I've already replaced the sprinkler that just came to light (and blown
out the whole zone by turning on the water with all the "innards"
removed from the cases), but I think the primary reason that I saw only
a dribble was that it was pretty much buried.

This zone has 11(!) pop-ups (the little spray-nozzle kind, not impact
sprinklers or gear-drive rotors). This may seem a lot, but the water
pressure at the hose bibs is 80psi, so I don't see why it wouldn't be
sufficient to run that many (Rain Bird gives radius and gallonage
figures for this kind only up to 30psi).

As for the layout: this zone has one line with eight of these pop-ups,
plus three others (that I have found so far), each on its own line that
is Teed into that other line. These latter three are irregularly spaced,
and this is what makes me wonder if there are one or more buried
intermediate ones.

I agree with you about not needing to get the system blown out with air.
The previous owners left us instructions for draining the system.

Perce


On 09/17/05 05:40 pm William Brown tossed the following ingredients into
the ever-growing pot of cybersoup:

Since the head is only dribbling, I suspect there is some blockage.
Either that or too many heads have been put in the same zone, and the
pressure can only elevate the first ones.

I would dig up around the dribbling head, remove it, and see if water
gushes when you turn on the system (be certain to take steps to keep
dirt from getting into the lines. If the pressure is adequate, clean or
replace the head. While you are doing that, you could look to see if
this head is on the end of a line, or whether the line continues, which
would give you an idea where to look for more heads. Analyzing the
pattern of heads should also give you an idea where to look if you find
an unwatered area.

I regularly lose heads, as my lawn grows over some during the
non-watering season. While I do have a map, they are still hard to
find. I run the system and look for the puddles that form around a
blocked head, then probe with a thin screwdriver.

Incidentally, a properly designed system has drains, and does not need
to be blown out.

We have been in our current house for almost two years now, and
although it has a 4-zone sprinkler system, there are areas of lawn
that do not receive adequate water.

A couple of days ago I happened to be outside while the sprinklers in
one zone were operating and noticed a dribble of water from a pop-up I
didn't know existed. Even when the water was on, the pop-up barely
reached the level of the top of the grass.

Now I am wondering whether there are other sprinkler heads that got
buried even further down than this one. The neighbors on both sides
(no fences) have been there only a few months longer than us, so
asking, "Did you ever a notice another sprinkler head anywhere around
here?" achieves nothing.

We don't have a plan of the sprinkler system that would show where
they were installed originally. Nor is there anything to indicate by
whom they were installed, so we can't go back to the installer (if it
wasn't in fact a DIY job) for information.

Any bright ideas for a means of locating buried sprinkler heads?