During the hot summer months, you may find it a struggle to keep the lush, green landscape around your home safe from the scorching heat. During the wet season when there is enough rain, the vegetation around your home easily gets their supplemental irrigation. However, during long stretches of heat and almost no rain, plants may have trouble growing and may even die. Having a lawn sprinkler system is an important part of keeping your garden, flower beds, and lawns healthy throughout the year.
However, the summer can also be problematic on your sprinkler system so you have to make sure that it’s in tip-top shape the entire season.
The Importance of a Sprinkler System
On average, Canadian summer temperatures range from 20° to 27° Celsius in some regions. Typically, the humidity is at its peak in the summer months but it is still considered tolerable. Even if Canadian summers are considered more comfortable than in other parts of the world, this is still a time when plants need more water to stay alive. Improper watering techniques can also be more harmful to the vegetation.
Experts noted that the heat experienced in the past few years has been unforgivable. Horticulturalist Christina Chung in an interview with the BBC suggested that plants need to be watered early in the morning and moved around so they don’t bake in the sun. Ideally, watering before 10:00 A.M. is the easiest way to avoid the worst heat and maximize the benefits plants will enjoy.
Being mindful of the time of watering the plants is vital in keeping them healthy even through the gruelling summer months. However, because most people understandably have their hands full, it’s recommended that they install a reliable sprinkler system.
When summer comes, a sprinkler system is a life-saver. With the rising temperature also comes the rising outdoor water use because of the greater demand for watering your property. The high demand doesn’t just mean higher bills but also potential problems in your water systems. It is for this reason that you need to keep an eye on your water usage. You need to use water efficiently so you don’t spend an obscene amount on your water bills while preserving the environment at the same time.
Common Summer Sprinkler Problems to Watch out For
Below are some of the lawn sprinkler problems that you are likely to encounter this summer:
- Broken Sprinkler Heads
Broken sprinkler heads are caused by a myriad of reasons. Common causes include lawn mowers, people walking around frequently, aerators, and turf that get abundant during the summer months. Damaged sprinklers can either be cracked, bent, broken, or snapped off. If your lawn has an unclear pathway, there is a great chance that people are walking over the sprinkler head and crushing it.
A broken sprinkler head poses a huge problem. It means your plants will not be properly watered. A common result of broken water sprinkler heads is flooding. Even if you shut off the watering zone, the pipes will still have water, which can cause flooding. This can, in turn, result in property damage, and increased water bills.
- Lawn Sprinkler System Damage
The sprinkler system is not only composed of shower heads. It is also comprised of a pipeline and a valve. While broken heads are considered major problems, pipeline damage can be more overwhelming.
The irrigation system can break for the same reasons as the heads break. During summer when there is a higher possibility of drought-like conditions, ground shifting and contracting are common occurrences. These can affect and weaken the piping. If your landscaped property also sits on large rocks, it will also create weakened areas in the irrigation piping.
Additionally, if you avail of aeration services, you will see more damage to the irrigation piping. It helps to look for companies that focus on the repair and maintenance of sprinkler systems in Toronto as they practice more caution in these areas.
- Stuck Sprinkler Valves
The valves are the life of automatic irrigation systems. A lawn sprinkler system needs these plastic or heavy-duty metal valves to control the entire structure.
There are several reasons for valves getting stuck. Among these are debris blocking the valves, areas that run nonstop, and electrical issues. If you suspect that your garden sprinkler system has a stuck valve, you should have a professional inspect the system to identify the root cause of the problem. They can also recommend for one or more valves to be replaced if needed.
How to Avoid Sprinkler System Problems
Sprinkler systems will face different problems in the different seasons. Summertime is not as harsh as the cold months but there will always be issues that could affect the supply of water to the plants and grass within your property. It helps to choose the right lawn sprinklers to use in a house, commercial property, or location.
Another way to avoid problems from arising is being responsible in using the system. Even if an automatic system is installed, it still helps to follow expert advice on how to take care of it. The do’s and don’ts are in place to reduce the instances of breakage.
In the event of problems in sprinkler and watering systems, tapping the help of professionals is the best choice. Professionals can detect and attend to problems swiftly. While doing the repairs yourself may seem like a tempting solution, avoid it at all costs. If you don’t have the right knowledge or tools, you will likely cause more damage.
If you you need a reliable irrigation and watering system for your lawn, call Augusta Green Sprinklers at 416-227-1666. We have smart sprinkler systems available for you.
