Frequently Asked Questions

All brown spots in your lawn should be inspected for turf damaging insects by a licensed technician. Don't wait for your next visit, call our office for a free evaluation right away.

While we hate to see you go, we do understand that sometimes customers may need to discontinue their service for various reasons. Your account may be cancelled at any time by phone or by written notice. If your account has an outstanding balance, it will need to be paid at that time. 

Please Note: Prepaying is an OPTION and is not a requirement. Choosing to not prepay is not a valid indication that you would like to discontinue service. To discontinue your service, you must contact our office by phone or by written notice. This policy is explained on the back of your service agreement. Treatments that take place prior to your notification will result in a balance being owed by you.

Customers can access their accounts online here: https://www2.lawngateway.com/CarefreeLawnService/

Common issues may include:

• Invalid Account error. This occurs when you are asked to enter your House Number only, and enter your full street address (ex 123 Main Street). Please omit the street name and only enter the house number (ex 123).
• Email address errors. Most instances with email address errors are that you have previously created a login with that same email, you need to click back and click "forgot password" to reset your password.
• Did my payment go through? Once you hit process payment, the screen will have a puzzle logo that spins and a payment summary will appear once it goes through. Note if pop ups are not allowed on your computer this confirmation may not appear. For additional verification Click your Home tab and you can view the most recent payment on the right side of the screen (it will show the date and amount paid for your most recent payment)
• By clicking "create autopay profile" when you are paying your current amount due and you click "create autopay profile" you are granting Carefree Lawn permission to charge the credit card for future treatments after a treatment is completed. This is not for automatically Prepaying for the season, it is only for those who wish to pay per visit.

Deep Root Feeding is a tree service, not a lawn service. Proper feeding of your ornamentals offers many benefits, including improved flowering, increased resistance to disease, and increased ability to ward off insect attacks. Root feeding injects the proper plant foods directly into the root zone of the plants, which allows the fertilizer to be easily absorbed and quickly put to work. Feeding treatment is a "once per season" service that takes place in the fall.

If you would like to get a free estimate please click here. 

Already have one? The estimate you received is also our Service Agreement. This must be signed and returned to us before we can begin treatments. This is a regulation strictly enforced by NYS DEC. We cannot accept "okay to treat" emails, voicemails, faxed or photos/copies of your paper agreement. Once signed, you can mail to PO Box 361, Marcy, NY 13403 or you can leave it in our dropbox located at 9772 River Road, Marcy. Please make sure you have read and understand all policies on the back side including dates of application, NYS pre-notification law AND CONTINUED SERVICE, keep the yellow form for your records. Once we receive your signed agreement we will get your account set up in our system and will schedule your first treatment. 

We now offer you the ability to "eSign" service agreements. Email us at carefreelawninfo@gmail.com and we will send you the service agreement link via email. This will come from Adobe Sign and may appear in your spam/junk folder. Please follow the prompts to submit your electronically signed document.

Once we receive your properly signed agreement we can set up your account and will schedule your first treatment.

NYS DEC determines our "start" date, which is April 1st every year. Performing your Early Spring Treatments (also known as "Round 1") can be affected by adverse weather conditions, such as snow and very cold temperatures, which can push your first application out further than anticipated.

** NEW CUSTOMERS THAT SIGNED UP AFTER APRIL 1ST ** every effort will be made to fit your first treatment into our schedule as soon as possible. We do our best to plan treatments so they are inline with the rest of your neighborhood on our service. However, in many cases with late signups your first treatment may not take place at the same time.

Product labels state to wait for products to dry before allowing children or pets back out onto the lawn.

"Lawn Care Program" applications include a dry, slow-release fertilizer. Plus:

• Round 1 will also have crabgrass control. 
• Rounds 2-4 will all have weed control.
• Round 5 will be fertilizer to help give the grass plant some extra nutrients over the winter.

Grub Control, Insect Control, Flea and Tick Treatments are all Additional Services and are not part of lawn care program applications. If they are recommended the cost of those additional services will be listed on your serivce agreement. If they are not listed, or you are uncertain, contact the office to verify your services with us.

A big misconception is that Moles only feed on Grubs, when their diet actually consists of mainly earth worms. Neither Grub Control nor Insect Control will help get rid of Moles. There is a product that you can purchase called TALPIRID that can help with the moles. You can also purchase Gopherhawk Traps online. Unfortunately Carefree Lawn does not  perform this service.

AFTER TREATMENTS: You can mow your lawn 24 hours after treatments.

HEIGHT: No shorter than 3 1/2 inches is recommended for all customers.

DURING HOT PERIODS HIGHER IS BETTER: Higher mowing promotes deeper roots, prevents water loss by shading the soil, and reduces weeds by preventing sunlight from warming weed seeds. Taller grass also shades and cools the soil and reduces heat stress. Mowing too short will remove too much of the green part of the plant, leaving stalk-looking crowns and stems. This gives the lawn a brown, scalped look and weakens the grass. Recovering from even a single "scalping" sets the lawn's growth back many weeks.

FREQUENCY DURING HOT PERIODS: Mow less often to protect the root system which will help your lawn bounce back from heat stress that all lawns experience.

MOWER BLADES: Keep them sharp. Dull blades can rip and shred the tips of your grass, turning them a bleached, tan color and leaving the whole lawn looking brown. For best results, sharpen mower blades several times per year. If you have a large lawn, sharpen them once a month during the mowing season.

Over the winter we will send you two letters (one in December and one in March) to remind you that your service is continuous and we will be out in the spring automatically to begin your treatments, this is also your prepay letter which is optional. You do not need to prepay in order to receive treatments.

Did you misplace your letter? Not a problem, call or email and we can send you a new one.

Please Note: Prepaying is an OPTION. If you do not want service, you must notify Carefree by phone or by written notice before your treatment takes place. Choosing to not prepay is not a valid indication that you would like to discontinue service. Treatments that take place before you notify Carefree of your wish to discontinue will result in a balance being owed by you.

Carefree Lawn Service is required by NYS DEC Laws and Regulations to have a signed service agreement on file for every customer. In late November 2024 we mailed every customer an updated agreement with your annual reminder of continuous service. If you recently received a notice that we have not yet received that signed service agreement back from you and you need a new one please let us know.

Any changes to your services please call the office or email us and we will send you an updated agreement that includes the changes you wish to make.

Your lawn will need watering if any one of the following occur:

• When footprints do not "bounce" back up.
• When lawn starts to change colors in areas.
• When discoloration occurs along driveways and/or sidewalks first.

Nature's rainfall schedule is not dependable. Some additional watering is almost always necessary, at least during the hotter and drier parts of the year, to avoid turf stress. Lawns turn brown, thin out, and run into more disease and insect problems when under stress. A thin, stressed lawn also creates room for weeds to invade. So whether you use underground or portable sprinklers, there are a few basic guidelines to follow to avoid these problems and maintain good lawn health.

TIPS:

• Water before 10am in hot, dry weather. Timing Makes A Difference! One basic rule is: Water your lawn when it will be most effective.
• Avoid watering in the heat of the day to make sure your water goes down to the roots instead of going up as vapor. 
• Also avoid watering when windy conditions will affect even coverage or cause you to water your neighbor's lawn instead of your own.
• Soak Those Roots! When you water, saturate the soil to a depth of 4" to 6". Shallow watering causes the grass to send roots to the surface for water, where they suffer more quickly during dry, hot spells. Watering for just 20 minutes can do your lawn more harm than good. Water deeply, but less frequently.
• Also be sure to put down extra water along curbs and pavement, because these areas heat up faster and dry out quickly.