Pictures from an athletic field contractor

[Gregster613]

Tweels are the back 'tires' on the machine. I think John Deere mowers were the first to use them.

Thanks for the answer Turf. I guess I should've guessed that but I just didn't. Now I know what "Tweels" means. Some machinery slang I reckon!

 

[dodge man]

Tweels are airless tires, they have kind of a web pattern to support the tread, you can actually see through them.

 

[Sportsman762]

I've got to ask, what are tweels? - I've no idea what that means and couldn't see anything out of the ordinary on the machine. Curious. Thanks.

Tweels are a name brand of airless tire/rim made by Michelin. They introduced them in 2012 initially on john deere zero turn mowers. The tweel is a unique design compared to most other airless tires that were mostly solid or foam filled. Neither of which ride very well at all. The tweel has a contact patch that is equivalent to a pneumatic tire and flexes in the ribs giving better traction and ride than most airless tires.

Home

Eliminate flat tires with Michelin X® Tweel™ Airless Radial tires. Designed for a long service life with no maintenance.

tweel.michelinman.com

 

[EddieWalker]

I'm seeing Tweels on some of the new loader backhoes out there. I never knew that's what those tires where called. I like the look of them, and even better, the fact that you never have to deal with flat tires makes them really nice. I just don't want to pay for them!!!

 

[Complete Turf Care]

We were able to squeeze in another lip removal job today before the rain.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

I went spread ryegrass on this field last Friday. I also treated for ants. Several weeks ago we had installed a new irrigation system and added some sod along the new fake grass. It rained about 6.5” in the 48 hours after I took this pic. We also topdressed with sand.

 

[EddieWalker]

The fake grass sure looks a lot nicer then the real stuff. Is there an advantage over real grass?

 

[Complete Turf Care]

The fake grass sure looks a lot nicer then the real stuff. Is there an advantage over real grass?

There are some advantages and some disadvantages to the fake grass.

Advantages of fake grass are:
1. Less maintenance
2. Looks nicer.
3. Less 'rain-outs'

Disadvantage of fake grass are:
1. Much higher initial cost
2. Much hotter than real grass in summer. Up to 40 or 50* hotter at the surface
3. Much more likely to cause injuries.
4. Most players prefer to play on real grass.
5. Won't last as long as natural grass, therefore increasing cost when it needs to be replaced in 8-10 years.

 

[Molalla1]

I went spread ryegrass on this field last Friday. I also treated for ants. Several weeks ago we had installed a new irrigation system and added some sod along the new fake grass. It rained about 6.5” in the 48 hours after I took this pic. We also topdressed with sand.


View attachment 1796754

Very nice CTC . . .

 

[EddieWalker]

There are some advantages and some disadvantages to the fake grass.

Advantages of fake grass are:
1. Less maintenance
2. Looks nicer.
3. Less 'rain-outs'

Disadvantage of fake grass are:
1. Much higher initial cost
2. Much hotter than real grass in summer. Up to 40 or 50* hotter at the surface
3. Much more likely to cause injuries.
4. Most players prefer to play on real grass.
5. Won't last as long as natural grass, therefore increasing cost when it needs to be replaced in 8-10 years.

Thanks. The cost of replacing it was something I didn't think of, even though I just replaced my fake grass over the summer. I have it in my Puppy Yard, and after a few years, the original didn't look good enough for posting videos of the new puppies, so we replaced it.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

Another irrigation system installed on a football field.

 

[EddieWalker]

That looks like a massive job!!!! How many zones? How big is the water supply line? Do you figure all that out, or is there an engineer that specializes is watering huge areas?

 

[Complete Turf Care]

That looks like a massive job!!!! How many zones? How big is the water supply line? Do you figure all that out, or is there an engineer that specializes is watering huge areas?

This was actually a fairly easy job. It has only 4 zones. If you look at the bottom of the picture, you can see the green covers of the zone valves. The water supply is mostly 2" pipe, and parts of it are 1.5". This system includes a 2 hp booster pump, because there is not enough water volume and pressure without it. We do all the design ourselves. In order to be licensed to do irrigation, you must pass a test showing that you know the basics of designing a system.

 

[dodge man]

I’m going to show my ignorance and try and learn something. How is irrigation zoned? Some heads water more often than others?

 

[Complete Turf Care]

I’m going to show my ignorance and try and learn something. How is irrigation zoned? Some heads water more often than others?

It's fairly complicated. The goal is to have the irrigation supply the same amount of water in all areas. It's called 'matched precipitation'.

To design a zone, you have to know how much water (gpm) and pressure you have available. Then, you have to choose a sprinkler head and nozzle size that will not allow the zone (group of heads) to go over the amount of water available. Then, you have to space the heads at a distance that will accommodate the amount of water and distance each head throws.

Actually, an athletic field can be easier to design, because everything is pretty much squared off, and distances are equal. An irregular shaped lawn or landscaping beds will require different nozzles on each zone.

You can set each zone to water for any amount of time.

My daughter has a degree in Mechanical Engineering, and she was designing all of our irrigation, but she has branched out with her own business now, so I and my main employee do all of the designing now, and will consult with my daughter now and then.

 

[EddieWalker]

Do you have any pictures up close of the plumbing and valves that you used for this field?

I've done a few sprinkler systems for different houses that I've owned and I enjoy seeing how its done. I've never seen or even thought about something like a football field, but now I'm curious.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

I don't have any pictures, but this is the valve we used on this field. It is a Rainbird PGA 2" valve. And we used Rainbird 6504 Rotors for the sprinkler heads. There are 4 valves (zones) on this field. Three of the valves have 6 rotors and one has 5.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

This is how the irrigation system is designed. I use Google Earth Pro to measure and draw the system. This is the drawing that I will provide to the owner.

 

[EddieWalker]

Thanks, that makes it really easy to understand.

 

[Complete Turf Care]

Went work on some infields today. These fields are about 210 miles from my shop. And I have to go through Baton Rouge and New Orleans to get there. About 4 hours each way if the traffic is good.

First I mowed it down to the dirt.

Then tilled it. Later I will go back and re-grade it with the laser equipment.

We also renovated the mound and home plate on the baseball field.