Best Lawn Scarifier – Buyers Guide & Top 10 Models With Reviews (Updated Feb 2018)
Choosing The Best Lawn Raker For Removing Moss & Thatch
Updated February 2018 - After a further 6 hours of research and comparing several new models we still believe the Bosch AVR 1100 Vericutter is still the overall best scarifier for most people. We have now added two of the best manual scarfiers this year for a more low cost option. One Model is by Wolf Garten which is worth considering for those with small lawns. Read our full review further down. After further consideration we also removed two models from our review.
Scarifying the lawn is an essential part of maintaining a beautiful healthy lawn, scarifiers which are sometimes referred to as lawnrakers, are usually duel purpose, the best lawn scarifiers come with two interchangeable attachments, one of scarifying the lawn and one for aerating the lawn.
After hours of intensive research and testing, we have put together '10 of the best scarifiers', so you can make a informed decision about which model right for you, before investing in one yourself.
They vary in price from £50 for the good entry model for small gardens to over £300 for larger machines, more suited for large gardens.
Despite the large price range, we have found that you can get a good electric scarifier from around £80-100.
Before we get into our 'Buyers Guide', 'Scarifying Tips' and our Top Recommended Models. Below is the winner of our 'Best Pick' the Bosch AVR 1100 Vericutter which we think is the best scarifier for most gardeners.
BEST PICK
- Powerful 1100W high-torque ‘Powerdrive’ motor
- Cylinder raking system with 14 blades, which collects moss, thatch and leaves
- Innovative ‘’Jet Collect’’ system which collects and compacts into the large collection box
- 32cm scarifiying wide with 4 raking heights ranging from +5 mm to -10 mm
- The lowest setting slices the soil to help aerate the soil and remove thatch easily.
- Great for small and medium sized gardens
- 3 years warranty for full peace of mind.
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The best lawn scarifiers which are included in our review are listed below
1. Bosch AVI Vericutter - Winner of our 'Best Pick'
2. Bosch ALR Vericutter Scarifier
3. AL KO 38P Petrol Lawn Scarifier - Best Petrol Model
4. Black + Decker GD 300 Scarifier
5. Flymo Compact 3400 Lawn Raker
6. Garden Gear 2 in 1 Lawn Scarifier & Raker
7. VonHaus 2 in 1 Lawn Scarifier
New manual scarifiers added for 2018
8. Wolf Garten Roller Moss Remover Review - Best Manual Model
9. Darlac Lawn Scarifier
Scarifying Guide to Help Maintain a Healthy Lawn
To ensure you have a healthy lawn, you need to aerate the lawn so that moisture and nutrients can get into the soil and to do this you need to scarify the lawn to remove thatch, moss and other debris from the base of lawn. This is where a good scarifier comes to make the job much easier to do.
What you need to know before you start scarifying
The one mistake most gardeners make is simply scarifying at he wrong time of year, which often leads to a very messy, awful looking lawn.
When you set about scarifying you need the best growing conditions possible, this means that the lawn will recover faster, once its been scarified, as its likely to look a mess, but don't worry as it will look better than ever once its recovered, which is why we do it in the first place.
Spring scarifying
Spring scarifying should be done when the weather starts to warm, just as things start growing, which is usually around April. You should only do a light scarifying to remove moss and thatch in Spring, this means, do not set your scarifier on the lowered setting, start high and go lower in stages, until its removing the moss and thatch without doing too much damage to the lawn. A light scarifying can also be done in Autumn around August / September before the cold weather sets in.
Autumn scarifying
In most cases, if you have a fair amount of moss and thatch to remove, then the best time to scarify your lawn in Autumn is around August / September, just before the cold weather sets in. This is the best time of year, to do a more 'aggressive heavy scarifying', but be warned, it will leave your lawn looking bare battered for a few weeks if not a few months, however your lawn will soon recover and look much better, and will be the foundation for a better, healthier lawn.
What is you cannot scarify in Autumn because of bad weather?
If you cannot scarify your lawn in Autumn, maybe bad weather prevented it o another reason, then a heavy scarifing can also be done in Spring, ideally though, Autumn is a much better time of year to do it. The reason for this is that once you do a deep scarify, it will leave some nice bare patches on your lawn, these can re-seed if needed, however it also leaves a nice bare patch for weed seeds to germinate, so by scarifying in Autumn you will miss the bulk of the weed seeds that germinate. After all you don't want to replace the moss and thatch with weeds.
Preparation before scarifying
You need the grass to be short before scarifying, so its best to cut the lawn a week or two before scarifying to get it nice and short.
For the perfect lawn, don't forget to apply a Autumn and Spring, weed and feed to your lawn, some weed & feeds also contain moss killer to help control moss and keep it under control.
Our recommended Petrol Model
Finally if your after a petrol model then the 'AL-KO 38P' was an excellent machine and is worth considering if you have a larger garden where a petrol model makes more sense.
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TOP 3 RECOMMENDED MODELS
Collection Box size | Motor | Cable length | Working width | No of height setting | Height range | Weight | Warranty | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BEST PICK Bosch AVR Vericutter
| 50 Litres | 1100w | 10 meters | 32cm | 4 Cutting heights | -10 to + 5mm | 9.9kg | 2 years | |
BEST PETROL MODEL AL-KO 38P Petrol Scarifier
| 55 Litres | 53cc petrol engine | N/A | 37cm | 5 cutting heights | N/A | 20kg | 3 years | |
ALSO GREAT Bosch ALR Vericutter
| 50 Litres | 900w | 10 meters | 32cm | 4 cutting heights | -5mm to +10mm | 9.4kg | 3 years | |
BEST ENTRY LEVEL MODEL
VonHaus 2 in 1 Scarifier & Aerater
- Removes thatch, moss, leaves and other debris from your lawn.
- 2 in 1 Scarifier & Aerater, with easy, interchangeable rollers.
- 32mm working width with 4 adjustable heights.
- Powerful 1500 watt motor (no model has a more powerful motor).
- Large 40 litre collection box.
- Free 2 Year Warranty for full peace of mind.
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Best Scarifiers / Lawnrakers under £100
Collection Box size | Motor | Cable length | Working width | Height setting | Height range | Type | Weight | Warranty | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
BEST ENTRY MODELVonhaus 2 in 1
| 40 Litres | 1500w | 10 meters | 32cm | 4 | 4 to -4 to -8 to -12 mm | Aerating + scarifying | 8.5kg | 2 years | |
Flymo Compact 3400 
| 45 Litres | 750w | 12 meters | 34cm | 6 | -5 to +8mm | Rake only | 13kg | 1 year | |
BUDGET FRIENDLY Black + Decker GD300 
| 30 Litres | 600w | 10 meters | 30cm | 3 | 2, 3 & 8mm | Rake only | 9kg | 2 years | |
Wolf-Garten Moss Remover  | N/A | Manual | N/A | 30cm | N/A | N/A | Scarifier | 1.7kg | 10 years | |
Understanding the comparison table above
- Collection box size: All models have a collection box which holds the thatch and moss the scarifier collects, the larger the better. Some models, such as those by Bosch, also compact it, which means you have to stop less to empty the box. Collect boxes generally range from 28 litres to 55 litres.
- Motor size: The larger the motor, generally, the more powerful the scarifier will be. Most models are electric and start at 600 watt all the way up to 1500 watt with 1200 watt being adequate.
- Cable size: Most cables are 10 meters, so not much to compare hear. If you need longer then we recommend a good extension cable.
- Working width: This is the width of the scarifier blades or rake, the wider, the more area that is scarified with each pass.
- Number of heights: This is the number of height adjustments that can be made, in theory the more height setting you have the more precise you can be. For example a model with 5 setting would allow you to fine tune how close you scarify while models with 3 setting will have less room to adjust.
- Height range: All models have the ability to adjust the height, this means the lower it is set, the deeper it scarifies or rakes the lawn. If set low, it will also score into the soil, which aerates the soil and helps let moisture and nutrients into the soil, this is best done in Autumn, but more on this further down. A middle setting may just remove moss and thatch, while using a high setting will allow you to lightly rake the lawn to collect fallen leaves etc.
- Type: Some models use a rotating, spinning rake system, while others use a blade system and some even use both, sometimes on the same roller, sometimes in there own roller. The best models have both options that can be easily changed from one to the other, usually referred to as cassettes, the rake scarifiers are great for removing moss and thatch while the blade scarifier are also great for penetrating the soil, removing weeds and letting moisture and nutrients back into the soil.
- Warranty: Most models come with at least 2 years warranty, this is important because if anything goes wrong you want to be able to contact the manufacture who will repair or replace the machine should it become faulty.
- Price: You will notice we do not display the price, the reason for this is that prices change regularly, specially on Amazon.co.uk, as businesses compete for your business and as such we do not want to display the wrong price. As a guide, a good scarifier for a small to medium size garden will be around £80-£100. The very best electric models tend to be in the £130-150 price range with petrol models, ideal for larger or remote gardens being around £300+ for a good model.
Top 8 Lawn Scarifier Reviews
Bosch AVR 1100 Verticutter Lawnraker Review
BEST PICK
The 'Bosch AVR 1100 Verticutter lawnraker' is a scarifier and aerator in one, this dual purpose model has a powerful high-torque, 1100 watt 'powerdrive' motor which drives a specially designed cylinder raker system, which efficiently removes moss, thatch, weeds and leaves, as well a scoring the soil to help aerate the soil.
Using the Bosch 'Jet Collect system', the drum, which has 14 very strong blades, collects the moss, as well as thick layers of thatch etc. The drum also creates a powerful air flow which helps pack the collected moss and thatch into the large 50 litre collection box which increases the amount of moss and thatch that can be collected.
It has a working width of 32cm which means you maximise the area you scarifiy with each run and it has 4 adjustable height setting, which can be set between +5 mm to -10 mm, this means it can be used though out the season.
To change the height setting, simply use the twin levers, to set it to the correct height depending on the the job you want to do. The lowest setting -10mm, will slice into the soil below the grass to help aerate the soil and let water and nutrients back into the soil as well as removing thick layers of moss and thatch as well as weeds.
The higher setting can be used to lightly rake the lawn with the highest setting ideal for collect debris off the surface of the lawn.
The high speed motor and innovative gear, ensure it has enough power, when its needed most, if the job becomes more demanding that the scarifier automatically increases power needed to efficient scarify the lawn in any situation.
Due to its compact design, it can be stored in a small amount of space, the folding handles and two peace collect box, means it can be folded down so that its only 40cm tall.
- 32cm working width and 4 adjustable scarifying heights from -10mm to +5mm, which can be easily adjusted with the twin levers.
- 1100W high-torque ‘Powerdrive’ motor.
- Cylinder raking system which uses a cylinder with 14 blades (tines), which collects moss, thatch and leaves from deep within the lawn.
- The lowest setting slices the soil to help aerate the soil, with higher setting being ideal for collecting moss and layers of thatch from within the lawn.
- The innovative 'Jet System', ensures the collected debris, is compacted into the large 50 litre collection box.
- 2 years warranty for extra peace of mind
Our thoughts
This model is the more expensive out of two scarifiers, Bosch manufacturer, both are very good models, but this model, has the advantage of having a more power motor, 1100 watt motor, compared to 900w for the cheaper model. More importantly, this model has 14 steel blades which do a fantastic job at removing moss, thatch and weeds, the cheaper model uses wire tines which as less effective at scoring and aerating the soil all though they are great for removing miss and thatch.
Winner of out 'Best Pick' this is our top recommended model due to its great performance, quality build and features.
Its does a great job at removing moss and thatch, but be careful, on the lowest setting, it may leave your lawn scalped with bare soil , great for aerating but not ideal if you just want lightly scarify to remove the moss and thatch over summer.
Overall one of the best models available without the hassle of removing cassettes to change from scarifying to aerating. Probably one of the best electric scarifiers currenty available.
Compare prices from available retailers
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Wolf Garten Roller Moss Remover Review
BEST MANUAL SCARIFIER
We've looked at 6 different manual scarifiers and found two that were brilliant and worth considering, however the 'Wolf Garten Moss Remover' was by far the best in terms of build quality and you can see its clearly built to last. It also comes with a 10 year guarantee for full peace of mind so first impressions, very good.
First thing you need to know is that this scarifier does not come with a handle, this means you have to purchase the handle separately. The handles alone range from £12 to around £25 depending on which one you choose. The advantage of this is you can choose the correct length to suit your height as well as choose between a light weight aluminium handle or a traditional wooden handle.
Now on to, how to use it. Its very simple, when you push it forwards it used a pendulum action to lift the teeth or tines off the lawn and when you pull it towards you the pendulum action moves the tines into the lawn and removes the moss and thatch from the lawn and leaves it in a small pile of moss and thatch to collect.
So its super easy to use and will easily last many years proving a moss free lawn, if you already have any of the Wolf Garten tools, you can use your current handle. If you purchase any of the other Wolf Garten Tools you can use the handle with these tools as well, there are around 50 different tools to choose from such as rakes. This in the long run, will save you some money.
Its fairly hard work to use as you would probably expect, we would only advice using it for small lawns, maybe medium sized lawns if your feeling adventurous and have plenty of energy and feel like a work out. For most people, you would be better with a motorised version for larger lawns but for small lawns where a motorised version maybe overkill, this model is perfect and will get the job done
Pros
Cons
Final Conclusion
The Wolf Garten Moss Remover is probably one of the best, if not the best manual scarifier on the market. The quality is simply unmatched and the performance outstanding, it really does remove moss and thatch easily and the 10 year guarantee is really the cherry on top.
The only downside is that you have to purchase the handle separately and you would not really want to use it on larger lawns are it can be quiet tiring to use as you would expect.
Overall it has a good 30cm width so you can cover a good with of lawn from each pull and is your after a manual scarifier this is probably the best choice, we think its worth paying the extra and buying a tool you know you will have for many years. However If you would prefer something more affordable then the Darlac Lawn Scarifier reviewed below, is a good alternative but the quality is not quiet on par but its still a great choice.
Compare prices from available retailers
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AL-KO 38P Combi-care 2 in 1 lawnrake / Scarifier Review
Powerful Petrol Scarifier With 5 Working Depths, Perfect For Larger Lawns
The AL-KO 38P Combe-Care 2 in 1 Scarifier is a petrol powered model, powered by a 53cc engine, its designed for medium and larger sized gardens where a cable model would not be suitable or you simply need a larger model.
It has a working width of 37cm and comes with two interchangeable cassettes (rollers), one has steel blades, great for slicing into the soil, which helps aerate the soil and they also remove moss and thatch that's embedded deep into the lawn. The other cassette has steel wire tines that are ideal for removing moss and thatch as well as leaves and other garden debris.
The cassettes can be easily changed without tools for the job at hand and it has 5 working heights.
- Quality German scarifier, ideal for scarifying medium to large gardens with ease.
- Wide 37cm scarifying width and 5 adjustable scarifying heights adjustable up to 18mm
- Powerful 53cc petrol engine, delivers maximum power to the tines
- Extra large 55 litre collection box
- Two separate cassettes, one with blades, one with wires, which can be changed without tools
- 2 years warranty for extra peace of mind
Our thoughts
I looked at a few petrol scarifiers and being in the trade myself for many years, Iv'e had the chance to use a few petrol models other the years. To be honest, most petrol models I have used are great machines, but they are all heavy and bulky which makes them some what, not suitable for everyone, specially domestic use, mostly because of the weight and size and transport can sometimes be an issue.
That being said I do really the the AL-KO 38P petrol scarifier as it is well built and you can change the cassettes easily without any tools without to much trouble.
At around 20kg, its not too heavy, specially when compared to other petrol models and its small enough to store and manover.
A greats choice for home owners with medium and larger sized gardens where an electric scarifier would not be suitable, if your after a petrol model then we would recommend you take this model into consideration before buying one
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VonHaus 2 in 1 - Raker/Scarifier & Aerater
Review
Best Entry Level Model Below £100
The Vonhaus 2 in 1 scarifier/lawnraker is both a scarifier and aerator and comes with two roller attachments, one for each job.
The scarifier roller attachment uses strong steel blades to penetrate into the soil and remove weeds, pull out deep embedded thatch and moss from the lawn. As the blades penetrate into the soil, this also aerates the soil, which lets in moisture and nutrients into the soil.
The raking roller removes moss, thatch and leafs from the lawn, but without penetrating the soil and does a much lighter job when compared to the scarifier roller with the blades. This is ideal, as you can use it through out the season to keep your lawn nice and healthy other summer.
Powered by a 1500 watt motor, it has plenty of power and has a working width of 32cm as well as 4 working heights, this make it very flexible when deciding whether you want to go over the lawn aggressively, for a deep scarify or lightly to keep on top for the moss and thatch through the season without causing too much damage to the lawn.
- Wide 32cm working width and 4 adjustable scarifying heights, 4 to -4 to -8 to -12 mm for the scarifier roller and 11 to 3 to -1 to -5 mm for the aerator roller.
- 1500W high powered motor ensures it never struggles to removed deep embedded thatch and moss.
- Light weight design at only 8.5kg making it easy to manover, carry and store.
- Large 40 litre collection box
- 2 years warranty for extra peace of mind
Our thoughts
The Vonhaus 2 in 1 scarifier/raker is one of the best scarifiers we have seen, at 1500w, its the most powerful electric model we have reviewed.
The interchangeable rollers for scarifying and aerating are great as you can use each one for its intended purpose, as apposed to models that only have the raking roller which usually cannot penetrate deep into the soil as well as models with knifes.
VonHaus manufacture some really good gardening equipment and this scarifier is to their usual high standard, but at a very affordable price.
This model is perfect for small and medium sized gardens and would make a great entry level model for any gardener looking to maintain their lawn. This was actually one of the models that we felt could also be a 'best pick; model as it offers excellent quality, performance as well as excellent value.
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Black + Decker GD300 Lawnraker
Review
'Lowered priced' Best Lawn raker
The Black + Decker GD 300 Lawnraker is robust, low priced lawnraker designed for all year round maintenance of your lawn to keep it nice and heathy.
Powered by a 600 watt motor, it has 30cm working width and 3 adjustable height setting which can be easly changed with minimal effort, making it ideal for all small and medium sized lawns.
The lowered height setting is designed to give the lawn a good aggressive raking and will remove thatch from the base of the grass as well as moss and other debris. The middle setting will also remove moss without being too aggressive and the highest setting is ideal for collecting fallen leaves.
- 30cm working width and 3 adjustable scarifying heights which can be easily altered.
- 600W motor
- Light weight design at only 9kg, making it easy to manover and store.
- 30 litre collection bag
- 2 years warranty for extra peace of mind
- Excellent value for money
Our thoughts
If your after a quality, but affordable simple lawnraker for removing thatch, moss as well as fallen leaves in the fall, then this could be what your looking for.
The Black + Decker lawnraker does an excellent job at removing moss and thatch but it does have its limitations, which are reflected in the price of the product.
This simple model is really only designed for removing moss and thatch, what it does not do is penetrate into the soil like other models we have reviewed, this feature helps improve aeration which ensures moisture and nutrients can get into the soil, which I feel is essential if you want a really healthy lawn.
Overall its a good lawnraker, but if your looking to do a more 'thorough scarifing', then you may want to spend a little more and invest in a slightly better model. However if your in need of a cheap lawnraker to remove moss and thatch, this could be ideal. It does come with 2 years warranty for extra peace of mind, which is ideal considering its low price tag.
Compare prices from available retailers
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Darlac Lawn Scarifier Review
The Darlac Scarifier is a cheaper alternative to the Wolf Garten model we have just reviewed and overall its a great tool and does what its suppose to.
It does not have the pendulum action like the Garten Scarifier so it can be used being pushed forwards or pull towards yourself. This makes it slightly more hard work to use but it does effectively remove moss, thatch or any leaves embedded into the lawn. In reality it probably does the job just as well.
The build quality is not perfect and it will probably on last a few years which is our only worry. On the other hand, it comes with a telescopic handle so it can be set to a height to suit the user which is a good feature.
Pros
Cons
Final Conclusion
The Darlac Scarifier is a great tool and one that is very affordable, the only real downside it that it takes alot of effort to use due to the nature if it, however it still but better than trying to scarify with a rake.
Overall its a great tool but the quality could be better, still it should last a few years and does the job.
If we have to recommend just one model, it would have to be the Garten but for those looking for a more affordable option, this is probably your best alternative.
Compare prices from available retailers
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Our Final Conclusion
After many hours of research, it was very difficult to decide which scarifier is 'The Best' as there is a lot of very good models out there, the truth is that there is not a model that we would recommend to everyone, as there are many things to take into consideration when choosing a model that is right for you.
Our Best Pick
We came to the conclusion that the 'Bosch AVR Verticutter Lawnraker' would be suitable for nearly all gardeners as it was suitable for both small and medium sized gardens and is a quality bit of kit with innovative features that give it that edge, over most other models. For this reason we awarded it our 'Best Pick'.
Bosch do have a cheaper, very similar model that looks all most identical called the 'Bosch ALR', the main difference between this model and our 'Best Pick' is that is has wire tines instead of blades, we prefer the bladed model as they do a more though job. The cheaper model also has a smaller 900w motor and cannot scarify as deep. All though this cheaper model was also excellent, we feel its worth paying the extra for the more powerful model which uses strong steel blades.
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Our recommended Petrol Model
Finally if your after a petrol model then the 'AL-KO 38P' was an excellent machine and is worth considering if you have a larger garden where a petrol model makes more sense.
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Cheapest Recommended Model
If your after a cheap model without getting something too flimsy, then the 'Black + Decker GD300' is an excellent choice and does a great job a removing moss and thatch.
Its even a 'Amazon Best Seller' but at such as good price, its easy to see why. It may be a 'best seller' but it NOT 'The Best'
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Response to "Best Lawn Scarifier – Buyers Guide & Top 10 Models With Reviews (Updated Feb 2018)"
wonderful site for a novice like me to know about lawn aerating and care.
all the models are very well explained and leaving it for you to pick what suits your lawn and your pocket.
well done and thanks.
I bought the Vonhaus on your recommendation, true it is very fast and affective, however it stopped working after just 20 minutes. I checked the fuses but still totally dead.
I’m returning for a refund as I have no confidence in any item that stops working from new within 20 mins,
Hi Carole, sorry to hear about your VonHaus scarifier. I think what we need to remember is that no matter how much they cost or the brand of machine we invest in (ie you could spend a £500, you will always have the odd machine that develops a fault.
Unfortunately your machine was obviously faulty so you would have to be very unfortunate to get a second machine that was also faulty. Anyway thank you for your feedback. Let us now how the return goes, how they now handle return is also very important.
Anyone got the vonhaus if so let me know how it goes as the post above received an unreliable unit
I have used the AVR1100 and GD300 for years. The GD300 is no longer a quality model that lasts. The front wheels flap about on the axles, the rotor has an un-lubricated plain metal bearing which wears elliptically instead of a ball bearing and the tines are prone to wearing and snapping off. It works well as a rake although the open basket needs emptying frequently and the device does not last.
The AVR1100 is better quality and scarifies well, being particularly good for cutting slots before over-seeding. It lasts comparatively well but the blades wear, the large drum segments can break and the motor can shake itself loose from the chassis to which it is simply attached by plastic.
I will buy a replacement AVR1100 soon but will change from the GD300 as replacing the bearing and tines (not dealt with the floppy wheels) occurs too frequently.