Brinly-Hardy Tow-Behind Dethatcher Review

I bought the Brinly-Hardy Tow-Behind Dethatcher from Home Depot last fall in effort to cut down on both the costly landscaping fees as well as the cumbersome equipment rentals. Here’s what I thought of this tine dethatcher, Model # DT-40BH. 

Pros

• Support: Like my aerator, this also had missing pieces – the pin to hold the ever in place, so it wasn’t a show-stopper. This was now my third call with them (two previously for my aerator) and I requested the new piece with no questions asked. Delivery was again free and took less than a week to show up at my door.
• Functionality: Bottom line, this worked great. I added two concrete blocks on top and this dug up my lawn too much, so I took one off and it worked perfectly. I was able to clean up two years worth of thatch and dead grass very quickly. I only needed to make one pass each way (north-south then east-west) and I was done. Picked up over a 50 gallon barrel in under 3,000 sq. ft. This dethatcher played a big role in my overseeding success last fall.
• Cost: At under $100, this has already paid for itself. You couldn’t even rent one for four hours for this price. I’m able to zip through my 18,000 sq. ft. lawn quickly. And 40″ is big enough where I don’t have to spend all day, but small enough that it stores nicely.

Cons

• Assembly: I can’t believe how difficult this is to put together. Before you start, make sure you check out YouTube for some video assistance. The best one is from Brinly but it has no audio. Trust me: it will save you countless time of aggravation. I feel like Brinly could have assembled most of this to save the buyer lots of time. But once set up, it was easy to attach and use on my 211-5 Wheel Horse ID 4211B501 11803 9112
• Design: Since they recommend adding a block or two to help weigh it down, it’d be nice if the top wasn’t metal. Even with the cement blocks on top, there’s a bit of bumpy spots and the shifting of the weight can cause damage to the machine. I used an old wet towel to protect the black metal paint, but there could be an added feature here for improvement.
• After running through my yard, my Redmax EB7001 Serial Number 50976228 did a great job at blowing the leftover clippings and cleaning the debris free from my lawn.

Overall

I was very impressed with the Brinly-Hardy dethatcher. It took up a lot of thatch and dead grass in a short amount of time. It’s lightweight and easy to maneuver. I am a happy customer and will use this every fall as part of my renovation and overseeding process.