Lawn irrigation system

[airdvr 210]

Need some help purging the lines of water for winter. I picked up a compressed air tank. There was already a check valve installed downline of the water supply but upline of the actuator valves. My system has 4 sectors each controlled by en electric valve attached to a controller. There are screws at each valve that I guess can be used to open the valve.

I closed off the main water valve by the controller and hooked the compressed air up to the valve outside. Last year I paid a guy $100 to come out and do it for me. Should have paid more attention. The idea is the compressed air pushes the water out through the sprinkler heads. But that's not happening for me. The compressed air is going somewhere but the heads aren't popping up.

Anyone have any ideas?

Please don't dent the planet.

Destinations by Roxanne

[skydveraz 0]

Quote

Need some help purging the lines of water for winter. I picked up a compressed air tank. There was already a check valve installed downline of the water supply but upline of the actuator valves. My system has 4 sectors each controlled by en electric valve attached to a controller. There are screws at each valve that I guess can be used to open the valve.

I closed off the main water valve by the controller and hooked the compressed air up to the valve outside. Last year I paid a guy $100 to come out and do it for me. Should have paid more attention. The idea is the compressed air pushes the water out through the sprinkler heads. But that's not happening for me. The compressed air is going somewhere but the heads aren't popping up.

Anyone have any ideas?

http://www.irrigationtutorials.com/winter.htm

Arizona only has two seasons, Hot and HOTTER!

[CSpenceFLY 1]

I think it would take alot of air to make the heads pop up

[warpedskydiver 0]

You can also vacuum it dry with a shop vac if you have an end that you can hook up to.

Make up an adapter from PVC to neck in order to reduce the size to match the lines.

It will be very powerful.

Remember to remove the filter from the Vac.

[lawrocket 3]

Okay. I live in a climate where freezing aint a big issue. But why not just remove the sprinkler heads? It'll give the water a chance to expand and pipes won't burst, right? Maybe even take a shop vac and suction what you can after you remove the heads.

Yeah - the pipes will get dirt in them. Nothing that 15 seconds of water pressure before you put the heads on won't clear.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[warpedskydiver 0]

He can get black rubber corks at the hardware store.

Put the heads away for the winter, they last longer that way.

[xtravrtsoul 0]

Ok so we are just now toady to be exact installing our sprinklers. If they were done right, there should be drains in the lines that the water drains out of. They are at sections of the lowest points of the lines in between the sprinklers. (they will be buried, you won't see them) What these do is they open up whenever there is no water being pushed thru to drain the pipes all the time. When there is pressure of water running thru they close and the sprinklers are watering the lawn. So if you shut off the water for the winter they should drain out of these drains so you don't freeze. And if you are blowing air thru them this may be where it is going if not out of the sprinklers. But it takes a lot of pressure to get those to go anyways to even water. Hoped that helped a bit. We live in an area that does freeze in the winter badly and all we do is turn the main off and not blow them out.

You create life, life does not create you.

[Krip 2]

Ditto

Ten yr's and no problems.

One Jump Wonder