These lawn aerator ‘shoes’ are a simple, yet ingenious solution to the problems that come with other types of aerators. Firstly, they won’t rip up your lawn like some powerful electric aerators can so they are good for lawns that are already in a decent condition. Simple to Assemble: To assemble the handle, you only need to turn the 3 tubes to tighten them. After that, you can connect the handle to the roller by tightening the fasteners. The whole process is only in just few minutes. Then a lawn aerator is ready for use. There are a few with this design, it’s not my favourite for the manual lawn aerators though, I much prefer the spike shoes and they really penetrate the ground plus I get some exercise 😀 Aerator spike shoes The shoes have anti-slip pads on the bottom to help prevent them from slipping off your boots on wet grass. Plus, the shoes come with a steel shovel you can use to clean out dirt from between the spikes when needed. Overall, we think this aerator might not be the best option for a large lawn, but we think it's great for smaller lawns as long as you don't mind the extra effort. You will only need to do this once or twice a year so the cost should be minimal. We have found with these that they only come in solid spikes so you would lose the advantage of the hollow spikes. That makes it a balance between labour and getting the optimum result.

There are 13 metal spikes on each shoe, approximately 5 cm long, which penetrate into all types of soil for efficient aerating. These spikes are also replaceable, just in case any get lost. When it comes to choosing whether you go for an electric, cordless or petrol aerator, consider the pros and cons that are associated with each type: If you are looking for a tow-behind aerator and have sandy or loamy soil, the Agri-Fab Spike Aerator is a great choice. We love that it has 10 star-shaped tines that help penetrate compacted soil. Plus, it includes a weight tray that can hold up to 100 pounds if needed. Thanks to its universal hitch, your lawn tractor or UTV can do most of the work for you. And when not in use, the hitch folds up for easier storage.

This lawn aerator has a 32 cm working width, making it suitable for small/medium gardens, and four depth settings ranging from 4-12 mm. There are two interchangeable rollers included, one for scarifying and the other for aerating, which need to be swapped out depending on the function you want to use. To swap the rollers, you use the included Allen key to undo two screws (and tighten them up again). The Greenkey Rolling Lawn Aerator is the model to invest in if you’re looking for something a little better than a basic model. The length of the spikes is just about the right length at 5cm, and it is wide enough to let in air and water effectively without messing up the aesthetic appeal of your lawn. I have noticed that where my lawn used to puddle in heavy rain, it no longer does this now after aerating the lawn. The plastic shell of the Vonhaus electric aerator isn’t up to the same standard as the Einhell model, but I suppose that is to be expected for the lower price. The wheels are decent enough though, even if I don’t understand the reason for having the rear wheels much smaller than the front ones.

Weighing just 8.5 kg, this lawn aerator is one of the lightest on the market. It also runs slightly more quietly than other electric machines on this list (though only just), producing 98 dB. These do involve a lot of physical effort, and it can be quite a slow process if you plan on aerating a bigger lawn. Using one of these is really hard work so be prepared for that if you are considering buying one of these. Speaking of cables, if you choose an electric lawn aerator, look out for a power cable around 10 m long . This way, you should be able to avoid using an extension cable in most medium gardens. Whilst not the most comfortable of shoes, they can be slipped on over gardening boots without much difficulty. They usually have adjustable straps so will fit almost any shoe size. It has 30 metal spikes in total, which are each 45 mm long, and works well to aerate moist ground. Alongside this, the rolling lawn aerator is 30 cm wide, so it’s narrow enough to manoeuvre around smaller areas. As a result, this is one of the best aerators for small gardens.

What does aerating your lawn actually do?

Secondly, the fact that they are on the bottom of your feet means that your whole body weight is helping to push the nails into the ground ensuring that you get good penetration of the soil, something that can be a problem with push powered roller aerator products.