Rain, rain go away…or don’t! Sometimes rainy days offer a unique opportunity for landscape contractors to catch up around the office and warehouse. After all, spring is the busiest time of year for estimate requests for our customers, so we know landscape contractors are busy meeting customers and preparing proposals, all the while starting up their services for the season.
So what happens when it rains? Does everything stop? Do landscapers get ‘rained-out’?
Not a chance!
9 Things Productive Landscapers do When it Rains
Thanks to Turfscape Inc., Samuel’s Lawn Service, LLC, and Dowco, Inc. for sharing their rain day activities with us on Facebook and Twitter.
We took to Facebook and Twitter to find out exactly what our customers do when conditions are too wet (they definitely don’t get rained out). Here’s what they had to say:
1. Cleaning Shop and Yard Area
- Staying organized and clean creates a safer, more efficient environment for everyone.
2. Organize and Audit Inventory
- Organize and rotate stock to prevent loss from old unusable materials such as pre-emergent, seed, fertilizer, etc. Audit inventory to better plan material purchasing.
3. Label and Catalog New Equipment
- By labeling and cataloging new equipment with asset tags or colored tape, you can quickly see how old a piece of equipment is and make faster decisions concerning repairs or replacements. You also have a list to perform equipment audits in the future.
4. Scheduling Jobs and Looking at Weather Forecasts
- Everyone knows that when it rains, the schedule will need to be adjusted. The rain day itself is the best time for this, as opposed to the next morning. This gives you time to look at the future forecast and schedule accordingly.
5. Clean and Detail Trucks and Equipment
- Performing a detailed cleaning of the truck interior helps with appearance and to maintain the value of the vehicle. You can also pressure wash mowers and other equipment.
6. Perform PM’s or Other Needed Repairs on Equipment
- Rain days are a great opportunity to perform preventative maintenance (PM’s), such as oil changes and tune-ups. Having all the equipment at the shop allows for additional repairs that otherwise may have to wait under normal circumstances.
7. Sharpen Lawn Mower Blades
- This should be performed on a schedule, but sharpening blades on a rain day will help with the wet or damp turf you will need to tackle the next day.
8. Spring Clean-Ups
- If the rainfall is not too severe, you can schedule and perform spring cleanups in areas of larger properties, where you won’t cause a mess, to still get in some billable work on an off day.
9. And last but not least…bidding!
- Measure properties for landscape estimates online. It may be raining outside, but it’s always sunny at Go iLawn!
What do you do on rainy days? Share with us in the comments section of this post.
Special thanks to Dowco Inc., Samuel’s Lawn Service, LLC and Turfscape, Inc. for sharing their rainy day activities with us on Facebook and Twitter.
