Watering is an imperative part of maintaining a healthy and attractive landscape. Unfortunately, watering your lawn, flowerbeds, shrubs, and trees can become overwhelming, especially if you have a monthly water bill. Fortunately, an underground irrigation system can help you maintain your landscaping without wasting water or money. These tips will ensure you irrigation system is running in the most efficient and effective manner possible.
Install Timer
A timer will turn your sprinkler system on and off at certain times of the day, reducing any stress of having to manually water your lawn. This ensures your lawn and landscaping are watered effectively, but it also prevents waste.
In addition, timers can be set to water specific zones of your landscape at specific parts of the day. For example, you can set the timers to water sunnier areas that require more water in warmer seasons while leaving the zones in shadier areas off.
Set Timers Appropriately
Installing timers is a great investment, but only if you know how to set them to water your lawn in an accurate and water-efficient manner.
Watering your lawn and landscaping during the heat of the day or in the evening is not effective. During the day, when the sun is at its highest and the temperature is at its hottest, watering will not be as effective. At night or in the evening, the water placed on your lawn and landscape by the sprinklers will sit and permeate into the grass, but not the soil. This increases the risk of fungal growth, which can harm your grass, plants, and trees.
The morning is the best time to water your lawn, plants, and trees, so make sure to set your times to begin irrigation sometime between 4 and 10 am.
The time of the day matters, but the time your sprinklers run for also plays a role in efficient watering. In most climates and for most soil conditions, watering to the point where at least 6 inches of soil has been moistened is best.
Install Sensors
Sensors are also smart additions to your irrigation system if you want to improve the water efficiency.
Even if you have timers set or you are running the sprinkler system manually, sensors will automatically shut off the irrigation if it starts to rain.
Rain sensors are effective for reducing water waste, which can help you save money. However, it is important to note that the excess moisture from both irrigation and rain will damage your lawn and landscaping in some cases. Using rain sensors can help you avoid this as well.
With proper care and watering, your lawn and landscape design can be watered in a healthy, affordable, and conservative manner.
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