Bubble turf

[MajorFalcon92]

Maybe this has been discussed in another thread, but after we dried out from the game on Saturday and got home today I watched the DVR replay of the game.

I knew there were issues with the field from the rain, however I didn't realize how bad it had become until watching the replay.

Good thing the game didn't come down to us kicking a field goal to win it late and our kicker slip because the turf bubbled. Wasn't turf supposed to eliminate this type of problem in bad weather?

I would think the drainage should be able to handle the amount of rain we sustained.

[Tech2000]

Did I notice what appeared on about the 2 yd line on the south end what appeared to be a turned up spot where it looked similar as if a plod of field was turned up probably by a foot?

[Dayons_Den]

I commented on Twitter how embarrass the waterbed turf looked and hoped we still have a warranty on the turf. I understand to insane amount of precip that came down in a short amount of time but I don't think the field should have bubbled like that. It needs to be stretched tight and sewn down so that can't happen.

[BGSU33]

The best way I can describe the layout of most artificial turf surfaces nowadays is this:

There is a drainage system that is put in place under the playing surface. Above that drainage system is a mixture of crushed stone and rock that allows water to pass through it. That rock and stone is flattened and smoothed out to create a level surface. The turf itself is then laid out in five-yard strips from sideline to sideline. The strips of turf have a porous backing which allows water to pass through to the rock and drainage below. These strips are not affixed to the ground (more on that in a minute). The items that are sewn together are the strips and things such as midfield logos, endzone letters, numbers, etc. To eliminate any further confusion, this is what the logos on our field are. They are all made out of turf themselves and are not painted on. There are some fields that do not have logos sewn on and they are painted on. This is normally done for fields that serve as multiple use or home to multiple teams where the logos can be removed by simply brushing the paint off and reapplied. The actual blades of grass are much longer than you would expect, usually around 4 inches long. The infill is then put onto the field. This is wherever some field products differ as some first use a sand-base infill, some use a silicon infill (which sucks IMO), others types even use cork, etc. Above that is where the rubber pellets are placed over. Once the infill is in place it's essentially racked over by dragging a jagged screen behind a little tractor to mix in the infill. The cheaper turf surfaces only have rubber pellets, and the footing when planting isn't nearly as good as those surfaces that use both sand and rubber pellets for proper weight distribution for keeping the infill in place (footing when cutting, etc). The larger rubber pellets essentially stay towards the top because they are larger than the smaller particles of sand (if applicable). This is why you see them spray when a foot drags over the surface. The infill is also what keeps the turf in place, it is pretty heavy. It's also what provides the cushioning and in all is usually about 3 to 3 1/2 inches deep which is why you only see about half of an inch or inch of the blade of grass when the installation is completed.

These artificial surfaces can handle a good deal of rainfall. They also can become flooded when they can't keep up in a heavy rain and that's when you see the water pooling up until it can drain. But I have never seen a surface bubble and look like a waterbed like that before. What happened in our case was the field couldn't drain through the backing and down through the gravel fast enough so it pooled up underneath and actually lifted the sheets of turf. In my opinion, the company that installed the field should definitely be coming out to inspect it again, maybe even adding some more infill to areas that might need it. They definitely should also be shown the video of it occurring in case they haven't seen it before either. It happened at the 1:33 mark on the clock during the broadcast (I forget which quarter it was but that was the time on the clock). I am not an inspector myself, but being this is a brand-new playing surface that's going to take us through the next 10 years, they need to have an expert come look at it just to make sure everything is OK.

[hammb]

Most of all I was absolutely SHOCKED that they didn't stop the play when it was bubbling up like that. Just seems like that could have been a dangerous situation for the players.

[apollo]

I'm sure it is under some type of warranty, but I'd be very concerned that it wasn't installed properly. Other than the bubbling, I was shocked at all the standing water on the field. Anyone who knows anything about turf knows that unless it's a monsoon, the field is supposed to drain really fast. I would bet that there is something wrong with the drainage material under the turf.

[It's the Journey...]

As I understand it water got in and shorted out the pump system. Because of that water was not being pulled away from the field as fast as possible and started to back up, thus causing the Falcon waterbed. I would imagine the company will be back out to look at any possible damage and make corrections as soon as possible. My son played on the field Sunday and everything looked good. But there is no way 3rd and 4th graders would cause any damage.

[BGSU33]

I agree. I was also shocked they kept playing with the surface bubbling like that. Eventually it appeared to have stopped and settled in but that was a potential injury waiting to happen.

If you look back at the original threaad of when we started a topic about the new turf, I voiced my concern about not going with the FieldTurf brand again and I was also not a fan whatsoever of the company we went with on this current field installation. Honestly, I was shocked we made such a good choice the first time around in using FieldTurf for the first surface because BG often seems to go on the cheap with things like this. FieldTurf is THE brand for artificial turf. It is BY FAR the choice turf for universities, colleges and NFL teams across the nation. It's the pioneer company and has the best product out there. Period. Over the years many other types of competitors have popped up. Their products are similar but the quality is not. FieldTurf has a patent on their product which separates it from the others (materials it uses) and has a world-wide network of testing, installing and research as apposed to these other regional companies. Another key factor is they also have better installation crews, which is equally important. It's one thing to use a great product, but it's equally important to have it installed correctly and properly. I do think our new surface looks better with the tweaked design, but any turf company nowadays can give you the look you want. But they can't all offer you the best product and install. FieldTurf has a laundry list of major installs for teams that is has installed for worldwide. The turf we now use essentially has Vanderbilt and the Ravens (if I can recall correctly) to hang it's hat on. In short, we went with an inferior turf choice and install this time around. To be clear, I'm NOT saying in this case that it's the exact reason for the bubbling we had Saturday. I don't know the exact specifics on what happened but I have a very good idea what occurred. But what I am saying is comparing surfaces to surfaces, installs to installs, we went with a lesser product this time around.

[Rollo83]

I'm sure it is under some type of warranty, but I'd be very concerned that it wasn't installed properly. Other than the bubbling, I was shocked at all the standing water on the field. Anyone who knows anything about turf knows that unless it's a monsoon, the field is supposed to drain really fast. I would bet that there is something wrong with the drainage material under the turf.

I hope we bought the extended warranty?

[BGSU SID]

To clarify on this -- The drains have a "catch basket" to keep smaller debris out. Obviously, you'd like to leave those catch baskets in the drains unless absolutely necessary to remove. However, they do restrict the flow of water to some extent. With the amount of rain Saturday as well as the amount of water flowing down onto the field from the stands, we saw what happened. As soon as those catch baskets were removed, the water quickly drained and all returned to "normal". The same bubbling occurred pregame with the old turf on very rare occasions over the past few years (specifically remembering the Homecoming game a couple of years ago when there was so much rain pregame).

[factman]

Thanks for setting all the turf "experts" straight!

[Flipper]

If they sealed the concrete in the stands, you probably got more run off when it rained

[Redwingtom]

If they sealed the concrete in the stands, you probably got more run off when it rained

Curious as to what they did, if anything, to the area directly in front of the stands to catch and divert the run off from them. If the water from the stands is running all the way out to the playing surface, it sounds like something was not designed properly.

I seem to remember that the old field (either the grass one or the original turf one) had a noticeable crown line in the middle of the field to divert water toward the stands. Could they have made the new field too level when they installed it?

[jpfalcon09]

If they sealed the concrete in the stands, you probably got more run off when it rained

I can confirm that the stands were the equivalent of a river when it was downpouring, and all that water ended up running onto the field.

[Falconfreak90]

If they sealed the concrete in the stands, you probably got more run off when it rained

I can confirm that the stands were the equivalent of a river when it was downpouring, and all that water ended up running onto the field.

Reconfirming....that was the worst downpour I think I've ever been through.