" in the title. Thx.
niiiiiice!!!! MUCH better than how I thought I was going to have to tackle it! THANKS!
Excellent! Hope it helps - Thanks.
To cut the sod from the soil, I use a saws-all wood blade fitted with a homemade handle.
Sounds reasonable... thanks for the tip.
the world needs more Eric B's. Nice!
That might make the world a little weird, but thanks... I'll take it!
Man , you shared a brilliant idea 💡. Great 👍 job . God bless you .
Thanks for saying!
I love a good hard day of work. This looks like a great idea.
I did the same with a circular saw but you perfected it the timber post and crank bar brilliant. Thankyou!
I'm going to do this to level a large high area and put it back flat. Thank you.
Great idea! I never thought of that application. Hope it goes well.
👍best I’ve seen DYI removing the sod.
Much appreciated. Thanks!
Awesome Job! U shot that like a champ! I also appreciate u putting video in narative speed x2..
My son filmed the work and helped putting the video together. Thx
Wow, I'm not gonna do this but this is utterly brilliant.
Thanks for saying!
This is genius and so carefully explained. Thanks for posting.
Thanks for saying so - hope it's helpful.
Instead of a saw use an edger, also spray paint your lines makes it easier as you can stand up
That was going to be my question. I have a gas edger and was wondering if the blade depth would be sufficient. Seeing it done with a circular saw blade seems to answer my question!
Wow how ingenious. You're like MacGyver. Thank you for sharing.
Very creative. I too use tools for things that they were not originally meant for and they do a great job.
Nice! Backyard ingenuity at its finest!💪🏻👌🏻
Thanks! In the words of the great Mr. Red Green... If women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy.
Great idea. I love it when people are innovative.
Tanks!
Thank you this is so helpful
Np... hope it's helpful!
BRILLIANT!! So simple a process. So many times I could have used this Idea.
Nice! Hope it helps. Thx
That was very creative and it seemed to work well. I recently just used a manual sod cutter that I rented for $35 for the day and did 1500 sq ft. All is required is to kick it and hold on to the handles and the blade and roller does the rest. :)
I do like the look of those manual machines, but I've never tried one to compare the level of effort required. They are probably just as good as what I did, plus you do get to stand up while using it - that helps some. I have some foot problems, so the kicking looked rough to me but most users would likely be ok. Thanks for the input.
Where do you rent it from? Home depot?
@@rawon You can if they have that in your area or a local tool rental place is where I rented mine.
Great idea. If you have a Stihl Kombi and the bed edger attachment you can use that in place of the circular saw. You will loose like a inch of sod when you cut your lines.
Good point - a powered edging tool would spare you the embarrassment of using the saw. I suppose you could cut the lines by hand with a hatchet if you don't have any power tools.
@@IsomEric what about a half moon edger? It’s what I have, don’t have a circular saw or even a power edger
@@mattmcd2803 The half-moon edger would work fine if you have one. There are lots of ways to make the strip cut other than the circular saw. A sharp ice spade would do it. You could get down on the ground and use a hatchet. As long as the cut is fairly straight/clean it should be fine.
Very innovative, nice results.
Thx for sayin'
Ill use my edger not circular saw, but the the rest is ingenious. Thanks for the video. Now time for me to get cracking 😅
Sounds good - several other viewers have commented that they used a power edger instead of the saw to cut the lines. Hope it goes well!
This is brilliant, I am going to use it your technique this upcoming weekend ;)
Thanks! Hope it goes well for you.
Thanks for the video. But what are you going to put as a replacement to turf?
We converted the irrigation to a drip line and installed a nice shrub bed surrounded by rock. Uses less water now and makes mowing a bit faster. I made this video before we got the new stuff in. Thx
@@IsomEric 👍
lmao cut with circular saw while your neighbors arent home. great job.
Thanks! Enjoy.
You could use an edger instead of a circular saw, it's a long handled semi circle looking tool.
Yep, I used one of those all the time as a kid doing yard work with my folks. I no longer have one, but many viewer have said the same thing about using edgers (powered or manual) instead of the saw. Whatever gets the job done! Thanks
Sod cutter Rental !!
But ingenious trick there!
If you go the powered sod cutter route, don't forget to rent a truck or a trailer to transport the machine. Oh, and be sure to install a trailer hitch on your car/suv if you do the trailer option. Also make sure you have an equipment ramp to load/unload the cutter because it weighs about 300 lbs. If you rent a manual kick-type sod cutter, then be sure your feet are in good shape because it is high impact. You won't be able to use one of those for long if you have foot problems like I have. Good luck. Thanks!
Could you use a lawn edger / trencher blade instead of a skillsaw?
Totally! Many viewers have said they used an edger to make the straight cuts. I don't have one of those. Tried using a line-trimmer, but it just couldn't cut deep enough. Thx
Wow!! You are a genius!!!! Well done
Thx! You're too kind.
This is a crazy method.. I just rented a sod cutter for $78 from HomeDepot.. Very easy to use only took about 2hrs to cut and remove the sod from a 25x15foot area. Yes you need a truck or small trailer to get the sod cutter.. But the sod cutter is the way to go!!
"Crazy good", maybe... am I right!? Yeah, I don't even have a trailer hitch, so I was looking at a truck rental as well as renting the cutter. Decided to go the Red Green route instead.
Question for you... Where would you say the break-point is in terms of square footage of sod to be cut between this DIY method and renting a sod cutter from a big box hardware store? ($87/4hrs, $124/day) (E.g. 300sqft? get the sod cutter.) Great video, by the way!
Great question. Hard to answer since there are a few to consider. In my case, I had no truck nor trailer hitch to use to transport a sod cutter, so I might be willing to sweat my through more sod by hand than a truck owner would. Another big factor is your age - I'm in my 50's so I can't grind through hard labor like I used to. Also, my helpers (kids) were pretty young, so they couldn't add much in the way of brute strength. Looking back, I think I easily could've done about twice what I did in the video (so 2 x 200 sq ft = ~400 sq ft total). Beyond that, the machine would probably have been looking like the better option. Hope this helps. Thanks!
WOW! This is so smart! Exactly what I needed for my project!
Thanks for saying so - hope it's helpful!
Thank you!
My pleasure. Hope it's useful!
Ah, the use of the wood roller is a clever idea, thanks for sharing.
I think that if you have time to plan, you could repeatedly scalp the area in the preceding weeks during spring. Scalped grass quickly catches up to taller grass, that energy has to come from somewhere- the roots. If you do it multiple times while it's growing, it will burn through its roots, and you will not have to slash through it while rolling it up. If the grass has stopped growing, it won't work because it'll just stay short instead. Probably worth a try.
EDIT: I tried this while doing something else- trying to remove the soil completely (the morons who installed the sod left the plastic netting buried beneath my whole yard). Killed the grass with glyphosate (Roundup®). Scalping repeatedly during spring compared to not scalping is an advantage, but not a huge one.
Shortening and/or weakening the root system to eliminate the slashing would reduce the overall effort dramatically. I didn't even know that was possible. Thanks for the insight.
@@IsomEric Would like to post an update, as I did this after posting the comment. Long story short, it sort of works.
I scalped a section repeatedly in spring. First time, it caught up to the rest of the lawn in a few days. After the second, it slowed down a lot, probably ate up the energy from its roots. I kept this up for a month before it went dormant in summer, then late summer I killed it with glyphosate/Roundup®. (I am trying to remove the plastic netting that was left behind/buried by the careless morons who installed the sod, not make my own sod. Destroy all then reseed.) Overall, with the grass scalped and roots weakened, it was moderately better/easier than when I did the same thing without scalping. Probably worth scalping it twice, but after that it's diminishing returns.
Also, type of grass will likely make a big difference.
This has helped a great deal. Luckily I do own a circular saw and will be putting that to good use! The area I'm doing as the same size as your lawn so this gives me a good idea of what I have to work with :) Thank you!
Thanks for the feedback. I hope it helps.
@@IsomEric It's Sunday here in the UK so noise is prohibited. Will give it a go tomorrow :)
Goog Ideas! Thanks for the good tips and ingenuity!
You're welcome - hope it's useful. Thanks!
Clearing area for pavers. It’s intense! Gonna try this!
Hope it works out!
Very clever, good job 🎉
Thx for sayin'!
Thank you! Now i have to hire someone to do this for me
🤣😂
Great tip. I’m thinking of removing 50 sq ft of Saint Augustine sod from my front yard and transfer it to a small patch in my backyard. I was thinking of scraping through underneath the sod but st augustine sod roots are too thick and heavy with the moist soil. It’s possible but it would be a pain in the rear to do it. Your method seems silly but better than breaking your back or paying hundreds of dollars for machinery or landscapers
Sounds like a good plan - hope it works well for you. Thanks!
You’re a flipping genius! Thank you!
You're too kind, but thx for sayin'.
so flipping brilliant! Thank you for posting!
Hope it's useful - thanks!
very clever. I wonder if following behind with a string timmer might work instead of slashing.
Never tried the line trimmer on the roots. I'm thinking that might work. Thanks for the input!
after I commented, I felt stupid thinking the string would be too weak on the roots, but surely those rigid/serrated blade attachments would be perfect for the task....
how did you come up with this idea. superb mate. I love it when clever ideas form in your head. this is brilliant.
My wife wanted it done immediately, so I had to come up with something. As the great DIY legend Mr. Red Green often says - "If women don't find you handsome, they should at least find you handy." Thanks.
This is awesomely MacGyver! Brilliant!
Thanks! Strangely, I didn't watch much MacGyver when I was younger. I did watch a fair amount of The A-Team and The Red Green Show though.
Omgosh, you are a genius!!!
Thanks... hope it's helpful.
You sure are genius thank you
Not really, but thanks - hope it works for you!
Hey, that's really clever..........loving the turf being cut with a circular saw!
Whatever works...
Yeah, just perfect if ya don’t care about all the 15 dollar blades you gonna be destroying, did it ever occur to anyone to use the intended tool for lawn cutting--little thing called an “edger”?
Pure gold my good sir. Thank you!
Thx for saying. I might do another round of this myself this year to convert more of my front lawn since water rates keep going up.
This is brilliant. saved me a lot of money. thanks.
I'm glad it helped... Thanks!
why did you rip up that beautiful sod?
Great question! It was too small for my kids to use to play on - we have a bigger stretch of turf in our backyard for that. The small size also made it hard to water efficiently - a lot of overspray on the surrounding pavement and rock. We replaced it with a nice rock/mulch/shrub area that looks better and requires only a small amount of drip irrigation to maintain. It was easy to get someone else to take it because it was in nice useable condition - the guy who picked it up said he would be reinstalling it in his yard to give his kids a soft spot to play on. Thanks!
oh shit! sir, you are a life saver! THANK U
Thanks for saying so - happy to help.