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Initial Start-up and System Checks
- Initial Start-up
- Checking your head assembly, AC valve, DC valve, backflow, filter and pressure regulator
- Flushing the system
- Emitters & Microsprinklers
- System Checks
- Checking for leaks
- Visual checks of water flow
- Irrigation controller check
- Pressure check
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Initial Start-up
- Checking head assembly
The head assembly is the brains and heart of any drip system. Checking the components is vital to ensuring correct operation and longevity of any drip system.
There are many different components to a head assembly and each system can be different, so we will talk about all possible components here and you may choose the information for the parts you have. In general all components need to be free of debris. If your assembly has been stored in a garage it is a good idea to take it apart and rinse out each part. This may seem like more work than is necessary, but by reassembling it you will ensure each part is newly sealed and tight to prevent leaks. It is much harder to tighten up parts on a head assembly once it has been reinstalled into a system.
Beyond that here are the finer points on each component.
a) Backflow
Look out for any debris which might hamper its operation. You may also test it by blowing air into the water inlet side; air should pass through freely. Blowing into the water outlet side should not allow any air through. If it does, there is a chance the backflow is broken or the diaphragm is not seated. Try shaking it back and forth and blowing again. If it still lets air through from the water outlet side consider replacing it to safeguard your drinking water supply.
b) Filter
Take the filter apart and remove the screen. Using a old soft toothbrush, clean the screen under clean water. Try to make sure no debris is hanging loosely on the screen as it may come off and enter the drip system. You can use soap if you like, but rinse it thoroughly to get rid of any soap residue before reinstalling. Also take the flush cap off the bottom of the filter body and rinse both sections completely. Sediment can lodge itself on the inside of the flush cap and body so look carefully. Do the same with the upper body part.
On our simple "Y" style filters there should be an "O" ring on the top filter body piece just below the threads in a slot. Sometimes this "O" ring will dry out and make it hard to screw the filter body parts back together, if it does, place a LITTLE Vaseline around the "O" ring and it will screw together like silk! Both ends of the screen also have "O" rings and these help to seal the screen inside the filter body. When placing the screen inside the filter body, push the screen gently in until you feel it slip into the screen slot, if installed correctly the screen should stay in place without any help. Now screw the two body parts together. Try to take off any old Teflon tape from the threads on the water inlet and outlet, then wrap new Teflon tape before reinstalling into the head assembly.
c) Valve
The valve should only need to be rinsed out / off and have the components on each side reattached. Make sure to use only Teflon tape on threads going into the valve. Also do not have any Teflon tape hanging into the water flow or off the threads being screwed into the valve. Even small pieces of tape getting into the valve could compromise its correct operation. See arrow on side of the valve for water direction.
| AC Valve |
DC Valve |
Controller Valve |
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c) Battery Operated Controller & Valve
first make sure the manual ON/OFF lever on the solenoid is in the upright
position, this is the auto position and the controller can only
operate the valve in the auto position. You can leave the valve
installed and turn off the water going into the valve. Relieve
the water pressure on the valve and then take off the solenoid
by gently unscrewing it a quarter of a turn. Be careful when
you lift it off as there is an "O" ring (#1) which
fits between the solenoid and the bayonet (#3) it screws into.
This "O" ring could stay in the bayonet but most of
the time it stays on the bottom of the solenoid. Make sure to
keep this "O" ring clean.
 Now
look inside the bayonet the solenoid came off of and you will
see a small round yellow piece (the "puppet" #2). Using
tweezers or a very small pair of needle nosed pliers take this
piece out and "hold onto it!". Some bayonets have small
colored (green or yellow) pieces in slots on each side of the
round yellow puppet, these should be taken out first and can
be kept or discarded. They are just to keep the yellow puppet
in place during the assembly process at the factory.
With all this done slowly turn on the water to the valve just
a little and water should shoot up from where the puppet was
installed, this should be a smooth round stream of water. If
the water sprays out all over, something is blocking the water
passage. Normally just running the water with it open will dislodge
any debris, but it might need some help and this can be done
with a pin. Turn off the water and check if you can see and dislodge
the blockage. Try the water test again and if the stream is smooth
the blockage is gone and you can reassemble the parts.
Click
here to get replacement parts!
If the blockage cannot be cleared major surgery is needed! Start
with unscrewing the bayonet from the valve, BE CAREFUL when doing
this! The bayonet can become brittle from exposure to sunlight
so try to only use your hand. Once you unscrew the bayonet lift
it off gently and look for a small "O" ring (#4) in
the bottom of the bayonet (it may stay in the valve). Hold onto
this because the valve will not work and can leak without it.
Now try blowing through the bayonet to clear any blockage, look
at the two openings to see if you can spot anything. Also try
turning on the water to the valve again and it might clear any
debris from inside the valve. Reassemble and test. Do not use
any glue or Teflon tape on the threads, the "O" ring
will seal the connection.
To reassemble, just put the parts back together reversing the
above instructions. A couple of notes here. The spring on the
round yellow puppet faces downward toward the valve. The "O"
ring is easiest to keep in place by installing it on the bottom
of the solenoid, if it will not hold in place use just a LITTLE
Vaseline to make it stick. Now put the solenoid back into the
bayonet. Take note which way the manual on-off lever is facing
so it is easy to get to. If it faces the body of the valve it
is harder to turn. Face it outward away from the valve.
d) Pressure Regulator
There
is no real test which can be done on this part without it being
installed so just make sure it is rinsed out and clean. Make
sure any Teflon tape on threads does not hang loose which could
fall off and become lodged inside the regulator.
Once the head assembly is installed do not test the regulator
by checking the water flow it releases, a pressure regulator
is not a flow control. It is a pressure reducer and must have
back pressure on it to work. Unless you have drippers and fittings
coming apart the regulator should be fine.
e) Swivel Adapter
These come in many styles so just make sure they are not cracked and the threads are not stripped. Also make sure the washer is still in good shape if one is used.
- Flushing the system
Once you have the head assembly checked and installed in the system you need to flush out the lines in case any dirt has gotten into them. Go to all the line ends on any 1/2" or larger poly tube and open the ends. If you have flush valves on the line ends unscrew the valve part and take it off. Make sure not to lay it in the dirt or it may get clogged and defeat the whole purpose of having the flush valve on a line. With all the line ends off turn on the water to the system and let it run for a moment. While the water runs look for the line end where most of the water comes out and check to make sure it looks clear. Close off this line end and then find the next one with the most flow, repeat the process until all the line ends are closed off. The reason for doing this with multiple line ends is that water always takes the path with least resistance. This is basic physics so one line end will always have more flow that another.
- Emitters & Microsprinklers
Once the system is flushed out and sealed back up take a walk along all the lines and look at each of the drippers and microsprinklers to make sure they are all working, here's how:
a) Drippers
Drippers should all have some flow coming out of them. Depending
upon the flow rate of the dripper it could be a fast dripping
or a steady stream. If a dripper seems clogged try covering the
water outlet with a finger to stop the flow and then release,
repeat this a few times and check the flow. Normally this will
work, but if not you may need to replace the dripper. Make sure
to always check the flow of a dripper against one of the same
model and flow rate.
Depending on the style of dripper you have other alternatives.
Flag drippers & some adjustable drippers can be taken apart
and cleaned. Button drippers in compensating and non-compensating
styles can be taken out of the tubing and blown through from
both sides and then replaced. This may or may not clear the blockage.
Make sure to check the water inlet side of the dripper for any
debris, this is a common reason for water blockage. In fact it
is the number one reason when starting up a new system.
b) Microsprinklers
When starting up a new system we advise customers not to install
microsprinklers until after the initial flushing. We have found
that some debris still finds is way into sprinklers. Removing
all the sprinklers is not an option on an existing system unless
you have lot's of time on your hands. Actually even then we do
not advise it. Taking microsprinklers off 1/4"
tubing can disturb
the threads and cause microsprinklers to pop-off after being
reinstalled.
If you do find microsprinklers which are not working correctly
here is how to clear them. For adjustable flow sprinklers move
the adjustment from off to full on and then see if the flow is
correct. If not, some adjustable microsprinklers can be taken
apart and this is advised.
For fixed flow microsprinklers first check for any deflectors
may be missing or knocked loose. Then try running your finger
over the water outlet, sometimes the blockage is just external
and only needs to be cleaned off. If the sprinkler is still not
working correctly turn off the water to the system and try to
blow into the sprinkler. Turn the system back on. If the sprinkler
works fine for a few seconds and then quits it proves that dirt
in inside the line. Take the sprinkler off and blow through it
from the outlet side and then turn the water on for a few seconds
before replacing the sprinkler. If none of these solutions work
it may be time to replace the sprinkler.
System Checks
- Checking for leaks
Once the system is turned on, flushed out and everything seems
to be flowing correctly it is time to check for leaks. These
can be caused by animals or garden tools. We have waited until
now with the system running for a little while because if any
of your lines are located under mulch or buried shallow in dirt
some good sized wet spots will show up by now. Leaks located
above ground can easily be seen but buried tube is harder to
locate leaks. Hopefully the simple fact the tube is buried will
do what is is supposed to and protect the tube.
If you find a leak in 1/2" poly tube it may just be a hole
and the first thing to try is a goof
plug. Always try the
small side first but if this does not work take it out and turn
it around to the large side and push like you mean it! This should
seal the hole but if not....... its time for a coupling, you
do have some extra
couplings on hand
right??
Most of the time you can cut out a small portion of tube and
place a coupling in to reconnect the two pieces. If the piece
you are forced to cut out is longer than the coupling use some
spare tubing and two couplings to fix the tube. You do have spare
couplings right??
If you have leaks at fittings check to make sure the tube is
pushed in enough. Leaks at connections where 1/4"
barbs go into 1/2"
poly tube may just need to be pushed in or turned around in the
hole. If this does not work try taking out the barb and sealing
the hole with a goof plug, you do have spare goof plugs right?
Then reinsert the barb into a new hole made with a punch.
You do still have a nice sharp
punch right?? If the
tip is dull try rubbing it on some fine grit sandpaper. Thought
we were trying to sell you a new punch, huh?
If any of the leaks are at threaded fittings like LF013
line ends just try
to tighten them. Also make sure any washers are still inside
and not cracked or broken.
- Visual checks of water flow
Now is time to step back from the close-up inspections and take
an overall look at the performance of the system. Do you see
any large puddles running off from an area? This could be a leak
you have missed.
How do the sprinklers look? Do they all look like they have adequate
water supply and a nice firm stream? If the flow seems anemic
check to make sure some other water is not on at the same time
which might cut down on the available flow or pressure.
Best of all do you see any large streams of water shooting 10
or more feet up into the air? No? Then it looks like your ready
for the next step!
- Irrigation controller check
he first thing to check on an AC or Battery Operated Controller
controller is the batteries. The AC models use batteries for
a backup in case of a power outage and the Battery Operated Controller
use them for a main power source. Both models use 9-volt style
batteries and also have a "Low Battery" display on
the LCD screen. The "Low Battery" display is the first
thing to check and then a visual check should be done. Make sure
there is no leakage out of the batteries and no corrosion at
the connections. Also check for moisture or water in the battery
compartment. If there is, check for the "O" ring around
the battery compartment cover. If the "O" ring is there
try rubbing a little Vaseline around it before replacing the
cover. Make sure to dry out the battery compartment before closing
it.
Now we should check the actual programming and workings of the
controller. Looking at the LCD screen make sure you are at the
screen which displays the current time and day. Change it if
needed to be correct. Now go through the programming and check
each of the settings. Watering duration, Watering frequency,
Start time and number of daily starts. Depending on the type
of programming your controller offers there will be a "ON"
and "OFF" display at one step. Turn the controller
ON using this function and make sure the valve comes on, then
turn off the system with the same function. This will check your
valve and the connections to it. Remember that there is a flow
control on most valves which may need to be adjusted; if the
flow control is completely or mostly closed the controller may
not operate the valve correctly.
Next, visually check the wires from the controller to the solenoid.
Look for any bare spots and fix as needed.
If you have any problems with the Battery Operated Controller
operating the valve check the manual
ON OFF lever on the solenoid, straight up is in the auto position. The controller
will only operate the valve if this lever is in the auto position.
- Pressure check
This is an optional test you can do to make sure you have enough
pressure at the start and end of your system.
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