By the Templateez Team · Licensed Attorney · June 2026

Irrigation & Sprinkler System Intake Forms: What to Capture Before the First Site Visit

An irrigation contractor who arrives at a property without knowing the water source, the lot size, or whether the system runs on a basic timer or a smart WiFi controller is going to waste the first thirty minutes asking questions that should have been answered before the truck left the shop. The site visit is supposed to be the moment you walk the property, test heads, check pressure, and develop a plan. That falls apart when you are still gathering baseline data while standing in the client's front yard.

Most irrigation companies collect a name, address, and a vague description of the problem. That is not intake — that is dispatching. A real irrigation and sprinkler system intake form captures everything your team needs to quote accurately, design properly, and avoid the callbacks that eat into margins on every job. Here is what that form should include.

Property overview: the foundation of every irrigation design

Every irrigation system is designed around the property it serves. A quarter-acre suburban lot with a flat front lawn and a 2-acre estate with multiple elevations, mature tree canopy, and mixed landscape zones are fundamentally different projects. Your intake should capture the basics before anyone drives to the site:

• Lot size — total acreage or square footage. This is the starting point for system sizing, material estimates, and pricing. If the client does not know the exact number, ask for the approximate range or pull it from county records.
• Lawn and landscape area — the irrigable area is rarely the full lot. Driveways, the house footprint, patios, and other hardscape reduce the area that actually needs water. Get an estimate of how much of the property is turf versus garden beds versus hardscape. If you also handle lawn care services, a separate lawn care intake captures grass type, mowing frequency, fertilization programs, and chemical application licensing that irrigation forms do not cover.
• Existing irrigation system — yes or no. If yes, capture the system age, original installer if known, and whether the client has any documentation — a zone map, controller manual, or as-built drawing. A system that was installed fifteen years ago by a company that no longer exists tells you something very different than one installed three years ago by a reputable contractor with documentation on file.
• Water source — municipal water, private well, reclaimed water, or a combination. Each source has different pressure characteristics, flow limitations, and regulatory requirements. Reclaimed water systems typically require purple pipe, specific signage, and backflow prevention that differs from potable water systems.

System assessment: what is already in the ground

For properties with an existing system, the assessment section of your intake determines how much of the site visit is inspection versus design. A system that runs but has coverage gaps is a different conversation than one that has not been turned on in three seasons:

• Number of zones — how many zones does the current system have? Does the client know which zones cover which areas? Many homeowners cannot answer this, which tells you the system has not been actively managed.
• Head types — rotors, spray heads, drip emitters, bubblers, or a mix. Knowing the head types before arrival helps your technician load the right replacement parts. A system that uses all rotors requires different nozzle kits than one with mixed sprays and drip zones.
• Controller type — basic timer, programmable digital controller, or smart WiFi controller. A client running a twenty-year-old mechanical timer is a candidate for a controller upgrade. A client with a Rachio or Hunter Hydrawise may just need programming adjustments or a zone expansion.
• Valve condition — does the client know the location of the valve boxes? Are any zones failing to turn on or turn off? Stuck valves and weeping valves are among the most common service calls, and knowing about them before arrival saves diagnostic time.
• Backflow preventer type and last test date — pressure vacuum breaker (PVB), reduced pressure zone (RPZ), double check valve assembly (DCVA), or atmospheric vacuum breaker (AVB). Most jurisdictions require annual backflow testing. If the client does not know the type or the last test date, that is a compliance flag your team should be aware of before the visit.

Water supply: pressure, flow, and capacity

An irrigation system is only as good as the water supply behind it. Designing zones, selecting heads, and calculating run times all depend on knowing what the supply can deliver. Your intake should capture:

• Municipal water pressure (PSI) — static pressure at the point of connection. Most residential systems need 40 to 65 PSI at the heads. If the client has a pressure gauge reading, capture it. If not, this becomes a first-visit measurement, but asking the question at intake tells the client you take hydraulics seriously.
• Flow rate (GPM) — gallons per minute available at the meter or well. This determines how many heads can run simultaneously on a single zone. Undersized zones cause pressure drops, poor coverage, and dry spots. Oversized zones waste water and create runoff.
• Meter size — for municipal connections, the meter size (5/8", 3/4", 1") directly affects maximum available flow. A 5/8" meter on a property that needs 20 GPM is a design constraint your team needs to know about before proposing a system.
• Well pump specifications — for well-fed systems, capture the pump's rated GPM, PSI, and recovery rate. A well that delivers 8 GPM with a 30-minute recovery period between cycles limits how many zones can run consecutively and may require a holding tank or cycle-and-soak programming.
• Water restrictions — local drought ordinances, mandated watering days, time-of-day restrictions, and seasonal bans. These are not preferences — they are legal requirements that directly affect system programming. A smart controller programmed to water on non-permitted days will generate a fine for the client and a phone call to your company.

Water supply constraints overlap with what plumbing contractors capture during their own intake process — meter size, pressure readings, and supply line capacity. The difference is that your design depends on sustained flow over extended run times, not the peak demand of a household fixture.

Landscape zones: different plants need different water

This is where irrigation intake diverges sharply from other outdoor service trades. A landscaping company cares about what is planted and where. An irrigation contractor cares about the same things — but for entirely different reasons. Every plant type, sun exposure, and soil condition translates into a specific precipitation rate, and getting it wrong means either overwatering (disease, runoff, waste) or underwatering (brown spots, plant stress, callbacks):

• Turf type — Bermuda, fescue, zoysia, St. Augustine, Kentucky bluegrass, buffalo grass. Each has different water requirements. Bermuda thrives on less water in full sun. Fescue needs more water but tolerates shade. St. Augustine demands consistent moisture in warm climates. Your zone design and scheduling depend on knowing what is growing where.
• Garden beds — annuals, perennials, ground cover, ornamental grasses. Beds are almost always on drip or micro-spray, not rotors. Capture the bed locations and what is planted so your design matches the delivery method to the plant material.
• Trees and shrubs — mature trees with deep root systems need infrequent deep watering. Newly planted trees need more frequent shallow watering until established. Shrub rows along a fence line may need their own dedicated drip zone.
• Slopes — any grade change affects both irrigation design and drainage. Slopes require lower precipitation rates to prevent runoff, often with cycle-and-soak programming. Steep slopes may need drip instead of spray to avoid erosion.
• Hardscape boundaries — patios, walkways, driveways, and retaining walls define where irrigation stops. Overspray onto hardscape wastes water, creates slip hazards, and stains concrete. Your design needs these boundaries mapped.
• Shade areas — full shade, partial shade, and full sun zones have dramatically different evapotranspiration rates. A zone that runs the same schedule in full sun and deep shade is overwatering the shade areas by 30 to 50 percent.

Service type: what the client actually needs

Irrigation work spans a wide range, and clients often describe their needs in vague terms. "My sprinklers are not working right" could mean a single broken head, a failed valve, a controller programming issue, or a system that was never designed correctly in the first place. Your intake form should present clear service categories:

• New installation — full system design and install on a property with no existing irrigation. This is the most complex engagement: site survey, hydraulic design, trenching, pipe and head installation, controller setup, and backflow prevention.
• System retrofit or upgrade — replacing components on an existing system. Converting spray zones to drip, upgrading to a smart controller, adding zones to cover new landscape areas, or replacing aged poly pipe with PVC.
• Repair — broken heads, leaking valves, cut lines, electrical faults in valve wiring, controller malfunctions. The most common service call. Your intake should ask the client to describe the symptom — dry spots, low pressure on one zone, water pooling where it should not be, a zone that runs but will not shut off.
• Seasonal startup — spring activation after winterization. Opening valves, pressurizing the system, running each zone, inspecting heads, adjusting the controller schedule for the growing season.
• Winterization and blowout — compressed-air blowout to clear lines before the first freeze. This is time-sensitive and schedule-driven. Your intake should capture the number of zones (to estimate blowout time) and whether the client wants startup scheduled for the following spring.
• Backflow testing — annual testing required by most jurisdictions. Often bundled with seasonal startup. Capture the device type and last test date so your technician brings the right test kit.
• Smart controller upgrade — replacing a basic timer with a WiFi-enabled controller that supports weather-based scheduling, remote access, and flow monitoring. Capture the client's existing controller brand and whether they have WiFi coverage at the controller location.
• Drainage — French drains, catch basins, regrading, and channel drains. Standing water, soggy areas, and foundation drainage issues are often discovered during irrigation work and represent an upsell opportunity that should be documented at intake if the client mentions water pooling or drainage problems.

Site conditions: what the ground tells you

Site conditions determine how your system performs long after installation. Two properties on the same street can have completely different soil, grade, and underground obstacle profiles. Your intake should capture:

• Soil type — clay, sand, loam, or rocky. Soil type directly affects absorption rate and dictates precipitation rate selection. Clay absorbs slowly and is prone to runoff; sandy soil absorbs quickly but does not retain moisture; loam is the ideal middle ground. A system designed for loam that is installed in heavy clay will create puddles and runoff on every cycle.
• Grade and slope — flat, gentle slope, steep grade, or mixed terrain. Grade affects both irrigation design (head selection, precipitation rate, cycle-and-soak programming) and drainage. A property that slopes toward the foundation is a drainage problem your client may not recognize until you point it out.
• Root zones and tree proximity — mature trees with aggressive root systems (willows, maples, certain oaks) will grow into irrigation lines over time. Capture the location of large trees relative to proposed pipe runs so your design accounts for root barriers or routing alternatives.
• Underground utilities — gas lines, electric lines, cable, fiber, and septic systems. Your intake should ask whether the client has called 811 or has existing locate marks on the property. Trenching through an unmarked gas line is the worst-case scenario in irrigation work, and it starts with an intake form that did not ask the right question.
• HOA landscape requirements — many homeowners' associations have specific rules about irrigation systems, including approved head types (pop-up only, no above-ground risers), watering schedules, and drought-compliance requirements. Capture whether the property is in an HOA and whether the client is aware of any irrigation-specific restrictions.

Efficiency goals: water conservation and smart technology

Water efficiency is no longer optional in most markets. Between rising utility rates, drought restrictions, and client awareness of conservation, your intake should capture the client's goals around efficiency:

• Water conservation priority — is the client motivated by reducing their water bill, meeting local conservation mandates, or both? This guides your design toward higher-efficiency components and programming strategies.
• Rain sensor or soil moisture sensor — does the system have one? Is it functional? A rain sensor that has been disconnected or a soil moisture sensor that has been bypassed is a common finding on existing systems. These devices are inexpensive to install and prevent the single most common source of water waste: the system running during or immediately after rain.
• Smart scheduling — evapotranspiration-based (ET-based) scheduling adjusts run times automatically based on weather data, temperature, humidity, and solar radiation. If the client is open to a smart controller, this is the programming approach that delivers the most measurable water savings.
• Drip conversion for beds — converting spray zones in garden beds to drip irrigation reduces water use by 30 to 50 percent in those areas and eliminates overspray onto hardscape and mulch displacement. Capture which bed zones are currently on spray so you can propose conversion.

Maintenance plan: keeping the system performing

An irrigation system that is installed and never maintained will degrade. Heads clog, nozzles wear, filters accumulate debris, and seasonal adjustments get skipped. Your intake should establish the client's interest in ongoing maintenance:

• Seasonal adjustments — spring startup, summer peak adjustment, fall reduction, and winterization. A four-visit annual maintenance plan is the standard in most markets and represents reliable recurring revenue.
• Head replacement cycle — pop-up heads in high-traffic areas (along driveways, near sidewalks, in play areas) take mechanical damage. Rotors wear out nozzles and gears. Establishing a replacement cycle at intake sets expectations for ongoing costs.
• Filter cleaning schedule — drip zones and systems fed by well water require regular filter maintenance. Clogged filters cause pressure drops that are often misdiagnosed as pump or valve problems. If the system has inline filters, capture their location and the last time they were cleaned.
• Winterization schedule — in freeze-prone regions, the blowout date needs to be scheduled before the first hard frost. Clients who wait until November to call are competing for limited availability. Your intake is the place to get them on the schedule early.

Permitting and compliance

Irrigation work is regulated in most jurisdictions, and your intake form should surface compliance requirements before the project starts — not when the inspector shows up:

• Local irrigation permit — many municipalities require a permit for new installations and major modifications. Capture whether the client is aware of the requirement and whether they expect your company to handle the permitting process.
• Backflow device registration — most water districts require backflow preventers to be registered and tested annually by a certified tester. If the existing device is unregistered or the test is overdue, that is a compliance issue your team should flag before starting other work.
• Water district approval — some water districts require plan review and approval for new irrigation systems, particularly for larger properties, commercial installations, or systems using reclaimed water. Capture the water district name so your team can check requirements before committing to a project timeline.

Building the client relationship from the first form

A thorough intake form does more than collect data. It tells the client that you understand irrigation at a technical level. When a prospective client fills out a form that asks about their backflow preventer type, their soil composition, and their water district restrictions, they understand that this company designs systems — it does not just dig trenches and install heads. That is the difference between a contractor who gets called back for warranty work and one who gets called back for referrals.

If you are building documentation across a multi-trade operation, the Trade Services Bundle includes irrigation alongside 51 other service categories, each with trade-specific intake fields.