Sod installation is the call when a lawn is more dirt and weeds than grass. If you can still see a lawn, the first question is whether that grass is the right species, cut at the right height, and getting water. New sod on top of a lawn that is only neglected is an expensive way to mow.
The split is visual, and it is honest. Bare sand, a mat of dead stolons, and weeds holding the ground are a replacement. A St. Augustine lawn that is long, weedy at the edges, and thin in one corner may still be a mowing and height problem. The grass types guide is how Floratam, Bahia, and Zoysia fail differently. Read that before you pay to swap a grass that was only being cut wrong.
A lawn that still has grass
St. Augustine that was scalped below 3.5 inches opens up and lets weeds in. That lawn can thicken again if the deck goes back to 3.5–4 inches and the water is actually reaching it. Bahia that has seeded out looks ruined and often is not. It wants to be mowed before the seed heads take over. Zoysia that is growing slowly is doing what Zoysia does. None of those are automatic tear-outs.
Irregular dry patches in full sun are the exception people misread. They can be chinch bugs, a dry zone, or both. We are not a spray company, and we will not sell you sod as a pesticide. If the patches are dead, replacement of that turf is the work we do. If the grass is only thirsty or too short, lawn mowing and a working sprinkler schedule are the work. The chinch bug guide keeps those two outcomes separate.
What new sod will not fix
Sod does not fix deep shade. Floratam handles partial shade. It does not live under a canopy that blocks the sun all day. Laying it there produces another dead lawn. The right move is a bed. That choice is the shade guide, and the install for the bed is landscaping, not a second try at grass.
Sod does not fix irrigation that does not run. The grass can root in two to three weeks if someone waters it. It can die in days on this sand if nobody does. We grade, we add topsoil where the sand will not hold water, and we tell you how to run the clock. We do not stay and operate the system, and we do not re-plumb it. A dry stretch with no irrigation is the install window that fails. Summer roots faster only when the water is actually on. If the zones are broken, a sprinkler company has to fix them before the sod is the thing being judged.
Sod also does not fix a low spot that holds water against the house. We regrade so water leaves the foundation as part of the install. We do not install French drains. If the yard holds water because the grade points at the slab, say so. If it holds water because a drain line is collapsed, that is not our trade. The standing water guide draws that line.
A walk-around before you order grass
Do this in the middle of the day, not at dusk. If you can still find grass stolons across most of the ground, and the thin spots follow a scalped cut or a missed week of water, start with mowing height and the irrigation clock. Weeds in a lawn that is otherwise St. Augustine are often a height problem. They are not, by themselves, an order for a truck of sod. If you part the grass and the soil is bare in irregular sunny patches, that may be chinch bugs, a dry zone, or both. We will not spray. A specialist can. If they say the turf is dead, then we replace that piece, not the whole yard by default.
Order the tear-out when the front is dirt, when the "lawn" is weeds with a memory of grass, or when a new-construction install never rooted and the seams are still visible as bare lines. Replace a section when the rest is worth keeping and the section is actually dead. Do not replace a side yard that is dark at noon and expect Floratam to behave. Do not replace anything the week the sprinklers are dead. We can pull, grade, and lay on a schedule. We cannot make the roots drink. If you are on the fence, send the midday photo and a photo of the healthiest corner. The quote will say replace, mow, or make it a bed. Guessing from the curb is how people buy the wrong one.
If you only remember one test, use the tug. Where the grass holds and the soil comes with it, you still have a lawn. Where the surface lifts like a mat of straw, or there is nothing to tug, that piece is finished. We will replace the finished piece and leave the rest on a mowing route. Buying a full yard of sod because one corner failed is how the range gets spent twice.
When the tear-out is the right job
Pull it when the ground is dirt, weeds, and old root mat, when a new-construction lawn never took, or when a section is dead and the rest of the yard is worth keeping. We remove what is there, grade away from the house, and lay the new grass tight. The price band is $0.85–$1.75 per square foot installed, and it moves with variety, haul-off, and how thin the sand is. Bring photos. If you are unsure which side of the split you are on, the walk will say so before anyone orders grass. Start at sod installation.
Frequently asked
How do I know the lawn needs to be replaced?
If it is more dirt and weeds than grass, it is a sod job. If grass is still covering the ground and it is only long or weedy at the edges, start with the right mowing height.
Can I lay new sod over the old lawn?
No. Dead grass, weeds, and the old root mat come out first. Sod laid on that mat dries out or stays wet, and it does not root.
Will sod fix a shady yard?
Not if the shade is deep. Floratam is a partial-shade grass. A bed is the honest answer when the ground does not get sun.
Will sod fix sprinklers that do not run?
No. New sod has to be watered for two to three weeks. If the irrigation is dead, fix that before you judge the grass. We do not re-plumb systems.