Erosion Control Mats for reseeding lawn

[LMichaels]

So I need some insight and help. About 5/6 weeks ago wife and I rototilled up a large portion of our back lawn. We then put down new seed, raked that in with starter mix and set the erosion control mats over it according to directions This https://www.menards.com/main/outdoo...-control-blanket/040-2000/p-1444423565122.htm is what we used. The photos show what we did and how it started looking. Well the grass has been jumping out of the ground and it's time to cut it. Everything I have read about the product says the nylon mesh should just be chopped up with the mower rather than trying to pull the mats up. I did try pulling the mats up but it was pulling up the new grass as well.
Well now I have nylon mesh tangled up in my garden tractor's mower deck. So badly I have to pull the deck (no easy task for this old fart) and will most likely need to pull all the jack shafts, bearings and seals and who knows how much damage I am going to find?
Wondering if anyone has ever used the product and what if any trouble did you have? How did you handle it? Count me totally PO'd and angry beyond belief.

 

[Timothy F. Lewis]

Menards fired a friend of mine over his (old fart) less than twelve year old iPhone skills. The big box stores really irritate me! Big orange has miserable CS, Menards lousy personnel communication, and stupid “discount” concepts. Lowe’s doesn’t seem to under stand the “sale” concept for charcoal but, they DO have it in stock.
End rant.
Nylon mesh bedding medium? Around here the companies that destroy your lawn have hydro seeded, we shall see, how this latest road/water main project ends up finishing out.

 

[Bruce]

I just picked up and laid down two yards of top soil in a sink hole (low spot) in my yard. I seeded with some HD non name brand stuff and it is coming up great. It wasn't the cheap quick green stuff, but wasn't "Scotts" either. I didn't expect this heat wave which isn't ideal for new grass growth, but it seems to be liking it just fine. I didn't put down and mats or soil erosion stuff. It is about a 20'x10' area. I am a long way from mowing though.

 

[Brad Olson]

Larry, I think you'll probably have to go directly to the mat manufacturer for any relief, but they'll probably argue that your lifting of the mesh exposed it to the mower.

Oh, and if you need a hand with the mower, I'm not exactly busy these days. Will work for gas money and Salamone's.

 

[JKalchik]

The electrical contractor who ended up having to dig under my driveway slab to fix a fault for the street light used something like that. I don't think there's any way that I'd run a mower over it, and I doubt it'd break down gracefully enough for my standards. I ended up waiting for for the grass to get up around 3" before I pulled up the netting, along with the 6" long steel ground spikes that I didn't know where there. Not a fan of this stuff for a mowed area.

 

[Dan Leighton]

When I had to do something similar 38 years ago, we just used burlap bags on the slopes to hold. Over time they disintigrated just fine with all the extra watering the new grass needed. Even held the slope with a heavy thunderstorm downpour. Worked pretty well until the birds discovered lunch was served.

 

[LMichaels]

Larry, I think you'll probably have to go directly to the mat manufacturer for any relief, but they'll probably argue that your lifting of the mesh exposed it to the mower.

Oh, and if you need a hand with the mower, I'm not exactly busy these days. Will work for gas money and Salamone's.

Actually I didn't lift the mesh. At least not where I ran the mower deck over it. I have to finish the mixer up for Sam, then I am going to be pulling the deck hopefully today. One of my oldest friends (not just his age LOL) but been buds since 7th grade (so something like 56 years) is going to pop out from Spring Grove IL and help me get the deck back under the machine. Like many things. Getting it back under there is not nearly as easy to get it out
We just had some Salamone's Pizza the other day. Saturday actually. Stopped there on the way back from ORD to pick up daughter who was in CO

 

[BobJ]

I used straw and raked even that up before mowing. Could you mow it with the deck raised all the way up and not catch the mat?

 

[LMichaels]

I used straw and raked even that up before mowing. Could you mow it with the deck raised all the way up and not catch the mat?

That's what I tried doing. But 2 things conspired against that. 1, the deck has very high "suction" and 2, the new grass pushed not only up and through but also pushed the netting up as well. I liked how well it got the grass going but I will never waste my $$$$ on that stuff again. I will just put down straw. We used this stuff though because the area is prone to erosion in the heavy storms we get in the spring and previous attempts to reseed left me with more mud than grass

 

[timothy]

Could you mow it with the deck raised all the way up and not catch the mat?

Our son used something similar last year and he mowed it with no problems. I was skeptical, but it worked.
The mesh was supposed to break down over time. That didn't happen as I pulled most of it up early spring.

Tim

 

[JimZ]

Larry-
I went through this with a small section in my front yard last year but I had a landscaper do it for me. The same thing with the plastic mesh crap getting tangled in mower deck. Supposedly it will break down over time but it's not showing any signs of that yet. I will never use that stuff again. Seed and straw will be the way I go. Good luck!

 

[Bruce]

Larry: The way it looks, my reseeding might need some of that erosion control tonight and tomorrow. Yikes.

 

[Bruce]

That little thunderstorm that just rolled through Rockford is headed directly my way. It sounds like a lot more too.

 

[Kevin L (NKY)]

Three years ago I had to replace 300 feet of my leach field all new chambers well that really messes up your yard, I used Rebel 31 grass seed 100 lbs and 8 bales of straw let the grass get tall 3 plus inches then raked up all the easy straw I could then mowed the rest kept the deck high, that made more straw become loose so I repeated this rake and mow 3 or 4 times a year later you can not see that any work was done. I got lucky right time of year and meduim rains.