Fixed my sprinklers!

[Thinkum]

After getting to know my sprinkler system, I seen it needed some work for sure. Lot's of broken heads or worn out heads. So I called a place that got good reviews, just to see what they would charge. After describing the system I have and the issues I had, she told me it would most likely cost $500! I said, thanks, but no thanks.

Today I stopped being lazy and went out to see what all the fuss is about. Dug out some heads/casings, unscrewed some heads, then went to Home Depot. Bought a total of 14 heads or so in two trips. Installed them, learned how to aim them and how to adjust the pressure. Now they work beautifully! My grass will no longer have odd yellow areas and I will no longer be shooting water where is does not belong.

So instead of paying $500, I spent about an afternoon and $50 to fix my own sprinklers. WIN! Not to mention I learned a new skill. Nothing to it really, but I got some experience.

[forummm]

It's a hassle while you're doing it, but the feeling that you can do it is a great one to have. I'm doing some repair work on the house myself this week.

[Thinkum]

Repairs are usually a hassle of some sort, but it toughens you up. Unlike all the people in my area who pay others to do simple repairs or even cleaning.

[JRA64]

After getting to know my sprinkler system, I seen it needed some work for sure. Lot's of broken heads or worn out heads. So I called a place that got good reviews, just to see what they would charge. After describing the system I have and the issues I had, she told me it would most likely cost $500! I said, thanks, but no thanks.

Today I stopped being lazy and went out to see what all the fuss is about. Dug out some heads/casings, unscrewed some heads, then went to Home Depot. Bought a total of 14 heads or so in two trips. Installed them, learned how to aim them and how to adjust the pressure. Now they work beautifully! My grass will no longer have odd yellow areas and I will no longer be shooting water where is does not belong.

So instead of paying $500, I spent about an afternoon and $50 to fix my own sprinklers. WIN! Not to mention I learned a new skill. Nothing to it really, but I got some experience.

That's awesome!

I learned a sprinkler-related tip today so I'll share it here. I replaced a broken, rotor-drive head with the closest model I could pick up at Home Depot. Even dialed down to the lowest setting, it was still throwing water too far. I got online today to order a replacement with a more appropriate throw, but couldn't find what I wanted. So I called tech support at Rainbird. Turns out instead of buying a new head and digging up the old one, I can just replace the nozzle. For $1.91, he suggested a "nozzle tree" which would give me a whole bunch of options. Who knew?

Then he gave me a coupon code for 35% off! He told me it could be used many times, give it out to my neighbors etc. I'm not quite brazen enough to post it online, but PM me if you want it.

[Thinkum]

Very nice! I was realizing that I too need some other nozzle heads since the ones I got at Home Depot are still overshooting. I was going to look online at some stores sine I know they are really cheap. Thanks for the reminder.

[Clean Shaven]

A lawn sprinkler tip I once got from a neighbor who did these systems for a living - when replacing the heads, don't worry about dirt in the pipe. Unscrew the tip from the sprinkler head, install the new head, and briefly turn on the system - which flushes out any dirt. Then reinstall the tip, aim and adjust the spray. Done.  No digging needed.

[Thinkum]

Yeah, I've sort of learned that as I was replacing heads. Then I ran into the issue of the previous owners putting in different brands here and there. So the Rainbird heads would not fit on the Orbit or Hunter sleeves they put in. At least going forward, I should not have to dig anymore.