Advanced Irrigation Blog Posts

Winterizing Your Lawn Irrigation System

The temperatures have plummeted and if you haven’t already, you need to make sure your lawn irrigation system is winterized. We work on lawn irrigation systems in Edina, and we can come to your home to winterize your system for you. Here is a brief rundown of what we’ll do.

Turn Off the Water

The first thing we’ll do to winterize your lawn irrigation system is turn off the water. We will shut it off at the main valve, which is generally located where the valve cannot freeze.

Shut Down the Controller

Depending on the type of controller your lawn irrigation uses, we will either turn it to “rain mode” or we will disconnect it from the power completely. Setting it to rain mode means your settings will stay as they are, so there will be no need to have them reprogrammed when spring rolls around again, but the valves will not come on.

Remove the Backflow Preventer

We will then take the backflow preventer out and have you store it somewhere safe for the winter season. We will be sure to properly remove it, as its removal can be somewhat complicated depending on how it is plugged in.

Remove the Water from the System

This is the most important part of winterizing your lawn irrigation system. The water removal process is key so there is no left over water in the pipes and other components that could possibly freeze and burst and cause a lot of damage to the system. There are several ways we can do this, but we usually use the blow out method where we use air to blow all of the water out of the lawn irrigation system.

Is it time to winterize your lawn irrigation system in Edina? Call Advanced Irrigation at 612-599-8675 or contact us to get a Free Estimate.

Three Tips for Fall Landscaping

Fall is here, so it is time to prepare your lawn and landscaping for the upcoming winter months. Not only should you contact us for fall blow-outs for your lawn irrigation system, Minneapolis residents should also contact us if they need any further assistance with readying their yards for winter. In the meantime, here are a few things you can do on your own.

Don’t Forget Your Hardscaping

Do you have a patio or deck? Make sure it is winter-ready! Cover your outdoor furniture with a tarp or another waterproof material. And then put your furniture somewhere out of the way, like against your house or, if you have enough space, in your garage. Sweep or power wash your patio too. A little bit of time spent on hardscaping maintenance now could save you some time and hassle next spring.

Don’t Forget to Rake

We covered this topic in a recent blog post. Raking your leaves doesn’t just make your home and landscaping look nicer, but it is also a matter of safety too. Leaves are easy to slip on, especially after it has rained or snowed. And leaves can also hide a crack in the sidewalk or driveway, which makes it easy to trip on and potentially hurt yourself or someone else.

Don’t Forget Your Gardening Tools

Sure, you have had your lawn irrigation system serviced. And now your yard is freshly raked and your patio furniture is safely tucked away. But what about your gardening and lawn care tools? Take the time to wipe them down and store them somewhere safe and out of the elements, like a garden shed or your garage.

Do you need help with your lawn irrigation in Minneapolis? Call us at Advanced Irrigation at 612-599-8675, or you can contact us for a Free Estimate.

Components of Lawn Sprinkler Systems

When it comes to lawn sprinkler systems in St Paul and various types of irrigation systems, sometimes the terms we use here at Advanced Irrigation can sound like Greek to someone who doesn’t know much about landscaping and irrigation. So we thought we would take the time to go over some of the most commonly used words and their definitions.

Backflow Preventer: This is a device that only lets water go through it in one direction and then prevents it from going backwards in the opposite direction. It keeps unclean and unsafe water from reversing its course and coming into the clean water supply area.

Controller/Timer: This is the part of lawn sprinkler systems that determines when watering should start and stop.

Sensor/Rain Sensor: This is a sensor that will automatically shut off your sprinkler system when it rains. That way, your grass and landscaping will not be over-watered if it rains.

Sprinkler Head: There are two main types of sprinkler heads – spray type and rotor type. Both have their advantages and are used depending on the type of lawn sprinkler systems that are needed. A spray type is sometimes referred to as a “fixed spray head” and they spray in a fan-shaped pattern much like a shower nozzle. A rotor type sprinkler head rotates streams of water back and forth or in circles over your grass or landscaping.

Valve: When we refer to a valve, there are a few different kinds we could be speaking of. The two valves we speak of the most are emergency shut-off valves and irrigation control valves. An emergency shut-off valve is installed at the closest point to lawn sprinkler systems’ water source. This functions exactly as the name suggests. It is a way to cut off the flow of water in an emergency situation or, if we come out to work on lawn sprinkler systems, this is how we will shut down the system’s water supply without having to shut off your entire house’s water supply. An irrigation control valve is the valve that turns lawn sprinkler systems’ sprinklers on and off.

Water Meter: This is a separate water meter from the one you may have in your home. This measures how much water your lawn sprinkler system used.

To learn more about lawn sprinkler systems in St Paul, call Advanced Irrigation at 612-599-8675 or contact us for a Free Estimate.

Six Tips and Tricks for Raking Leaves Like a Pro

It’s nearly fall, so it’s time for that dreaded chore: raking leaves. We here at Advanced Irrigation provide lawn care services in Monticello, and we have a few suggestions on how to make this dreaded task just a little more bearable.

1. Rake with the wind. Leaves don’t weigh much, but they do weigh enough to be affected by gravity. If you use that to your advantage, you could save yourself a bit of work.

2. When you mow your lawn, mow over some of the dead leaves that are on the ground. This is a great idea in early fall because your grass can still benefit from this type of lawn care.

3. It’s another good idea to have several small piles of leaves throughout your lawn. That way, you don’t have to rake leaves across your entire lawn into one big pile. This saves you a lot of work in the long run!

4. Wear proper protection on your head and hands. The sun in the fall season could still possibly give you a sunburn. And wearing gloves while performing a variety of lawn care chores can save them from blisters.

5. Get an old sheet or tarp and lay it flat on your lawn. Rake leaves onto the tarp, and then when you’re done, pull the tarp together by its corners and dispose of the leaves that way. Sure, some leaves will escape, but you should be able to gather most of them using this method.

6. And be sure to pace yourself too. Raking leaves can be a more physically taxing chore than some people realize. Take a break when you need to, and be sure to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated.

For more information on lawn care in Monticello, call Advanced Irrigation at 612-599-8675 or contact us for a Free Estimate.

What is a Fall Blow Out?

Fall blow outs for your lawn irrigation system in Elk River are an important task to make sure your irrigation system is ready for the upcoming cold months. But what, exactly, is a fall blow out?

When your area’s frost level extends below the depth of your lawn irrigation system’s piping, fall blow outs are imperative to make sure your system doesn’t sustain any damage because of freezing temperatures. Winterizing your irrigation system should be done by a professional. There are potential dangers, plus it’s good to have someone do it who knows what he’s doing.

A lawn care professional, like the ones here at Advanced Irrigation, will come to your home and use compressed air to blow out the water from your lawn irrigation system. The air compressor will be attached to the mainline after the backflow device. The water supply to the irrigation system will be shut off and air from the compressor will be gradually introduced into the irrigation system. This will be done to every zone in the system to ensure there is no water left in the pipes. Your lawn care professional will then make sure there is no water in the pipes and then disconnect the air compressor.

After that, he will make sure to leave any valves open that should be left open. Then he will do an overall inspection of your lawn irrigation system to ensure there is no damage that should be addressed before the winter months come around.

So why is a fall blow out so important? If water is left in the pipes, it will freeze and expand and cause damage to the system. Making sure there is no water in your lawn irrigation system can help ensure this will not happen.

For more information on having a lawn irrigation system repaired or installed in Elk River, call Advanced Irrigation at 612-599-8675 or contact us for a Free Estimate.