automatic sprinkler systems...

[Jeeperman]

does anyone on here know much about sprinkler systems?
here's my problem, I figured I'd check on here before I pay someone to come out and look at it.

we just moved into this house last summer and they worked fine then.
but since i've started using them this year, they keep getting worse. at first they were fine, then one station (the front yard) started getting only about 10% of the usual pressure. then it was ok for about a week. then after that all the stations started getting only about 50% pressure. and now I get 0-5% pressure in the front yard, and great pressure in the other three stations.

does anyone have any suggestions/tips? any help would be great

thanks,
Stefen

 

[Jeeperman]

oh, also, I live up by weber state just below harrison, and my sprinklers use secondary water.
thanks again,
Stefen

 

[Caleb]

your system is likely clogged. Even the smallest amount of dirt or debris will clog it up. You may want to pull your sprinklers apart and flush your system. Also, it'd be good to double check your pressure, secondary tends to vary quite a bit.

 

[Jeeperman]

'pull them apart' as in pull the heads off, or as in dig up the actual pipe and pull that apart? I'm guessing/hoping that you meant just the heads, but thought i'd check to be safe.
thanks,
stefen

 

[Caleb]

just the sprinklers, infact I think you can just take the head apart and not actually remove the heads. I'm by no means an expert, I'm actually putting my backyard sprinkler system in right now and I keep hearing how important flushing is and that even the smallest amount of dirt in the system can cause serious problems.

 

[1995zj]

My brother (1993yj) did landscaping for years, and I'd say he has a pretty extensive knowledge of sprinkler systems. I'll get him to chime in and see if he has any other ideas

 

[phatfoto]

I don't know anything about secondary systems. But I had a problem with pressure in my back yard. I have two circuits, and neither had enough pressure to get the popup impact heads to turn. Even after digging up half my backyard to replace the heads.

Turns out I had two sections leaking. One circuit had 4 foot section of pipe cracked. The other circuit had a T in the line that cracked. Fixed them and plenty of pressure...

Just my experience. Your mileage may vary, specifications subject to change without notice, and some settling may occur in shipping...

 

[Caleb]

I don't know anything about secondary systems. But I had a problem with pressure in my back yard. I have two circuits, and neither had enough pressure to get the popup impact heads to turn. Even after digging up half my backyard to replace the heads.

Turns out I had two sections leaking. One circuit had 4 foot section of pipe cracked. The other circuit had a T in the line that cracked. Fixed them and plenty of pressure...

Just my experience. Your mileage may vary, specifications subject to change without notice, and some settling may occur in shipping...

That's a very good suggestion. Especially that they were working fine last year. My Dad had a zone do the same thing, started slowly getting worse and worse. So I decided to turn it on for a while (30-45 mins). After it had been on a while I walked around where the lines should be and sure enough I found a soggy area....ended up being about a 10 foot section that had a crack the entire way.

 

[193kyle]

Hey what's up Stefen. I live just right down the street from you, and my sprinklers get plugged up all the time. Secondary water is really dirty so all the dirt and sediment plugs up the sprinkler heads. Depending on your sprinklers, some have filters in them and some don't. I usually just go around to each of my sprinklers and pull the heads off one at a time, clean out the head/filter with my air compressor and then turn the sprinkler on long enough to shoot out a good spray of water to make sure the line is good and clean, and then put it all back together. It takes forever but that's the only way I can keep mine working. And i even have a filter at my main secondary valve. Give me a call if you need a hand. Hell, give me a call anyway, I haven't talked to you in forever. 920-4391

 

[Jeeperman]

Hey guys, thank you so much for all of your help. The problem is solved! I took the advise on the clog first, so I took the little screw on part off all the heads (i'm glad you guys told me I could do that otherwise I would have been taking off all the heads, lol). but when I turned the sprinklers on, I got nothing. so after standing there puzzled for a few minutes, I figured I'd just let them stay on for a while assuming I had a leak somewhere. on a separate and unrelated note, while I was waiting, I finally ventured into my crawl space and found that its going to be much much easier than I thought to get 220 into my garage. Thus finalizing the debate between which welder I'm getting (so come next week, there should be a brand new millermatic 180 in my garage ).
but I digress. so after walking around the yard trying to find a soggy spot (to no avail), I went into the back yard. I was looking at the electrical control things in the ground, checking all the wires and whatnot, when I moved one and all of a sudden the water turned on. so, between the flushing of the system and the reconnecting of the wires, my front sprinklers are working fantastically
thanks guys!
and hey Kyle! You're truck is looking awesome, I will give you a call next week for sure. and guess what....I'm back over at Tony Divino again, lol. fortunately I'm a tech now instead of a wash boy though