Water Feature and Fountain Installation Invoicing App (2026)
Water features are custom builds with ordered stone, liner, and pumps, followed by a maintenance need the customer doesn't anticipate. ShowTheReceipts ($15/mo) takes a materials deposit before the stone is ordered, saves excavation, liner, plumbing, and equipment lines, and sets up the seasonal cleanout and winterization as recurring billing on the same customer.
How we picked
Entry-plan prices as published in 2026, taken from each vendor's own pricing page or a recent third-party summary. Judged on the builder's money workflow — custom build quoting with materials deposits, equipment lines, and recurring seasonal maintenance billing — not on landscape design rendering, plant databases, or crew payroll.
| Software | Starting price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| ShowTheReceipts That's us | $15/mo | Builders: materials deposits, build lines, recurring seasonal maintenance, tax-ready books |
| Joist | Free / $8/mo | Cheapest estimate-and-invoice pair |
| Invoice2go | $9.99/mo+ | Basic mobile invoicing |
| Kickserv Flex | $19/mo | Budget scheduling with invoicing |
| Jobber | $29/mo (Core) | Companies scheduling several crews |
A build followed by a subscription the customer doesn’t know about yet
Every pond and pondless feature needs an annual cleanout and, in cold climates, a winterization too. Customers learn this the first spring, usually by calling whoever built it.
Quoting maintenance at build time is both more honest and a lot better business than waiting around for that call.
1. ShowTheReceipts — $15/mo
Materials deposit before ordering, excavation, liner, plumbing, and equipment lines, seasonal cleanouts and winterization billed on repeat.
2. Joist — Free / $8/mo
Cheap estimate-and-invoice pair.
3. Invoice2go — $9.99/mo+
Basic mobile invoicing without recurring service.
4. Kickserv Flex — $19/mo
Budget scheduling with invoicing.
5. Jobber — $29/mo (Core)
Scheduling for a company with crews.
The lines a water feature quote needs
- Excavation and spoil removal
- Underlayment and liner — by square foot, or basin for pondless
- Boulder and gravel — by ton, with sourcing and delivery
- Pump and filtration — by model and flow rate
- Plumbing and autofill
- Electrical — GFCI circuit, licensed
- Lighting — per fixture
- Aquatic plants and startup treatment
- Seasonal maintenance — spring cleanout, fall winterization
Boulder selection is the craft
Anyone can dig a hole and lay liner. Choosing and placing stone so it looks like it was always there is really the whole skill of the trade — which is why customer-supplied stone usually disappoints, and why your labor rate on it should reflect that you’re working with a handicap.
Size the pump honestly
An undersized pump just makes a waterfall that trickles. Print the flow rate and the head height it’s rated for — that’s the spec that determines whether the finished feature does the one thing the customer actually bought it for.
Frequently asked questions
Why take a deposit on a water feature?
Because boulders, liner, and pumps are ordered and delivered for one specific design — often by the pallet, often non-returnable. A deposit covering materials is what makes a cancelled project an inconvenience rather than a yard full of someone else's stone.
How do I sell maintenance at build time?
Quote the spring cleanout and fall winterization as a line on the build proposal. Customers don't know a pond needs an annual cleanout until it looks wrong — telling them at build time is honest, and it converts a one-time project into a recurring account.
Should the pump and filtration be itemized?
Yes, by model and flow rate. Equipment sizing is what determines whether the feature works, it carries its own warranty, and itemizing lets a customer see the difference between an appropriately sized system and an undersized one.
How do I handle a customer who wants to supply their own stone?
Accept it with a labor-only rate and a written note that you can't warrant appearance or fit. Boulder selection is a skill, and a pallet chosen by someone else frequently doesn't work together — say so before the delivery, not after.