Faux Turf: Easy on the Eye, Free of Water Guilt
By Gina Dostler
As California’s drought continues unabated, fake grass is grabbing the spotlight as an alternative to water-loving lawns. Entrepreneur Victor LanFranco started up Synthetic Grass Warehouse with his partner Joe Ayoub 12 years ago, believing they could beautify landscapes with better artificial turf. Now they are the nation’s top distributor.
Q: What made you start a synthetic grass manufacturing company?
A: Two reasons. First one, we got lucky. Second is we had a vision. You have reasonable amounts of both. While my partner and I were driving from Vegas we began to really look at the surroundings and realized this is a desert. California is a desert along with all the south-western states. What’s a good company to start-up? We came up with solar and artificial grass. We chose grass. We knew artificial grass had been installed in football fields for awhile. But if we could make the Astroturf look better, people would embrace it and use it at home.
Q: Pioneered?
A: We started designing the next generation of artificial grass. Basically we went to various factories learning how to make a better grass. We knew nobody was going to buy the current stuff for their home. So we worked through many designs to come up with the products we have today. And they’re looking pretty real. They come in different sizes, colors and we have several products for different applications such as high traffic or pets. Every year our company has doubled in size.
Q: How do you get a lawn-lover to switch out to artificial grass?
A: It’s actually happening by itself. The drought has caused a mandated reduction in water that has given many homeowners a push towards keeping their water usage down. Currently Newport Beach has many homes that have embraced it. I have a boat in the harbor and while cruising through I see more and more homes embracing the synthetic turf. The savings are tremendous.
Q: How much water is saved?
A: Let’s look at some figures. One third of residential water usage goes to irrigation, which equals to about 9 billion gallons of water per day for the U.S. With 80% of homes growing grass, 98.5 million homes nationwide end up using 798,600 gallons per year per home. That’s a lot of water! Synthetic grass saves 55 gallons of water per square foot per year that works out to 78 trillion gallons of water per year across the nation. And besides saving water, it helps save the environment.
Q: What part does it save?
A: For one, our water. To have a nice beautiful lawn requires a lot of chemicals, most of which are pretty toxic. The chemicals either run down into our aquifers or wash down our drainage to the ocean. Homes on the harbor that have grass actually contribute to the pollution that is draining into our oceans. The chemicals applied to the grass percolate down through the sand into the harbor and kills our ecosystem. If you’ve ever been diving in our coastal waters you can see the damage that is happening under the water. It’s not good.
Q: Are the synthetic fibers and backing safe?
A: It’s made of polypropylene. Water bottles are made of the same stuff. As far as the use of crumb rubber filling, that’s only used in athletic field turf, not landscape turf. There are no glues since landscape turf is tacked down with nails. And artificial grass is 100% recyclable. Understand that synthetic grass doesn’t require mowing, which emits just as much pollution in one hour as 11 cars traveling on the road, according to the EPA. And as explained earlier, no application of chemicals is needed. Your children, pets and the water supply stay safe.
Q: How long does it last?
A: The grass lasts according to use. For instance, if you drive a car 300 miles a day, it will last a lot less then someone who drives 50 miles. So if the grass is in your front yard with virtually no traffic crossing it, it will outlast us. We have the most comprehensive warranty, 15 years. But I can tell you, the average family with children and pets will get 15 years out of it.
Q: Do you have different grades of grass?
A: We have grass for different applications. The most popular is grass for the backyard where kids go to play. It’s our Diamond Pro line with one of the strongest yarns and durability. We also have a system specifically for pets with proper drainage, a durable infill, and odor-resistant applications. Then there are different shades of grass to match the type of lawns in your area. We install synthetic grass in commercial areas such as universities, tennis courts, playgrounds, putting greens, pet hospitals, parks and cemeteries.
Q: Is it costly to put in?
A: Actually, today California has the most aggressive rebate program to change your lawn into synthetic grass. You end up paying up to $3 to $4 per square foot and the other 50% is paid by the water districts. The 50% you end paying has a return investment in 2 years through water savings. It ends up about 13 years of positive cash flow on 1500 square foot of grass.
Victor LanFranco
Synthetic Grass Warehouse – West
1400 North Daly Street
Anaheim, Ca 92806
800-730-2675
info@sgwcorp.com
www.syntheticgrasswarehouse.com
