Home Sprinklers

Programming the Rain Bird Timer.

Get the app on your phone and sync while you are at home to the controller in the garage. Make sure to replace the 9v backup battery. Instructions below. Set for 3 day cycle, with day one on, days two and three off, being sure day one falls on the castle rock schedule for our house, or you’ll get watering citations. Program stations 1-4 (there are only 4 stations) to each run for 15 minutes. Set two times for watering to 7 am and 10pm, unless extremely dry then add a third time for drought t weeks.

https://www.rainbird.com/sites/default/files/media/documents/2017-06/man_PC100series.pdf

In spring, get long keytool and turn on sprinkler system water main in hole in front yard. Test by running on manual, cycle through each station and replace broken sprayers. In fall, turn this off and blow out each station or lines will freeze.

If cannot figure out, call sprinkler guy, Michael Olivas 303-877-0740 but it’s expensive about $100-200 to have him turn on and check for broken ones or blowout in fall.

Time to winterize

All of a sudden, fall is here and that means it is time to prepare the irrigation system and our landscapes for winter. Hopefully, you have already decreased the number of days per week of watering. As temperatures cool, plants don’t need as much water. Given our temps and a bit of moisture, once a week is probably sufficient.

However, by the end of October, we could begin to see freezing overnight temperatures. Therefore, irrigation systems need to be blown out, hoses need to be detached from spigots and mulch should be added to plants.

Blowing out irrigation systems helps prevent breaking of sprinklers and backflow devices. Drain hoses but keep them handy, perhaps hanging in the garage, ready for potential winter watering.

Turn off (clockwise) the irrigation main to the house inside the green cover in the front yard using the long metal pole.
Attach compressor hose to blow out the system. Attach air to top nipple valve. Turn the screw 1/4 turn with a flathead screw driver, this allows the air to enter the system. (In the spring don’t forget to turn again a 1/4 turn, otherwise water will come out of the system at this point. Turn both of the blue handles so that they are horizontal with the ground (in the spring, to turn on, the top one will be horizontal and the bottom one will be vertical).
Turn on compressor red power switch, with black knobs all the way counterclockwise. Allow tank to fill to 150psi and it automatically shuts off.
Turn on station one on green control box in garage. Turn black knob on your air compressor rapidly clockwise to allow the air to start flowing from the tank into the system. Station one will blow out.
When tank is empty. Turn knob back all the way counterclockwise. Allow tank to fill to 150 psi and repeat the entire process once the controller is set to manually select station two.
Repeat for stations three and four.