SportsTurf provides current, practical and technical content on issues relevant to sports turf managers, including facilities managers. Most readers are athletic field managers from the professional level through parks and recreation, universities.
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/356087
asserts. "Record your start times and run times zone by zone, and how they all fit into your scheduling window. You might discover your system can't handle your scheduling demands." Grab your foreman and inspect your control system and satel- lites; ensure connections are tight and your scheduling is on track and adjusted for the season. Record the number of field controllers, active zones on each controller, programmed runtimes for each zone, number of heads on each zone. Keep those records handy for your sprinkler inspections, where you can record head make and model, nozzle size, radius and distance of throw, and pressure at the head (using a pitot tube). While Vinchesi likes to start an audit as is, without first tweak- ing the system, Munion wants the simple stuff rectified. "Broken or misaligned heads, rotors mixed with spray heads on the same zone, worn or clogged nozzles [are examples of ] fundamental equipment transgressions [that] should be resolved before we start running catch-can tests," she says. "Field changes over the years are horrible. We see more duct tape, pipe glue and bailing wire than we care to. Those things should absolutely be resolved in this process." Once the basics are in line, develop a punch list of items to inspect. Go to your valve boxes and ensure they're off the field, accessible, bur- ied to grade and well-drained. Clean them out and check the wiring to ensure connections are solid and dry. Look for leaking or weeping valves. Keep a log of everything you observe, good or bad. Get inside your heads The root byproduct of poor irrigation uni- formity is overwatering. Runtimes are developed based on the weakest coverage area. We irrigate for the dry spot, regardless of what pours over the remaining landscape area. "Really consider how your system is zoned," Vinchesi says. "Older systems might have been designed for sprinklers to just run across the field, but by zoning goal areas or infields you have greater control over turf wear and resilience without just pouring more water over the site. Fundamentally, irrigation is about control." The goal of a simple audit is to improve sprinkler distribution uniformity and zero in on accurate scheduling. It's time to operate the system; checking each valve and head in each zone. Ensure that heads and nozzles match, and that each head is perpendicular to - and to grade with - the surface. These are important performance and safety issues. Check nozzles for obstructions or wear, and replace with the specified nozzle size. Replace heads that don't match design or operating specifications. Check the pressure and rate of water discharged from your heads. Ensure that the operating pressure at the head is consistent with the manufacturer's specifications. Too much pressure creates poor unifor- mity, wind drift and accelerated evaporation. Too little pressure affects radial sprinkler uniformity. While your there, measure the distance between heads. Your system should provide head-to-head coverage. CapturinG preCip rates and du Catch-can tests quickly reveal distribution uniformity (DU), or how evenly water is being applied to your fields, while measuring your precipitation rate in inches per hour. Locate your trouble spots, like infields, goal areas and/or the center of the field, and stake out 32 SportsTurf | August 2014 www.sportsturfonline.com Irrigation & Drainage Bob Campbell, CSFM, and former president of the STMA, works with an attendee during the hands-on irrigation workshop on a Cincinnati Bengals practice field.