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: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/52724
Using Smart Water Technologies Irrigation and Water Management W ith increasing focus on water conservation and efficient irri- gation practices comes new opportunities. Whether it is a product up- grade or replacing an aging irrigation sys- tem, a wide variety of efficient product solutions exist in the market today. Many of the new products available do not re- quire much or any effort above and be- yond traditional installation practices, and offer a reasonable timeframe for return on investment. While exploring any upgrade solutions, strong consideration should be paid to get- ting site pressure as close to optimum as possible for the sprinkler types to be used. Pressure is as important as proper spacing to achieve the greatest possible efficiency in any system. High pressure is as much an enemy to efficiency as low pressure and should be a priority regarding initial design or existing system evaluations. There are a wide variety of solutions on the market to address high pressure. Pressure can be easily adjusted at the valve with an add-on regula- tor that allows the installer to select the ideal pressure the sprinkler requires. Additionally, many manufacturers offer pop-up spray sprinklers with built-in pressure regulators pre-set to optimum nozzle requirements; or a simple add-on pressure regulator at the valve can be an easy solution. The simplest form of water conserva- tion upgrade can be a wireless rain sensor, which saves an average 10 percent of water use. On the high end of control upgrades are "Smart" irrigation controllers that ad- just irrigation schedules on a daily basis depending on weather conditions. Studies have shown Smart controllers can save up to 30 percent of water use depending on prior management practices. New prod- ucts are arriving on the market that are more cost effective and user friendly, mak- ing Smart controllers an easier sell — es- pecially on residential projects. Replacing existing spray nozzles with rotary nozzles, such as MP Rotators, or in- corporating them into a new system de- www.landscapeirrigation.com All photos provided by Hunter Industries Landscape and Irrigation 7 sign provides greater water savings and drastically increased efficiency. In many cases, rotary nozzles can be successful in improving poor-performing spray systems due to low pressure. Because rotary noz- zles require less water to operate, they have the advantage of reducing friction losses in an existing system and improving the op- erating pressure at the head. Additionally, due to lower water requirements of the nozzles, more area can be irrigated with fewer zones, reducing system costs with fewer valves and smaller controller sizes, as well as less pipe, wire, fittings and labor. Drip tubing with pre-installed, in-line emitters offers substantial advantages over traditional irrigation methods in not only water savings, but also time and cost con- siderations. In many cases, the tubing can be simply "snaked" through planters and then mulched over. Winterization can be a snap by incorporating threaded caps on line ends that can be removed for blow out. On any projects with elevation changes, check valves should be installed, at the very minimum, on the lowest heads. One hundred feet of 1-inch pipe on single zone can waste 4 gallons of water per zone cycle through low-head drainage. On a 12-zone system, that equates to 48 gallons per irrigation day. Beyond saving water, check valves will also protect the sprinkler from the water hammer that occurs every time the valve turns on (and water rushes to fill the empty lateral line), greatly in- creasing sprinkler longevity. One last note when working on im- provement of older existing systems: sprin- klers should be reset to proper grade level, screens cleaned, and nozzles replaced. Nozzles on both spray heads and rotors will wear over time and lower the ability for water to be sprayed efficiently. It is a good idea to check with your local irriga- tion distributor to see if there are newer, more efficient nozzles available for exist- ing, installed sprinklers. Troy Leezy is marketing manager for Hunter Industries, and is a certified irrigation designer, water auditor and water conservation manager By Troy Leezy LI