Irrigation,Installation,amp,Ma homerepair how to Irrigation Installation & Maintenance Time Savers

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Irrigation Installation & Maintenance Time SaversArticle by Jack StoneCopyright © 2003 by ProGardenBizProGardenBiz, an online magazinehttp://www.progardenbiz.comOver the last few years some clever people have come up withsome clever ideas to make your irrigation installation,maintenance, and repair jobs a heck of a lot easier. Installingand maintaining an irrigation system is one of the primary jobsfor any landscape contractor or grounds maintenance business.First, there was PVC pipe, followed by electric valves andcontrollers. Then someone invented electronic controllers andsome other guy invented the PVC pipe cutter. What more couldthere be? A number of things actually and more new ones comingalong everyday.In this article we'll examine several of the products that havebeen developed to make your irrigation maintenance, repair, andinstallation jobs easier.The most common irrigation repair is the replacement of brokenrisers. The elimination of this problem can be solved inseveral ways. Staking the riser to a piece of re-bar has longbeen a favorite solution to shrub riser breaks. Some have eventried encasing pop-ups in a concrete collar.There are several products available today that aid in thesolution of broken risers. AMS Plastics produces a variety of"flex" nipples. These nipples are constructed out of flexiblepolypropylene and polyethylene. Most are 1/2" by 6" and somecan be shortened to 3" by cutting off 1/2" sections of unwantedthreads. Another variety of flex-nipples are composed of arubber body with female PVC threads at either ends coming in avariety of lengths. One company produces a nipple made ofrubber with PVC threaded ends except the body is wrapped in asteel spring. These solutions are each effective in theirparticular environment, but what about a solution to chronicbreakage?The answer came in the form of a composite unit called the swingjoint assembly. The swing joint assembly allowed a kickednipple or stepped on head to "swing" away from the force of theimpact via rotation along threaded connections. The first ofthese had to be constructed with four street ells and a nipple. First, the fitting in the lateral line of the irrigation systemhad to be installed with its threaded end pointing sidewaysinstead of straight up. If you were installing a shrub riserthe following procedure was followed: Thread a marlex street ellinto the fitting, another marlex street ell into the first one ,and then the nipple. If you were installing a lawn pop-up youwould follow this procedure: A marlex street ell was threadedinto the fitting, followed by a SCH 40 street ell, then a nippleof desired length, another SCH 40 street ell, and a final marlexstreet ell. The head was threaded onto the the last street ell,the whole construction was twisted and rotated to insure thehead was at the desired depth, and the hole was back filled. That's a lot of work. If you were installing a new system thevast number of extra fittings and constructions could bebothersome at least. As a solution to that "bother" KBI, (KingBrothers Industries), created a product called the "Triple SwingAssembly". This is a pre-made swing joint assembly. Movement inall directions is still achieved, but best of all, it comes as asingle unit! The need for the handling of many extra fittingsis eliminated as well as the bother of on-site construction.The second most common head "repair" problem is the replacementof stolen or "missing" heads. You know what a "missing" head isdon't you? It's a head that decided "all on its own" to becomepart of someone else's irrigation system. KBI has two productsthat go a long way to reducing head theft.The first product is called "Head-Lok". Made of SCH 80 PVC andavailable in 1/2", 3/4" and 1" sizes these fittings make itnearly impossible for someone to unscrew a pop-up and walk offwith it. The Head-Lok is a short nipple with male/femalethreaded ends that swivels around it's middle. The male end isthreaded into the fitting on the pipe and the head nipple isthreaded into the female end of the Head-Lok. Any attempt toremove the head causes the female threaded end to rotate whilethe male threaded end remains securely fitted to the pipefitting. Removal of a pop-up requires the thief to dig a holeand remove the head with two wrenches.The second product is called "Impact Head-Lok". This is a shortgalvanized F X F threaded nipple in 1/2", 3/4", and 1" sizes. The Impact Head-Lok is installed between the sprinkler head andthe lateral line. Two socket set screws at the upper ends ofthe side of the Impact Head-Lok are tightened with an allenwrench. The socket set screws are tightened against the threadsof the impact head and the head nipple thus preventing quick andeasy removal by thieves or vandals.For making repairs of lateral and main line breaks there are aseries of products called compression fittings. They areavailable in many sizes and styles. The most common is thecompression coupling. There are also compression tees with orwithout threads, as well as threaded and slip adapters.KBI has developed a product along the idea of a compressioncoupling called "Quick-Fix". The major difference between theQuick-Fix and the standard quick coupler is that Quick-Fix hastelescoping pipe on either side with ends like attached slipcouplings. You simply loosen the adjustment nuts at both ends,adjust the telescoping ends to the desired length, glue the ends to the pipe, and tighten the adjusting nuts.AMS Plastics has developed a product called "Slip-Fix". It's atelescoping coupling with slip fitting-type ends. The body ofthe Slip-Fix seals itself with a compression coupling-type seal. The Slip-Fix eliminates the problems of "backing off" and isavailable with a threaded adapter thus becoming an inexpensiveunion for valve replacement.You've probably all had the joy of replacing valves, especiallyone located in the middle of a large and complex valve manifold. You probably also discovered how nice it would have been if allthose valves had been installed with threaded unions orSlip-Fixes haven't you? And how about the job of valve manifoldreconstruction or even initial construction?Well, worry no more! AMS Plastics has developed a cleverproduct called "Pre-Set One-Piece Manifold Tee". This productis a pre-built valve manifold available in 3/4" and 1" sizeswith two or three outlet ports. Each of the outlet ports areproperly aligned along the length of the pipe and at the properspacing. The one piece construction eliminates the worry ofleaky fittings. It also comes with a "key and groove" featurethat insures proper alignment when you use two or more units inseries. This is a product that can save lots of time.Another broken pipe complaint involves pipe installed aboveground, especially on slopes. Standard white PVC does notsurvive well in the real world of sunlight. That's whyBrownline Pipe Company developed a product they call "BrownlineUVR PVC". Brownline is PVC pipe that is resistant to theravages of sunlight, particularly ultraviolet radiation. Ultraviolet radiation is what destroys regular white PVC. It'swhat causes regular white PVC to become brittle and to fallapart. Since Brownline is PVC it's much easier to install thangalvanized and much more versatile. It's also not subject tothe myriad problems that affect galvanized such as corrosionfrom chemicals such as fertilizer and herbicides.Brownline (named for its tan or light brown coloration) is Sch40 and available in 1/2" to 2" sizes. A complete range offittings is also available. To compliment the system they havealso developed a Non-Drain Valve to eliminate low head drainageand a nipple and pipe stabilizer made of a heavy duty squaresteel stake with adjustable extensions.NDS, (National Diversified Sales) has a unique product called"Spee-D-Drip Edge". This product solves two problems. Made ofextruded black polyethylene it can serve as border edge and adrip line. The top edge is a hollow tube, extra thick on thelawn side to withstand the punishment of line trimmers. Clever!NIS (National Irrigation Specialists) have come up with a fewclever products themselves. The first one is an irrigationsystem analyzer called "Checkmate II". This product wasdeveloped to save you lots of time and trouble in locating anddetermining electrical system failures in valves, solenoids, andthe wiring. It is basically an electronic trouble shooter. Itcan perform several very important tests quickly and simply.Since the Checkmate II has a sufficient internal power supply,it can activate a properly working solenoid. By connecting thetest leads to the solenoid you can determine if the solenoid isor is not working, if it's mechanically malfunctioning, if thecoil is burned out, or if it's drawing too much power. You canalso perform these tests at the controller. You can test thewires from the valve to the controller. By connecting theCheckmate II at the valve and activating the valve station atthe controller you can find out if the valve is receivingcurrent from the controller. You can also test the individualstation at the controller to determine if the controller isactivating the station in question. There are no switches ordials to adjust on the Checkmate II. All you have to do isconnect the test leads to the appropriate connections at thevalve, solenoid, or controller and let the unit do its thing.Another clever device made by NIS is the "Switch-Hitter". Thisunit is an auxiliary controller. It allows you to turn a valvestation into a multiple valve station without having to run morewires from the controller to the valve box. Available in eithertwo or four station models it allows you to upgrade a systemsimply and efficiently as well as bypass broken wires, thusavoiding the problem of replacing hundreds of feet of wirerunning under sidewalks or other obstacles.A good example would be a typical irrigation situation. Youhave all encountered the problem of of an irrigated zoneencompassing several lawn areas with varying water requirements. One half of the lawn needs ten minutes of water and the otherhalf needs five minutes. The result is either a swampy areathat makes mowing or maintenance difficult or a desert areawhich is unsightly. The Switch-Hitter allows you to installanother valve to be run off the same station controller. Onevalve would be for the high water requirement area and the otherfor the low water need area. The Switch-Hitter is installedin-line between the valve and the controller. The controller isset to water for fifteen minutes. Switch-Hitter station A isset for five minutes and station B is set for ten minutes. Andthere you have it! Each lawn area receives the proper amount ofwater. Your garden and landscaping will appreciate it.NIS also makes a universal solenoid called "Super Max". Thisproduct allows you to replace nearly any solenoid. It comeswith a threaded adapter, different length plungers, anddifferent dimension "O" rings.So, there you have it. This is by no means a complete review ofthe many time, money, and labor saving devices available forirrigation specialists and others in the Green Industry, but itshould give you a pretty good idea of the kinds of things youcan do to run a more efficient operation.__________________________________________About the Author:Jack Stone is a Contributing Editor for ProGardenBiz Magazine,an online magazine for professional gardeners and landscapecontractors. Visit ProGardenBiz to find out how you can get a free subscription, start-up guidance, business ideas andinspiration at http://www.progardenbiz.com.__________________________________________You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included.Must be published complete with no changes. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated.