Power tool for removing stones from lawn?

[horsepowered]

Hi to all this is my first post. I have been here quite awhile and respect the knowledge here on this site. My question is does anyone know of a powered tool to remove gravel pushed into the lawn edges from winter snow removal? I have about 600' of gravel driveway and am getting to old to rake the stones out every year, but not to old to move into the city. My Google searches have only really led me to a power rake, but I think these may be just for de thatching and seed bed preparation. Does anyone have anything that they use that is effective. Kids around here don't want to do this kind of work and most don't seen to do a very thorough job. Any input or advice is very much appreciated. Thank You Jim

 

[Dutch445]

Welcome To TBN!

Some folks have had good success with a broom
attachment, either 3ph or front mount. It takes
a little getting used to,, so you don't damage the
lawn too much,, but with the right amount of
pressure, they seem to work pretty well..
they dethatch also!
/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[44trxfun]

Hi horsepowered; welcome to the site! Slight nudge here to have you fill out your profile; that will help us help you...

My first thought would be a light touch with a landscape rake, assuming all your gravel wouldn't slip through the tines, and that may be an erroneous assumption. It might also be hindered by the layout of your driveway; you know better'n me. If that won't work, maybe it's time to teach the grandkids the value of a good day's work???

Good luck and enjoy the site!

 

[beenthere]

A broom works great (powered on the tractor type that is). And brooming in reverse works the best. Lifts the gravel pretty well and flips it back on to the drive. Then it needs to be mixed in, spread evenly, and packed down well with the existing gravel to get it to stay there.

Also, there are "paddle" drums that fit onto hand-held power poles like weed eaters or brush cutters that work well to 'paddle' the stones back onto the drive. Stihl has one, and I think others do as well.

 

[QRTRHRS]

Pick up some reflectors on fiberglass rods at Home Depot or some hardware store so you know where to stop plowing. Overall, a landscape rake will do more damage than good. I end up raking mine in by hand. Sometimes, I get a good build up of gravel within a foot or two of the driveway then I will use the landscape rake on it. I end up back dragging the gravel to float it out because the "duff" does not rake out very well. The "duff" looks bad but will disipate with the spring rains.

If I plow on the high side, the wind drifts the snow badly so I end up plowing on the low side. That makes gravel raking even more of a "character building experiance".

 

[EquipmentJunkie]

A rotary broom works the best. It is aggressive enough to remove the stones but easy on the turf.

When adjusted properly, a broom will remove thatch, cigarette butts, stones, and stuff that you never knew was there.

Some rental stores have walk-behind brooms that are about 36" wide. Look for brands like Sweepster or MB.

 

[dsb5610]

I've struggled with this for years as well. Have not found a better solution for putting the rocks back other than manually raking them. I have not tried a powered broom but I have tried to manually broom without success. A powered broom would not work for me as the side of the drive is sloped in numerous places.

Next summer I will be having the driveway seal coated. This will not only eliminate the rocks in the grass but will also eliminate the trail of gravel fines leading into the garage. Much cheaper than asphalt. Townships roads and some neighbors have seal coat and all seem very satisfied with it.

Thru trial and error I have determined that using a snowblower set high enough to leave the rocks works best. This leaves a hard pack of snow on the driveway which isn't a problem until melting (messy).

dsb

 

[keeney]

Look into renting a "Rock Vac":

Rock Vac

I helped a guy clean out a bunch of landscaping with one, and I bet it would do Ok on picking up less concentrated amounts of stone spread in grass as well.

Still requires some manual labor to direct the hose, so it s not exactly the "fingertip control from tractor seat" tool I know you were hoping for, but probably less work than manual raking.

- Rick

 

[riptides]

After clearing about an acre of land, I walked around for a year with a bucket.

I used a york rake before and after the grasses started coming up.

It was manual labor, but the end-product pasture, looked better than my front lawn.

-Mike Z. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[RickO]

HorsePowered, Welcome!

Could be you need to approach this problem from another angle. Seems that you can get blade shoes that may help keep your stones in your drive. Also I have turned my blade around and used the other side so it does not dig in as mentioned in the link below. It leaves about 1" of snow on the ground depending on the weight of your blade. You might weight the blade and then plow with it backwards.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/showflat.php/Cat/0/Board/implement/Number/781455/page/0/view//sb/5/o/all/fpart/all/vc/1