Maintenance of Sprinkler Systems

Your sprinkler systems need to be flushed out in the spring before regular usage. This not only includes your regular sprinkler systems but also any drip sprinkler systems you own. During the winter when your systems are not being used they could have been invaded by small critters. They have a habit of using the sprinklers, emitters, tubes, and sprinkler pipes as their new homes. They manage to find a way in but sometimes find it hard to find their way out once spring arrives. In order to flush out your drip irrigation sprinkler system, the drip tubes must be opened up at the ends and water flushed through it. On your regular sprinklers remove the emitters or nozzles from all the sprinkler heads and turn on the water for cleaning out.

After flushing these tubes with water, replace all the emitters and turn on the sprinklers. You want to check for clogged nozzles or emitters and replace with new ones. You can also try cleaning each clogged nozzle but if you leave any scratches it may alter the spray pattern and create dry spots. This is now the time to replace any nozzles that are missing or malfunctioning. A calcium buildup can be another problem to plague your sprinkler system parts but the problem can be solved with any calcium removal product that you use in the house.

The sprinkler systems along with their valves need to be checked for any leaks. Sometimes the flexible seals will dry out during the winter and provoke the valve to leak as soon as your tune the water back on. If your water bill all of sudden shoots upward it could mean you have a sprinkler or an underground pipe that is leaking.

If you have automatic sprinkler systems you also want to check the timer for the run time on each station. There are plants that need more water than others. It is always a good idea to change the timer with the seasons; this way your plants will receive the proper amount of water for each season. Most plants require less water in cooler weather because the evaporation rate is much slower. If rain is expected please turn off your automatic systems to save water.

If your timer or controller came with a back-up battery, you will want to replace it every spring. Most of the solid state timers use alkaline batteries and will not work correctly with any other kind. If you are in doubt always use alkaline batteries. Some of the high-end controllers come with a built in battery charger and others have a non-volatile program memory and will not need batteries.

If you live in an area where you use sprinkler equipment all year round, a periodic check of the entire system can be done at anytime. Sometimes a good time to do maintenance of sprinkler systems is when the time changes in the fall and then again in the spring. Make sure the sprinkler heads are only watering your landscape and not the sidewalk, street, or your driveway. Be sure your sprinkler heads are adjusted properly and watering as much of the landscape as needed. The sprinkler heads need to pop up above the top of the grass; you may have to raise these heads periodically during the year. Regular maintenance of your sprinklers will not only save money on your water bill and sprinkler systems costs but also conserves one of our most precious resources, water. If you follow these simple guidelines your will have a better performing sprinkler system.