Homeowners have to decide whether they want to higher a professional lawn care service for all of those important tasks or if they prefer the DIY lawn care route. Each option has positives and negatives, so you have to look at your unique situation! Orlando, FL residents need to consider the pros and cons of DIY lawn care to make the right choice.
Residents in Orlando, FL have a long growing season for their lawn when compared to other regions of the country. The higher temperatures and climate mean you do more lawn care than other homeowners, which makes Orlando unique. You need to closely consider the pros and cons of DIY lawn care vs. professional lawn care.
The PROS of DIY Lawn Care
Saving Money
The biggest pro for DIY lawn care is that it does TYPICALLY (not always) save you money. If you’re pinching pennies and making them scream, professional lawn care may not be in the budget for you.
One of the biggest areas you’ll save money is the cost of lawn mowing. If you have ¼ of an acre in Orlando, FL, the average cost to have your grass cut is $48.77. That doesn’t sound too bad, but during some periods of the year, you may have to cut your grass twice a week.
For our example, we’ll say it’s cut once a week. That’s $195.08 per month. You could spend over $2,340 per year on lawn mowing! A riding lawn mower costs anywhere between $500 and $2,000 depending on the make and model, and they last for years. You do need to pay for gas, but mowing your own grass does save you money.
Another example is the cost of overseeding your lawn. The cost can be anywhere from $500 to $1,000. Grass seed doesn’t cost that much; it’s the cost of the labor involved with overseeding. Overseeding will take you several hours to an entire day to finish yourself, but the savings there are large.
Exercise
Who needs the gym? Taking care of your lawn is exercise enough, especially when the temperatures are high and you sweat a gallon or more. It’s a great way to get some exercise in or get some time alone with your headphones. No screaming kids in your ear is a bonus.
You Get the Credit
A lot of homeowners take serious pride in their lawn care and landscaping. You spend all of that time taking care of your lawn. It feels great to get the credit for how wonderful it looks! Taking care of your lawn yourself means that you can put your own creative spin on your design and how you want it to look.
The CONS of DIY Lawn Care
The Results May Be Lacking
You aren’t a professional, and the results you wanted may not be achievable without their help. It takes time and practice to get it right.
The problem isn’t just not getting the results you wanted, but you might spend too much money trying to get the right results. Professionals can knock out weeds easier than homeowners can. You’ll spend weeks trying to find the right combination of chemicals and products when a professional would get it right the first time. They do this on a regular basis.
For example, core aeration is one task that can really make your lawn shine, but it can cost around $100 for a professional to aerate a 5,000 square foot lawn. It costs around $80 to rent a core aerator for the day, but it may take you more than one day to complete the task. If your results aren’t satisfactory, you may have to do it over again. In these cases, hiring a professional who can complete the task timely and properly the first time around is a wise investment of your money.
Time is Money Too
Let’s not forget that time is money as well. Do you want to invest a lot of your time taking care of your lawn? For some people, lawn care is a true joy, so taking the time for DIY lawn care is no problem for them.
You have to consider your schedule and flexibility. Do you have the time to spend on DIY lawn care? If so, that’s great, but you may find you have to give up something else to make the time.
Hidden Costs You Won’t Expect
You’ll save money in some aspects of lawn care, but there will be hidden costs you don’t expect. Things can easily go wrong without a professional over-seeing your lawn care.
You might not notice patches of your grass starting to come up because of a grub infestation. The crabgrass weed may rapidly take over your lawn without you realizing it began! If you encounter a lawn disease or something that you don’t know how to fix, you’ll spend money fixing it and you might end up still having to call a professional.
The average cost of weed control in Orlando, FL is $60. If you have to experiment and purchase a few brands of weed killer, you’ll spend more than that! An average gallon of weed killer is around $20!
Don’t forget that you need to fertilize our lawn at least once or twice a year. The average cost of lawn fertilizing in Orlando, FL is $60 for ¼ of an acre. If you do that yourself, you will spend several hours and just a bit less in fertilizer. Homeowners forget to include the cost of things when they consider how much they’ll save by using DIY lawn care.
Deciding Which is Right for You
If you love taking care of your lawn or if you don’t have any room in the budget, DIY lawn care could be right for you. In most circumstances, a professional lawn care service has many benefits. You benefit from their expertise, and they come well-equipped to handle anything that they might encounter. Plus, you’re reclaiming hours of your life that you can spend with your family or having fun!
