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How many irrigation bids should I compare?

Start with two or more written irrigation estimates, in line with FTC advice to get multiple estimates, then judge them on one shared written scope: water source, zone map, head and drip choices, controller, rain or soil-moisture shutoff, backflow preventer, trenching and lawn repair, since extra bids help only once every company answers that same layout.

Source: FTC home improvement hiring guidance, read 14 October 2026.

Researched by the InstaBids editorial team. Last checked: 14 October 2026

Several sprinkler zones watering a wide front lawn.

Key facts

Why do bids for one job differ?

Compare irrigation bids by the design each company drew for your yard. Two installers can split the same lot into a different number of zones, choose rotor or spray heads, put planting beds on drip, mount the controller elsewhere and leave sod repair after trenching in or out of the written scope.

Two lines from FTC home improvement advice fit irrigation well. One reads "Get multiple estimates. A written estimate should include a description of the work to be done, materials, completion date, and the price." The other reads "And ask for an explanation if there’s a big difference among the estimates." Put each zone's head, valve and pipe counts side by side to find where your estimates split.

Source: FTC home improvement hiring guidance, read 14 October 2026.

Ask whether each company measured your water pressure and flow before drawing zones. A layout built on a guessed flow may need extra zones or different nozzles later, and that change order is easier to spot when every bid states its assumption.

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When is a comparison less useful?

Check where your irrigation water will come from before comparing more bids. A system fed from your drinking-water line, a private well, reclaimed water or a lake pump can involve different connection work, so bids written for different sources share no common written scope.

The DBPR Unlicensed Activity page What Requires a License, read 14 October 2026, lists under its "Needs a DBPR License" column: "Perform plumbing work or irrigation installation that requires the contractor to connect lines to potable (drinking) water for compensation." The same row, under its "Does not need a DBPR License" column, reads: "Install or repair irrigation systems that have a backflow preventer connected to a potable (drinking) water supply regardless of compensation." Ask each bidder which entry it believes covers your job, and why. Neither entry mentions well, reclaimed or lake water, so ask in writing how a bid treats those sources.

Source: DBPR Unlicensed Activity Program, What Requires a License, read 14 October 2026.

How can I ask several companies the same questions?

Use a single drawing of your property for all irrigation bidders: the water meter or well, lawn versus bed areas, where the controller should hang and every walkway a trench would cross. Identical drawings and photographs mean the bids differ because of the companies, not their guesses about your yard.

  1. Zones: ask how many zones the bid uses and which areas each one waters.
  2. Heads: ask for rotor and spray counts per zone, and how the layout reaches every corner without wetting the house, the street or a neighbor's lot.
  3. Controller: ask for the model, where it mounts and whether it needs a new outlet.
  4. Repair: ask who replaces sod, plants or pavers disturbed by trenching, and who hauls away the spoil.

Ask each bidder whether a rain or soil-moisture shutoff sensor is included, and where its bid lists it.

Section 556.105(1)(a) of the 2026 Florida Statutes begins: "Not less than 2 full business days before beginning any excavation or demolition that is not beneath the waters of the state, and not less than 10 full business days before beginning any excavation or demolition that is beneath the waters of the state, an excavator shall provide the following information through the system:" Ask each irrigation company who will notify the one-call system for your address before trenching, and how its start date allows for that notice.

Source: Florida Statutes section 556.105, read 14 October 2026.

Should I ask whether a quotation has a charge?

Ask whether a design visit, pressure test or zone drawing is part of an irrigation estimate or a separate line item, and whether diagnosing a faulty existing system is its own appointment. Have each answer written down before any digging or part replacement begins.

Repair requests differ from new installation. If you only need broken heads, a leaking valve or a dead controller fixed, name those parts and ask what the written scope says happens if the technician finds a cracked lateral line or a failed zone valve.

What should my request include?

Describe your irrigation request with photographs of the water meter or well head, any existing backflow preventer, the controller location and each area to water, plus a written scope naming the water source, drip beds, sensor preference and who restores the lawn.

Contact details stay hidden until the homeowner picks a contractor and they confirm the connection.

Source: InstaBids process and privacy, read 14 October 2026.

What should I do when written bids arrive?

Compare each irrigation bid with your drawing and written scope zone by zone, starting with the water source, head types, controller and shutoff sensor. Then look for who connects to your water supply and who restores trenched sod, and ask about any connection, backflow preventer or lawn repair line left blank before choosing.

The DBPR Construction Industry page, read 14 October 2026, says: "CF and RF – A “plumbing contractor” means a contractor whose contracting business consists of the execution of contracts requiring the experience, financial means, knowledge, and skill to install, maintain, repair, alter, extend, or, when not prohibited by law, design plumbing." It continues: "A plumbing contractor may install, maintain, repair, alter, extend, or design the following without obtaining any additional local regulatory license, certificate, or registration:" One listed item reads: "irrigation systems; or". The same page lists a separate Certified Irrigation Specialty Contractor category. If a bid includes the drinking-water connection, you can ask which DBPR category the company holds; looking up its public DBPR record yourself is optional.

Source: DBPR Construction Industry categories, read 14 October 2026.

Your strongest tiebreaker is the water connection. When one bid installs a new backflow preventer and another reuses the existing one, have both companies write that choice into the scope before you seek another irrigation estimate.

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Sources for the facts on this page

Sources checked: 14 October 2026.

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