Earthwise DT71613 13-Amp 16-Inch Corded Electric Dethatcher

It is time to re-seed my entire lawn (12,000 sq ft). In the 15 years, I've lived here, I have never watered the grass. This year, it became necessary to re-seed (going with a Fescue blend hoping that it will survive the heat of the summer better).Making multiple passes in some areas, it took me 4 hours from start to finish. I used the grass catcher for the entire project. Although it is small and has to be dumped frequently, I figured that it would be easier than raking afterward. I tried to divide the yard into short row areas where I could go out and come back to the receptacle to empty the clippings. This worked well. In my case, I am convinced this was the way to go. I don't believe I could rake my entire yard in 4 hours.My lawn took a beating with a long dry period this summer. When the grass thinned, the weeds moved in. In the picture included, the brown areas are where I killed off the weeds. I waited three weeks and then dethatched, running the unit over the weed areas from several directions. When done the weeds are mostly gone and I have a lot of ground for the new grass seeds to contact. If you were able to zoom in on the picture you would also be able to see the 1/4 deep lines scored into the earth, perfect for the new seed.Overall, I really like this unit. It seems well designed. One thing I didn't like; the extension cord retainer was too small for the diameter of my cord. Because of this, I decided to use a thinner cord, that barely fit in the retainer. Once I started using the thinner cord, maneuvering the unit was easier.

This thing is a beast. It works for my Zoyia 1/4 acre yard in hot weather. Pulled up enough dead grass to fill 5 paper reuse bags! I had a different brand before and the belts basically melted after they fell away from the spindle cogs. This Earthwise one seems to be a big bang for the buck. It is well build and doesn't seem to heat up like the other brand I have used in the past.

Pros - 16" dethatching width makes quick work of the thatch in lawn and with 3 levels to choose from it can get real close.Got tons of thatchs of first pass and then, after raking it all up, did a second pass and cleaned it up with lawn mower. Yard looked good.Cons - bag for thatch is beyond useless. Waste of material to even bother making. Would have much rather had a scarifier included instead of useless bag.Could be a five star item if they did away with bag and gave people a scarifier instead. No bag could really be big enough anyway unless your yard is 16" × 8'.

this unit beats a rake hands down...my lawn of 33 yrs has never been touched except for mowing and minor raking until now...the Earthwise DT-71613 changed all that...I am amazed what it did and how clean looking the lawn looks...I like the 5 adjustments it has, its light weight and easy to use...I rated this unit a 4 but should be (4.9) in my opinion because of what it did and can do...what could be improved is the catcher is small which must be emptied often but still worked out ok...other than that I ended with no blisters on my hand...this is a GOOD TIME SAVING DETHATCHER...........

The device is super easy to assemble and does a great job of clearing the thatch, but the majority of the dethatcher is made of plastic, so it's fragile. After 2 days of use, the plastic cover and flapper that closes when the thatch bagger is removed get's stuck due to a bent plastic hinge. Rotary spring used to keep flapper closed when bagger is removed is likely too overpowered - and this is causing the plastic hinge to fail. I wouldn't be surprised if more of the plastic parts fail soon.If you're looking for a heavy use long term solution you might consider another product.

It works great

I finally got to use it. Considering I'm dealing with RA and awaiting spinal surgery I was able to use this in my yard. I researched all the dethatchers and this one was my choice for purchase. It's lightweight, cost effective and very simple to assemble (attaching the handle). Kinda wish the capacity of the bag was a bit bigger because yes it fills up way too quickly. I use the bag because of my physical conditions and unable to rake. I've only done a small portion of my front yard so far because of the pain I deal with but I am very happy with the outcome. After I dethatch, aerate and fertilize then I can seed. My goal is to recover the nice yard I used to have and I look forward to springtime. Once I'm done with the dethatching, I will post pictures. Since I haven't done the whole yard yet I can get in some before and after pictures. The compacted dead grass clippings have really damaged my yard that the grass couldn't grow. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who has a small to average sized yard in a residential area.

My lawn needed dethatching badly and I went to rent one at Home Depot only to find out it was $100 per day! I have 1 acre and who wants to do it all at once? Not me!!So, I dropped $180 on this little baby and it works great! Super light weight, easy to set up and I mean EASY! Now I can dethatch and overseed smaller lawn sections whenever I want! Offers different height settings, pretty wide swath and does a really good job. This was a gem of a find!