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Ground spike buying guide

Updated: October 2026

You are standing over a rusted rotary socket, and you have not measured the pole. This ground spike buying guide is the order to use before you compare prices: the outside diameter first, then whether you will hammer or screw, then the coating and a cap. The four listings, with shelf prices in GBP, are on the [ground spike comparison](/hub/fencing-and-wire/ground-spike). Peter F. set those amazon.co.uk files against Brabantia’s UK size pages on 19 October 2026. We did not drive any spike in a test lawn. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

You are standing over a rusted rotary socket, and you have not measured the pole.

Our top picks

Brabantia Brabantia 45 mm ground spike

Best overall

Brabantia Brabantia 45 mm ground spike
9.2/10about £13.00
View offer
JVL JVL 32–40 mm soil spear

Rank 2

JVL JVL 32–40 mm soil spear
8.8/10about £6.74
View offer
DIVCHI DIVCHI screw-in ground spike

Rank 3

DIVCHI DIVCHI screw-in ground spike
8.8/10about £10.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Measure the pole before you read the title
  2. 2.Match the method to the soil and to removal
  3. 3.Coating and a cap
  4. 4.Fields you should ignore

Measure the pole before you read the title

The measurement that matters is the outside diameter of the pole end that drops into the socket, in millimetres. Only the 45 mm socket is in this set. One UK review used a 45 mm spike on a 35 mm line. If the old socket is still in the lawn and the pole is the original Brabantia, the cap colour is the clue. A paper imprint can help you compare shapes in a shop, as a Screwfix community thread describes, but it is not a measurement standard and it does not beat a tape. Until you know your own millimetres, this page cannot name a candidate. The airer chart is the ground spike for a rotary washing line.

Match the method to the soil and to removal

Once the diameter is known, split on how the steel goes in and whether you must get it out. A drive-in spear or a matched socket is the laundry default on firm ground you can soften: the Brabantia 45 mm socket, whose bullets say no concrete is needed, and the JVL spear, whose bullets say firm ground. Buyers in the UK review files choose a screw-in auger after a hammer-in spike bends. The DIVCHI listing says you can unscrew and move it. Neither tool likes rubble under a thin lawn. If the first blows or turns stop on stone, stop. The EGLO Cuba is not in that laundry choice. It is a plate for a garden light, and the bullets tell you not to hammer it. A washing-line pole does not belong on that plate.
Brabantia Brabantia 45 mm ground spike

Testsieger

Brabantia Brabantia 45 mm ground spike
9.2/10about £13.00
View offer

Coating and a cap

Prefer a finish the listing actually states. The Brabantia bullets say galvanised steel, with a plastic cap in the item highlight and a 5-year guarantee. The JVL bullets say galvanised steel, while the material field says alloy steel, and the amazon file does not mention a cap. DIVCHI is zinc plated. The EGLO bullets say hot-dip galvanised steel. A cap earns its place when the airer comes out and the socket stays in the lawn. Brabantia’s sheet tells you to close the cap so dirt stays out and the mower can pass. If you need the cap, buy the listing that names it.

Fields you should ignore

The DIVCHI title says 56 cm while the dimensions field says 420 mm high. Both numbers are on the listing. Neither is a buried length you can trust on its own. The EGLO amazon file prints 240 V, E27, and 800 lumens beside the spike bullets. EGLO’s sheet for 88744 has no lamp socket, so do not shop that page as a light and a socket in one box. If the goods are not as described, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 still applies. A socket in a private lawn is not a planning application. This page does not rank the shelf prices.

Common questions

What do black, red, and yellow Brabantia caps mean?
Black is the 35 mm socket for an Essential. Red is the 45 mm socket for a Topspinner or a Lift-O-Matic. Yellow is the 50 mm socket for a Lift-O-Matic Advance or a SmartLift. On Brabantia’s UK index those three are about £15.75, about £17.25, and about £18.25. Those are the maker’s prices, not the amazon.co.uk shelf prices. In this comparison only the 45 mm socket is listed.
Is a multi-fit spike the same as a measured socket?
No. A measured socket is cut for one diameter. A multi-fit title uses an adaptor or a clamp and still has a stated range. Argos lists a Home multi-fit at about £7.00 that claims six diameters, including 45 mm. That page is not in this set, and it does not widen the JVL bullets. The JVL spear in this set says 32–40 mm.
Does galvanised on a listing mean a known zinc thickness?
No. None of these amazon.co.uk files states a coating weight. Galvanised on the Brabantia and JVL bullets, zinc plated on the DIVCHI title, and hot-dip galvanised on the EGLO bullets are the words printed on the page. The JVL material field also says alloy steel, which does not agree with the bullets. Treat the finish as a stated claim, not as a rust-free life.
Why does the JVL amazon file say 6 cm when JVL’s site says about 39 cm?
The amazon dimensions field for this spear is 6 × 5 × 6 cm, and the title does not give a buried length. JVL’s own 32/40 mm page describes a spike about 39 cm by 4.3 cm and about 0.4 kg, at about £7.99, with a cap on the adaptor. The amazon file does not mention a cap. Keep both descriptions. Do not merge the two prices into one figure.
Should I concrete the spike if I rent the garden?
Only if you can leave it behind. Reviews of the Brabantia socket include old spikes set in concrete that would not pull out when someone moved. The bullets say the metal spike does not need concrete. Brabantia also sells a separate concrete tube, at about £13.75 on the UK index, which is not in this ASIN set. If you rent, a screw-in auger you can unscrew is the removal path in this set.

Related pages

Best ground spike

Screw-in or hammer-in

Ground spike

How to install a ground spike: drive, screw, plate

Ground spike for rotary washing line: the cap colour

Sources

Public UK sources and manufacturer pages listed in the research digest. Listing prices, stars and review counts are from the amazon.co.uk captures for these ASINs. The Brabantia shelf of £17.25 is the figure on the manufacturer page in that digest.

  1. Brabantia UK 45 mm ground spike (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Brabantia rotary airer spikes, 35, 45 and 50 mm (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Brabantia ground-anchor cap colours (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. HSE — underground cables (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. LSBUD safe digging (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. NICEIC — gardens and electrics (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Approved Document P (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. EGLO 88744 technical sheet (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  9. Consumer Rights Act 2015 (retrieved 19 October 2026)