Hot Weather and Dry Spots

Wow, it sure has been dry around here! Other than a brief 30 minute rain yesterday, we have gone almost three weeks without a drop of precipitation here in Okaloosa County in Northwest Florida. About the most moisture we've had is the almost unbearable humidity in the air. This type of weather brings out all of the problems and inefficiencies in an automatic lawn sprinkler system.

The goal when designing a lawn sprinkler system is to get even precipitation across the entire lawn. This way you avoid under-watering or over-watering certain areas. This is much easier said than done. Even with a text-book perfect design, things like varying soil conditions, sun/shade, and different types of grass or plant material can prove to make even watering a very challenging project.

Today I am taking a much needed day of rest as I work six days a week during our busy season. Last Monday I added 57 new service calls on top of my already huge list of clients waiting for myself and my company to visit their home or business to repair their lawn sprinkler system. I have been working furiously to keep up with the work load as well as continuing to take new calls. Together, my partner and I have been knocking out about 10 -15 house visits per day. These repairs range anywhere from systems that need new pumps and timers, to just a simple sprinkler head replacement and everything else in between.

Sometime you may go to a house expecting just a simple sprinkler head replacement and then when you arrive you realize that the system needs much more attention than just a quick repair. This is one factor that makes predicting the amount of time that you'll spend at one particular house very hard to determine. However, I do my best to give customers at least an approximate day and time block that I will arrive at the house. This is forever changing due to unknowns that you may run into when inspecting and repairing a sprinkler system.

I understand how waiting for a service tech to visit your house and fix your system can be frustrating when you have your own schedule and things to do, but please be understanding to these sprinkler system companies and service techs. I assure you that we are working as hard and fast as possible to address every customer's individual irrigation system issues. As a consumer myself I clearly understand how waiting on a repair man to help you can be frustrating, but as a business owner I see both sides. As a customer you clearly have the right to demand good and prompt service, but you may need to make several different phone calls until you find a company that can get to you quickly. You also may need to be a little patient as most any reputable person who has been in this business for a number of years will have a big client base built up and get behind with the rush of phone calls that a drought will cause.

Some things are unpredictable such as a lawn pump or irrigation controller/timer just going out, but I do see several things on sprinkler systems that could have been addressed and repaired long before the hot summer months. One thing you can do to prevent having an "irrigation emergency" is to plan ahead. Don't wait until Summer or even Spring to have your irrigation system inspected. Call during Winter (of course not in all climates). You will get much quicker service and probably even better pricing. Hardly anybody is thinking of their sprinklers in the off-season and this is the perfect time to take care of issues instead of waiting until Summer and your lawn is dying.

Also, please don't lay new sod or grass and then realize you don't have proper sprinkler system coverage. You would not believe how many people spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on new grass and then realize that they have poor sprinkler system coverage! If you are planning to re-landscape or re-sod your yard, check out your sprinklers first! You could find yourself stuck having to manually water and drag around a hose until a sprinkler system company can show up. Also, if you lay new grass and then discover you need a sprinkler head added, or even a whole new zone added, the grass will have to be removed or disturbed in order to do the irrigation work. This makes the irrigation techs' jobs a lot more time consuming, which in turn will cost you more money.

With a little common sense and planning, many people can avoid the Summer rush and be worry-free about their lawn and landscape through the hot season. As I already mentioned their are certain things that are unpredictable like broken pipes or pumps and this is not your fault, but make sure to call as soon as possible to get it repaired because you may be in for a little wait. Another tip: be courteous to your lawn sprinkler technician as well as any other service person that would repair something or service you. Remember, it is not their fault that your lawn and/or landscape is having problems. They are just a person trying to work as hard and fast as they can under very difficult weather and working conditions, as well as a heavy work load. Being a little courteous and understanding, rather than being inconsiderate and demanding can be the difference between getting your sprinkler system visit sooner than later:)

Scott
http://www.autolawnsprinklers.com
http://www.advancedirrigationsystems.net

Best Time Of Day To Water Grass

A common question that I get asked is, "What time of day or night is the best or optimum time to water your lawn and landscape?" The best time to water your grass is in the early morning hours.

You don't want to water too early or in the middle of the night if you don't have to because if you get all your watering done while it is still dark and it sits for too long it can cause mold, fungus, and mushrooms in your yard.

If you water too late, the sun will evaporate much of the water and the lawn could not get enough as the water is being wasted. Also, if you water too late in the day, the sun can burn the blades of the grass because it is high in the sky and the water on the grass magnifies the sun's UV rays.

So, try and water between in the early morning. Obviously there are several different factors that may determine your watering window such as having to water at night at commercial buildings, or having a lot of zones with several hours of cycle run time, but do your best to center your program around the early morning hours if possible.

Scott

http://www.autolawnsprinklers.com

Do It Yourself Landscape Irrigation Info

Okay, so you are probably here because your are on the Internet searching for information on landscape irrigation or automatic lawn sprinkler systems. You most likely are a homeowner who cares about your lawn, landscape, and/or garden as well as the overall curb appeal of your home. Well, my friend you are not alone. Tens of thousands of people visit my site each month looking for information about automatic sprinkler systems such as how to design , how to plan, how to build, and even how to repair existing lawn sprinkler systems.

Designing and building an irrigation system is a mixture of technical abilities and artistic imagination making use of both the left side and right side of your brain. While you can learn a ton of educational information from books and guides about the technical aspects of sprinkler design, you will be forced to use your imagination and visualize when it comes down to actual on-site design and planning.

The reason why you must use both sides of your brain is because no matter how perfect of a design you think you have, when you start the actual project you may find several different factors not accounted for in the plan. As you know, the "real world" has a way of throwing curve balls at you. One example of this is having to relocate or move your pipe because an obstacle such as a big, existing tree that was not shown in the plans.

Not to worry though, there is always room for a little bit of fluctuation or changes. While water physics and irrigation design is a science with specific rules and properties, you want to design your system so you have the ability to change or modify as needed. In my book I teach you about water volume and pressure, as well as the process of designing your system with a built-in error factor. Basically what I mean by this is to leave yourself room to add or move a sprinkler head on any zone.

There are several things you must learn to accomplish "Do it yourself Irrigation" correctly, but anyone can learn how to do it as long as they have the will to do so. I will provide you with the knowledge to do your own sprinkler system, but you must have the drive to tackle this project yourself and do it right. I believe that anyone who can read this, is physically fit, and has the want to build their own irrigation system can accomplish this task themselves and save hundreds or thousands of dollars while still getting a quality product.

Scott
http://www.autolawnsprinklers.com

Difference between commercial & residential irrigation systems

While the end result is pretty much the same, there are some differences between residential and commercial irrigation systems. Residential sprinkler systems are those designed and installed for individual single family homes. Commercial systems are designed and built for larger properties and landscapes such as large apartment complexes, townhomes, businesses, roadsides, and schools.

The main difference between these two types of systems are the size of the zones. When designing a commercial irrigation system you normally want to plan on having a larger water source. This is done by using a bigger well and pump. You want more volume and more pressure so that you can design bigger zones (individual sections of an irrigation system). A bigger water source and larger zones will allow you to cover more area per section and allow you to have less zones than if you were to have a smaller water source. This is important because the more zones that you have, the more maintenance time and cost you will have down the road. You obviously want less maintenance.

Another difference between the two types are the materials used, such as the main components like the sprinkler controller (timer) and the sprinkler heads. Commercial systems usually use bigger rotors that are able to cover more square feet than your typical residential rotor. A common residential sprinkler head that I use on residential systems are the Rain Bird 5000 series rotor. On a commercial system I like to use the 7000 series rotors because they cover more area as I just mentioned. Also home systems will normally use 1" valves compared to 1&1/2" or 2" valves on commercial irrigation systems.

Of course with a larger water source, bigger valves, and bigger sprinkler heads comes bigger pipe to properly carry the amount of water being demanded. Not all commercial systems need to be designed with larger or different components, it really all depends on the size and type of landscape that you are trying to cover. There are some commercial systems that I have designed and built that are pretty much identical to the way that I do residential systems. The reason for this is because the size and shape of the landscape did not call for the use of larger components.

Just remember that your sprinkler system design all starts with your water source. You can build big zones, with big pipe and big heads, but it will not work properly (or at all) if you do not have the volume and pressure of water needed to run the system. My ebook is perfect for the planning of just about all residential lawn irrigation systems, and small commercial systems. If you have the task of designing or bidding for a large commercial system, my ebook will still teach you the basics, but some of the details would vary slightly. If you need any help, have any questions, or would like a bid on an automatic commercial irrigation system, please feel free to contact me.

Scott
http://www.autolawnsprinklers.com

Cut Lawn & Landscape Shrubs Around Sprinkler Heads

Sometimes I get a questions something like, "what is the best way to cut my lawn around the sprinkler heads?" Well, my answer to this question is that you shouldn't have to worry about it if your sprinkler heads are properly installed! The sprinkler heads should be just below grade level so that you can run over them with a lawnmower and not cause any damage to them. But, you don't want the heads too low either because they can get clogged up with dirt or not pop up high enough to get proper water coverage on your grass.

Many people have sprinkler heads on risers or pipe that put the spray above bushes. These type of heads can get cut when trimming your shrubs if you are not careful. It is best to turn on your system and identify where each sprinkler head is located prior to cutting your bushes. Use a small mark-out flag, a stick, or anything that will bring your attention to where the heads are located so that you do not cut them.

I actually don't like sprinkler heads on risers because I think they look ugly. Some people may argue that you must have them in certain cases, but I disagree. It is true that it may be the most convenient way to get water coverage over a bush and on to the entire bed or lawn area, but proper watering can be accomplished another way.

If you have separate zones for your lawn and shrub/flower beds then you do not have to water above the bushes. Remember that you don't really need to water the tops of the bushes, it is the root system that needs the water. You can use typical 4" pop-up sprays and let them water the ground underneath the leaves on the plants or bushes. You could also install drip tube for the flower beds. Just make sure that no plants are blocking coverage over your lawn area. This method of watering will be out of sight and not create the eye-sore of big tall, leaning sprinkler heads.

Scott
http://www.autolawnsprinklers.com/