Landscape and Irrigation is read by decision makers throughout the landscape and irrigation markets — including contractors, landscape architects, professional grounds managers, and irrigation and water mgmt companies and reaches the entire spetrum.
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/479845
22 April 2015 Landscape and Irrigation www.landscapeirrigation.com IrrIgatIon and Water ManageMent used to help find the buried box. If the system runs on a two-wire path with decoders, map these and their identifying name or serial number on your master document. Refer to the manufacturer for location tips as these can be brand-specific. When operating the zones for the first time, use a remote con- trol or a helper standing at the controller. Read static and dynamic pressures at the backflow, as well as flows at the water meter. If the system has a flow meter, you may have that information at the controller. With your map or handheld, mark out the zone's heads and area of coverage. Study the headS and emItterS Identify if fixed spray or rotor brand, model, and nozzle. Do the rotor heads rotate properly, and are they standalone or mixed with sprays? Mark any low head drainage or dry spots you notice, as well as the root zone depth and soil type. For drip systems, confirm the zones have filters and pressure regulators. Are there any obvious breaks when the zones are run? Are pe- rennial zones, annual zones and container zones separated? Are the drip zones tied into any spray or rotor zones? examIne the controLLer Note the make and model of the controller and its features. Is the valve wiring conventional or two-wire? Is it central control or standalone? Are the programs complete? Record all con- troller schedules in as much detail as possible: day/date, start time(s), zone run time, water days or intervals. Note the controller features, such as cycle and soak, delay between stations, program recovery, etc. A complete list of programming features should be available from the manufacturer's website. If it's an older controller, information should still be available, though it may be time to consider an upgrade. Is it a Smart controller? If so, determine if it's connected to an offsite signal, onsite weather station or soil moisture sensor. If there are any sensors on the system (rain, wind, freeze, moisture, solar radiation, temperature, etc.) are they connected to the con- troller via sensor terminals or spliced into the common wire? If there are no sensors, is the controller's sensor jumper in place on the sensor terminals in the controller? Take pictures of the controller installation and the entire wir- ing layout. Finally, use your volt-ohm meter to record input and output voltages for the controller, transformer and zone valves, and resistance readings for each of the valves. (You may already have read ohms for the valves during the valve location phase.) Battery-operated controllers are great for isolated zones where wire may not be available. Unfortunately, they also get used in lieu of cable repair. If you ran across one while doing your valve inven- tory, add its settings and schedules to the controller information section. If the controller uses a two-wire path or a combination of standard wire and two-wire, describe it and take pictures. anaLyze and prIorItIze Back at your office, review the site maps and the information you gathered. Based on your site research, you can structure a short- and long-term service and maintenance plan for the property. Not only will the plan help you determine what is most pressing, but it will help you guide your customer. First, what needs immediate attention? Critical issues are those that are wasting huge amounts of water, causing a danger on site, or causing a system or subsystem failure. These are things such as a broken mainline that shows up when the master valve opens, system shutdown because of controller failure, and the like. Sometimes the problems are less obvious. For example, a well pump that once served the irrigation system just fine is no longer do- ing the trick. The well service may have low- ered the pump to meet a receding water table. Flows and pressures may still be adequate for the house needs, but not for the irrigation. This is where your initial site survey serves its purpose — it's a guide to what may have changed since your last visit, which in this case would be the well pump's depth. Next, what are the important, but non- urgent issues? This would include an overly high zone flow for the mainline size. It should be corrected as soon as resources are avail- able, and could contribute to a later mainline break, but probably not this afternoon or to- morrow. The solution is going to be recon- figuring the zone, so a budget and proposal are in order. Other important but non-urgent issues would include trimming around heads, pro- posing high-efficiency nozzles for existing spray zones, pressure regulating heads for zones with high pres- sure, cleaning drip filters, checking root zones for deep perco- lation (water far below the active root zone), adding an onsite evapotranspiration (ET) sensor, redoing the watering schedules to enhance water savings, and so on. Regular maintenance keeps systems performing their best, and helps you maintain the customer relationships and referenc- es that help you grow your business. Your awareness of current local water and power rebate programs can also allow you to offer these important services while offsetting the costs. Remember to check with the local water and power providers for rebate oppor- tunities to help your customers achieve more efficient and effec- tive irrigation systems. Tom Glazener, CLIA, CIC, CID, CGIA, CLWM, is an irrigation in- structor for Ewing Irrigation and Landscape Supply. He can be reached at tglazener@ewing1.com. LI Based on your site research, you can structure a short- and long-term service and maintenance plan for the property. Not only will the plan help you determine what is most pressing, but it will help you guide your customer.