--- title: "Why Some Turf Yards Take More Work | TIMELESS Grass & Greens" description: "Two yards the same size can need very different work. See what adds scope to a turf job, from access and disposal to private lines, trees and base inspections." url: https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/ updated: 2026-09-12 --- Costs and planning # Why one turf yard takes more work than another the same size * * * Updated 2026-09-12 The short answer ## Why does one turf yard take more work than another the same size? Square footage sets how much turf you buy, not how much work the job takes. Scope grows with how hard the yard is to reach, how much comes out and where it can go, private lines the 811 locate won't mark, a shape that fights the roll width, trees, and any city inspection of the base. Most of that shows on a site visit, not a tape measure. Planning a turf installation? Get a layout, turf options and a written quote for your space. [Request a free estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/estimate/) [Call 303-349-2368](tel:3033492368) We’ll call to arrange a free site visit. On this page On this page 1. [Square footage is only the start](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#square-footage-is-only-the-start) 2. [Getting in and out of the yard](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#getting-in-and-out-of-the-yard) 3. [What comes out, and where it can go](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#what-comes-out-and-where-it-can-go) 4. [Lines the 811 locate won’t mark](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#lines-the-811-locate-wont-mark) 5. [What’s under the grass](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#whats-under-the-grass) 6. [Trees in or near the turf](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#trees-in-or-near-the-turf) 7. [Shape, roll width and seams](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#shape-roll-width-and-seams) 8. [A base someone has to inspect](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#a-base-someone-has-to-inspect) 9. [Before you ask for an estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/what-makes-a-turf-project-more-work/#before-you-ask-for-an-estimate) ## Square footage is only the start Two back yards can measure the same and still be very different jobs. The turf order may match. The digging, hauling, locating, cutting and waiting often don’t. That’s why a measurement alone can’t set the scope. What adds work is on the ground, and most of it only shows when someone walks the yard. On our free visit we measure the space, check the ground and note each item below. Then we draw a custom layout for you to approve. ## Getting in and out of the yard Everything that comes out leaves by the same route the base and turf come in. So start with the route: - **Gate width.** A narrow gate or a side path can decide whether a small machine fits, or the work is done by hand and wheelbarrow. - **Steps, slopes and distance.** Every step and every extra stretch between the truck and the yard adds trips. - **Parking.** A long carry from the street moves every load twice. - **Fences and finished surfaces.** A fence panel that has to come down, or a patio that needs protecting, is part of the job. ## What comes out, and where it can go A turf job starts by removing what’s there: grass and roots, enough soil to make room for the base, and sometimes rock, edging, concrete or old turf. The depth of the dig sets how much of that there is. Atlantic Beach, Florida, for one, requires at least a 4-inch base of permeable, free-draining aggregate. Every inch of base is soil that has to leave first. It doesn’t all go to one place. Disposal sites sort material into streams: - **Grass and yard waste.** [Horry County’s Solid Waste Authority](https://www.solidwasteauthority.org/landfill.html) says “all yard waste is banned” from South Carolina’s municipal solid waste landfills under state law. It goes to a separate facility, which turns it into mulch and compost. - **Concrete, brick and building debris.** The authority’s landfill takes shingles, clean wood, concrete and asphalt, brick, mixed construction debris and land clearing debris, and asks that they be kept separate ([Horry County SWA](https://www.solidwasteauthority.org/howdoi.html)). - **Soil.** Brunswick County, NC lists clean soil with concrete and brick as land clearing and inert debris. Tile, counter tops and painted concrete aren’t accepted on the same terms. - **Construction debris in St. Johns County.** Residents and businesses are required to take it to one of the county’s [listed disposal sites](https://www.sjcfl.us/construction-and-demolition-debris-disposal/). On a [turf replacement](https://www.timelessgrass.com/services/turf-removal-and-replacement/), the old turf is one more load, with whatever infill is still in it. So the question isn’t only how much comes out. It’s how many kinds, and how far each has to travel. ## Lines the 811 locate won’t mark Before anyone digs, 811 has to be called. In South Carolina that’s at least [three full working days](https://sc811.com/homeowners/faqs-homeowners/) ahead, and no more than 12. In Colorado it’s at least 48 hours, not counting weekends, holidays or the day you call ([Colorado 811](https://www.colorado811.org/residential-digging)). SC811 says the company doing the digging should make the request, and that you should check it has. Colorado 811 adds a warning for landscaping: don’t just rely on your landscaper. The free locate covers public lines only. [SC811](https://sc811.com/homeowners/private-lines/) explains that public lines typically run from the street to your meter, and everything past the meter is private. Its examples: - sprinkler systems - gas lines for pools or grills - electrical wiring to a detached garage or shed - septic and irrigation lines Getting those marked is your responsibility. Colorado 811 says that means hiring a private locating company as well as calling 811. If you have site plans for the property, SC811 suggests starting there. A yard with a sprinkler system to cap or reroute, or a wire running out to a shed, holds more work than a bare lawn the same size. ## What’s under the grass Nobody knows exactly until the sod is up, but the visit narrows it down. The Synthetic Turf Council, the industry’s trade association, says in its field guidelines (revised November 2011) that low spots should be filled, and unsuitable material removed and replaced with clean fill or aggregate, before the base goes in. Buried rock, roots, old concrete or soft ground all add to that step. What’s already there can matter too. Atlantic Beach’s guidelines ban paver sand, crushed fines, stone screenings and decomposed granite containing fines from the base, because they “restrict infiltration.” Where a rule like that applies, an old bed of paver sand comes out rather than staying under the new turf. ## Trees in or near the turf Trees change both the layout and the dig. Atlantic Beach’s guidelines say turf should stay out from under a tree’s drip line where possible. Where it has to go there: - the turf must sit at least 18 to 24 inches from the base of the tree - the base under the canopy can be no more than 3 inches deep - that base can only be lightly compacted, and must still let water and air through That means a separate base section under the canopy, and more cutting around each trunk. ## Shape, roll width and seams Turf is made in rolls. The Synthetic Turf Council’s guidelines say turf is manufactured in panels or rolls “typically a nominal 15 feet wide,” and each one is joined to the next with a seam. So shape matters as much as area: - **A strip narrower than the roll** can often be covered in one run. - **A wide rectangle** needs pieces joined side by side. - **Curves, beds and cutouts** around a patio or tree leave offcuts. Offcuts can’t just be turned to fill a gap. North Carolina’s rule for landscape contractors has turf rolled out “with the nap facing a consistent direction” ([21 NCAC 28B .0503](http://reports.oah.state.nc.us/ncac/title%2021%20-%20occupational%20licensing%20boards%20and%20commissions/chapter%2028%20-%20landscape%20contractors/chapter%2028%20rules.pdf)). A piece that fits the space but runs the wrong way can’t be used there. Two yards with the same square footage can need different amounts of turf ordered, and different amounts of seaming. ## A base someone has to inspect Some places add a step between the base and the turf. Atlantic Beach’s guidelines set out: - **Documents:** the manufacturer’s product specifications, permeability testing, installation details or cross-section drawings, and a site plan showing the turf relative to trees and property lines. - **An inspection:** the aggregate base must be inspected and approved before the turf goes down, and must stay exposed and accessible until approval is granted. - **Location limits:** no turf in the city right-of-way, and no change to drainage patterns or runoff onto the lots next door. - **Stormwater areas:** turf in a private retention area can’t reduce its storage capacity, and the city may require engineering documentation. A required inspection means the base is finished, the job pauses, and the turf goes down after approval. That’s a second trip, and a schedule set by someone else. Rules differ by city and county, and they change. Our article on [turf permits](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/do-i-need-a-permit-for-artificial-turf/) covers what to ask. Your city or county building or planning office has the final word for your address. ## Before you ask for an estimate Some of this you can clear up or simplify first: 1. Measure the gate, and walk the route from the street to the yard. 2. Find the sprinkler controller, and any site plan showing where lines run. 3. List what’s there now: grass, rock, pavers, concrete or old turf. 4. Note every tree whose canopy reaches the turf area. 5. Ask your county where yard waste, soil and concrete each go. 6. Ask your city or county whether the base has to be inspected. 7. Decide where the turf could stop in a simpler line, clear of trees and beds. Then book the free visit. We measure the space and check the ground, and you approve a custom layout before any work starts. When the estimate arrives, our guide to [reading a turf quote](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/how-to-read-a-turf-quote/) shows what each line should say. ## Common questions ### Will 811 mark my sprinkler lines? No. [SC811](https://sc811.com/homeowners/private-lines/) explains that public lines typically run from the street to your meter, and lines past the meter, such as sprinkler systems, gas lines for a pool or grill, and wiring to a shed, are private. [Colorado 811](https://www.colorado811.org/residential-digging) says it is your responsibility to have private lines marked before digging, which means hiring a private locating company in addition to calling 811. ### Who should call 811 before a turf job? Whoever does the digging, but check. [SC811](https://sc811.com/homeowners/faqs-homeowners/) says the company doing the excavation should submit the locate request, and that you should verify it has before any digging starts. [Colorado 811](https://www.colorado811.org/residential-digging) goes further for landscaping: do not just rely on your landscaper, and if in doubt, contact 811 yourself. ### Can the old grass and soil go out with the household trash? Usually not. [Horry County's Solid Waste Authority](https://www.solidwasteauthority.org/landfill.html) says state law bans yard waste from South Carolina municipal solid waste landfills. [St. Johns County](https://www.sjcfl.us/construction-and-demolition-debris-disposal/) requires construction and demolition debris to go to one of its listed disposal sites. Ask your county which stream each load belongs to before the dig starts. ### Does a city inspect the base before the turf goes down? Some do. Atlantic Beach, Florida requires the aggregate base to be inspected and approved before turf is installed, and the base has to stay exposed until approval is granted. Rules like this are local, so ask your city or county building or planning office what applies at your address. ## Related turf questions - [Where will the seams go in my artificial turf?](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/where-artificial-turf-seams-go/) - [Putting turf on a basement or garage concrete floor](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/artificial-turf-on-a-concrete-floor-indoors/) - [Artificial turf or sod: which fits your yard?](https://www.timelessgrass.com/blog/artificial-turf-vs-sod/) ## Where to go next - [Artificial lawns](https://www.timelessgrass.com/services/residential-turf/) - [Turf replacement](https://www.timelessgrass.com/services/turf-removal-and-replacement/) - [Turf in Denver Metro](https://www.timelessgrass.com/denver-metro/) - [Turf in The Grand Strand](https://www.timelessgrass.com/grand-strand/) - [Turf in Northeast Florida](https://www.timelessgrass.com/northeast-florida/) Useful links - [SC811: frequently asked questions for homeowners (locate timing, who calls, private lines)](https://sc811.com/homeowners/faqs-homeowners/) Free estimate ## Planning a turf installation? Tell us about the area you want to install or replace. We’ll call to arrange a free site visit. [Or call 303-349-2368](tel:3033492368) Your free estimate includes - A visit to measure your space - A custom layout, drawn for your space - Turf options, side by side - A written price, with no pressure to sign [Request a free estimate](https://www.timelessgrass.com/estimate/) Five short steps. We’ll call to arrange your visit.