Lindsay is big into landscaping and even has her own garden. Recently though, she has had a lot of trouble getting the garden to grow the way that it used to. Lindsay discovered that some of the emitters on her irrigation system were clogged, and she suspects that was one of the causes of her problems. If you, like Lindsay, are having trouble growing a garden or noticing plants on your property looking unhealthy, it might be time to investigate your irrigation system for potential problems. If it turns out that your sprinkler heads are clogged up, Vu-Flow has solutions to help you out.
Regardless of where your water comes from, whether it be well water or city water, there exists the potential for sediment to be present there. National Geographic has a good explanation for what exactly sediment is. Sediment is a solid material that is moved and deposited in a new location. It can consist of rocks and minerals, and even the remains of plants and animals. Sediment can also be present in a variety of sizes, including something as small as a grain of sand.
The process of erosion is what allows sediment to move from one location to another. Erosion is actually the removal and transportation of rock and soil. There are numerous mediums erosion allows sediment to travel through including water.
With all that in mind, it should be easy to understand how sediment could end up in your irrigation system and water supply. If you do have sediment in your water that ends up in your irrigation system, it could end up doing some serious damage if you don’t do something about it. Not only can the sediment end up blocking emitters, as it has in Lindsay’s case, which will lead to plants not getting the nutrients that they need. Even worse than that, sediment in your irrigation system can result in damage to the system itself if you don’t do something about it sooner than later.
There are a variety of parts in an irrigation system. These typically include a water pump, water meter, pump controller, valve boxes, a sprinkler shut-off valve, a backflow prevention device, and different types of sprinkler heads, such as rotors or emitters. You also have some form of piping that allows the water to travel from point A to point B. In the case of sediment, it’s the piping and the heads where you need to worry about most of the damage being done.
If sediment is present in your water system, and especially if it’s been present for a long time, odds are over time it has caused damage to your pipes. The simple act of the sediment rubbing up against and clanking into the sides of pipes can certainly cause damage over the long haul. If it gets to the point where the pipes have been damaged enough to warrant replacement, not only can it be a time-consuming venture having to dig sections of the system up, but it can certainly be costly. Homeguide.com suggests that the typical cost to replace a leaking sprinkler pipe is $1 to $3 per linear foot of PVC pipe. It also will cost somewhere between $3 to $6 for an elbow or connecting piece. Once you factor in installation costs if you have to hire out the work, you could be looking at a total cost of somewhere between $34 to $80 per linear foot just to replace some piping.
The more common and regular aspect of an irrigation system you would have to replace as a result of sediment damage is the sprinkler heads or emitters. Depending on the type of head used in an irrigation system, the costs of replacement will vary. Homeguide.com shows that you may only pay $1 to replace the cheapest type of head, although once you factor in installation you could end up paying $8 for that head. The most expensive head could cost around $15 per unit and about $30 for a single head once you factor in installation costs. When all is said and done, if you don’t do something about the sediment in your water, you could find yourself spending quite a bit of money on the regular for replacing different parts of your system.
In place of spending money regularly to maintain your irrigation system if damage occurs due to sediment, it would certainly be more beneficial to invest in something that could remove that sediment from the start and that’s where Vu-Flow comes in. Vu-Flow offers several filters in several inlet/outlet sizes and a variety of mesh options to help remove sediment from water, not only causing your landscaping and garden to flourish but also allowing your irrigation system to run for a long time without problems. With a Vu-Flow filter, you may end up spending a little more money upfront, but in the long run, it will be worth it when you’re not consistently dishing out money for repairs or replacement parts.
If you have a garden that is struggling to grow and an irrigation system that keeps clogging up, there’s a good chance you have sediment in your water causing the problem. Give Vu-Flow a call at 1-800-833-5171 to learn more about our filters and ultimately start improving your situation.
Source Notes: This article contains all information about sediment taken from National Geographic. Information regarding the cost of replacement parts for irrigation systems came from Homeguide.com.
