Freezing Florida Weather - Protect Your Pipes
We are a little bit spoiled here in Florida as we aren't use too used to cold weather. While we do experience the cold a little every winter, it's usually not too harsh. We may see some 40 - 50 degree days, with lows in the 30's, but normally we don't experience too many hard-freezes. Well this week is a different story down here.
I live in Niceville, Florida which is located in the Northwest part of Florida. We are near Fort Walton Beach, Destin, and Navarre. I provide irrigation service to all of these areas and this week I have seen an increase in what I call my "freeze-calls". When the temperature dips down into the mid to high twenties for the course of the night, this hard-freeze can cause many irrigation system problems.
I know that water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit but it normally takes a couple night in a row of hard freezes to start effecting the system. The things most likely to break on your irrigation system when it freezes are: Exposed pipes, back-flow prevention devices (PVB, DCVA), and certain types of pumps or their metal pump housings.
The best thing to do for exposed pipes and backflow prevention valves that stick out of the ground is to wrap them with foil insulation tape. You can also get foam wraps and tape them on. For above ground pumps, you can drain them or you can wrap them with some type of insulation as well. If you choose to insulate, just make sure you are only wrapping the metal housing and not the pump motor! The pump motor has to have ventilation and could catch fire if you activate it and have it wrapped up. Another option to help protect your pump is to build a small enclosure around it or 'pump house'. This will protect it from the weather and help your pump last longer.
Some type of pumps are more prone to freeze than others. Horizontal, centrifugal pumps or shallow well pumps normally have a very thin cast iron housing which tends to split at the seams when they freeze crack. The jet pumps have a lot thicker metal housing Back-flow's either break at the freeze plug, or somewhere on the brass itself.
If you are from up north and wondering why we don't drain our entire systems here in Florida it is because many people still use their systems in the winter. If you have winter-rye grass you still need to water a few times a week. Even if your grass is dormant, it is good to water it once per week for a couple reasons. First of all, you are still giving water to the root system, which is good for your lawn, and second it helps keep your system and parts from 'gunking-up'. Systems hooked up to wells with high iron content tend to have a lot of problems after sitting several months without running.
So, as much as I hate this cold, I must go out and fix pipes, pumps, and back-flow's for my customers so that they keep their irrigation system in proper shape. Plus, if a mainline pipe busts, it's got to be fixed quick! Let's not whine too much about this cold weather here because before you know it spring will be here and then we'll be complaining that it's too hot! Have a happy winter for now!
Scott
Irrigation System Freeze
I live in Niceville, Florida which is located in the Northwest part of Florida. We are near Fort Walton Beach, Destin, and Navarre. I provide irrigation service to all of these areas and this week I have seen an increase in what I call my "freeze-calls". When the temperature dips down into the mid to high twenties for the course of the night, this hard-freeze can cause many irrigation system problems.
I know that water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit but it normally takes a couple night in a row of hard freezes to start effecting the system. The things most likely to break on your irrigation system when it freezes are: Exposed pipes, back-flow prevention devices (PVB, DCVA), and certain types of pumps or their metal pump housings.
The best thing to do for exposed pipes and backflow prevention valves that stick out of the ground is to wrap them with foil insulation tape. You can also get foam wraps and tape them on. For above ground pumps, you can drain them or you can wrap them with some type of insulation as well. If you choose to insulate, just make sure you are only wrapping the metal housing and not the pump motor! The pump motor has to have ventilation and could catch fire if you activate it and have it wrapped up. Another option to help protect your pump is to build a small enclosure around it or 'pump house'. This will protect it from the weather and help your pump last longer.
Some type of pumps are more prone to freeze than others. Horizontal, centrifugal pumps or shallow well pumps normally have a very thin cast iron housing which tends to split at the seams when they freeze crack. The jet pumps have a lot thicker metal housing Back-flow's either break at the freeze plug, or somewhere on the brass itself.
If you are from up north and wondering why we don't drain our entire systems here in Florida it is because many people still use their systems in the winter. If you have winter-rye grass you still need to water a few times a week. Even if your grass is dormant, it is good to water it once per week for a couple reasons. First of all, you are still giving water to the root system, which is good for your lawn, and second it helps keep your system and parts from 'gunking-up'. Systems hooked up to wells with high iron content tend to have a lot of problems after sitting several months without running.
So, as much as I hate this cold, I must go out and fix pipes, pumps, and back-flow's for my customers so that they keep their irrigation system in proper shape. Plus, if a mainline pipe busts, it's got to be fixed quick! Let's not whine too much about this cold weather here because before you know it spring will be here and then we'll be complaining that it's too hot! Have a happy winter for now!
Scott
Irrigation System Freeze
posted by Irrigationman at
8:13 PM
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