MowProHQ Blog/Quotes
How to Quote a Sprinkler Repair From the Lawn
Turn a broken head or valve into an estimate while you are still on the property, then schedule the approval.
Quote the broken head or valve while you are still on the lawn: photo, named product, estimate out, then schedule the approval. Do not install it for free while you “figure the number at the shop.” Do not text a round number that never matches the invoice. The estimate is a mini contract you can send before the grass dries.
This workflow sits next to how to price startup, repair, and blowout. A valve is not a startup. Irrigation service software should let you send the quote from the property. It is not a CAD tool and not a napkin.
Do not fix first and invoice later
The leak is loud. The customer is standing there. The parts are on the truck. That is how unpaid work starts.
Default: diagnose what you can see, quote the unit, install only after a yes — unless you already sold that unit on a published startup (you probably did not).
Exception: a geyser that is flooding a walkway or a situation you would cap for safety. Cap, photo, quote the repair. Capping is not a free rebuild.
| Move | Result |
|---|---|
| Replace two heads “real quick” | They become included forever |
| “I’ll send a number tonight” | They already called the other shop |
| Verbal $180, invoice $240 | Trust problem, not a math problem |
| Quote on the lawn, job on the board | You look like a shop |
Train the truck: no thumbs-up without a record. A nod at the valve box is not an approval if it never hits a quote.
What you must see before you type a number
You are quoting a failure, not a feeling.
On the lawn:
- Photo the head, the box, or the wet pattern — wide enough to see which bed
- Run the zone if you can do it without making it worse
- Decide the unit: nozzle, head, valve rebuild, valve replace, splice, clock
- Decide if this visit already paid a trip (startup day vs special call)
- Write exclusions: laterals, redesign, “make the whole side match”
If you cannot tell valve from wire from a broken lateral, do not invent a whole-zone price. Quote a diagnostic / locate minimum and the next decision. Customers prefer an honest stop to a fake number that doubles.
Anatomy of a sprinkler repair estimate
1. Property and the failure
Address, where on the property, and one sentence they will recognize: “Zone 4 front beds, two misting sprays, valve lid at the driveway.” If they have three lots, pick the right property. Wrong yard is how you win a job you cannot find.
2. Scope in plain language
Example: “Replace two 4-inch spray bodies and nozzles on Zone 4. Reset heads to grade. Does not include the valve, wiring, or a new zone.”
Ambiguity is donated labor. Write like a human. Be specific.
3. Line items that match the menu
Use the same names as the rate card: spray head, rotor, valve rebuild, valve replace, wire minimum, trip. If the tech invents “irrigation repair” as one blob, the invoice will fight the memory of the wet yard.
4. Price presentation
Show Regular vs Cash if you take cards. On MowProHQ, Free processing is 4% + $0.30 and Growth is 3.5% + $0.30. Cash and check are free. The cash number should be the floor you actually needed. Do not add a surprise after the glue sets.
5. Assumptions and exclusions
- Access as we found it (clock location from the property note)
- Parts on the truck vs a return trip
- If it is not the valve, we stop and re-quote
- Not a system redesign, not CAD, not a guarantee every dry patch is this head
6. How to say yes
A link they can accept, or a reply that the office treats as an accept. Then it becomes a job. “Sounds good” in a text with no quote is how two people remember two numbers.
In MowProHQ
Speed: still on the property if you can
Homeowners often collect three numbers. The first clear one sets the standard.
| Situation | Target |
|---|---|
| One or two heads, parts on truck | Estimate before you leave; install if they approve now |
| Valve, parts on truck | Estimate at the box; install now or book the density day |
| Wire / unknown | Diagnostic quote same visit; do not guess the lateral |
| Commercial / HOA | Photo + written quote; they may need a PO |
| After-hours geyser | Cap, photo, after-hours minimum on the estimate |
If you need a part from the supplier, say so: “Estimate is good. I can install Thursday when the valve lands.” A mystery delay with no quote is how they hire someone else on Wednesday.
Convert the yes into a day, not a promise
An accepted quote that lives in email is still a napkin.
Flow:
- They approve
- Job appears on the property with the same lines
- You pick a repair slot or the next cluster that has air
- Tech sees the photos and the note
- Complete, invoice matches the quote
If approval happens after you left, you still win — the document exists. Follow up once at 48–72 hours, once about a week later, then mark lost with a reason. “Too expensive” and “went with the guy who included it in startup” are useful. “Unknown” is how the menu never improves.
Do not sneak an approved valve into tomorrow’s 12-start day unless you left a slot. That is how the next four houses slip and you look late on work you already sold.
Scope creep in the side yard
They will ask. Have lines ready.
“While you’re here, the back is weak.” New quote. Could be pressure, a valve, a lateral, or a clock program. Do not add it to the head ticket as a vibe.
“Can you just make it like new?” That is a redesign conversation. Refer or schedule a paid inspection. Service software will not draw the new system, and you should not fake a CAD bid in the driveway.
“The mowers hit it.” Maybe. Photo grade, flags, old dirt in the crack. If you also mow, apply the flag and damage policy. If you do not mow, do not become their claims adjuster. Quote the repair. Let them argue with the mower.
“Just bill me.” Still write the estimate. “Just bill me” is how $90 becomes a story about $400.
Worked conversation
Customer: That valve is shot. Can you do it now?
You: Rebuild is $X Cash / $Y Regular, replace is $A / $B if the body is gone. I’ll send the estimate now. Approve and I can do it on this visit if the part is on the truck; otherwise I book Thursday.
Then send it. Stand there while they tap yes, or leave with the link. Either way the number is on a record.
Follow-up without becoming a pest
| When | Message |
|---|---|
| Same visit | Estimate sent, photo, how to approve |
| 48–72 hours | Short nudge, window if they want it before the next freeze or heat wave |
| ~1 week | Final: we will close the quote; call if the leak returns |
| After yes | Day on the board, not “we’ll get it” |
Keep the official copy on the quote. Use the phone for the short ping. If Business phone ($19) or an AI receptionist ($29) is how after-hours leak calls arrive, the estimate still has to come from a human with a menu — the add-on captures the request; it does not invent a valve price.
How MowProHQ sends the estimate from the yard
MowProHQ keeps the customer, the property, the quote, and the job together so a valve quoted on the lawn does not get retyped at night. Core CRM, scheduling, quotes, invoices, dual Regular vs Cash pricing, the customer portal, and the website editor are free with two seats. Growth is $39 with unlimited seats, dispatch, GPS, a live site, and timeclock. Pro is $89. Business phone is $19. AI receptionist is $29. Cards: Free 4% + $0.30, Growth 3.5% + $0.30. Cash and check are free.
Store photos and ugly-zone notes on the property. Dedicated zone-by-zone fields are still coming. The same property can hold mowing and irrigation. This is not a CAD design tool.
Sign up when you want the yes at the valve box to become a scheduled repair, not a number that evaporates in a text thread.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I quote a sprinkler repair while I am still on the lawn?
- Photo the failure, name the product (head, valve rebuild, valve replace, wire), put Regular vs Cash totals on an estimate, and send it before you leave. Do not fix it for free while you “think about the number.” When they approve, schedule the job from the quote. Do not retype the valve into a text.
- Should I repair a broken sprinkler head during a startup without quoting?
- Only if your published startup includes that unit — and it usually should not. A sheared head found at turn-on is a repair line. Quote it, get the yes, then install. “While you’re here” without a number is how March donates parts and time.
- What should a sprinkler valve replacement quote include?
- The valve as rebuild vs replace, labor, any trip if it is not already a paid wave stop, Regular vs Cash totals, and what is excluded (laterals, a new manifold, a redesign). One photo of the box. How to approve. Ambiguous valve quotes become free wiring.
- How fast should I send an irrigation repair estimate?
- Before you roll the hose if you can. Same visit beats same day, and same day beats “I’ll price it tonight.” Homeowners get other numbers. The shop that sends a clean estimate from the yard sets the standard even when they are not the cheapest.
- What if I cannot diagnose the whole zone from the lawn?
- Quote the known unit and a diagnostic or locate minimum for the rest. Do not guess a lateral price from a wet fan. Write assumptions. A capped quote with “if it is the wire, we stop and re-quote” is honest. A fake whole-zone number is a fight.
- How does an accepted sprinkler quote become a scheduled job?
- The yes should create the job on the property without retyping line items. Book it into a repair slot or the next density day, not into a packed startup cluster unless you already left room. The invoice later should match the quote.
- Should sprinkler repair quotes show cash and card prices?
- Yes if that is your policy. Dual Regular vs Cash totals belong on the estimate so payment method is not a surprise after the valve is in. On MowProHQ, Free cards are 4% + $0.30 and Growth is 3.5% + $0.30. Cash and check are free.
