Lawn Aerator Coring Tool Manual Plug Core Aerators

Update to previous review: I received a replacement for my original which broke the first time I tried to use it and the exact same thing happened again. The cheap plastic holding this otherwise rugged tool together snapped in half at the neck, the exact same way my first one broke. Unless they redesign this item, I strongly recommend avoiding it. The plastic couplings are so low quality it's hard to believe anyone could use this successfully. Original review: I have a small area of my yard that hasn't been doing well despite my best efforts so I figured I would try and manually aerate it and see if that helps. The product was delivered quickly but the engineering flaw is pretty easy to spot. The tool comes in three pieces, and while it is very heavy-duty metal, the junction points that hold the pieces together are cheap plastic. I literally put it together, put it on my lawn, stepped on it, and it snapped in half. I understand that shipping it in pieces probably makes it easier and lower cost to ship but the plastic junction points are inexcusable. Why bother using heavy duty steel when the product is held together by cheap plastic? I ordered a replacement so if the new one works and doesn't have any issues, I will update this review. For now, my initial impression is that they need an immediate re-design. The rest of the product seems quite sturdy so it's a shame they decided to use plastic to hold it together.

Works Great

This was a waste of money. After a solid rainy day, I tried to use this aerator and the tubes immediately clogged and wouldn't eject the soil. This caused it to be extremely difficult to keep trying. Then upon some frustration after manually clearing the tubes with a rod for the umpteenth time, I tried tapping the tines on a hard surface to dislodge the obstruction. The unit snapped in half at the middle connection point. The idea is there but the design is flawed. The plug removal slope is too steep for the compressed soil to easily eject and the center handle should all be one strong piece. I thought I'd save time by using this 4 plug unit instead of an old smaller 2 plug - lesson learned.

I live in Texas and have a mix of clay and normal soil. This tool dose great on the normal soil but struggles with the clay and gets jammed / clogged. Id just recommed a different product if you have thicker soil like the clay in Texas or Oklahoma.

The fist time I used it, I stepped on it the handle snapped in half. I fell over backwards, and sprained my back and nearly cracked my head garden border bricks. It comes in three different sections plastic sections connecting the steel parts. You screw the plastic sections together with 6mm screws. It is not strong enough. I weigh 200 Lbs. The first time I stepped on it to sink it into the lawn it snapped in half. I went a.. over tea kettle. Look somewhere else!

I already have a manual core aerator that has only two holes. It works very well and the cores of dirt comes out like it is suppose to. I was excited about seeing this one and it having four holes and a little larger than my other one. Well the excitement was short lived. The holes get clogged up every time. They dirt does not push through and then fall out. Don’t waste your money.

I bought this with the intent to renovate my parents front yard of 500 sqft. The aerator feels pretty solid how together by four bolts and I like how wide the stepping platform is. I'm doing this in the spring so the soil is pretty giving but it may have some difficulty if you plan to use this on hard packed dirt. Don't try to muscle the aerator into the ground and rely more on your body weight to step into it. I was able to finish my parents front yard in about 30 minutes. It's tiring but it gets the job done without having to rent special equipment.

In semi hard to hard ground it will not work. I even soaked my yard for a day or two and still broke the shaft in half. It has cheap plastic joints. I’m sure the prongs might work but will have to cut the bottom end of and weld it to a full metal bar and handle.