I'm in Carrollton and have the same clay soil you have. If I were you, I'd hold off on aerating and leveling. It's too much work based on your time constraints. Here's what I would do this season.

1. Figure out your watering schedule. Set your sprinklers to run 10min a zone for 3 cycles. For example, if you have 5 zones, set the 1st watering time at 4am, the 2nd at 5am, and the 3rd at 6am. So in essence, you will have watered your lawn 30mins total, but 10mins at a time since you have a runoff problem. Be sure to set out tuna cans or something similar to measure how much water you're putting down. If you find that that it's not 1", add another start time at 7am. I have 4 start time available on my sprinkler controller, you may or may not. If you don't, you can increase the time per zone by a few minutes or use the B program setting. Bottomline is, you want to put down 1" of water all at once, one time per week. So learn how to "manipulate" your sprinkler controller to achieve that w/o getting runoff. Also, always water in the early morning to minimize disease to the lawn. It might take you several weeks of measuring to find the right combination of settings.

2. Mow your grass twice a week at 1-1.5". If you must cheat, mow at least once a week.

3. Fertilize once a month using Lesco 39-0-0, product #000777. I believe there's a John Deere Landscaping store in Frisco, so you can get this there.

4. If you want to soften you soil, there's a product called Aerify Plus that might help. It's like aerating w/o the heavy equipment. Here's a link: http://www.natureslawn.com/aerify-plus.php

I'm just rewording some of the things written in the Bermuda Bible, just trying to simplify it for you. Hopefully, these steps will be easier than the huge project you were planning on doing. Remember, it will take some time, but hopefully, you will see some results toward the end of this season.

As for the "professional", I've learned that many (but not all) don't know enough to do a job right. I've made it a point to learn the proper ways to do things around the house so if I hire a "pro" I can have a meaningful discussion w/ them about the work. Youtube, followed by Google are my best friends when it comes to these thing. That how I found this site.

Sorry so long, but one last thing - how to post a picture here. Check the link below. It is by far the easiest instructions I've found on here. I've even bookmarked it.
Good luck.

When you are trying to level, you cannot get any more level than the largest particles of material left on the ground. Clods present a problem. Someone here suggested core aerating first. Well, no. Not only no, but NO! All the cores would become clods (high spots) that you would have to add sand up to. So to bring in cloddy topsoil would not be a good approach.

At the same time he makes a good point about the sand washing away. If you are on a slope, then maybe sand is not the most perfect material. If you have thin grass like fescue, then it might not work. But if you have a relatively dense grass and keep it fertilized (for density), then sand should work. For the best density in bermuda, it is best the follow the Bermuda Bible and keep it mowed very low and fertilized every month of the growing season.

Your landscaper's material is ground up. At first that sounds not so bad. The problem is he uses compost in it. Compost completely disappears after about a year which would leave you short on volume.

If you are looking at price, $745 for 8 yards of his material, delivered and spread, is not a bad deal. Even if he only brought in topsoil (relatively free), it is a pretty good price for delivery and labor.

The part about letting the grass grow up high puzzles me - especially if you have bermuda. Wonder how he spreads the stuff? I have heard of blowers that blow the material out of big hoses. That makes it go fast and minimizes the amount of hand labor needed, but it is not good at making a level surface.

With this in mind I would not use that landscaper. I don't like the compost in the mix and I don't understand how he levels it with tall grass.

If this is so, before you do anything, read material on the different grasses whose mowing height is different.
Usually leaving grass higher....3" to 3 1/2" can shade out thatch, clippings can be left on the lawn to act as fertilizer, and what's more important, higher grass shades out weed seeds. Soil in this question is neither here nor there....soil is soil.

As far as making the soil want to grow what you put into it, then if you are completely fed up and can entertain the idea of digging it up totally and starting anew, then do that. A good deep digging rototiller is gone over it, then lots of organic matter...peat moss, compost, triple mix, loam, and other organic material....you can find a list of all what that term is on the internet....and this then is incorporated into the soil which then is one that will help hold moisture and enrich what is planted.

Sand is often used when aerating to open up the clay so that better drainage is achieved. But it has to be coarse sand....not beach sand, not the sand that is used in play boxes....that stuff just holds water...coarse sand, or builders' sand can be bought at any quarry or soil dealer.

How is Bermuda mowed....from what I read, mowing at such a low height as 1" - 1 1/2" is what will surely kill the lawn because it then has no protection from the hot sun.
Leave the grass high....3" at least, then it has protection from loss of moisture.
Fertilizer and deep watering is what I've seen said about Bermuda.

As far as levelling, that can be a matter of digging...actually removing hills, levelling, then return the sod. Rolling such a clay soil lawn is a sure-fire way to add compaction....and increased drainage problems.
The only way to level a hilly terrain is to remove the hills and level the ground.

But, you could live with it. Hills on lawns are not all that bad if they are not what kids sleigh down in winter.

Regarding soil prep: never rototill in preparation for grass. If you want to rototill in prep for veggies, that is between you and the devil (I would not do it then, either). For lawns tilling is the fast track way back to bumpy soil.

There is much more I disagree with but this is what pertains immediately to this issue.

David...

What I get from that is to just do it. If it is not good enough, then do it again.

I am very pleased with my results. I aerated, and broke up all of the plugs with my rake. If I had to do it again, I would have raked all of the plugs up off the ground. They did make leveling more challenging.

I spread sand with a garden wagon and a shovel and broom... It was very difficult work, but definitely worth it.

dchall,

Your observation of the emerging trend is dead on. I will be top dressing / fine tuning in the future for sure.