Inlaid Turf Lines for Sports Fields:  How They Are Installed & How To Repair Them

Published June 3, 2024

“A 15 x 25 foot roll of white turf is enough white turf to line a regulation baseball field.”

Lines and field markings are an integral part of sports turf installation.  In this article, the ATXTurf team address common questions and issues when it comes to installing and maintaining inlaid sports turf lines.

1. How do the white lines get into the green artificial turf?
2. How to Repair Inlaid Turf Lines
3. Can the Lines in a Turf Field be Replaced? 6 Steps
4. Replacing Lines in Non Rubber Infield Surfaces
5. Can I Order a Longer Roll of White Turf and Cut Longer Strips?
6. Conclusion

Image 1

1. How do the white lines get into the green artificial turf?

In sports turf installation, you will often see a smaller roll of white turf delivered with the larger green rolls. The idea is that the installer will cut the 15 ft wide, white turf roll into 4 inch wide strips on the job site with a box cutter.  (4 inches is usually about 8 – 10 stitch rows, as seen in Image 1) 

Then, 4 inches of green can be cut out with a “double-cutter” and the white turf “laid-in” with glue and seam fabric as seen in Image 2. Some companies have been known to simply sheer off the green fibers and simply glue the white lines onto the backing of the green turf as seen, again, in Image 1.

Image 2

A 15 x 25 foot roll of white turf can yield about 1,125  linear feet of 4 inch wide strips of turf.  A 15 wide roll of turf is 180 inches, which divided by 4 inches is 45 strips. So 45 strips of line, 25 ft long is 1,125 linear feet.  This is enough for left and right field base and foul lines, (Fenway is the shortest at 302. &  Wrigley is the longest at 353 in right field, currently) coaches boxes and batters boxes with some left over for good measure.

How many linear feet of line are there in a baseball field?

Here’s the math:

Left field line: 350 ft

Right field line: 350 ft

Left Batters Box: 4+4+6+6 = 20 ft

Right Batters Box: 4+4+6+6 = 20 ft

Catchers Box = 4+4+6+6 = 20 ft

Coaches Boxes (Optional) 10 ft x 2 = 20 ft

Foul Side Line of First and Third Baseline: 45 ft * 2 = 90 ft (Optional)

Total: There is approximately 870 ft of white line on a regulation baseball field.

You can see that the 1,125 linear feet of line contained in a 15 x 25 foot roll of white turf is enough to line a baseball field with some left over.

2. How to Repair Inlaid Turf Lines: 6 Steps

The disadvantage of this method is that the lines themselves will have a seam every 25 ft which results in the lines having more weak spots and pulling up over time..  Once the rubber infill gets under the white turf, it becomes difficult to simply glue it back down.  The rubber pellets mix in the glue and the glue turf does not stick to the backing of the turf, creating a further mess.

Here are the steps for properly repairing the line on turf fields with rubber infill:

1. Wait until the area is completely dry.
2. Thoroughly blow the rubber infill out of the whole area with a leaf blower.
3. Use a Caulk Gun and Tube of Turf Glue to press the green and white turf back onto Fabric.
4. Glue it back down and put some weight on it.
5. Weight 24 Hours for Turf Glue to Fully Cure.
6. Use Power Broom to Brush Infill back into the turf.

3. Replacing Lines in Non Rubber Infield Surfaces

Replacing the lines in fields without rubber infill is much easier. Indoor Facilities for example, simply have flat turf, or padded turf without infill.  In these cases, its just a matter of ripping out the old lines and gluing new lines back in.   Cutting Padded Turf into 4 inch strips, however, is more difficult as the stitch rows are covered up with the pad and it’s more difficult to cut through the pad with a box cutter.  Instead of cutting every 8 to 10 stitches, you’ll need to measure 4 inches an drop a chalk line or use a straight edge in order to cut the lines straight.  Once you cut the first one, you can use it as the stencil for the remaining strips.

4. Can the Lines in Turf Field be Replaced Instead of Repaired? 

You can but if you replace the lines on a 7 year old field, with the same pile height turf, the lines will stick up higher than the grass around it, causing a tripping hazard. They will mat down over time, like the original green turf, but will always be some amount taller.  

This is less of an issue on football YARD lines or soccer boundary lines, as the 4 inch lines are actually tufted into the last 4 inches of the green turf roll during the manufacturing process. 

The numbers, directional arrows, logos, media lines and hashmarks on a football field are, however, Inlaid pieces of turf glued in on the job site.  There are 320 hashmarks, each 24 inches long, on a football field, so the hasharks alone require 640 linear feet of 4 inch strips.  There are also 2 extra point markers to account for.  On soccer fields, the center circle and 18 box are also inlaid.

5. Can I Order a Longer Roll of White Turf and Cut Longer Strips?

Yes, You can order longer rolls and cut out longer strips which will make for less seams and variables down the road, but you may have to buy more square feet of turf and have more excess turf leftover.

6. Conclusion

If you intend to have inlaid lines you will most likely have to order an extra roll of white turf, or some other color.  Many private and home projects are custom size, smaller areas and won’t need as many linear feet as a regulation field. Do the math on how many linear feet of lines you need and then count how many strips you would need to cut out of a 180 Inch wide roll of turf.  Then you can calculate how long of a roll you will need.  

Contact a Rep at ATXTurf with further questions or to order sports turf.  866.428.2809