Sun Joe 15-Inch Lawn Dethatcher with Scarifier Blade Reel, AJ805E

Works great BUT came with a broken ejector flap - the part is plastic. Look online and you'll see that a lot of people either received it broken like I did or it breaks soon after use. It can be fixed with a bolt. Though I'll probably 3D print something up. Sunjoe's quality control is garbage. I would avoid the brand. Update 04/22/2026 After reaching out to Sun Joe directly about the issue I had one of the best customer service experiences you could ask for. They quickly identified what the issue was (sent them a picture), ensured my purchase and then they simply resolved the issue. The dethatcher/scarifier itself is awesome. I have not dethatched my front lawn in 10 years or more. The dethatcher removed over 10 full lawn/leaf bags full of dead grass. The lawn looks pretty bad right after but after a few days of watering it looks better than it did before. I also scarified and then over seeded. In 4 - 5 weeks I will see if the work paid off. Thank you the awesome support Sun Joe!!!

It works. I bought a house with a neglected yard. The thatch was so deep that the grass was yellow before mid-June. I rented a huge heavy power rake two different times and I still didn’t get all of the thatch. Then someone in a gardening group suggested this one. I was apprehensive because it was so inexpensive but tried it anyway. When I unboxed it It seemed too lightweight to do the job but the first time I used it I was super shocked. It actually removed way more thatch than the power rake. It does kinda stink that you have to drag a power cord around but on the bright side it makes this lighter weight, you don’t need gas and oil or to winterize it. I can also easily hang it from a hook inside my shed. My neighbor who is always bragging about his grass actually asked to borrow it when he saw how well it worked. I’m not sure if the blade goes dull as others have said (mine did not after one heavy use) but it seems like it would be easy enough to replace it. Now my grass is the greenest on the block because the roots can finally get water and fertilizer.

The SunJoe Dethatcher is a great machine, does the job well with very little learning curve. I did my back yard with it a week or so ago and I have seen improvement in the lawn already, I typically mulch when I mow, didn’t realize how thick the thatch was until the lawn start looking ragged. The machine pulls itself along so there’s little effort required, it doesn’t seem to bog down when it hits thicker spots. I suggest try adjusting the angle of the handle (there’s an adjustment knob) to see what works best for you. I started on the middle setting and didn’t think to try another setting until I was almost through. Turns out the setting that pushes the front of the machine closer to the ground did a better job for what I was doing. I’m looking forward to trying the scarifier drum this fall when I’ll scarify then over-seed. My only criticism is the original machine was broken when I received it, a small nylon hinge pin on the back flap was broken. I contacted the manufacturer who told me this pin was not a replaceable part, instead the sent me a new machine. This part can’t be worth a dollar and from the looks of it would be simple to replace if they could send a new pin. That would have wasted a lot less resources. With that said, the replacement was mailed out right away and both the damaged one and the replacement were delivered well before the estimated delivery dates.

Sun joe 15 inch 13 amp corded dethatcher Pros: light weight Easy to use Quiet Low physical strain Easy to change height Easy to swap tines to scarrifier Cons: May require multiple passes Collection bag fills very quickly Corded I have used the gas powered heavy duty machines in the past. They differ from the this unit in several ways. The gas ones use a flail type tine that is around 1/8 inch and pretty heavy. It will dig in. The sun joe uses a thin tine style that is a bit less aggressive. This is probably why you may want to do 2 passes in a perpendicular manner. The nice thing is, the Sun Joe is very easy to use. It is very lightweight and will not beat you up trying to control it the way the gas powered one will. Its super easy to control. Maybe about as strenuous as walking an excited medium sized dog. It will pull itself forward but you will need to restrain it to make sure the tines are lifting up the thatch. My least favorite part is having a cord. I needed a 100ft run so i went with a 12 awg to safely hand the 13 amps. At no point did the cord get hot nor the machine. I ran it for about 2 hours off and on. So long as you plan ahead the cord will mostly be out of your way. I didn't use the bagger attachment for very long as it filled rather quickly. I instead opted to allow the thatch to fall out the back of the machine. Debris did not get flung out at my legs which was nice. It sat on top of the lawn. I used a rake to collect it into piles and bag it up for compost. Cleanup. A quick wipe up of the machine got any loose debris off it and it was ready to be stored for the next time. Easy peasey. I recommend the SunJoe dethatcher. It does the job at a good price point. Easy and satisfying to work with.

All the video reviews I watched were absolutely right: the Sun Joe 15-Inch Electric Powered Lawn Dethatcher is the perfect tool for the job. I was a bit skeptical about whether a corded electric machine could handle my yard, but the 13-amp motor didn't hesitate for a second, ripping up an unbelievable amount of dead grass, moss, and compacted thatch on the very first pass. The 15-inch path covers ground quickly, and the adjustable depth control allowed me to tune it perfectly so it cleared out the debris without tearing up my healthy turf. As most reviewers noted, you definitely want to leave the laughably small collection bag off and just use your lawnmower to scoop up the aftermath, but otherwise, this powerhouse completely saved my back and transformed my lawn. The unit was strong and never bogged down. Plus I could not get over how easy it was to assemble. Best purchase for my lawn I have ever made.

If you damage the Thatch Collection Bag this product is USELESS, is it IMPOSSIBLE to get a replacement bag. I have been trying for 18 months to find a replacement Collection Bag anywhere. I even contacted the manufacturer directly and all you get is "Sorry That Part Is Currently Out of Stock" from both Sun Joe and every retailer that carries this model. How they can continue to sell these without having the part that is most likely to be damaged or lost available for replacement is honestly criminal. The catcher bag was flimsy to begin with, my daughter caught it on a rake in the garage and the thing ripped like paper along the seam (absolute junk) and that was it. I've had a 169 dollar paperweight sitting in my garage ever since. Also, you CANNOT use this without the attached Collection Bag, it throws rocks and debris at a very dangerous velocity directly out the back and into your legs without the bag attached. If i could give this product a ZERO I would.........Amazon should stop stocking and selling this product until Sun Joe provides a supply of BASIC replacement parts for it.

I have an acre lot that had an abundance of dead Dallas grass. I didn’t bother with the dethatcher and used only the Scarifier starting at the highest setting and lowering on each pass. This stuff was thick and it performed like a champ. It is not loud at all and for the money it was worth it for me. Because of the size of my lawn I was leary it wouldn’t last, but it did great and is ready for next season.

Bought this to scarify our Colorado lawn with what I thought was slight thatching. Good: it pulled up so much dead grass and leaf debris that I used a whole roll of lawn and leaf bags. It has plenty of power to do the job. Now that the dead grass isn't soaking up and evaporating off the water from my sprinklers my lawn looks a ton better and has greened right up. Bad: even on the lowest setting the scarifier blades barely cut into the dirt on level ground and therefore missed the low spots in the lawn. The stupid plastic flap that hinges up to attach the bag is in the way of the wide area of the handle bars so you can't lift the bag up through the middle of the bars, and reattaching the bag has to be done blindly by feel as you can't see what youre doing under the flap. Don't worry though as the flimsy plastic posts that attach the flap to the machine quickly break off, so it solves the issue on its own, but then the bag falls off randomly if you have a bumpy lawn, and the inevitable pebbles in your top soil will quickly remind you to reattach the bag as they're shooting off your calves. Make sure to wear jeans and eye protection! And the bag, ugh, it is small and only fills half way before the debris starts clogging the rotor and stops progress until you empty the bag and un-matt the tines. I could only make it 8-12 feet before each emptying, and that's on a lawn that didn't look that bad to begin with. Lastly the bag has sharp rods sticking off the sides to attach it to the machine, which quickly grab the lawn and leaf bags and tear holes in them. Just kidding, I have another, the spinning tines dont have a brake when you release the handle, so every stop is lengthened by 5-10 seconds while you stand and wait for them to stop spinning before you remove the bag and shove your hands in there to remove the clogged clippings. Oh and last last last thing the air intake for the motor, which the instructions say to keep clear of debris, has a screen that is recessed down in deep groves that are too deep and narrow for fingers so you have to use a flat blade screwdriver to dig the crap out instead of it being flush where you could just wipe it with your hand. I'm glad I started with the budget friendly option, and it did the job and gave me a ton of unintended exercise, but I wouldn't buy this machine again and would instead opt for something with a better bagging feature and user friendly ergonomics.

Assembling the handle is all that is required to get you up and running. I was skeptical till I first used this machine, it is incredible how much thatch it removed even after I had manually raked my lawn prior to me purchasing this machine. Switching from dethatcher to scarifier is simple, flip over machine, removed fastener bolts and switch implements. The removeable collection bag is a joke WAY TOO SMALL, fills up in less then a minute, tried using it once and only once. I rigged up the discharge door so it is partially open to deflect and to discharge the thatch down and behind the machine, if you leave it closed the thatch will bung up under the machine. If you leave the discharge door fully open your legs will be pelted with thatch and debris discharged by the machine at high speeds-and it hurts. I use heavy duty 10 gauge extension cord and have not had any issues, I have read reports of people using light duty extension cords and the motors overheating and burning out. Storage is easy, handle folds similar to a lawnmower, because of its light weight I just hang mine on the wall of my shed in the back yard. This past summer my lawn was the greenest and fullest it has ever been and people complimented me on that. Spring will be here soon, time for dethatching-second summer, so far I highly recommend this product.

THIS ITEM IS EXACTLY AS DESCRIBED AND WORKS GREAT.

The lawn on our new-to-us property has been neglected for the last few years and things are pretty matted, so I bought this thing to help give new life to the property and give things a bit of a head start for next year as we head into fall. I scarified the backyard yesterday, a couple hours after receiving it, and man, it works really well! Starting out going north-south, then doing a second pass going east-west, it ripped up a pile of dead grass - so much so that I could only do a couple of passes before having to empty the pointlessly undersized basket, so I quickly decided to run it without the basket and just leave the door down. A little later I ran across some small washed rock that had worked their way out of the flower bed over time and the pin that holds the door to the body broke. This was annoying, but I fixed it by sliding an equivalent bolt into it's place and finished the yard without any other issues. After both passes from just the back yard, and using the lawnmower to pick up the spoils, our green bin was completely full, so I guess I'll need to wait until next week to do the front yard. Over all, I'm impressed. Things to note: The body is definitely cheaper plastic, so I don't know that it'll last 10 years or anything, and I definitely wouldn't leave this outside in the elements, but the scarring blades are in perfect condition after the back yard, even with hitting some rocks. I haven't tried the dethatcher tines yet, as I needed to start with something more aggressive, but I have no doubt they'll do a solid job.

I ordered the Sun Joe 15-Inch Lawn Dethatcher & Scarifier and received it with multiple missing and defective parts. The Hex Key Wrench was missing, making it impossible to swap the blades. One of the turning knob end caps was loose and wouldn’t stay in place, forcing me to rig a workaround just to complete assembly. Most seriously, the adjusting gear mechanism was missing all three screws on the side with the switch box. This critical part fell off during use, nearly causing an accident. I can’t believe this passed any sort of quality check. On the other hand, there are several users reporting on the longevity of the machine and claiming that after fewer than 8 uses, the machine already feels like it won’t last. Between the safety concerns and poor quality control, I would urge others to think twice before buying this product.

Very impressed with the performance of this little guy - especially for the price. It has cut our dethatching time to a third, and we are able to pull up so much more. Husband is pretty particular about his grass, and he is thrilled.