Pop-up sprinkler systems: Are yours working efficiently?

Now that watering restrictions for lawns are in place, it's time to check out the home system to make sure you're not wasting water but still giving the lawn all the drink it needs.

Start with the sprinkler system itself. Turn it on "manual" and stand by to check and see if the whole lawn - but not the sidewalk - is getting any sprinkler output. On most systems this means a sequence of sections of the system turn on alternately. If not, that's one problem.

What to do about it is another problem, however. There's lots of guidance on the Internet about lawn sprinkler systems and there are many professionals around ready to help out at maybe $55 an hour.

However, if you have the printed guide that came with your system, something that all too often goes away with the installer, read up on how to adjust the sprinkler heads. If that's the only problem, life should be, if not a bowl of cherries, at least few lemons.

If you need to adjust the water pressure, that can usually be done at the valves that control the system. You may need to consult an expert, though.

But you can at least turn to getting your present layout working correctly.

So go back and watch the system at work. It's best if you're wearing something that can survive getting wet and it's a warm day.

Have a mid-sized screwdriver handy.

Locate any sprinkler that isn't putting out what you want where you want it. If you need more flow, said technician Erik Achenbach of Countryside Lawns of Carson City, "Go to the sprinkler head and turn the little screw in the top to increase flow."

If it's an adjustable sprinkler, use your hand or a gripping device, to turn the head of the sprinkler so that the water spray hits the areas that need it. Some only spray a quarter- or half-circle, while others are adjustable up to 360 degrees.

"Some valves give a fan-shaped spray, others a tight line, some a circle. It's up to you," said Matt Achenbach, Erik's father and owner of Countryside Lawns.

Matt said some systems have a flushing valve that when opened allows water and dirt to flow out.

It's usually in the box where the valves that control the sequence of sprinklers work. It looks like a fat tube and has a control that opens it.

You can sometimes drain individual parts of the systems here, with the small controls at the base of the individual control valves.

DRIP LINES

Another kind of system - drip lines - works fine for gardens, ground cover or trees.

As the name implies, they drip small amounts of water exactly where needed.

They involve three-quarter-inch flexible black tubing, with smaller "spaghetti" lines equipped with emitters branching out to your trees or bushes

"The tools you need are very simple," said Erik. "First, a hole punch to open up the rubber or plastic water pipe. It's like a shoemaker's awl but with a short punch. You decide where you want water to flow and just punch a hole."

Sounds easy, but it can take a lot of effort to get it through the half-inch tube.

Various types of emitters allow you to slowly drip a gallon or two of water an hour at the base of a garden flower bush, or "risers" spray a fine mist on the plants - whichever is preferred for the kind of vegetation being watered.

Drip systems are a much more efficient way to get water to specific areas.

Any garden center will have the parts to a complete drip system. The best ones will also have a knowledgeable salesperson who can explain how to set them up.

Drip tip

Want a portable drip system that won't cost a dime?

Take a used plastic milk jug and poke a small hole near the bottom with a nail. Fill it with water and set it next to a flower bush.

It will drip the gallon of water into the ground in about an hour, the perfect rate for feeding the roots.