Pricing · Published flat rates
What sprinkler repair costs in North DFW
Most repair companies make you call to learn a price. Here are ours, published: real flat rates for the repairs we make every week in Plano, Frisco, McKinney, Allen, Richardson, and Dallas — and an honest explanation of what moves a price up or down.
Published rates · quoted flat before any work · You approve the flat price before any work begins
Texas Licensed Irrigator — LI0026061Required by Texas law for sprinkler repair. Ask any company for theirs.
Request sprinkler service
Describe the problem — we'll call back with an arrival window, usually same day.
What moves the number
Six things that actually set the price
Sprinkler repair pricing isn't mysterious — it's six variables. Here's each one, and where it sends the number.
Access & depth
A head at the surface versus a valve three feet down under a root field — excavation time is the biggest single variable in the trade.
Parts & brand availability
A current Rain Bird diaphragm costs little; a discontinued 1980s model means retrofit work. Age decides whether it’s a part or a project.
Finding versus fixing
On leaks and wire breaks, the locate is most of the labor. Pinpointed by instrument, the repair itself is often the cheap part.
Electrical versus mechanical
Solenoids and splices are quick; surge damage that traveled the whole system is not. The meter sorts them before the quote.
Hardscape in the way
Lines under driveways get bored, not cut — more skill, but a fraction of repouring concrete.
One repair or a pattern
The third failure on one manifold changes the honest recommendation — and we price both paths so you can see the five-year math.
One rule above all of it: the price is flat and you approve it before work begins. Depth, access, and parts set the quote — but once quoted, the number does not move. No hourly meters, no “while we were in there.”
Diagnosis guide
Typical repairs, typical numbers
The six most common repair scenarios in our territory, with the honest range each usually lands in.
Broken sprinkler head
From $[XX] including the matched head and nozzle, set flush to grade with the arc adjusted. Batching several heads in one visit improves the per-head economics, and we’ll say so in the quote.
Zone stuck on (valve rebuild)
Diaphragm or solenoid rebuilds run $[XX]–$[XXX] when the valve body is sound. The stuck zone that won’t shut off is usually the cheaper valve repair, not the expensive one.
Valve replacement
$[XXX]–$[XXX] cut out and replaced, located and wired, with unions added where access allows. Manifold rebuilds are quoted as one flat number — often less than four valves replaced one emergency at a time.
Underground leak
Lateral repairs from $[XXX] located, spliced, and pressure-tested; main-line repairs $[XXX]–$[XXX] with priority scheduling. The locate is included — that’s the part you’re really hiring.
Dead controller or wiring fault
Solenoids from $[XX]; wire location and splicing from $[XXX]; controller replacement from $[XXX] installed and programmed to your city’s schedule. Smart controllers add hardware cost and, in some cities, real rebates.
Failed backflow test
Check rebuilds from $[XX] where parts exist; double check assembly replacement $[XXX]–$[XXX] ready for retest. Freeze-split repairs are quoted flat after inspection — insulation included, so it’s once.
Flat-rate pricing
The master rate table
Every repair is a flat rate quoted before work begins — never hourly, never a running meter while someone digs. The service call covers a full zone-by-zone diagnosis and applies to your repair, so diagnosis is effectively free when we do the work.
| Repair | Flat rate | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Service call & full diagnosis | $[XX] | Every zone run and tested — valves, wiring, pressure, coverage, sensors. Applied to your repair. |
| Sprinkler head replacement | from $[XX] | Matched head and nozzle, set to grade, coverage adjusted. |
| Valve repair / replacement | $[XXX]–$[XXX] | Diaphragm rebuilds to full replacement, located and wired. |
| Leak location & repair | from $[XXX] | Found by isolation and instrument, spliced, pressure-tested before backfill. |
| Backflow (double check) replacement | $[XXX]–$[XXX] | Failed-test replacements ready for retest, coordination included. |
Your flat rate depends on depth, access, and parts — but once quoted, it does not move. You approve the number before a shovel touches dirt. Each service page carries its own detailed table: valves, heads, leaks, wiring, and backflow.
Local knowledge
Flat rate vs. hourly — why it matters to your invoice
The pricing model decides whose side the clock is on. Here's the difference, plainly.
Hourly billing — the meter runs on you
Under hourly billing, every surprise in the ground bills to you: the bonnet screw that shears, the splice that crumbles, the second trip for a part. The estimate that got the truck to your curb has no obligation to survive contact with a 30-year-old system — and on old systems, surprises are the norm, not the exception.
It also quietly punishes skill. The tech who finds your leak in twenty minutes bills less than the one who hunts for three hours — which is exactly backwards from what you’d want to pay for.
Flat rate — the surprises are ours
A flat rate quoted after diagnosis puts the risk where it belongs: on the company that claims to know what it’s doing. If the job fights back, that’s our problem; your number was approved before the shovel moved. The $[XX] diagnosis fee is the honest price of that certainty — and it’s applied to the repair, so when we do the work, the diagnosis effectively cost nothing.
What we don’t do: free estimates that turn into driveway pressure. A real diagnosis takes licensed time; pricing it keeps it honest, and crediting it keeps it fair.
The big decision
Repair it or replace the system — the honest math
The most expensive sentence in this industry is “it’s old, you should replace it all.” Usually wrong. Here's when each answer is honest.
The decision — when each side wins
| Repair wins when… | Replacement is honest when… |
|---|---|
| The pipe is sound — true of most systems here, even 1960s ones | The pipe itself is failing in multiple places |
| Failures are components: valves, heads, wire, controller | The layout no longer fits the landscape at all |
| Parts exist or modern parts retrofit cleanly | Repair history shows a new failure every season |
| A manifold rebuild resets the system’s clock for years | You’re renovating the yard anyway — trench once |
Even Richardson’s 1950s systems usually have sound pipe — retrofit and re-document beats condemn, at a fraction of the price a franchise quotes for full replacement. When replacement genuinely is the answer, we’ll say so plainly: sprinkler system installation.
DIY vs. pro — what you save, what you risk
Plenty of repairs are fair DIY jobs, and we publish our methods free — the same diagnostics we run on paid calls: valves, heads, broken lines, wiring. A head swap or a solenoid is parts money plus a Saturday hour. Where DIY gets expensive: forcing a brittle manifold, burying an untested splice, or replacing parts the meter would have exonerated.
And the legal line, since it shapes the market you’re pricing against: Texas requires a TCEQ license for paid irrigation work. The unlicensed $60-cash guy is competing on a corner he’s cutting — ask anyone who quotes you for their LI number. Ours is LI0026061, on every page of this site.
Your specialist
Meet Jonathan, your irrigation specialist
Eldorado isn't a call center dispatching whoever's available — when you call, you're talking to the licensed irrigator who quotes the number and stands behind it. Jonathan has been pricing North Texas repairs flat since 2013, holds Texas irrigator license LI0026061, and works out of east Plano.
His rule on every job is the one customers keep repeating in reviews: fix only what's broken. You get a zone-by-zone diagnosis, a flat price before work starts, and an honest answer when something doesn't need replacing.
The visit
How a repair visit works
No mystery invoices. The price is on the table before a shovel touches dirt.
Call & describe
Tell us the symptom and your city. We can usually give you the realistic range from this page before the truck moves.
Zone-by-zone diagnosis
We run the full diagnosis — every zone, not just the symptom — because the accurate flat quote depends on knowing what’s actually wrong.
Flat quote, your call
You get the exact price before any work begins. The service call fee is applied to the repair.
Repair & prove it
We fix it at the approved number, prove it running, and the invoice matches the quote. That’s the whole model.
Field record
What the numbers buy
Real jobs, our own photos — valve boxes, manifolds, trench lines, and the lawns after.
Reviews
What our customers say
"Many charge outrageous fees and try and upsell. Eldorado doesn't do that. Pleasant, responsive and most importantly, honest... 5 star and will be my go-to sprinkler guys."
"Came out same day and took care of business at an unbelievable price. Took about 30 minutes to diagnose and repair. Would absolutely utilize again."
"They gave me options and fixed only what needed to be fixed. They are honest good people that do good work."
Questions
Pricing, asked & answered
How much does it cost to repair a sprinkler system?
In Plano and North DFW: a service call with full diagnosis runs $[XX] (applied to the repair), head replacement from $[XX], valve repair or replacement $[XXX]–$[XXX], underground leak repair from $[XXX], controller work from $[XXX], and backflow double check replacement $[XXX]–$[XXX]. Most single-issue repair visits land in the $[XXX]–$[XXX] range, all-in.
How much is the service call, and do I get it back?
$[XX], and it covers a genuine full diagnosis — every zone run, valves, wiring, pressure, coverage, and sensors tested. It's applied to your repair, so if we do the work the diagnosis effectively costs nothing. If you choose not to proceed, you've still bought a licensed irrigator's written read on your whole system.
How much does sprinkler head replacement cost?
From $[XX] per head including a matched head and nozzle, set flush to grade with the arc adjusted. Several heads in one visit batch well — the per-head number improves and we'll say so in the quote. Details on sprinkler head repair.
How much does sprinkler valve repair cost?
Rebuilds — diaphragm or solenoid, where the body is sound — run $[XX]–$[XXX]. Full valve replacement is $[XXX]–$[XXX] depending on depth, access, and wiring. Manifold rebuilds are quoted as one flat number, which is routinely cheaper than replacing four valves one emergency at a time. Details on sprinkler valve repair.
How much does it cost to find and fix an underground leak?
Lateral repairs start at $[XXX] — and that includes the locate, which is the part you're really hiring. Main-line repairs run $[XXX]–$[XXX] with priority scheduling. Bores under driveways are quoted flat after the locate, at a fraction of cutting concrete. Details on sprinkler leak repair.
What does a failed backflow test cost to fix?
Check rebuilds from $[XX] where the body is sound and parts exist; full double check assembly replacement $[XXX]–$[XXX], ready for the required retest, which we coordinate with your certified tester. Freeze-split repairs are quoted flat after inspection, insulation included. Details on backflow repair & replacement.
Why flat-rate instead of hourly?
Because hourly billing puts every underground surprise on your invoice and quietly punishes fast, skilled work. A flat rate quoted after diagnosis puts the risk on us: if the job fights back, that's our problem — your number was approved before the shovel moved, and it doesn't change.
Are there any fees beyond the quote?
No. The quote is the invoice. No trip charges on top, no fuel surcharges, no “while we were in there” line items. If we find something new mid-job, you hear about it with a separate price and decide — the approved number never moves on its own.
Is it worth repairing a 30-year-old sprinkler system?
Usually, yes — the pipe under most North Texas lawns is sound even at 30–50 years, and what fails are components: valves, heads, wire, controllers. Replacing those as they fail, or rebuilding a manifold once, costs a fraction of the full replacement a franchise will quote. We recommend replacement only when the pipe itself is failing in multiple places — and if that's your system, we'll say so plainly.
How much do I save doing it myself?
On the right jobs, real money: a head swap is parts plus an hour, a solenoid likewise — and we publish our exact methods free in our guides. The DIY tax shows up on the wrong jobs: a forced brittle manifold, an untested splice buried and re-dug, or parts replaced that a $[XX] meter reading would have exonerated. Start with the DIY sprinkler repair guides.
Why does a licensed irrigator cost more than the guy on Nextdoor?
Often it doesn't — flat-rate pricing with the diagnosis credited is regularly cheaper than an unlicensed hourly hunt. What the license guarantees is that the work is legal (Texas requires it for any paid irrigation repair), insurable, and done by someone accountable to a state board. Ask anyone who quotes you for their LI number; ours is LI0026061.
Do you charge more for same-day service?
No — same-day is a scheduling outcome, not a surcharge. Stuck-open zones and active main-line leaks jump the queue because they're costing you water by the hour, at the same flat rates on this page.
Can you give me a price over the phone?
A realistic range, yes — this page is most of that conversation, and describing the symptom narrows it further. The exact flat number comes after diagnosis, because quoting precisely without looking is how other companies' numbers move later. Call (469) 970-2715 and try us.
Do prices differ by city?
No — the rates on this page hold across our whole territory: Plano, Frisco, McKinney, Allen, Richardson, Dallas, and North Dallas. Distance inside the 30-minute radius never changes the number.
Service area
Cost guide available across North DFW
Licensed repair within about 30 minutes of our east Plano shop:
Searching “sprinkler repair cost” or “how much to fix sprinklers” anywhere in Collin County or North Dallas? These are our actual rates — and the flat quote for your specific repair comes after a real diagnosis, before any work.
Ready for the number on your repair? Start at the service: valve repair, head repair, leak repair, wiring & controllers, backflow, or a full inspection.
Want the number for your repair?
Describe the symptom — we’ll give you the realistic range on the phone, free.