Upgrading for Greater System Efficiency Equals Cost Savings
Anyone who has a sprinkler system knows it’s a great investment for conveniently maintaining a lush lawn and thriving garden using less water than watering by hand.
If you’ve had your irrigation system for many years, it may be time for some upgrades.
Signs Your Sprinkler System Needs Upgrades:
- Uneven spray pattern with pop-up sprinklers. Watering gaps are usually caused by a grain of sand in the nozzle. You can clean the nozzle, but nozzles scratch easily, and just a small scratch can ruin the spray pattern. Nozzles are inexpensive, and it’s easier to replace them.
- Consistent dry spots. This can happen when you’re not getting head-to-head spacing (where the water from each sprinkler is reaching the next sprinkler on both sides). If adjusting the radius on spray and rotary nozzles doesn’t achieve 100 percent overlap, then either the nozzles or sprinkler layout need changing.
- Leaks in pop-up sprinklers. If the sprinkler cap or riser is scratched, or the riser is damaged, you’ll need a new sprinkler. A leak coming from below the sprinkler could indicate a ruptured body, or broken threads where the riser is connected to the sprinkler or the riser to the lateral pipe. Either the sprinkler or riser will have to be replaced. When replacing risers that attach to the lateral pipe, upgrade to a swing joint riser that doesn’t break if the sprinkler is stepped on or run over by a mower.
- Sprinkler low head drainage. When water continues to flow from sprinklers located at lower levels after the system is shut off, you have low head drainage. The drainage will stop when the pipes are fully drained, but it may take several hours. Low head drainage wastes water, which may be flowing onto sidewalks and curbs or creating muddy spots on your lawn. And of course, overwatering in that area.
Why Upgrade Your Irrigation System?
You may have noticed your water use has been increasing over the last few years, but your lawn and plants don’t look as healthy as they used to. Or you’ve had to book more service calls, and the cost of maintaining your older system is becoming excessive.
Your landscape may also have changed over the years. Plants and trees have grown, or you’ve made additions, and you need better water distribution.
Today’s newer technologies and better equipment will improve landscape watering efficiency, keep you in compliance with current and future city ordinances in Texas, deliver the correct amount of water to your lawn and plants, and save you money.
Upgrading doesn’t mean the whole irrigation system has to be replaced. It could be something as simple as changing the nozzles on your sprinklersUpgrading your system to make it more efficient could save you even more money.
Following are some things to consider. The list is lengthy so we are providing links to the sections so you can jump to items that you think are more applicable to your system. Some of these items affect the efficiency and water consumption of a system more than others but all of these play a part.
Explore this page:
Water Pressure and Nozzle Efficiency
Did you know that water pressure makes a profound difference in the efficiency of your irrigation system?
High water pressure atomizes the water and the more water is atomized, the lighter it becomes so more of the spray will drift and evaporate instead of being absorbed where you need it. This misting of the water can cause up to an estimated 25% water loss.
Misting is great for the patio on those hot, humid days and nights but when you’re watering your lawn and ornamentals, you want nozzles that will deliver large water droplets that cut through the wind and deliver the water to the target zone.
TCEQ guidelines state “Methods to achieve the water pressure requirements include, but are not limited to, flow control valves, a pressure regulator, or pressure compensating spray heads”
Sprinkler Nozzles
Nozzles are specially shaped water outlets that determine the distance and the pattern of the water that is sprayed on the lawn and garden. They are one of the most critical components in the efficiency and effectiveness of your sprinkler system.
Modern sprinkler systems are designed to apply water more evenly when fitted with the proper nozzles and spaced evenly. Just replacing older sprinklers with newer models, even with the current spacing, will improve water distribution.
Sprinkler heads and nozzles can be made of a variety of metals including brass and zinc. There are those who still think that metal equals durability, and in previous years they might have been right. Today’s plastics, however, are engineered to perform just as well as, if not better than, metal sprinklers and have the added advantage of being resistant to minerals contained in hard water. Metal attracts such minerals, as anyone who lives in a hard water area can confirm. Those minerals are not attracted to plastic and they do not stick to it. And to cap it off, replacing plastic heads and nozzles costs less than metal ones.
One important thing to remember about head and nozzle selection is that mixing head types on a single circuit will defeat the efficiency of your sprinkler system. Each type has a different precipitation rate so that one type of head may put out an inch per hour while a different type may put out twice that amount. The result of mixing types is that one of those areas on the circuit is going to be either over- or under-watered.
Installing matched precipitation rate (MPR) nozzles will make sure all nozzles in a zone, even those with various arcs and radii, will apply water at the same rate to prevent under or overwatering. There are even nozzles available with specialty patterns to handle narrow rectangular grass areas or slopes.
Updating nozzles to those with the correct spray pattern for the landscape will result in using the right amount of water, achieve head-to-head coverage, and minimize brown spots with close-in watering around the sprinkler.
Additionally, TCEQ specifically states that “Irrigation systems shall not spray water on or over any surfaces made of impervious material including but not limited to concrete, asphalt, brick, wood, stones set with mortar, walls, fences, sidewalks, and streets.”
Learn more about how to Save Water and Money and Best Sprinkler Heads.
Establish Watering Zones
One way to ensure that your sprinkler system is as efficient as possible is to divide your landscape into watering zones based on the watering needs of the different plant types, whether it’s a lawn, a tree, a shrub, or a flower bed.
You can dictate precise watering schedules for each zone to prevent overwatering and underwatering, depending on the needs of the zone and the plants within it.
Drip Irrigation
Drip irrigation is an extremely effective, water-efficient way of ensuring that your plants receive exactly the right amount of water. Drip irrigation can be used for shrubs, flower gardens, and even vegetable gardens.
Drip systems deliver water directly to the roots in a controlled and gentle manner, which minimizes the possibility of water being evaporated before it can reach the plants and also reduces the amount of water wasted through runoff.
Learn more about drip irrigation What Type of Irrigation System Should I get.
Tree Bubblers
Tree bubblers can also be installed in your sprinkler system to water and establish young trees.
Bubblers are small irrigation heads designed to bubble over and flood the ground surface around the tree. The water sinks down into the tree’s root ball (string of roots, including dirt and soil, at the base of the tree), helping to establish a deep root system.
There are a few different types of bubblers available.
Learn more about Tree Bubblers – When to Cap Them. and Irrigation for Your Trees
Irrigation Sensors
Rain and Freeze Sensors
Rain and freeze sensors are a fantastic addition to your irrigation system. With the ability to be added to any existing sprinkler system, rain and freeze sensors are a great option, whether you’re looking to upgrade your current sprinkler system or are interested in a new, cost-effective, water-wise irrigation option. According to the city of Austin and TCEQ, sensors are required on all systems.
Rain sensors are often combined with a freeze sensor. For some cities in Texas, both are mandatory. Rain/freeze sensors are available in wired and wireless models. The freeze sensor suspends irrigation once the set freeze temperature is reached and resumes a regular schedule when the temperature rises above the freeze cut-off.
The way a rain and freeze sensor works is by interrupting the sprinkler or irrigation system’s watering routine or cycle during periods of rainfall, low temperature and other conditions.
Rain and freeze sensors:
- Save you money by preventing the cycle when plants have already been watered naturally by rain;
- Prevent damage to plants caused by overwatering or watering in the wrong temperatures;
- Can be added to existing sprinkler systems for better performance with minimal additional investment;
- Pays for itself in water saved in three months’ time on a wet year, and
- Are required by TCEQ irrigation code in all sprinkler systems.
Learn more about how you can Save Water and Money with Rain and Freeze Sensors.
Temperature Sensors
Temperature sensors detect when the environment is too hot or cold for watering which would result in frost damage to the plants, or the water evaporating, or even burning the plants should they be watered. The sensor will keep the system switched off until the right temperature and environmental conditions have been reached.
Flow Sensors
A flow sensor measures the volume of water flowing through the irrigation system, typically in gallons per minute. Too much or too little flow of water will alert you to a problem in the system such as broken pipes or valves, broken or clogged sprinkler heads, or underground leaks.
Some flow sensors will send the flow data to a central or stand-alone controller system. When low flow or excess flow conditions are detected, the controller will quarantine and shut down the problem area and continue to irrigate the areas that are not affected.
You don’t even necessarily have to manually enter flow rate data into the controller; the controller will learn it.
Replacing Pipes
Underground pipes can crack or break, and the resulting leak can go undetected for some time. It only becomes obvious when water starts gurgling up on the lawn, or there’s a visible geyser. Even if you suspect there’s a pipe leak, an irrigation professional can track it down and replace the damaged pipe section to restore your system to peak efficiency.
If the pipe was squeezed and crushed by tree roots, it may have to be relocated away from the tree.
Replacing Valves
Solenoid valve malfunctions cause such problems as leaks at the valve, water pressure issues, sprinklers not turning on or off, and leaking sprinkler heads when the zone isn’t running.
If the old valve didn’t have a flow control feature, upgrade to a better quality valve that has one. Depending on the model, the flow control is a handle or screw that regulates the amount of water passing through the valve. There are different advantages to this feature, one being the ability to force close the valve in an emergency (e.g. stuck open valve).
You’ll also want to make sure your irrigation in-line valves (and underground backflow prevention assembly) are protected by a quality valve box. Valve boxes allow for easier access for repair, and protect valves from damage by the elements, mowers, shovels, etc. Ideally, install them on a firm foundation rock base for proper drainage.
Check valves prevent drainage from the line once the system has shut off. Drainage can occur through the sprinkler head at a lower elevation than the zone valve in a sloped landscape. This drainage not only wastes water, but it can also cause runoff and erosion of the area. Some sprinkler systems have built-in check valves.
Programmable Timers
A programmable timer can significantly enhance the efficiency of your sprinkler system. A timer can help you set specific watering times for different areas so that lawns, trees, shrubs, and flower gardens can all receive exactly the right amount of water at the right time of the day, maximizing the impact of your irrigation system.
Irrigation Controllers
It’s time to upgrade your controller if you have an older model that constantly needs repairs or is difficult to program and has a small display that’s hard to read.
Modern controllers offer a number of water saving features, such as: easy programming, a clear display, a rain/freeze sensor that delays irrigation during local rain or freeze events, and a “seasonal adjust” feature that reduces or increases watering time by percentage for the different seasons.
Upgrading to a “smart” controller provides even more water-saving features. The ones available today monitor and adjust the watering schedule on their own using climate and soil moisture data.
To learn more see Take Your Irrigation System to the Next Level With Wi-Fi Enabled Controllers.
Weather-Based Smart Controllers
Weather-based smart controllers use a variety of climate information. Some use historic weather data to determine watering time, and some supplement this with an on-site temperature or solar radiation sensor for real-time adjustments.
Other climate controllers use on-site mini-weather stations or weather sensors. There are also Wi-Fi climate controllers that subscribe to a weather station network to download the information that determines the watering schedule.
There are even more advantages with Wi-Fi smart controllers. You can operate your irrigation system completely from your smartphone, tablet or computer. The Wi-Fi controllers also work with digital assistants, such as Google Assistant and Alexa, allowing you to run your irrigation system with voice commands.
Weather-based controllers are also known as climate-based or ET (evapotranspiration) controllers. Evapotranspiration is the amount of water used by plants or lost from the soil’s surface through evaporation.
All weather-based controllers calculate this moisture loss from plants and soil, and replace it by adjusting the irrigation schedule.
ET controllers get their information for these calculations from a number of sources, including site property information that’s programmed into the controller such as water needs of specific plants, root zone depth, soil type, and application rate of the irrigation method.
Smart Controller Benefits
- Smart controllers, if set up correctly, can save an average home nearly 7,600 gallons of water annually. This also means you’re saving money.
- The irrigation system can be programmed and controlled remotely from a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer. With some models you can also perform these actions directly at the controller, but with others you can only use the app.
- You can program landscape conditions into a smart controller for each zone, such as soil type, plant types, degree of slope, and amount of sun or shade. Generally, there are options for each condition, which gives the smart system the ability to customize and precisely water each zone.
- Some smart controllers offer different scheduling choices, ranging from fully automatic to allowing you to handle everything. You can be as hands-on or hands-off as you wish. In full automatic mode, the controller can still take into account any restrictions for watering days and times.
- The app is user-friendly, making it easier to program the required information for each zone, and to set up watering schedules.
- You have access to your system from your smartphone or tablet anytime, and anywhere there is cell or internet service.
- Even without a Wi-Fi signal, you can connect directly to the controller through a hotspot using your smartphone as a remote.
- You can receive alerts for various problems so you can act quickly to prevent costly damage to the system and landscape. Problem alerts can provide information on electrical issues, such as short circuits.
- Your smart controller can keep you up to date on what the system is doing. For example, it can tell you:
- When your system is on.
- How long the system ran, and which zones were run.
- Scheduling changes because of rain, a rain forecast, cold temperatures, or high winds.
- Smart controllers work with digital assistants such as Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple HomeKit to allow you to start and stop your sprinklers with voice commands.
- You’re able to check your scheduled irrigation by day, week, or month with a quick glance at the calendar view in the app. Reports and charts are also available to help you track water usage for better scheduling management.
- For vacations, long absences, or just for convenience, you can authorize system access and monitoring for multiple users
Making Your Standard Controller “Smart”
Compatible standard controllers can be upgraded to “smarter” versions with add-on sensors and equipment. For example, by adding a Wi-Fi module you’ll have access to weather information, real-time alerts, off-site management, and advanced water management tools, all through your smartphone or tablet.
Learn more about how to Make Your Smart Controller Smarter.
