Updated: February 7, 2024
You may have heard of crumb rubber – those tiny bits of rubber that are scattered across artificial grass to serve as both infill and a shock absorber. And if you’ve heard of crumb rubber, you probably haven’t heard good things about it.
Is crumb rubber unsafe? Is it actually safe? There have been various studies conducted on the safety of crumb rubber but at this point it would be premature to draw a conclusion either way. So let’s look into what crumb rubber is and why Purchase Green doesn’t carry it.
What is crumb rubber?
Crumb rubber infill is made by grinding up old tires. At first, the solution was praised as an innovative, environmentally-friendly strategy to reuse the mountains of old tires sitting in landfills.
However, in recent years, anecdotal evidence has begun to shed light on a potential link between the infill and instances of cancer, especially among goalies who frequently come into contact or even ingest/inhale the tiny black pellets common to artificial grass sports fields across the country.
Do we recommend crumb rubber?
At Purchase Green, we don’t sell nor do we recommend crumb rubber for residential landscaping. For one thing, as an infill it actually makes grass hotter. The reality is that there are better, more advanced infill systems than crumb rubber.
At Purchase Green we only carry the best products, and crumb rubber is not the best product. Instead, we offer products such as MellowFill.
HeroFill 12/20 Infill is infused with Lonza Microbial Control (Zinc Omadine, Zoe Antimicrobial and Pyrithione) anti-fungal protection. This fungistatic agent inhibits the growth of mildew and algae. This product’s unique biocide chemistry controls odors caused by mildew, mold, fungus, and algae and significantly reduces the odor caused by ammonia buildup in pet urine.
MellowFill infill prevents the growth of mildew and algae and controls odors. It works very well for residential lawns because it does everything crumb rubber does to ensure the durability and quality of artificial grass while being a much more natural and less costly alternative.
In Conclusion…
The health and safety of our customers and employees are the most important thing to us. Because of this, we’ve already broken from the mainstream, because we simply weren’t comfortable with the health threats it posed (not to mention its sub-par performance!). We take great pride in offering a product that is healthier for you, your yard, your finances, and the environment.
For more information about the use of crumb rubber in artificial grass installations, check out this video or reach out to your local Purchase Green Artificial Grass expert!
