Anyone know anything about lawn rollers; weight?

[sh00ter]

I am filling some low spots with fresh dirt on an already established lawn and I am planning to buy a lawn roller to pull behind a lawn tractor to compact the new dirt rather then use a hand tamper which takes too long and hurt my back.

The only two weights I am considering are 270lbs and 400lbs. The 400lb roller is 3ft wide and the 270lb roller is 2ft wide. Although I am mainly planning to use for fill spots, I think the entire yard could use a good rolling then aerating so I'm leaning towards the wider one since it is a larger yard, BUT I need to know if the weight difference is significant? Spanning 400lbs over 3ft vs 270lbs over 2ft, is there any real difference in how much pressure is exerted to compact the soil? Or is the ONLY advantage between these two the wider track of the 3ft roller?

I'm aware commercial rollers are 1500lbs in some cases and I'm sure that significant of a weight difference makes a difference, but it would seem to me the cheaper 2ft roller "might" have a chance to give the same compaction as a 3ft 400lb one? And if the 400lb one is unavailable, then that leave me to compare 270lb to 390lb as the next option.

Need a math whiz here

 

[Pokinfun]

I am filling some low spots with fresh dirt on an already established lawn and I am planning to buy a lawn roller to pull behind a lawn tractor to compact the new dirt rather then use a hand tamper which takes too long and hurt my back.

The only two weights I am considering are 270lbs and 400lbs. The 400lb roller is 3ft wide and the 270lb roller is 2ft wide. Although I am mainly planning to use for fill spots, I think the entire yard could use a good rolling then aerating so I'm leaning towards the wider one since it is a larger yard, BUT I need to know if the weight difference is significant? Spanning 400lbs over 3ft vs 270lbs over 2ft, is there any real difference in how much pressure is exerted to compact the soil? Or is the ONLY advantage between these two the wider track of the 3ft roller?

I'm aware commercial rollers are 1500lbs in some cases and I'm sure that significant of a weight difference makes a difference, but it would seem to me the cheaper 2ft roller "might" have a chance to give the same compaction as a 3ft 400lb one? And if the 400lb one is unavailable, then that leave me to compare 270lb to 390lb as the next option.

Need a math whiz here

from my experience heavier is better. I tried one as few years ago, lawn was soft from rain, it did not really do anything. I ended up putting down some plywood and driving my jeep over it. we tilled my sisters yard once and used a roller, it worked great on the broken dirt.

 

[soonersfan]

Your money is better spent renting a small driveable pavement roller and driving it over your yard. If your yard isn't flat, this isn't an option. If it is, this will work like a champ, save your back and not be in your way later.

 

[Dave70968]

Pressure will be almost identical, assuming the diameter is the same. However, if the lawn isn't flat, a wider one will be more likely to get lifted by high spots and leave larger areas uncompacted.

 

[D. Hargrove]

Concur with @soonersfan. If feasible, renting a pavement roller will get the most bang for your buck.

 

[SlugSlinger]

Why would you compact the dirt instead of using a harrow or landscaping rake to spread and smooth the topsoil?

 

[Dave70968]

Why would you compact the dirt instead of using a harrow or landscaping rake to spread and smooth the topsoil?

My guess is that he's going to lay seed on the new soil; compacting it gives better contact between seed and soil, stimulating better germination. It'll also bring it to the same density as the existing soil so it doesn't settle right back into a depression.

 

[Perplexed]

It also depends on the type of soil you have; the less organic material, the less successful a roller will be. My yard is almost completely Port Silt Loam, and an 800-lb 4-foot wide roller didn't do much at all.

 

[dennishoddy]

It also depends on the type of soil you have; the less organic material, the less successful a roller will be. My yard is almost completely Port Silt Loam, and an 800-lb 4-foot wide roller didn't do much at all.

My soil is 70% blow sand, and 20% dirt of some sort. We are on a 4% slope. When it rains hard like it did over the weekend the sand moving across the ground with the runoff fills in all the gopher holes.
I built a roller that is 18" in diameter and 4' in length filled with concrete to pull behind the lawn tractor. It does a great job right after a good rain when the soil is fluffy and punches the walnuts into the ground so they don't fly into our windows. Trust me, a walnut will shatter a double pane Anderson window. They ain't cheap.

 

[sh00ter]

You guys are great!

- Can't use a pavement roller because this is a bumpy, hilly lawn with some grades as much as 30 degrees...basically my house is on a hill (with variable slope) and the entire back yard is a hill except for maybe 20% of it that is flatter up near the house...the steepness of the hill varies from west to east. I am able to mow 95% of the yard running parallel to the hill but the far corner of the lot drops off too much to mow, much less try to tow something over it so the rental option is not an option for me.

- I too have concerns that either of the smaller rollers would have enough weight to have any effect on the already grass-covered, compacted clay soil. If I wated that to work, the yard would have to be so wet that I couldn't drive on it anyway so this sways me away from the heavier roller.

- Dave, I agree that the wider one might rid the berms and not compact the fresh soil enough...everything is pointing to the 270lb roller because I could get the filled spots most of which will be 6" - 2ft wide. SOME could be much wider if I put down a lot of dirt but in that case I'd probably just do it a little at a time and not re-seed. For the narrower low spots, I am going to put down dirt, rake just enough to spread it, roll it flat, then re-seed, then maybe roll again.

The smaller roller also have a hand handle so I could use it without the tractor if necessary...I think the fact they ARE the same diameter tells me that although it would be nice to have the wider track when I eventually roll the entire yard, the immediate need is better supported by the smaller one and with these type of hills, I'm not sure the tractor could pull 400lbs up the steeper grades.

I towed a 10cu/ft trailer filled with a mound of moist dirt that was likely more than 10cu/ft up the steeper part and it stopped and I had to rock back and fourth with the pedal floored to get that weak hydro tranny to go again. It was a 650lb cart and it was super heavy so I may have had over 400lbs in this though...my buddy says that much dirt should have weighed 800-1000lbs but I just don't see it...none the less it proved the tractor can't pull weight up a hill very well so the 400lb might be too much.