Subcontracting & laying sod

[crewchiefracer]

We've run a small lawn care and landscaping business for the past 6 years. We've laid sod before but this is the first customer that wants us to lay around 1 acre of centipede sod as well as doing some other landscaping. Only problem is due to the size of the project we don't have the manpower to do it as well as all the other projects we've gotten lined up. We certainly don't way to send her away and was wondering how many landscapers subcontract this part of the job to businesses that grow and lay sod? It seems that we will only be setting everything up as well as supervising what is being done. Also, if this is something that is routinely done, what kind of contracts need to be done between me, her and the sod guy? Also, she doesn't have irrigation at the farthest end of her backyard, what kind of guarantee is usually given to clients when laying sod w/ no irrigation?

Any advice would be helpful.

Thanks--Valerie

[MASTERMOWER]

Can't help you with the subcontracting, but I will say don't guarantee ANY of the sod. I don't guarantee sod or even seed. I can tell a customer over and over again the more you water the better it grows, but I swear this falls on deaf ears. Only great sodding/seeding work I've done is where I have control over the irrigation or where the few select people actually listened. :alien::alien::alien:

[1Chavez]

An acre is nothing. Hire a few extra hands for the time it will take to lay it out. It's not rocket science as long as the ground was preped right. All you need is people to run the sod strips to two people who will set it. Keep the lay people supplied at the proper spacing and it will go smooth. As to a guarantee in an area without irrigation, I would say run irrigation to the area and do it right. If there is irrigation alredy there, adding a zone or two shouldn't be much of a hard sell (especially if they can afford to sod an acre).