If you have an underground irrigation system, you may have some maintenance to do occasionally. One of the common problems that start with older systems are irrigation pop up heads that stay up even when the system shuts off. This is usually due to any of a few reasons. First, a build up of calcium deposits from the water is common. Second, an abundance of dirt may have worked its way into the irrigation head. Both of these problem may have a DIY solution. 

​Twist the irrigation cap. Take out the entire riser and clean it off. Clean out any dirt in the body also. Turn on the water or the station controller to flush out the line of any debris that may be stuck in it. This alone may work if it is just some extra dirt. If this still doesn’t work, a short term solution would be to brush some petroleum jelly onto the riser. Push the riser up and down and put it back into the irrigation body. Test it out by pulling it up and see if it goes down on its own now.

If that doesn’t work, you may have some bad springs or other parts. At this point, replace the sprinkler head completely. It wouldn’t be worth the extra time trying to match up the correct spring type. Also, your irrigation head is so old at this point, something else will break soon anyway.

To change the sprinkler head, cut a small six inch section in the soil around the irrigation head. Be careful to not break the irrigation line underneath. Use a shovel to lift the grass off the top and set aside so you can replace it later. 

Dig down until you can see the water supply pipe and have cleared away all the soil around the riser. Unscrew the old sprinkler body and discard it. Be careful to not let dirt go into the pipe! Use some plumber’s tape and screw the new body onto the pipe by hand. 
Turn on the water for a moment to flush the pipe again and shut off. Insert the filter and screw on the nozzle. Twist the nozzle to aim where you want to spray. Replace the fill dirt you removed earlier. Put the grass back on top to make it look as good as possible. It will look better later as it grows back together.

Turn on the irrigation system and make sure everything works. If you do not see water blasting out of the ground or a new pocket of water rising up in a mound, your system should be ready to work for a long time to come.

If you need irrigation repair and live in Baton Rouge, New Orleans, or anywhere in between in Louisiana, contact us today.

​Smart Methods for Choosing an Irrigation Company
 
With summer right around the corner, you’re likely interested in getting your landscape in tip-top shape. One of the best ways to create a flourishing environment around your home is to install the right irrigation system. But how do you go about finding the right company to accomplish the task? Well, it requires doing some research into your local service providers and determining who can get the job done properly. A professionally installed sprinkler system can be the way to a truly luxurious yard. Spend some time looking into how to make the right choice by using some of these smart methods in the process.
 
Ask Them About Their After-Sales Policies
 
Once the initial service of installing the sprinkler system is complete, most professional irrigation companies offer to extend their hand for later services as well. After all, there’s more than the one season to contend with. Ask your local service providers what services they make available to their longstanding customers. They should be happy to offer their help for winterization preparation and spring start-up methods, so pay close attention to any mention of those after-sales services. 
 
Discuss What Kinds of Equipment and Products They Utilize
 
Any professional landscape contractor should be able to discuss at length the procedures with which he or she conducts business. Once the contractor has surveyed your yard and come up with a suitable estimate, it’s important to start asking questions about how the process works. This allows you, the customer, to determine how qualified the company is for the job and what kind of result your yard is going to be left in. Take the time to understand the components of installing an irrigation system and why the person’s ideas will be the smartest approach for your specific landscape.
 
Always Ensure That a Warranty Is in Place
 
Understanding the policies and warranty offers of your provider is key before signing on the dotted line. A one-year warranty is generally the industry standard, but the company may discuss different time variations depending on certain system components. While this isn’t abnormal, relieve yourself of stress later by taking the time to understand the concepts and reasoning behind the decisions.
 
Determine How Best To Proceed
 
Once you’ve gathered enough information from multiple irrigation companies regarding your home’s sprinkler system, it’s time to choose the right service provider for your personal landscape. With your newfound knowledge to guide you, finding a suitable, trustworthy company should be an easier decision to make.

Irrigation is simply a way to get water to plants in a different way than rain. You can use it to replace rain water in enclosed areas or to simply provide additional water in areas with little rainfall. A properly designed irrigation system can be water efficient and a huge time saver. While we get a lot of rain in Louisiana, an irrigation system can help you through the drought periods as well.

Sprinkler System
Also known as Spray Head Irrigation, this usually involved a stationary irrigation head that either pops up out of the ground or is static. The tips spray a fine mist in a radial spray reaching up to fifteen feet away from the head. These are commonly seen in residential and commercial irrigation systems for landscape beds.

Drip Irrigation
This is the most water efficient method of irrigation. It drips water directly to the plant root zone. This method is effective in watering hedge rows or evenly spaced flowers or plants in a garden.

Rotary Irrigation
Also called gear driven irrigation, this systems can water over sixty feet away. These are great for watering grass and low lying plants. These are used on golf courses, sports fields, and on home lawns.

Micro-Irrigation
Micro-Irrigation works in the same way as a spray head irrigation system, but it requires far less water. These are often tied into an exterior water faucet on a home and water a small landscape bed area.

Ditch Irrigation
The oldest method of irrigation. Ditches are dug to drain in fresh water and fed into a series of canals that run between rows of raised soil where crops have been planted.

Terraced Irrigation
Useful if growing plants on elevated land that is very steep. With a lot of labor, time and material, steps are cut into the land of the hill. Much like a slinky, the water goes down each step towards the bottom. Each step will be watered and crops can be grown on the hill side.

Center Pivot Irrigation
Center pivot irrigation is another irrigation system used to water crops. A steel or aluminum skeleton of pipes is attached to wheels at the bottom and a spinning metal arm on top. The metal arm has sprinklers along the length of it that sprays as it turns. The system can be moved around a large field so multiple areas can be irrigated by one system.

GreenSeasons is glad to help with any irrigation needs you may have. If you want new irrigation, irrigation repairs, drainage or landscaping, we will be happy to give you a quote, just click here.
If you would just like some information on irrigation, please contact us.

Watering grass is simple right? 

Grass + Sunshine + Water = Healthy Grass

Basically, this is right, yet there are a few tweaks needed to have healthy green grass. Here is answers to the grass watering questions when, how often, and how long.

In a drought, water your lawn twice a week with about three to four days between each watering. If there has been a lot of rain, do not start watering your yard until is dry and just begins to look a little stressed. If you have an automatic irrigation system installed with a rain sensor, your rain delay should be at least three days, preferably four. 

Watering your lawn infrequently allows for deeper root development which makes for healthier grass. This means your grass will look good and survive even when everyone else's lawns are struggling. So fight the temptation to water every other day. 

Start by watering your lawn for 15 minutes per area. If you have an underground irrigation system, this will be easy since you can adjust your controller. For everyone else, you can just set a timer to remind you to move the sprinkler every 15 minutes. 

Test an area 24 hours later by digging a small 9" deep hole. If the soil is moist 8 inches deep, you are watering the correct amount of time. If the moisture is only reaching three to five inches, you will want to change your watering routine. This time water 15 minutes, wait 15 minutes and then irrigate the same area for 15 more minutes.

GreenSeasons is glad to help with any irrigation needs you may have. If you want new irrigation, irrigation repairs, drainage or landscaping, we will be happy to give you a quote, just click here.
If you would just like some information on irrigation, please contact us.