Lawn Care Service

Lawn Sprinkler Systems for Beginners

If you have never worked on a lawn sprinkler system before because basically you never had to, then you are absolutely not alone. What’s amazing is that almost everyone I talk to assumes that it would be something super easy to do until you tell them it is THEIR sprinkler system that is malfunctioning. Now, YOU go find the problem. What? I am not a plumber or an irrigation specialist where do I start? If you think about that it’s completely natural. Why would you know how to fix your sprinkler system or even how to have a reasonable conversation with an irrigation specialist about your system? Let’s start there with the basics of being able to hold a reasonable conversation with someone that you call to come out and fix your lawn sprinklers. Here are some simple steps you can take to get more familiar with your sprinkler system:

Step 1 – Where does the water for your sprinkler system come from?

Simple, right? You just need to get familiar with your system and know where the water actually comes from for your sprinklers. Sometimes the water is delivered using the city water supply (just like for the rest of your house). Other times your subdivision or homeowner’s association may have developed a recycled or “reclaimed” water system to use for irrigation. In addition, it is also possible that water is being pumped from a local lake or well to feed your sprinkler system. So, you need to find the source and then understand how to shut off the water from the source in the event of a problem or leak.

The most common method of delivery to your sprinkler system is via the municipal water supply and in that case there will be a second back-flow prevention device near your water meter to enable you to shutoff the water to your sprinkler system and allow the water to your home to remain on. You can simply shut them off one at a time to figure out which one controls the water to your sprinklers and which one controls the flow of water to your faucets.

Step 2 – Where is your controller/timer and how does the blasted thing work?

Another one that sounds deceptively simple but can be troublesome is locating the controller for your sprinkler system. It is usually located on the interior or exterior of your garage. If you don’t have a garage then it is usually on the exterior of your home (probably near your water meter and close to the back-flow preventer). Once you find your controller you need to figure out how to be able to shut it off in the case of an emergency (cut power off to the device). Of course, you also need to find out how to program your controller either by consulting with an irrigation specialist or by Googling or reading the owner’s manual. For now, you just need to know where it is located and how to turn it on and off.

Step 3 – What kind of sprinklers do you have in your system (rotary, stationary, flood bubblers, etc.)?

This may actually be the easiest of all the things you need to know as you can just observe your sprinkler system and know what you have right away. You will either have stationary sprinklers (they don’t move), rotary sprinklers (they rotate/move back and forth), or what is called a flood bubbler which shoots a stream of water out of the head sort of appearing like a bubble or mushroom if you will. You only need to know this if you have a problem with one sprinkler head and need to replace it or if you are describing the problem to your irrigation specialist.

Step 4 – Do you have a low volume/drip system?

Many residential systems are of this kind in order to conserve water especially in very dry areas of the U.S. or traditionally dry areas. If you don’t see water spraying on plants, trees, or flower beds then it is possible that you have a low volume/drip system. If however you see full streams of water coming out (intentionally) then you most likely do not have a drip system. Your lawn care company needs to know this because a drip system will also require a pressure regulator and filter which could be another source of any problems you are having so just let them know if you have a drip system. Of course, if you do have one you need to know where that pressure regulator and filter is located as well.

Step 5 – Where are your rain sensors located, do you even have any?

A lot of systems do have rains sensors to avoid running your system when you don’t really need to run it. Again, these have become more popular as systems have gotten more sophisticated. If you don’t have one you should consider adding one because you can save money on your water bill by allowing your system to detect whether or not it actually needs to run instead of just following its set schedule. Assuming you do have one you should know where one or more of them are located as again they can also cause your system to malfunction. These are normally located close to the controller.

Step 6 – Where and what valves control the flow of water in your zones?

So we briefly mentioned that you need to know how to control the flow of water to your entire system, you also need to know that there are normally valves for each sprinkler zone as well. The lids for these controls are generally 6” in diameter and normally are either green or purple in color. If it is purple, that normally indicates that you have non-potable water usually from a reclaimed source. Regardless of what color the lid is you need to know how to manually shutoff each zone using these valves (so find out where they are located).

Okay, that should be enough for you to be able to carry on a conversation with a lawn sprinkler specialist or customer service rep at you local home and garden center in the event that your system starts to malfunction or just doesn’t seem to be getting the job done like it used to do. Plus, if you followed all of the steps above you should be feeling pretty good about your basic knowledge of your sprinkler system and how it works.