Laying artificial turf on balconies and terraces: substructure and instructions

A race is considered the epitome of nature and home. For many, it symbolizes the private outdoor area par excellence. For those who cannot build a real lawn, artificial turf is an alternative. If it is to be laid on a balcony or terrace, you should pay attention to the right substructure in order to maintain the joy of greenery in the long term. With our instructions, laying will be done in no time at all.

Artificial turf for balconies and patios

Artificial turf is, as the name suggests, an artificial product and therefore far less sensitive than its natural counterpart. However, even he cannot do without his own demands on his environment. In particular, this applies to the subsurface on which it is being laid. Different artificial turf models are more or less rigid or flexible and can be made very thin or even significantly thicker. In all cases, however, it is a textile product that does not have its own supporting structure. Similar to a carpet, it is therefore dependent on a suitable substructure. This should have the following properties:

• Just
• Fixed
• not sending
• Free of thresholds, edges, holes or imperfections

Therefore, either concrete slabs or screed directly, or an even and thickly laid covering made of artificial or natural stone are ideal.

Substructure

If, on the other hand, artificial turf is to be applied to a substrate that does not have the properties mentioned or only inadequately, a corresponding substructure must be created. Otherwise it is to be expected that the artificial turf will be on balcony or terrace develops stumbling blocks if it conceals edges and steps in the substructure, but does not level them. If there are any imperfections in the ground underneath, however, the lawn can be expected to sag, so that there is also a risk of accidents.

For uneven paving

• Improvement by leveling the panels and removing steps and edges

For damaged concrete substrates

• Repairing imperfections, e.g. B. with a suitable cement spatula
• Bridging cracks, thresholds and edges by warping with the above-mentioned spatula
• For sanding surfaces, treat with an adhesive primer or Burn-on barrier

With wooden flooring

• Laying a flat level on the i.d. R. floorboards laid on joints, e.g. B. Waterproof chipboard suitable for outdoor use and tongue and groove design, full-surface screwing into the floorboards
• Then apply a coating to produce permanent moisture resistance, e.g. B. with floor coating based on synthetic resin
• Alternatively: Replace the boards with a flat covering made of non-moisture-critical material, such as cement-bonded chipboard

Note: The construction of artificial turf on wooden floorboards is probably rather seldom to be expected. Wood usually also has numerous properties of artificial turf, i.e. a high-quality look and a pleasant feeling when walking barefoot. For the sake of completeness, the retrofitting as a suitable substructure is nevertheless discussed here in order not to leave this eventuality out of the equation.

Laying artificial turf on balconies & terraces: Instructions

Once a suitable, i.e. level and solid substructure is in place, the next step is to lay the artificial turf. With the right tools, this can be achieved in simple steps that can be carried out well even for the layperson. We assume that the lawn will be glued. It is true that one reads again and again that this flooring can also be laid well floating, i.e. without any connection with the subsurface. However, especially when using garden tables and chairs that are moved and shifted, this easily leads to folds and joints between the shifting tracks.

materials

• Meter measure as a folding rule or roll tape measure
• Carpet knife with snap-off blade, alternatively hooked blade from floor layers
• Steel ruler or other stop for creating straight cutting edges
• Weather-resistant adhesive suitable for the selected artificial turf
• Possibly required tools for glue application, e.g. B. Toothed trowel
• Alternatively: Adhesive tape suitable for artificial turf material and existing underground

Note: When looking for a suitable adhesive for artificial turf, you will find adhesive tape as well as liquid, spreadable adhesives. When laying outdoors, which always includes terraces and balconies, particularly inexpensive adhesive tapes often show weaknesses due to decreasing adhesive strength under temperature fluctuations. Therefore, only adhesive tape specially designed for outdoor use should be used for laying artificial turf.

artificial grass

Of course, in addition to the preparatory work and the right material for laying, you should not forget the actual lawn. Keep the planned purpose, i.e. optical or haptic or use-related issues, in the back of your head and look at the different versions in the specialist trade or hardware store in the original. It is essential to pay attention to the following properties:

• Weather resistance
• UV resistance
• Base layer drainable for draining rainwater and avoiding standing moisture (mold!)
• Ideally, a large sheet width for low installation effort
• Depending on the use, sufficiently dense and "long-stemmed"

Note: When choosing your lawn, keep in mind that frequent use will depress the artificial stalks in a way that is comparable to real lawns. You should therefore plan a slightly larger initial length of the blades of grass so that you will not experience any nasty surprises later due to a flat and thin covering.

Embarrassed

When laying, proceed as follows step by step:

1. Roll out

• Place the roll of lawn flush against a straight edge of the surface and roll it out
• Cut the membrane flush at the end of the balcony or terrace surface, for straight cuts, for example. Use a steel ruler
• Lay the second strip close to the first strip without overlapping or joints and roll out and cut to length at the same time
• Cut the last strip to the edge of the terrace, butt the straight edge of the factory against the next to last strip for a seamless surface
• For recesses such as supports, downpipes, etc. First mark the path and then cut it out with a sharp knife
• Complete the membranes, check that they have been laid without joints, if necessary Close the joints by pushing up the strips and move the joint to the edge of the terrace

tip: Press the turf sheet sharply into the corner between the parapet and the floor on any building elements that rise up, such as the balcony parapet. Then cut directly into the crease and get a straight edge without a joint to the edge.

2. Gluing

• Fold down adjacent strips along the joints and apply adhesive to the floor in the joint area according to the manufacturer's instructions
• Width of the adhesive bed according to the manufacturer's specifications, usually at least 10 to 15 centimeters per lane, so a total of around 25 to 30 centimeters wide
• Lay the joint joint on the adhesive bed, check that the joint is closed and press the joint in firmly
• In the edge area, only edit the edge of the individual lane in the same way

tip: Depending on the thickness of the adhesive, a roller can be helpful to press the joint into the adhesive bed. For example, even a painter's roller enables a significantly higher and more even force than pressing in by hand.

Gluing with adhesive tape 

• Unfold the membrane joints
• Stick the adhesive tape in the middle under the joint on the surface and press it firmly or roll on
• Peel off protective film on top
• Press the strip edges one after the other firmly onto the adhesive tape, placing the second strip tightly against the first strip without joints

tip: Adhesive tape is less effective than liquid adhesive in border areas, but it is also much easier to remove it from the substrate. This makes it particularly suitable for rental apartments, where the artificial turf has to be removed again after the end of the tenancy.

3. Rework

• Vacuum the artificial turf surface to remove loose stalks and dirt
• Carefully brush the lawn against the grain with a coarse broom in order to raise the stalks that have been pressed down

Artificial turf in tile form

In addition to the well-known artificial lawn in roll form, there are now various types of lawn tiles. However, these are usually applied to solid substructures, for example made of plastic or wood. They have slightly lower demands on the evenness and strength of the substructure and can, for example, bridge smaller holes themselves. These systems usually have click connections so that gluing is completely unnecessary. Instead, the tiles are simply placed next to each other and clicked into place. This type of connection also ensures that the connection is made without a joint.