Thank you for visiting the Hessenauer Sprinkler Repair and Irrigation blog and website. We like to provide our website visitors news, tips and advice concerning sprinkler irrigation and drainage here in Orlando and the Central Florida area. Today we would like to focus on some of the types of sprinkler irrigation systems available for installation.
Consider a sprinkler irrigation system that sends large drops of water with good coverage. These types of irrigation systems are more water-efficient than those that use a fine mist and lose water through evaporation.
Drip irrigation is a good alternative trees, shrubs and perennials since the water is applied at ground level directly to the plant roots.
The keys to saving water and money are knowing how much water your greenery needs and monitoring and maintaining your sprinkler irrigation system. Well planned sprinkler systems avoid over-watering, which is wasteful and could damage the plants.
Some gardeners are familiar with soaker hoses. Soaker hoses sweat water along their whole length and can be used to thoroughly water dense or individual plants. This allows the user to avoid wasting water in areas that do not need it.
A drip irrigation system is the most efficient way to simultaneously irrigate multiple plantings. Since the water is applied slowly, drip irrigation ys an ideal way to water in clay soils.
Drip devices use a fraction of the water that overhead spray devices use. “Point source” drip systems are made of drip tubing laid throughout a planting bed. This feeds water directly to the base of the plants at a rate the soil can absorb without losing water to misting, overspray, or runoff. For more about drip irrigation, read this blog post revealing the Benefits of Drip Irrigation.
The types of drip equipment could fill an entire article, but to keep it short and sweet, there are drippers, bubblers, soakers (inline emitters), and micro-sprayers. Drip systems can be customized to meet each plant’s needs, but you should not mix different equipment in the same zone or distribution line, if possible.
Among traditional automatic spray systems are pop-up spray heads that can be adjusted to spray a full circle, half circle or quarter circle. The disadvantage of spray heads is that they are often less efficient than rotor heads or drip systems, because they put water down on the ground faster than the soil can absorb it. Whatever heads you use, you want to make sure they are spaced so that each head sprays to the next head, or what is called “head-to-head” coverage. All heads should be of the same type and by the same manufacturer to get uniform distribution of water.
Rotor systems are generally more efficient than spray heads. They apply water at a much slower rate than spray heads, allowing the soil to absorb moisture more efficiently. In the past, rotors haven’t been used for smaller turf areas, but there are new rotors specifically designed to apply water at less than half-an-inch per hour, and with a radius of less than 15 feet. Application patterns and radius are adjustable, which can conform to odd-shaped areas.
Thank you again for visiting the Hessenauer Sprinkler Repair and Irrigation blog and website. Bookmark us, and if you are in the Central Florida or Orlando area with sprinkler irrigation issues, contact us at 407-302-2227 today! Come back soon!