[Joehock57]

Hello all! Recently discovered the forum through YouTube. Awesome!

Purchased my first home about a year and a half ago. It was new construction and I was eager to hit the ground running with a new lawn right away. In my hastiness I did minimal research on irrigation systems/companies, and tried to save some money by hiring someone who installs systems as a hobby.

In the summer of last year I experienced extreme dry spots and die off. I called a professional company to come out to look, all they did was charge me $80 to change the "fan" of certain heads.

Fast forward to this summer and it has been even harsher than last, and the lawn looks terrible. I'm at a loss. I spent thousands of dollars on this system thinking it would help me achieve a great lawn and it feels like it was all for naught.

I would be forever greatful for any guidance or advice. I'm not sure if it's a coverage or a pressure issue or what. Any information I can provide (photos, dimensions, etc)don't hesitate to ask. Thank you in advance!

 

[g-man]

They only way to help is to draw up the property and your current setup. I hate when companies just install heads to get the grass wet instead of even distribution.

 

[Lawn_newbie]

I just ordered a dozen rain gauges from NRG: NRG 1.5" rain gauge

I also took video of every sprinkler head to look at the distribution pattern in each zone. When the gauges arrive I should be able to tell how much water each head is delivering along the spray path to help calibrate the head. Then use the data from each head to determine if I need to move/add heads within a specific zone to even out the distribution.

 

[BooRadley]

Draw it up with where you heads are hitting. You can swap out sprinkler heads for different types fairly cheap. You have to look at what size your connection is. 1/2" + 3/4" common. Place your rain gauges and run you sprinklers for 30 minute. See where water is missing or overflowing. Try adjusting range / rotation to correct the issue. Look up your current heads for how to adjust. Normally a small alenkey or flathead screwdriver. It's very self rewarding when you get your watering correct.

 

[Joehock57]

They only way to help is to draw up the property and your current setup. I hate when companies just install heads to get the grass wet instead of even distribution.

I hear you. I'm going to get working on something with some measurements. I'll share when done. Thanks!!

 

[Joehock57]

I just ordered a dozen rain gauges from NRG: NRG 1.5" rain gauge

I also took video of every sprinkler head to look at the distribution pattern in each zone. When the gauges arrive I should be able to tell how much water each head is delivering along the spray path to help calibrate the head. Then use the data from each head to determine if I need to move/add heads within a specific zone to even out the distribution.

Nice, thanks for sharing that!

That's a good call with a video...I think you are on to something with the distribution from each head, I feel like a lot of the heads don't put out the same amount of water in the middle of the stream as the end of the stream; I've put cups out before and ran zones for an hour and got barely any accumulation. But then if I adjust the "fan" I end up losing head to head coverage? That's part of the reason I'm worried it's a pressure issue...

When I do a draw up I'm going to include how far each head sprays in addition to how far apart they're spaced.

 

[Joehock57]

Hi all. I took the past few days to do a rough map of the set up (not to scale by any means). I should have also mentioned...the issues are only in the backyard. My front is a lot smaller and in pretty good shape. I measured distances between all heads. All heads have 1.5 nozzles. I took some photos from the deck in case that helps as well, one looking straight out, the other to the side. If there is anything else I can possible provide please don't hesitate to ask, I want to get this right! TIA so much!!

 

[g-man]

When you say 1.5 nozzles, could describe a bit more? What brand? Color? Is it 1.5gpm?

Also, do you know the zones? 3 zones?

Is this work still in warranty?

 

[unclebucks06]

I'm guessing they are rotors? If they are all 1.5 then that is the easiest fix as long as you have the gpm flow to fix it. Should be 1gpm in the corners, 2 on the half circles and 4 on the full circles. You could do 1, 1.5, and 3 if your low on gpm per zone.

How far is each rotors radius? I'm guessing your head to head coverage is not very good.

Let us know what kind of heads and how many zones.

 

[TommyTester]

What heads are in each zone? Looks like you have 10,500 feet to cover.

 

[g-man]

@unclebucks06 I don't think it is that easy. In the layout, head 11 is a real problem. It needs to reach head 12 at 34 feet, but also south to the patio at 16 feet. Either the patio gets watered or head 12 doesn't. A way around it is to add another head at 11 (11b). One is set to 180 or 270. Head 11b will be a shorter one at 16feet and either 90 or 45 (depends on how we address the area in front of the patio).

To get this perfect it might require moving every head. But maybe a few changes could get it 80% good.

 

[unclebucks06]

Yeah I didn't mean it that way. I hate the design my self. But I was saying that was an easy step that would definitely help in the center. Head 6 and 7 are 40+ feet away from the next row.

 

[Joehock57]

When you say 1.5 nozzles, could describe a bit more? What brand? Color? Is it 1.5gpm?

Also, do you know the zones? 3 zones?

Is this work still in warranty?

Hey G-man- they are black hunter heads. I believe they are rotors. Not 100% sure on the gpm...all the heads have blue nozzles that say 1.5 on them.

The backyard is 4 zones...I'm not sure on which are in which zones but that's easy enough to figure out, I'll check today after work.

No warranty unfortunately

 

[Joehock57]

I'm guessing they are rotors? If they are all 1.5 then that is the easiest fix as long as you have the gpm flow to fix it. Should be 1gpm in the corners, 2 on the half circles and 4 on the full circles. You could do 1, 1.5, and 3 if your low on gpm per zone.

How far is each rotors radius? I'm guessing your head to head coverage is not very good.

Let us know what kind of heads and how many zones.

Definitely, I'll check which heads are in which zones after work today. I'll take some measurements of spray radius too. Thank you for your response!

 

[Joehock57]

What heads are in each zone? Looks like you have 10,500 feet to cover.

Yup, you're right on the money, I have always measured out fert based on 11k sq ft.

 

[g-man]

Since they say 1.5, that would mean that they are delivering 1.5gpm of water. The corner ones (90 degrees) are spreading 1.5gpm to 1/4 of a circle, while the center (360) are spreading the same 1.5pgm over a whole circle. That means that the 360 areas are getting 1/4 of the water per area than the corners zone (assuming proper head to head coverage). Therefore the gpm nozzles cannot all be the same. Both companies that looked at your system failed to detect this very important system setup. I would not use them anymore. Are they doing your winterization?

Try to get the heads per zones and the model (PGP? ultra?). If possible, you will need to get the pressure too. I like the unclebucks06 idea of 1, 1.5 and 3, but only if the rotor works ok at 1 gpm and the 30+ feet of throw. Ideally 1.5, 3, 6 for those distances. Contracting someone good to fix this might be better for you than trying via forum post.

 

[ken-n-nancy]

they are black hunter heads. I believe they are rotors. Not 100% sure on the gpm...all the heads have blue nozzles that say 1.5 on them.

Given that description, they are most likely Hunter PGP Ultra rotors. (See https://www.hunterindustries.com/irrigation-product/rotors/pgp-ultra). Go to that site and check out the "Documents" section for the PGP Ultra. There's lots of easy-to-read information about how to properly adjust the irrigation head.

The Hunter PGP Ultra is a quality irrigation head, and has a good selection of different nozzles available. The 1.5 nozzle is the lowest-flow standard blue nozzle.

Did the installer give you the "nozzle racks" (spare nozzle sets) that came with the rotors? If not, it's not a big deal, as the nozzles are inexpensive and easy to get either online or at a local SiteOne. As others have mentioned, changing nozzle sizes in specific rotors can be done to balance irrigation rates for rotors with different arc sizes (90° or 180° or 270° or 360°).

The backyard is 4 zones...I'm not sure on which are in which zones but that's easy enough to figure out, I'll check today after work.

Knowing which heads are in which zones is important and can potentially be used to help achieve more uniform irrigation, especially if the installed did something smart like put perimeter heads (typically 90° and/or 180°) and central heads (usually 360°) on different zones! Please post what you find out.

What is your irrigation water source? (i.e. Do you have city/town water, or are you on a well?)

Did the installer say anything to you about your water pressure and/or the flow rate for which the system was designed?

PS: Making the head layout map is exactly the right first step in figuring out what is wrong. Well done! Doing an "irrigation audit" using the rain gauges you ordered is an important next step in understanding your current system and determining what can be done to improve it without having to start over. You can do this!

 

[ken-n-nancy]

Fast forward to this summer and it has been even harsher than last, and the lawn looks terrible. I'm at a loss. I spent thousands of dollars on this system thinking it would help me achieve a great lawn and it feels like it was all for naught.

Just read back through the rest of the thread, and I didn't see information about how you have your controller set up -- in other words, how often does it water, and how long for each zone?

What is your soil like -- have you ever done a soil test or looked to see how deep the topsoil is on top of the subsoil? What is the soil quality? Whether the soil is sandy, loamy, or contains a lot of clay greatly affects the water retention of the soil. Given your Massachusetts location, I would presume the native soil is very sandy. With new construction, though, in what looks like a new neighborhood, a lot will depend upon what the builder did when leveling the lot.

 

[Joehock57]

they are black hunter heads. I believe they are rotors. Not 100% sure on the gpm...all the heads have blue nozzles that say 1.5 on them.

Given that description, they are most likely Hunter PGP Ultra rotors. (See https://www.hunterindustries.com/irrigation-product/rotors/pgp-ultra). Go to that site and check out the "Documents" section for the PGP Ultra. There's lots of easy-to-read information about how to properly adjust the irrigation head.

The Hunter PGP Ultra is a quality irrigation head, and has a good selection of different nozzles available. The 1.5 nozzle is the lowest-flow standard blue nozzle.

Did the installer give you the "nozzle racks" (spare nozzle sets) that came with the rotors? If not, it's not a big deal, as the nozzles are inexpensive and easy to get either online or at a local SiteOne. As others have mentioned, changing nozzle sizes in specific rotors can be done to balance irrigation rates for rotors with different arc sizes (90° or 180° or 270° or 360°).

The backyard is 4 zones...I'm not sure on which are in which zones but that's easy enough to figure out, I'll check today after work.

Knowing which heads are in which zones is important and can potentially be used to help achieve more uniform irrigation, especially if the installed did something smart like put perimeter heads (typically 90° and/or 180°) and central heads (usually 360°) on different zones! Please post what you find out.

What is your irrigation water source? (i.e. Do you have city/town water, or are you on a well?)

Did the installer say anything to you about your water pressure and/or the flow rate for which the system was designed?

PS: Making the head layout map is exactly the right first step in figuring out what is wrong. Well done! Doing an "irrigation audit" using the rain gauges you ordered is an important next step in understanding your current system and determining what can be done to improve it without having to start over. You can do this!

Hey Ken-n-Nancy!

I think those are the heads that I have. When I get home I'm going to inspect the top and see if there is any identifying info. Unfortunately he didn't leave me with anything, but I just ordered what I think are the right ones...
Hunter 782900 - Nozzle Rk, PGP Ultra/I20 Ultra Blue Noz https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0052D1XWE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_1w5qBb488MCQB
I was doing some reading and they seem fairly straight forward to change out? I do have the key.

Thinking about how the zones run...I do think that some run with a combination of perimeter and central but I could be wrong, will confirm this afternoon.

On city water...unfortunately!! Holy water bills. Got a second meter installed this year that excludes sewer. :thumbup:

On multiple times the installer blamed my issues on pressure. Last year I called him back at least twice and he always went back to claiming I have poor water pressure.

 

[g-man]

This website has way better price. http://www.sprinklerwarehouse.com/Hunter-Rotor-Nozzle-Sets-p/665300.htm

I suggest we wait to get the model, zones to determine the right stuff to buy.