During the winter months irrigation systems typically do not get used as much. There are a couple of things you can do to keep your system in good shape and some easy things you can do to fix a couple of problems. One of the most common things to go wrong is the system not turning on. There are several easy things you can do to check it out and possibly fix. The one we see most often is the rain sensor. If it has rained, the sensor gets wet and causes the system to sense that the yard has been watered and shuts the system down. To check this, turn your timer on and lift up the rain sensor top. If the irrigation starts, replace the top and adjust it back. The other common thing is the timer is not set. Try checking all the settings. That is the day, time, start times for system and zone run times. There should be a booklet for your timer or instructions on the door. If not, you can usually call the manufacturer or download a copy of your manual on line.

Another problem may be that the wires get cut during some sort of digging in the yard. Be sure if you come across any wires that get cut, find both ends and fix them right away. If they get buried back, it is much harder to find them again to repair than when they are exposed. You may also have heads that don’t spray very well or none at all. The problem is often dirt or debris getting in the head and clogging the screens. The easy way to fix this is to open the head of the sprinkler and pull out the screen, clean it and replace the top to the head. this usually will fix the problem.

One last thing to keep in mind is to not water your lawn when it is going to freeze. It may look like a pretty winter wonderland but it is not the best thing for your yard and should no be done.