Sprinkler System Requirements

Like all good projects, you must balance how many features you want, how much the project will cost, how much time you are willing to take doing it, and the quality. If you are planning to install a sprinkler system yourself or pay a contractor, you must first decide what features you need. If you plan to pay a contractor to install your system, check out my suggestions for the top questions to ask a sprinkler system contractor.

When considering your sprinkler system requirements, I recommend considering the following questions:

1. What pain points are you trying to solve with this sprinkler system?
2. Will your landscape change in the future (i.e. will you install a deck or more beds)?
3. How automated do you need the system to be (i.e. besides an obvious timer for the system, do you want zones in your flower beds that are easily expanded)?
4. What level of quality do you want?
5. Do you have concerns such as tree damage from trenching, grass growth, or sidewalks/driveways?
6. What special features do you want (like drip zones in your gardens, a mister for your deck, or a special zone for your trees)?

Here are the requirements I wrote for my sprinkler system:

1. Automatical watering of all grass and flower beds
2. easy future expansion for future deck and flower beds
3. Modular attachments for special flowers in flower beds (which can control volume)
4. Easy to winterize
5. Electrical system for in-ground lighting and tool connections in yard
6. Compliant with local sprinker system codes
7. Rain switch to turn system off if raining
8. Front flower bed on its own zone (for special timing)
9. Extra hose attachment in back for timed hose output
10. Must be able to complete it in 1 week (all the vacation I want to take for the project)
11. Under $2,000

So how did my system turn out?

• 46 sprinkler heads (16 rotors, 30 popup - all 1804 or T-Bird professional series)
• 9 active zones
• 2 unused zones (for future growth)
• 2 drip zones (watering 3 gardens)
• Direct connection to main water line (installed to local codes)
• Cost $1,750 (20% below quote from contractor)
• 1,560 feet of PVC pipe installed
• 153 man hours to install (7 hours of planning, 136 man hours of active labor, 10 hours of cleanup)
• 3 GFCI weatherproof outlet boxes in gardens on a single 120V 15A circuit
• Rain switch