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A well-groomed lawn adds curb appeal to any home. Small, plastic, and hooked to your main water system, sprinklers are a modern invention that will keep your grass looking green. But many homeowners don't have the money to install them because they cost anywhere from $3,000 to $4,000 per ¼-acre lot. No matter how much land you own, this will add up to serious money very fast. The good news is DIY sprinklers cost much less, priced at about $1,500 per ¼-acre lot. When looking into sprinklers, investigate installing your own system. It will save you a lot of money. Permanent or Portable? First off, check with your HOA and see if you can legally install a permanent water system in your yard. If for some reason they will not let you, portable and non-permanent systems are available that will do the job very well. For most people, permanent systems are the best option, and once installed require very little maintenance. Rain Gauge Make sure you know how much rain your area receives in any given calendar year. This is important to know before installing. If your area receives more rainfall, you can install fewer pipes and therefore save money. Less rainfall will require a deeper density of water coming from your system and will consequently cost more money to build because you will have to install more pipes. Many websites have irrigation formulas that will help you know exactly how much to buy. Information Checklist Contact your local water distributer and get reports on water pressure, water meter size, service line size, and flow rate. Once you have all this information, keep track of it because your local home improvement store will help you determine the right fittings when installing. Also, check your water company and ask them what the backflow requirements are for your area. Backflow will keep the ground water out of your everyday drinking water. Install Create a small schematic of your backyard on your computer or by hand using pencil and paper. Write specific landmarks like rocks and trees that you will have to work around. Map where your water system will be connecting to the service line and where you will run the pipes in the ground. Once you have this mapped, contact your water and electric companies to make sure they don't have pipes or wires running through the same space. After you've done this preliminary work, go ahead and dig the system according to your diagram, install the pipes and connect the heads with PVC cement and Teflon tape. Cover up the exposed lines and turn on the system. You are ready to go. Installing your own system is not hard but requires just a little bit of planning. To learn more about your options for sprinklers, visit http://flierssprinkling.com/underground-sprinkling/sprinklers.
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