Pasture Aeration

treekatie · Jan 17, 2012

How much would you charge to aerate 20 acres of coastal bermuda?

treekatie · Jan 17, 2012

And what type of aerators do some of you like the best (water filled, brands, etc.)

foreman Etexas · Jan 17, 2012

I have had my eye on this one at local dealer $5995

8'airway

Cantoo · Jan 17, 2012

I buy these at auctions for around $150 here. I resell them for more.

blueriver · Jan 17, 2012

Call me crazy ... Aeriation is good not until you brake the hard pan ???

JD5210 · Jan 17, 2012

Cantoo, would you mind sharing the brand name of the aerator in the picture you supplied? Thanks

imgone52 · Jan 17, 2012

Aeration needs to reach the root zone. We use core aerators (as above) for our lawns at the state parks. They help with root growth. Not being able to use pesticides or fertilizer, this process is our best bet for healthy sod.

Cantoo · Jan 17, 2012

The green ones I think are Ryan brand aerators. The last 2 that I sold went to North Carolina. I had a couple of these too.
Around here farmers are using aerators in front of and behind liquid manure spreaders to aid in getting it into the soil instead of running off.

hosspuller · Jan 17, 2012

Cantoo said:
The green ones I think are Ryan brand aerators. The last 2 that I sold went to North Carolina. I had a couple of these too.
Around here farmers are using aerators in front of and behind liquid manure spreaders to aid in getting it into the soil instead of running off.

I have a tow behind Ryan lawn aerator that has the same weight disks. So I can confirm you're correct. I didn't know Ryan made a 3 point aerator before. Having the disks rotate independently makes turning easier. The spoons are replaceable but not cheap.

Cantoo · Jan 17, 2012

Hoss, these are pretty old units and came from golf courses.

JimRB · Jan 17, 2012

This is the one I want. I would have to save for a while.
2012 First Products Aera-vator Landscape/Sod | FIRST PRODUCTS, INC. TIFTON, GA

treekatie · Jan 18, 2012

What about how much to charge per acre? And Jim you right that's WAY out of my price range, and I don't even see a price!

RDrancher · Jan 18, 2012

I rent a core / spade unit from the local Kubota dealer. It runs about $160 per day. I charge by the hour for the tractor with one hour move-on / four hour minimum and split the rental cost. Sometimes I drop the move-on charge if its close. I always try to put together at least a couple jobs at a time to make it a day.

Brushogging runs form $30-$35 per acre around here. I charge $35 for existing customers and $50 an hour for new fields. I figure 1.5 acres per hour and aerating takes about the same time as shredding if that helps.

Cantoo · Jan 18, 2012

For that many acres, you would be better to buy an old one if you can't rent one. RD rancher is right on the time being close to bush hogging but fuel usage and the chance of damaging the machine would be way less so adjust your price accordingly.
They also make tow behind ones that have a hand operated hydraulic pump to raise and lower them, depending on your property type if you don't have a tractor you could tow it with a truck.
The aerator type are pricy, the one I had was the slicer style and I wasn't impressed with it. 4" wide and tuff looking but everything worked, bought for $500. Sold it for more.

treekatie · Jan 20, 2012

OK so this is what I ended up doing. He wants about a 3 acre tract disced up for a garden. $325 for that. The other 20 acres of his place he wants aerated, I found a used aerator that needs some welding repairs for around $600. So I'd end up starting off almost $300 in the hole with an unknown piece of equipment I may never end up using again.

Told him that the best I could do is straighten up my discs and aerate it with those for $25 an acre. That's $500, but if he wants me to do both I'd do it for $800 even. We'll see. Does that sound reasonable? I don't think I can do it for much less.

RDrancher · Jan 20, 2012

If you can do it in a day or even two it sounds pretty good. $800 cash sounds even better.

Depending on what type of aerator that is the price sounds good. I have a handful of customers that I aerate for twice a year, so purchasing one that sits for 350 days a year isn't worth it for me.