Lawn And Sprinkler System In A Box

Anyone ever install something like this before?

https://www.amazon.com/Rain-Bird-32ETI-Automatic-Sprinkler/dp/B00K72WU3Q


I am thinking if i want to do a sprinkler system now would be the time before i start living on the lot in texas.  Half of my 50x100 foot lot is texas prairie grass (see pic), my plan was to remove the prairie grass and plant kentucky blue grass.  I chose blue grass because i tried texas bermuda many years back and did not like the runners or the coverage.  I know that over many years one can manipulate texas bermuda to be thick and wonderful (if you have the patience to do so) but i dont have the patience for that, plus grasses like kentucky blue grass will stay green all year here in texas and they will get thick and cover much better much quicker than bermuda will. 

First i need to think about how i will clear the prairie grass, rent a sod cutter, weed and grass killer, or renting a skid-steer loader.  If i do the chemicals then i have to wait a few months or it will kill my new seed.    If i do the skid-steer loader (which is the easiest and fastest way, then ill have huge tracks all over in the soft soil and ill have to end up bringing in tons of dirt to level it.  But if i do the sod cutter yes it is more work but ill have a much flatter surface to seed, although i may still need to rent a roller or tapper to level some parts.  So the hard part is just getting the old grass removed and the ground somewhat flat.

Once the prairie grass is gone and the 25x90 feet of ground is level then i can put in the sprinker then before i seed.  I think the kit linked above has just enough tubing to do the job and the reviews on amazon seem to be overall good, and its a great price for everything in a box. 

But in this part of texas we do get quite a bit of rain so do i even need a sprinkler system.  It would be nice while getting it to germinate to not have to remember to keep it wet and let the system do it for me.

It is probably not worth getting a riding lawnmower for the little bit of grass i will have.,

I am open for suggestions?

Have you ever installed a sprinkler system? 

Have you ever repaired a sprinkler system?

Arch Hoagland said:

Have you ever installed a sprinkler system? 

Have you ever repaired a sprinkler system?

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Yes when i was a kid i worked in landscaping for the summer

Well then you are familiar with the associated problems.  Myself I wouldn't touch that system with a ten foot pole. 

Arch Hoagland said:

Well then you are familiar with the associated problems.  Myself I wouldn't touch that system with a ten foot pole.

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Well not really, back then we used different products including pvc and not flex hose.  So i am not sure what issues you might be thinking about, i have not worked much with flex hose connections.

Our lawn is approximately 2 1/2 acres, with over a mile of sprinkler line ( poly pipe). 31 zones, with approximately 100 heads ( maybe a few more). I installed the system, over several years. I feel like a mole, I feel like I’ve spent more time in the dirt than in the house! I would not use Kentucky Blue “only”! We are a very dry area ( total annual precipitation average @ around 7”), and a couple of summer high temperatures at or above 100 F. We used a blend, suggested by a local horticultural business.  The blend consisted of several species of Fescue with some Kentucky Blue. The Fescue does not spread....and is much more drought tolerant than Kentucky Blue!

  Edit:  many people use pvc piping, though I prefer the rolled poly (easy to work with & less expensive).... and more forgiving if you are in a cold region. With the “drive-in barbed fittings with the crimp-on clamp...system should be good for 100 psi. If you expect pressures anywhere near that, I would recommend installing a pressure regulator!

        The Rainbird website is a great source for the “do it yourselfer”, Sprinkler Warehouse is a good source for all of the components you would need. Poly pipe rolls should be easy to acquire locally.
https://i.imgur.com/q6srQUv_d.jpg?maxwidth=640&shape=thumb&fidelity=medium
           

I grew up in So Ca, so anything you want to grow will require irrigation.  The only differences in the above system is the rolled poly pipe, and the hose  mounted timer.  Not sure I agree with the "one afternoon" install, unless your yard  is all soft sand.  The trenches  will still have to be deep enough to bury the sprinklers flush to the dirt. Water pressure will be a key element to this system, and the hose bib mounted controller needs to be monitored in case the battery dies, nothing will turn on (or off). 

The main differences in the system is the rolled pipe and push on barbed fittings. Just don't push too much pressure through the poly hose or you can blow a fitting off under ground.  Over all it's a doable system if your install is careful, and you monitor it regularly.

Thanks so much all,

I am checking out the rainbird site now.  The big problem is that i dont have a home depot within 50 miles of me and lowes does not carry rainbird, at least not that product. 

The reviews on the kit say the controller is horrible and has to be replaced often, but that review was from someone in the northeast USA  so i am hoping it lasts longer here in texas.  If not i can always spend 50 bucks on a different model.    The kit price still is probably better than i could get the stuff ala carte

Someone in the review had suggested a heat gun, i hope not.  If so i guess ill get one, they come in handy for other things as well so it will be used.   

Any suggestions on clearing the prairie grass, ie roundup or renting a machine?

I may be stuck with the chemical deal, i just called on renting a skid loader or a sod cutter and they are $200 - $300  and that is alittle more than i remember them renting for in the past.

  djw2112,    We just upgraded to a new controller (expandable with modules) so can’t testify to it’s quality. We had 2 -16 zone timers, that were mounted outside, unprotected.....and they survived about 15 years. We have used Rainbird solenoids, with only a few failures over the years....only the electro magnet, the water side of the solenoid remained functional. The electric side of the solenoid can be replaced without removing the entire solenoid. We’ve used the Rainbird Maxi-Paws (a little short, if you like your grass higher than 4” prior to cutting), and then slowly transitioned to 6” Rainbird Rotors and now slowly transitioning to Weathermatic Rotors. We get our water from an irrigation canal, so it is hard on sprinkler heads.....even with filters in the system.

    I understand store availability, our closest Lowe’s/Home Depot is over 150 miles one way. Other than the poly pipe, which we buy locally.....everything else is shipped to our home. We deal primarily with Sprinker Warehoue....though the wife will do internet searches for best deals.

    I only now, looked at the system that you were considering. I would shy away from that as well. We designed and installed ours, ourselves. We used 1 1/4” poly pipe to our solenoid boxes, and then 1” poly pipe  for the runs to the individual sprinkler heads. At each head we used 1” barb to 3/4” male pipe to install the sprinkler head. For a smaller system, you could likely run 3/4” poly...if it is available.  1” is common here, plus we had some runs over 700 feet from the pump.

  As far as dirt preparation, you had far more grass than us. I think I would attempt to use sod cutter,  to maintain as much top soil as possible. Then trench and install system, with heads at your desired height. And then, this is the ugly part.....till 4” to 6” deep over the entire place, getting as close to heads as practical. The grass roots, will be e real headache to deal with, while tilling. I wore out a Troy-Bill Horse working our place. Use a roller towed by a 4 wheeler or the like, to somewhat pack the soil.....it will still be a little high in relation to your heads. Seed and fire-up the system. In a couple of years the soil should shrink from the watering...and in theory, be of proper level to the heads.

  I don’t know what the potential cold temperatures you can expect in your area....but don’t forget to install a “blow-out” connection upstream of your solenoid box, if your ground can freeze to your water line depth. We certainly have to blow ours out, as the frost-line can reach 6 feet.

Let me ask some fundamental questions, like what part of Texas are you in?  Much of Texas including east Texas is prone to seasonal drought which may effect your ability to irrigate.    The last such extreme drought was in the summer of 2011, so we are about due for another one.    Look up the drought of 2011, many east Texas lakes were 20 or more feet below average levels, some went dry completely, with no significant rain for months and much of that summer with highs of over 100 degrees F.        As to this kit, it is ok, though don't expect it to last long term, if you get more than 3 or 4 years out of it you will be lucky.

I would also be worried about top soil thickness if you don't know your soil conditions I would suggest digging a couple of test holes to see how thick your top soil is, my guess from the photo is that it will only be a couple of inches thick before you hit clay or rocks of some type.

Isaac-1 said:

Let me ask some fundamental questions, like what part of Texas are you in?  Much of Texas including east Texas is prone to seasonal drought which may effect your ability to irrigate.    The last such extreme drought was in the summer of 2011, so we are about due for another one.    Look up the drought of 2011, many east Texas lakes were 20 or more feet below average levels, some went dry completely, with no significant rain for months and much of that summer with highs of over 100 degrees F.        As to this kit, it is ok, though don't expect it to last long term, if you get more than 3 or 4 years out of it you will be lucky.

I would also be worried about top soil thickness if you don't know your soil conditions I would suggest digging a couple of test holes to see how thick your top soil is, my guess from the photo is that it will only be a couple of inches thick before you hit clay or rocks of some type.

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  A very good reason to research and consider a Fescue blend....more drought tolerant!

      Quote:            Someone in the review had suggested a heat gun, i hope not.  If so i guess ill get one, they come in handy for other things as well so it will be used. 

If that was for installation of the barbed fittings, it shouldn’t be needed....unless you’re working in very cool conditions, or very thick poly pipe in cool weather!  A “dead-blow” Hammer works very nicely, to drive the barbed fittings in. Of course, I didn’t discover that until I was almost complete! 

Thanks memtb that is great info, i really appreciate that.

Isaac-1  I do remember hearing about that drought on the news, cows were dieing and it was horrible.    From what i remember about the droughts in the areas i have lived in is that the restrictions were reducing the amount of water used not totally cutting off water usage.  So for example they ask people to water at night or early evening and limited it to 5 min 2x a day or only watering at certain hours.  I dont know if that is this way in Texas or not, i guess that depends on how bad the drought is.

But i guess regarding the land i should really make myself slow down here a bit and not get ahead of myself.  I am not even moved over their yet so i should wait until i get moved before starting any big projects because there could be surprises come about that may put those projects off.

Regarding the sprinkler system yes im now thinking that it would be much better to buy the parts ala carte for better quality and longer lasting system. 

Regarding the grass, the reason i dont like fescue is because it has those windmill seed pods and they make the lawn look like its full of weeds.  All i want is a nice green blade grass lawn that i can walk barefooted in without ugly seed pods or runners. 

I appreciate all the info and i will refer back to it when i do end up doing the project. 

There is a reason not to walk barefoot in the grass in Texas, they are called fire ants

Isaac-1 said:

There is a reason not to walk barefoot in the grass in Texas, they are called fire ants

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In many areas of Texas, goat heads are another reason to not go barefoot, and to use stop leak in bicycle tires.

We put in a sprinkler system about 12 years ago, here in east texas. About 100 heads. I have found that saint Augustine grass, if given enough water, will choke out grass burrs, bahai grass, bermuda and others. We do not fertilize much, which may be the reason for getting some clovers & dollar weed. We do have all the water we can use from a spring, even in 2011.

Fire ants are no problem i have some stuff that works great - put it on the nest - next day dead and gone.  I was able to keep them completely off my current land since i have been here.  And as far as i have noticed burrs are not an issue here, i have not noticed  any on my shoes since i been here.  Those are mostly found in the desert maybe like west Texas.

However now that i think about it, the uneven ground over there could be old ant hills hiding under the grass, i suspect ill find out when i mow it first time.  If so ill have to get several cans of my stuff and get them gone.