Aerators for Sale

- if watered clay soil for 30 minutes with a sway sprinkler...would i be able to get down 2 inches w/ aerator?
please explain what you can...why needed 2 inches? what about just 1 inch? will seed not germinate if falls in a 2 inch hole? what about 1 inch? thanks for your answers!

A You want to soak more than 1 inch down mostly for when the grass is growing. If you constantly water so that only the top one inch is wet, it will train your grass to grow its roots where the water is - in the top on einch of soil. That will, in the long run, make it even MORE susceptible to drought. Water deeping when the grass is establishing to encourage those roots to DIVE DEEP. As to your question about how long to water - there are too many variables, starting with water pressure and the amounts of water that come out of your sprinkler each minute, and the soil. The only way yo know for sure is to set your time for 30 minutes - then go dig down ,and see how deeply the soil was saturated.

- Has anyone used aerator shoes/sandles for their lawn and do they work?
I would like to plant grass seed. I can't rake the soil because it is rather hard. I heard there are aerator spikes that you put over your shoes and walk on the grass. It is supposed to make holes in the ground so the seeds go in and it aerates the lawn at the same time. Has anyone used these and do they work well?

A They're nothing but a gimmick...They don't work at all, so don't waste your money. Rake your grass well and get rid of thatch on top. Then spread some triple mix and compost on top of your grass and bare areas over the grass seed that you plant. Water well, (don't let it dry out completely), and in a week or so, you'll have nice grass sprouting. Remember to leave the grass clippings on your lawn for free nitrogen when you cut the lawn.