Rotary Nozzles

Photo courtesy of Rain Bird

















Rotary sprinklers are not a new idea. They are sort of a cross between spray heads, which broadcast water in a full or part circle pattern all at once, and rotors, which rotate over a full or part circle with a single stream of water.

Toro's 300/ 340 series Stream Rotors are a gear-driven version of this idea. They've been around since the 1980s. The newer take on this concept, from both MP Rotator (as of April 2007 part of Hunter Industries) and Rain Bird, features nozzles that thread onto a standard sprayhead body, and far fewer moving parts.

This seems to be another head-to-head (get it, head-to-head?) competition between these two irrigation manufacturing leaders. Both brands claim matched precipitation regardless of distance, water pressure (between 20 and 55 PSI) or pattern selected, as long as spacing is head- to-head. Both appear to be good solutions where water pressure is on the low side, or where excess water run-off is an issue due to slopes.

A few words of caution regarding these nozzles: (1) all sprinklers on the same line should be the same brand and model, and (2) watering times need to be extended to up to 2.5 times what conventional sprayheads require. The longer watering time is due to a lower precipitation rate, which is also how they avoid runoff.

One unintended consequence of rotary nozzle designs is that lots of people seem to like watching their sprinklers in action. Something about the rotating streams of water is soothing. They also might be fun for kids to play in. One customer admitted to me that he likes to run through the zones with his hand held remote control and keep the kids guessing which sprinklers will come on next. Good water conservation guidelines recommend watering before 9:00 AM and after 7:00 PM, but these sprinklers you might be tempted to make and exception now and then, like sitting on a patio with a cold drink on your hand and watching the "dancing waters" on a late summer afternoon.











Photo courtesy of MP Rotator

What's Wrong With This Picture?

Well, I can think of three issues you can see with these lights I recently replaced, and a few you can't.

1. The placement of most of the fixtures directly in the lawn at the edges of the walk..

2. Fixtures with a really cheap finish that's fading and flaking in approx. 6 years aftter install. (A brand called Paradise.. though it looks like hell to me...)

3. Fixtures with so much glass and visible lamps... "Carriage lamp on a stick" I think they call that..

What you can't see in the picture:

4. 16 gauge wire throughout.

5. Pierce type connections

6. Pathlights spaced about every 6 to 9 feet along the walkways.. (and no other lighting except line voltage on the garage wall and front porch)

7. Ugly transformer with faded paint hanging askew on the wall with a badly installed in-use cover not hidden by plants and very visible from the front walk/ entry

To add insult to injury, according to one website this fixture, the Paradise Garden Lighting GL22768 Savannah model was "Noted as “Best Buy“ in the Consumer’s Report July 2004!"

However, in fairness, it must also be noted that considering the fixtures survived about 7 years, they outlived their warranty.

Yosemite In Winter

Once in a while it's nice to take time off from work. I tend to have more time to do that in the off-season. I had a great time with friends in Yosemite National Park this past Saturday.

El Capitan
The road into Yosemite Valley is blocked by a massive rock slide, but a one way detour was set up with a couple of bridges to get across the river and back. There are 15 minute delays in each direction, but fortunately we didn't see much traffic. Fortunately for us, but not necessarily for the businesses that rely on tourism to prop up the local economy. One reason is that the detour is set up with sharp right angled turns, and vehicles longer than 28 feet can't make the turns.

Lower Yosemite Falls
We got there between storms, so the roads were clear, but there was still enough snow to make things look interesting. Yosemite Falls were running. The lower trail is paved and wheelchair accessible, but Saturday there was a lot of packed ice and snow, especially on the little wooden bridges, and that made it slippery and slow going.

New sprinkler stuff

Well, time flies again. It's mid February already, and there's more rain predicted for tonight. We're still behind a little as far as rainfall goes.

We've had some cooler than usual weather this winter that's typical in a drier year when we have less in the way of cloud cover. Still a slim chance of snow... at least on the higher foothills and mountains that border the valley.

I've discovered a new brand of sprinkler controller and valves put out by a guy who has been in the industry a while. You can buy Irrigation Direct products as a homeowner, but the catch is that you have to buy typical contractor quantities or case lots (maybe get together in with your friends and neighbors to get a better price)

(Update August 08: I've installed nearly dozen of their controllers with very few problems.)

The DMC controllers are compatible with the Hunter SRR remotes that you can find on my website, www.sprinklersplus.com by clicking on the links to Controllers and Accessories. The 3 station expansion modules should work with some older Hunter Pro-C controllers too.

Irrigation Direct also puts out a decent 1" inline valve that adapts a proven "reverse flow" design.

Irrigation Direct sells only online. You won't find them at irrigation supply houses or Home Depot either. they "cut out the middleman" and pass on the savings. My experience with their customer service has been good.

Meanwhile, the Weathermatic Smartline is still going strong.

No free hat, but a helluva lot of nice features. The weather monitor seems accurate enough, and I like checking the temp. data (last 5 days), the accumulated water deficit, etc. I like this controller for it's advanced features. If you're a homeowner you might like it for its ability to adapt to your microclimate. The one I'm testing expands to 16 zones.

Good for most suburban landscapes and small to medium commercial and multiple residence sites too: shopping centers, medical office complexes, condos and apartments. There are larger 24 and 48 zone versions too. Check it out: http://www.smartline.com/