irrigation system equipmentWelcome to the Hessenauer Sprinkler Repair and Irrigation blog and website. We like to offer our online readers news, tips and advice concerning sprinkler irrigation and drainage here in Orlando and the Central Florida area. Today we would like to discuss a little about selecting irrigation system equipment.

For residential properties there is typically already a house water mainline that takes water to the house. Most of the time you will be tapping into that house water mainline for your irrigation system water. In that case you have two mainlines, a house mainline taking water to the house, and a irrigation mainline that takes water to the irrigation valves.

Water meters measure water use for a given residential or commercial building that is supplied with water by a public water supply system. Because water meters are a utility’s cash registers, the solution begins with measurement integrity at each water meter.

Irrigation controllers preside over the zones that the irrigation system is divided into and the time schedules for watering. When choosing an irrigation controller for our clients, a few options are taken into consideration. The number of zones or “stations” determines which type of irrigation controller would be the most appropriate. Some irrigation controllers can access as many as 48 irrigation zones and more.

Backflow preventers are a crucial part of any irrigation system. Without a backflow device installed, non-potable water can mix in with your clean water. Learn more about Irrigation System Backflow Prevention Devices and Anti-Siphon Backflow Prevention.

A valve is a device that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically valves fittings, but are usually discussed as a separate category. In an open valve, fluid flows in a direction from higher pressure to lower pressure. Read these two blog posts for more about Locating Sprinkler System Valves.

Sprinkler heads and risers are one of the few parts of your irrigation system that are seen by visitors more often than the controller and underground parts and equipment. We consider sprinkler heads and risers that fit our customers’ needs. Review this post about Choosing Appropriate Irrigation Sprinkler Heads.

Laterals are the pipes or tubes underground that are located downstream, or after the zone control on/off valve. Laterals are not pressurized all the time, only when irrigation is on. Lateral pipes should be buried at least 10″ deep to protect them from damage from lawn aerators and cars driving over them.

Of course there are many other parts to an irrigation system, such as the water pump and rain sensors. We hope you enjoyed this post for a better handle on what is to be expected when planning out an irrigation system.

For more about a detailed explanation of sprinkler system parts, review this post titled, Irrigation System Components Simplified.

Again, thank you for visiting the Hessenauer Sprinkler Repair and Irrigation blog and website. Be sure to bookmark us for more news, tips and advice about sprinkler irrigation and drainage here in Orlando and the Central Florida area. Have a project to discuss? Contact us at at 407-302-2227 today!