The Do's and Don'ts of irrigation
As a irrigation technician it is my job to listen carefully to your concerns and requests and then execute according to my knowledge and experience.
For the DIY'er heed my advice.
Do's
1 / change the irrigation if the landscape changes
Whether you're converting lawn to garden, adding a pathway, installing a trampoline or a shed, the irrigation should also change.
2 / call a professional for more technical issues
While some simple repairs may be easy peasy lemon squeezy working with valves is a whole different beast.
3 / leave your controller plugged in over the off-season
Most controllers can not keep the programming when unplugged for months. Save time and money and prevent yourself or the technician from having to recreate the whole program.
Don'ts
1 / cap off the end of piping without the ability to blow it out
Always elbow up and use a threaded cap so that piping can be blown out entirely. Leave no dead ends.
2 / bury valve boxes or cement around them
Valve boxes contain valves which require visual inspection and maintenance and repair often. Access is needed above and around them. If construction is necessary move the valve box first.
3 / try and do too much with too little
When converting lawn to garden, it may not work to simply use the same heads. Lawn is short and plants are tall. Amendments need to be made so that plants get water from 2 directions.