Irrigation warranties

Ask for the workmanship warranty length in writing on the contract, and ask what it excludes. Freeze damage is a common exclusion, and reasonably so if winterization was skipped — but you want that written clearly rather than argued later.

Ask whether labor is included when a warranted part fails. A manufacturer may replace a controller under warranty and still leave you paying for the visit to swap it. Contractors who include labor on warranty parts for a defined period are offering something meaningfully better.

Check what maintenance the warranty requires you to perform. Some contractors condition their workmanship warranty on having them do the annual winterization and startup. That may be perfectly reasonable, but you should know before you agree to it.

We won't publish manufacturer warranty terms here, because they differ by brand, product line and year, and a stale number is worse than none. Ask for the actual warranty documentation for the specific heads, valves and controller in your quote.

How to choose

Get workmanship terms on the contract

Length, what's covered, what's excluded. "Fully warrantied" is not a term.

Ask whether labor is covered on warranty parts

A free part with a paid service call is a much weaker warranty than it sounds.

Check maintenance conditions

Some warranties require the installer to do your annual service. Know that before signing.

Collect the parts documentation

Head, valve and controller model numbers plus their warranty documents. File them with your zone map.

Ask about transferability

Costs nothing to ask now, useful if you sell.