Mistakes to Avoid when Sodding

Stan: One of my newer guys screwed up on a sod job today, and it wasn't his fault at all. It was my fault for not giving him a clear enough sense of direction on what not to do while I was busy explaining all of those little details that make for a successful sod installation. So today we're gonna cover the best time of the year to lay sod, what not to do, and the things that you need to get ready so you can have a perfect lawn. So without wasting any more time, let's get into it.

Stan: Problems started when I went out to the job site and noticed that some of the sod had been laid on top of existing turf. Now you can lay sod over existing turf, and it will grow. This is the freshly laid sod before we did the repair, and this is the same spot after, it looks almost identical, and the customer didn't have a problem, and didn't know there was an issue. But it's not the recommended way to do it, and it's not the way I'm gonna leave one of my job sites.

Stan: To correct this specific problem, the entire perimeter was rolled up, then the turf was removed, and then the sod was laid back down, and then over seeded to make sure that we could get a good color match between the existing turf and our sod.

Stan: You're such a good kitty. Hey guys, this is Savannah, she's actually a Bobcat, not a house cat. You'll notice that she doesn't have a tail. Now you're probably wondering what the heck I'm doing with a Bobcat, and I'm gonna cover that at the end of today's video. And at that time, just for our contractor friends, I'm also gonna tell you how you guys can get a free copy of the project foreman job description. This is the document you need when you're building a business to describe the different levels of organization within your company, and it's absolutely free until October 1st, no strings attached.

Stan: Now you guys came here because you wanted to see how we screwed up on this sod job, and how we fixed it. And that's what we're gonna get into right now. Oh that's a good kitty. Okay, yeah, does that taste good?

Stan: So we are gonna repair this path coming in, and sod this yard. The sod must lay flat on the ground. If you lay it over rocks or sticks, the roots won't make contact with the ground beneath, and it'll eventually die. When you come to a hill, you always roll the sod across it, and never down.

Stan: So we're changing the pattern because we have a change in the slope.

Stan: On steeper slopes, add sod staples. This will secure the sod until the roots can take hold.

Stan: I like to do three per role.

Stan: Sod staples are permanent, they never get removed.

Stan: You don't have to have a hammer to put sod staples in. If you have to hammer it in, your ground needs to be prepped better for sod.

Stan: On flat areas your pattern isn't as critical, but you seams are. Never line them up, always stagger your seam joints.

Stan: When's the best time of the year to lay sod? In the fall, is absolutely the best time. The later the the possible. I've actually laid sod while it's snowing. The reason it works so well is because the sod goes dormant, it doesn't realize that its just been sliced, rolled up into a ball, brought somewhere new, and laid out. It's sound asleep, think of it that way.

Stan: In the springtime when the ground starts to thaw, the sod comes back to life, ready to sprout new roots, and you have not had to do any maintenance.

Stan: So then we have to answer the question when's the worst time of the year to lay sod? Hey Blaine, when do you think the worst time of the year to lay sod is?

Blaine: Mid summer.

Stan: Mid summer, July, August, the hottest part of the year. Dry, hot weather is your nemesis. Big word for Polish guy. You wanna make sure that that sod, if you lay it in July or August stays evenly moist all day long, or it could cook within 24 hours.

Stan: Now I should probably quit talking and help him out.

Stan: It's important to loosen the sub-soil and level out any uneven areas, this will allow the roots of the new sod the best chance to grow.

Stan: So what you see Andy doing there, he's taking the time to eliminate even the tracks from a track skid loader. That way you get the absolute best contact with the ground below it, you don't have uneven-ness. The little details make a big difference. How long does sod stay fresh on a pallet?

Andy: Like two days.

Stan: It actually stays fresh longer than that. So as a company, we are obligated to make sure we get it down. But as a homeowner, or DIY, if you're doing it yourself, don't fret it, don't sweat it. It's not that big of a deal if it sits on a pallet for a day, two days, even three days. If it has to sit on a pallet, that long, just keep it in the shade, keep it cool, keep it moist, don't saturate it. You're gonna be fine.

Stan: Okay, here's one of the myths about sod, you lay it down and you're done. Nothing could be further from the truth. You look up, you see that tree, that tree is shading the sod. This sod is growing in full sun. So when you lay it down in a shady area like this, it will eventually start to die off. By over seeding it with a shade mixture as the sunny sod starts to fade away, it gives an opportunity for the shade mixture to replace it, to come in nice, and thick, and full. Meaning that you'll never had dead spots in your sod. If you don't over seed it, that tree will eventually weaken this sod.

Stan: Now I promised you guys a story on this little Bobcat girl. Her owner is already rescuing 12 foxes, and is pregnant herself, and is absolutely exhausted. She asked if I could step in for a few days and just relieve her of some of the stress. I was happy to help an animal in need, and a person in need. And that got me to thinking, what can I do for you guys out there? That's when I realized I could give away the project foreman job description packet. This is absolutely the fundamental first step to building a business from the ground up. It defines the different roles in your organization and takes you from a basic hub and spoke business management mode, which is you in the middle, all the stress on you, to a top down management model, which is the way the big boys play.

Stan: So if you guys wanna get your own copy of that, just go over to Dirt Monkey University, it's inside the mastermind group, but the mastermind group is absolutely free for the first week. And you get the project foreman job description. Bounce around inside the group for a few days, and if you don't like it just leave and keep the project foreman job description. I don't care. I'm that absolutely confident that it will actually help you guys out.

Stan: Oh, and real quick, if you guys are already a member of our mastermind group, make sure you email Callie and get your free copy. You guys need this information.

Stan: And with that being said, if this video has helped you guys out, let me know in the comments down below, or hit the like button. It goes a long way. As always, God bless, go get 'em. Right Savannah? Who's a good kitty kitty kitty? Who's a good kitty kitty kitty?

**the project foreman job description offer has expired