Best Lawn Scarifier – Buyers Guide & Top 10 Models With Reviews

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 airflow 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 scarify 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 through out the season.

To change the height setting, simply use the twin levers, to set it to the correct height depending on 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 to 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.

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.

The 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 lightweight 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 advise using it for small lawns, maybe medium sized lawns if your feeling adventurous and have plenty of energy and feel like a workout. 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

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.

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 leaves 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 throughout the season to keep your lawn nice and healthy another 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 makes 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.

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 healthy.

Powered by a 600-watt motor, it has 30cm working width and 3 adjustable height setting which can be easily 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.

The Darlac Scarifier is a cheaper alternative to the Wolf Garten model we have just reviewed and overall it's 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.