Middlesbrough Football Club (MFC) Football Pitch Maintenance
The maintenance team was in Middlesbrough this week based at the foundation’s premises at the Herlingshaw Centre. Their outdoor 3G pitch is used on an everyday basis, specifically from the local community for small football games. It therefore is exposed to heavy usage often. For such facilities, we emphasise heavily the role maintenance plays.
One of the most important aspects of 3G pitches is keeping your eye on infill levels. After a while, the 3G rubber crumb compacts together and are lost in the artificial grass blades. 3G should be clearly visible after the maintenance is complete.
The image to the right shows the disappearing 3G granules that have been lost in this corner. The yarn is subjected to heavy footfall during the games. Although this image may look like the grass is in good condition, 3G should be re-migrated regularly to prevent problems in the future.
A preventative maintenance package includes a 3G deep clean. Our specialist Ferrari machine pulls up the rubber crumb granules from deep into the surface and redistributes it. Immediately after this process the crumb will sit on top of the pitch and may mean the lines are not seen as clearly as usual. This is normal and after a couple of uses will settle back naturally.
3G should be clearly visible after a maintenance.
Whilst this may not look attractive at first, it is essential!
What else do you need to look for?
But it is not just the 3G that you need to keep a watchful eye on. Other changes in the surface should be reported as soon as possible and there should be a designated inspector to oversee this. Things such as if there is a corner of the surface which holds a lot of water after heavy rain or seams that are coming away. These must be reported immediately. That is what our Emergency Maintenance Package is there for.
In addition, 3G pitches requires specific footwear. Moulded footwear can be used but no blades of flat shoes. Footwear should also be clean and in good condition. These should be communicated regularly to all users as if these rules are ignored, could cause severe damage to your pitch including rips and tears.
Booking in a maintenance?
Contact our Office Manager today:
Call us on 01642 713 555 or email louise@stmworld.co.uk
If there are still questions that you would like answered, please do not hesitate to call Synthetic Turf Maintenance and we will be happy to discuss your artificial grass needs.
