On May 23, 10:07Â*am, Kurt Ullman wrote:
I have one of these where the swing arm ain't swingin' so it just sprays
out water and doesn't move around. Any suggestions for fixing it?
--
Â* I want to find a voracious, small-minded predator
and name it after the IRS.
Robert Bakker, paleontologist
Short answer: Take off the top & suck any debris with a shop vac.
Remove any grass, etc from housing.
Give it a try. If it still doesn't work, try moving the spring
restraint point to make less spring force (ie unwind the spring, a
notch)
Long Answer:
A house I used to own had Max-Paws for lawn sprinklers. At one
point, units started to "fail" (exhibit pop-up behavior but wouldn't
swing, advance or return).
I found, at least in my yard, that grass growing into the housing,
accumulated dirt & silt or corrosion of the weights were often the
cause.
The last time I executed a repair like this was 2004, so I hope the design has changed.
The way I fixed them was to remove the sprinkler cover by using needle
nose to remove the little "keeper plug".
Taking the cover off gave access for cleaning the interior of the
sprinkler housing. I used a wet/dry vac to suck out the dirt.
I alternated between pulling the grass (bermuda & fescue) & cleaning
with the shop vac to remove dirt.
With the cleaning done, I would test them.
If the unit didn't work, I replaced it. (about 20%)
If they worked, I recorded the date & location of the "repair". If
the same unit "failed" again within a short time, I replaced it.
(about 20%)
I found that about 60% of the units, when cleaned, would work just
fine for a long time.
cheers
Bob
Impact sprinklers are totally serviceable in the field. If a foreign
lubricant has been used, or if the
sprinkler is just worn out from years of use, most parts are available
and it is totally
serviceable! By simply replacing worn parts (usually washers, seals,
and springs)
the sprinkler will be in operation for several more years of reliable
service.
Troubleshooting
First check for the obvious. Problems such as:
œ» turf obstruction
œ» broken arms, trips, etc.
œ» dirt or debris in case or nozzle œ» foreign lubricants
œ» excessive water pressure œ» inadequate water pressure
this site seems to reinforce my experience
http://www.irrigationtutorials.com/r...irdmaxipaw.htm
Rainbird Maxi-Paw® Pop-Up Impact Rotor
Description:
The Maxi-Paw is an upgraded Mini-Paw rotor head. Unlike the Mini-Paw,
the Maxi-Paw has a decent selection of available nozzles, which allows
for better system design. The professional version (2045A) has 7
nozzles, the retail model has 5 (the low-angle LA nozzles are not
included). Features include a 3 year warranty, stainless steel
retraction spring, a heavy duty plastic case, 3" pop-up (for lid, the
nozzle is only about 1 1/2" high), optional side inlet, full or part-
circle operation, screen filter, wiper seal on internal riser, and
adjustable arm spring tension. Like all "mouse-traps" (the industry
term for pop-up impacts) the Maxi-Paw tends to trap debris inside the
case, and aggressive grasses like Bermuda wrap themselves up in the
mechanism causing the sprinkler to fail. I would consider this a high
maintenance sprinkler, and expect to clean out the cases at least
twice a year. My experience is that the Maxi-Paw outlasts the Mini-
Paw. I seldom use this sprinkler head due to the high maintenance
required, but I would certainly favor it over the Mini-Paw! If you
really must use a mouse-trap, this is a decent one.
Model Numbers:
* 2045A
* AG-5