sprinkler systems--anybody tried it?

[coonbone]

hi guys. I am going to try to install a system in my 3 acre yard, and was wondering if any of you have installed a system and could share any positive/negative experiences. I am trying to get this done without getting a bad case of the dumb a$$. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif <font color="blue"> </font>

 

[Bird]

I have very limited experience with them myself but I had one neighbor who installed his own system using PVC about 4" deep (he'd had no previous experience and didn't do enough investigation first). We don't get a lot of cold weather in the Dallas area, but ever once in awhile (23 degrees this morning), and he also did not install the self draining valves (I'm not sure of the proper terminology). So . . ., we had a good freeze and his entire system shattered. Then I helped another friend install his system, but he had a professional design it; 8 zones, 12 heads per zone, drain at the end of each run, rented a ditch witch and put everything 12" deep. It, too, was schedule 40 PVC and I asked a couple of the guys helping if they weren't being far too generous and careless with the cement (or solvent). They were sure that you couldn't use too much. Well, that ain't so. I later helped him dig up and fix two leaks. In both cases, the solvent had pooled in the line and simply ate a tiny hole right through it.

 

[pajoube]

I did my own which has 18 zones and 113 heads.
What I recommend is that you hire someone to do the pulling. This means they will make a cut in the soil about 4 inches down and pull the pvc pipe and wire. You will do the zone valve installations and heads. This will save you many hours and save many dollars. Be sure you have enough pressure out of your well or city before you start.
PJ

 

[bebster]

Do you have to blow out the water in the winter to prevent damage from freezing?

 

[EddieWalker]

Just a couple of thoughts.

Check your water preasure at the location you will tap in. This will determine how many spinkler heads you can run in each zone. Each type of head has it's own requirements.

Rent a trencher and use sch 40 ONLY! This is very important. The quicky self burying trencher pipe is a black plastic that is junk. It will leak! If somebody wants to say that they have it and theres isn't leaking, it will or they havn't noticed it yet.

Use purple primer and clear cement. There are plenty of colors to choose from, and plenty of personal favorites. In Texas we gets sever ground movement with freezing clay and the clear cement WORKS.

Start off with a scale map and get a plan. One trenct might have a dozen pipes in it. Makes life allot easier if you know this before you begin.

Buy twice as many fittings as you thing you'll need. Somehow you never have enough and it's allot easier to take back the extra than to have to run off and get one .23 cent fitting.

Eddie

 

[gator]

When I worked at Lowes, we had alot of people design and install their own system that did not work. Back then Rainbird offered a free design service that we would recommend that would give them a colorcoded map, parts list, and instructions but they didn't want to wait the 2 weeks it took to get it. Rain bird still offers that service, but it now has a charge that is refundable when you buy their parts. You might want to investigate their service by CLICKING HERE to avoid the problems of trying to design it yourself.
PS: I do not work for Rainbird, I had just listened to enough whining from customers that thought they knew what they were doing.

 

[MossRoad]

It isn't the pressure that I'd be worried about, it is the flow, or gallons per minutes. I installed a system at our home in the city. I could put a pressure gauge on it and it would read 60 PSI all day but could only get 9GPM out of the city line because it was only a half inch water meter. I had three zones. One had 2 large pop up impact heads(about 7 GPM total). One had a few bubblers for the flower beds and my largest zone had a whopping 4 pop up spray type heads for a strip of grass. So you need to know the pressure AND the GPM before you design your system. Hope this helps.

 

[GregJ]

I recently installed 2 independent systems in my yard. I did a flow and pressure analysis before designing my zones and then "over-engineered" it with at least a 30% "fluff" factor. I used only schedule 40. My service line is 1", so I had pretty good flow. I buried it around 8". A lot had to be hand dug, so that 8" might be a little exaggerated. Because of the contour of the land, I could not put a single low point for a drain, but carefully noted where the the low points were. This winter, I made an adapter for my shop vac and was able to suck all the water out of the lines. This worked a lot better than I thought. I was amazed at how much water it pulled out of those pipes. In a previous post, somebody said to buy extra parts.... Boy is that good advice. I have now created a large toolbox that is filled with nothing but extra parts for my system. You WILL need these parts quite often. I am constantly adding to the system, or breaking something. Parts are cheap. Have fun.... It's not as difficult as it looks.

Greg

 

[pajoube]

Yes, I blow it out in late September. Many use the auto drains but I have found it is better to blow them out to be sure they are clear.
PJ

 

[pajoube]

It has been said already about using schedule 40 pvc pipe. That is what I used and still pulled it without digging a trench. This was very fast and did not tear up the lawn. The idea about having spare parts is good as you will need them over time. I have a supply house not very far from home so I just buy as I need them. Seems I will plow over at least one head each winter.
PJ