Set Up Care Schedule

Build a catalog of periodic add-on tasks, attach them to plans, and work due items from Office Ops — filter cleans, aeration, and other extras that ride on top of the regular visit.

Updated October 1, 2026

Requires the Care Schedule feature. If you do not see it, ask your OpsVara contact whether it is enabled for your account.

Care Schedule is periodic work that rides on top of a regular plan — a filter clean every four months, aeration once a year — each with its own cadence, price, and approval. Configure the catalog under SettingsCare Schedule, attach tasks on each plan, and run the due list from Office OpsCare Schedule.

It is on for pool, lawn, and core. Aquatic (pond and lake) companies do not see it unless OpsVara turns Care Schedule on for that company. It is not plan-gated.

Edits here apply to new plans

Changing a catalog task does not rewrite plans that already have it. Use Add to Plans to put a task on existing plans, and Update Plans to push the catalog's current price, cadence, and settings onto plans that already carry it.

  1. Open Care Schedule

    Go to SettingsCare Schedule, or the Care Schedule step in SettingsSetup Wizard (Optimize). The page reads Periodic maintenance that rides on top of your regular plans. Skip Care Schedule For Now in the wizard marks the step reviewed without changing your tasks.

  2. Seed from a catalog or add a task

    Seed from a Popular Catalog offers the set for your industry — Pool Standard, Lawn Standard, or, on core, any pack including Pest Control. Apply on a pack that already has tasks asks Replace Care Schedule Catalog? and confirm is Apply Pack.

    Or click Add Care Task. Pick Work Type (create only), then Task Name. Set Every and Unit (Days, Weeks, Months, Years). Cadence Anchor is From Completion (next due follows when it was last finished) or Fixed Calendar (stays on the calendar even if the visit was early or late). Click Add Care Task.

  3. Choose when it runs, how it bills, and who approves

    When Due

    ChoiceWhat happens
    On Next VisitAdds a locked Care row to the next routine visit's Tasks (pool Service Tasks). Checking it off at checkout completes the cycle.
    Own JobCreates a separate job on the due date. Job Work Type defaults to Same as plan; pick another (often Specialty Service) so the crew gets that wizard.
    Office ReminderNotifies the office only. Someone schedules it by hand from Needs Action.

    Billing is Add-On (charge Price when the task is performed) or Included (already in the plan rate; tracking only). Approval is Pre-Approved (runs when due), Customer Approves (email an approve / No thanks link each cycle), or Office Only.

    Optional: tick Auto-Add to New Plans, and when Equipment Tracking is on, Applies to Equipment Categories so each matching unit (for example a filter) gets its own row.

  4. Put the task on plans you already have

    On the task row, click Add to Plans. The dialog is Add to Existing Plans. It adds the task to active and paused plans of that work type that do not already have it — plans that already have it, or had it removed, are left alone. Set First Due: On a date you pick (optional Spread Until staggers Own Job dates across weekdays) or an interval after each plan's start. Confirm Add to N Plan(s).

    Update Plans pushes the catalog's current terms onto plans that already carry the task. Mid-cycle rows stay on the old terms until that cycle resolves.

    You can also open a plan under Sales and BillingContracts and use the Care Schedule card Add control, or a unit's Care Schedule on DirectoriesEquipment (the site needs an active plan).

  5. Work the Office Ops list

    Open Office OpsCare Schedule. Tabs are Upcoming, Overdue, Pending Approval, Needs Action, and Declined & Expired. Filter by Search, Work Type, Task, Billing, Due Action, Approval, and due dates. Row actions include Send offer, Mark done, Skip this cycle, Change next due date, and on Pending Approval Mark approved / Mark declined.

Pre-Approved add-ons on existing plans

Add to Plans warns when the task is a Pre-Approved add-on: those customers will be billed the price each time without being asked, and the quotes they signed did not list it. Switch the task to Customer Approves first if they have not agreed.

What the customer sees

Customer Approves sends a one-time link (/care-offer/…). The page says It's time for this service. They tap Approve — $X.XX or No thanks. Approve runs the due action (inject, create the job, or office reminder). Decline notifies the office. Turn the email on under SettingsCustomer Notifications (Care Schedule offer).

Verify it worked

  1. SettingsCare Schedule Your Care Tasks lists each task with cadence, When Due, billing, and approval. Auto-add tasks show an auto-add badge.
  2. A plan on Sales and BillingContracts shows the task on its Care Schedule card with a next due date.
  3. When a cycle is due, Office OpsCare Schedule has the row. After an On Next Visit inject, the next routine job's Tasks step shows a Care badge (add-ons also show the price). Checking it off at checkout bills an Add-On.

ReportsCare Schedule (Advanced Reporting) is offer-to-approval conversion, not the worklist.

Troubleshooting

What you seeCheck
No Care Schedule tabAquatic by default, or the feature is off. Pool, lawn, and core have it on.
Catalog Apply overwrote custom tasksExpected. Apply replaces Your Care Tasks. Re-add custom rows with Add Care Task.
Crew cannot close an Own JobThat Job Work Type requires an approved quote before checkout. Pick another type, or set its quote gate to Soft under SettingsWork Types.
Add-on not on the monthly invoiceCare Add-Ons bill when performed, not as installment fee allocation. Complete the visit or Own Job.
Nothing in UpcomingLook at Needs Action, then Pending Approval if you are waiting on the customer.

Frequently asked questions

Why don't I see Care Schedule?

It is on for pool, lawn, and core. Aquatic (pond and lake) companies do not get the tab unless OpsVara turns Care Schedule on for that company. It is not a paid add-on — when the feature is on, every plan has it.

Does Apply a starter pack add to my catalog or replace it?

Replace. If you already have tasks, the dialog is Replace Care Schedule Catalog? Confirming Apply Pack overwrites Your Care Tasks. Plans that already use a removed task are not changed automatically.

When is an Add-On care task billed?

When the task is performed — at checkout when the crew checks off an On Next Visit row, or when an Own Job is completed. It is not split across monthly plan installments and does not appear under Invoice Options → Fee allocation.

A task is not on Upcoming, Overdue, or Pending Approval. Where did it go?

Open Office Ops → Care Schedule → Needs Action. Office Reminder tasks, and On Next Visit tasks that still have no routine visit to inject into, sit there until someone marks them done or skips the cycle.

Can I change a task's work type after I add it?

No. Set Work Type when you Add Care Task. To move it, Remove it and add it again under the other work type.

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