Lawn Roller fill

[MikeR 2018]

I'n thinking of getting a lawn roller. It requires 94 gallons of liquid. What is the cheapest non-freezing liquid that I could use? I don't know if beet juice would cost more than antifreeze, or how much antifreeze I'd need.

 

[KennyG]

Everything seems to be expensive these days. Beet juice should be much cheaper than antifreeze. If you can find a bargain, windshield washer fluid is pretty cheap, but beet juice is a good bit heavier per gallon.

 

[Gee Ray]

Why not fill it with water? Use it all summer and drain it in the fall. If you drain a little more then 1/2 the water freezing it should not be a problem.

 

[oosik]

Don't complicate the situation. Use water - drain it in the fall.

 

[seville009]

I used a lawn roller like you describe to try to smooth out a rough yard; had no lasting effect. Neighbor owned a fairly large steam roller; borrowed that - same result.

my advice is that they really don't accomplish anything.

if you are smoothing out a rough area, best bet is to take the time to do something like tilling it, and then smoothing it out. Throw some grass seed on it and let it grow for a year and you'll be done and happy.

 

[Diggin It]

best bet is to take the time to do something like tilling it, and then smoothing it out. Throw some grass seed on it

Which is why you need the roller. Till, seed, roll. Compact the seed into the soil. Same as planting crop seed.

They also work for flattening mole runs, though you may have to do it a few times before you flatten the mole making the runs.

Mine is poly and only about 30-40 gallons, but a gallon of automotive antifreeze has done the job for several years. How cold it gets in the dead of winter may mean increasing the AF mix rate though.

 

[ericm979]

I have one with a plastic roller. I stored it full for a few years (no chance of freezing in my barn) and it ended up deforming the roller into an egg shape. I've since gotten it back to round by storing it empty with the pointy side down. It gets emptied after every use now.

 

[Doughknob]

I could never figure lawn rollers out either. I never even heard of such a thing until i moved to ohio. Growing up in the heart of real farm country, no one did this. my lawn is fine without rolling. It has some dips, holes, swales. But a roller will not help those. So what does a roller do?

 

[ericm979]

When you seed a bare area you roll it to get the seeds into the soil so they germinate better. Rolling can help level an existing lawn. It doesn't do anything about the low spots but it can pack down some high spots.

 

[RoyJackson]

I roll my lawn in early Spring. In the NE, we get frost heaves and the 48" roller flattens them out. I use water as ballast and it's drained late Summer or early Fall...but long before any freezes

 

[JCoastie]

Is there a reason that sand wouldn't be a good option?

 

[RoyJackson]

Is there a reason that sand wouldn't be a good option?

Not really, if you plan on leaving it in permanently

 

[ericm979]

Is there a reason that sand wouldn't be a good option?

Deforming a plastic roller, rusting a steel one due to condensation ("dry" sand isn't perfectly dry), and getting it in the fill hole. The fill hole on mine is about an inch diameter.

 

[npalen]

I've found that tilling an area for a lawn doesn't always guarantee flatness. Depending on how deep it is tilled, it seems that settling is not always consistent and may result in a less than flat lawn.

 

[Wyobuckaroo]

DRY Sand....
The key word being dry.... Paint one side of a sheet of plywood black, place on saw horses, spread a thin layer of sand, let dry, put in roller with it standing on end... Repeat until full... It isn't a fast fill process, but if you want something you can fill and forget..... this is it.....

 

[RalphVa]

You can often get windshield wiper fluid for less than $1/gallon. Think everything else would be far higher. Might put water in and a small amount of alcohol. Can probably look up freeze point of various methyl alcohol mixes with water and add whatever you need for the freeze protection needed in your area.

Lawn rollers are really only used to push new grass seed into the soil without compacting too much. Don't see any other use for them. And alternative that works well is to broadcast straw over the new seed. Then, it doesn't need that push into the soil.

 

[RoyJackson]

You can often get windshield wiper fluid for less than $1/gallon. Think everything else would be far higher. Might put water in and a small amount of alcohol. Can probably look up freeze point of various methyl alcohol mixes with water and add whatever you need for the freeze protection needed in your area.

Lawn rollers are really only used to push new grass seed into the soil without compacting too much. Don't see any other use for them. And alternative that works well is to broadcast straw over the new seed. Then, it doesn't need that push into the soil.

Never thought about using WW fluid....that's a good idea if one wants to keep the roller filled year long

 

[DB Pilot]

I've had my roller for several years now. It is made of steel, the largest one that TS sells. First thing that happened was the pot metal bearings broke. Next the cold pressed 90 degree angles broke and then the seam on the roller itself leaks. This year the two angles where the metal meets the tow bar broke off. I weld the frame and sometimes have had to bend the steel back into shape, but the seam on the barrel is too light of metal to weld so I have to use a water sealant once in a while. Keep an eye on the flexing of the towing frame as you use it and this is why I suggest WATER only.

 

[seville009]

Never thought about using WW fluid....that's a good idea if one wants to keep the roller filled year long

even winter windshield washer fluid is expensive now - about $4 a gallon. I stock up at the beginning of each winter - paid $1.67 last Fall.

 

[RalphVa]

Cheapest may be alcohol in water, methyl alcohol.