Landscape Irrigation
Outdoor Cleaning

Landscape Irrigation

Over 60 percent of all household water use is oudoors.

• The smartest irrigation controller is you!!! Hand watering is conservation, as long as you focus on dry spots and pay attention to avoid runoff. Here’s a tip: step on your grass, and if it springs back when you lift your foot it does not need water. If possible, avoid watering during windy days, as wind increases evaporation.
  Water Savings: 750-1,500 Gallons per Month
  
  
• Don’t create a marsh! Reduce irrigation cycles by 1-3 minutes. Most of us put twice as much water on our lawns as they actually need.
  Water Savings: 15-25 Gallons per Minute
  
  
• When should I water? The best time to irrigate your landscapes is in the early morning hours before sunrise. Watering in the evening may cause fungal growth, and watering during the day is just plain wasteful due to evaporation. If you hand water, get up a bit earlier and water before breakfast. If you have an irrigation controller, consider setting it to run half-cycles twice in the morning (say, 2 a.m. and 5 a.m.) to avoid unnecessary runoff.
  Water Savings: 20-25 Gallons per Day
  
  
• Adjust sprinkler times monthly!!! Go right now and put it on your calendar. Most important, change settings at key times when seasons normally change – around October and May. Use the Watering Calculator found at bewaterwise.com to determine how much water your grass and plants need per month.
  Water Savings: up to 250 Gallons per Adjusted Cycle
  
  
• Driveways and sidewalks don’t need water!! Watch and adjust sprinklers to avoid unnecessary overspray.
  Water Savings: 500 Gallons per Month
  



• Fix leaky and broken sprinkler heads immediately to avoid waste (and embarrassing geysers!).
  Water Savings: 20 Gallons per Day per Leak, 10 Gallons per Minute per Broken Head
  
  
  
• Replace your spray head nozzles with new rotator nozzles
  ($4 rebate)
  Water Savings: 1,200 Gallons per Year per Nozzle
  
  
• Consider using non-spraying heads, like drips or bubblers, to irrigate your flower and shrub beds.
  Water Savings: 20-25 Gallons per Day
  
  
• Connect a rain sensor to your irrigation controller, or better yet replace with a new “smart” irrigation controller (up to $240 rebate!).
  Water Savings: 40 Gallons per Day
  
  
• Consider replacing part of your lawn with low water use plants. Attend our Plant Class on March 8th to learn all about them!
  Water Savings: 1,000-1,800 Gallons per Month per 1,000 square feet
  
  
• Put 2-4 inches of mulch around bushes, trees and shrubs to hold in moisture.
  Water Savings: 20-30 Gallons per Day per 1,000 square feet
  
  
• Create “hydrozones” of plants with similar water needs, then adjust sprinkler run times to reflect different water needs of different plants (for instance, give turf more water, shrubs less).
  
  
• Create watering basins by mounding soil berms around young trees and shrubs. Consider using soaker hoses to concentrate watering where needed.
  
  
• Set lawn mower blades one notch higher. Taller grass shades the soil, reducing evaporation.
  
  
• Aerate lawn by punching small holes in it about 6 inches apart. This will allow water to penetrate to the roots and lessen runoff.
  
  
• Redirect air conditioning unit condensation to water nearby plants. Also, when cleaning an aquarium, use the drained tank water for irrigation – it’s naturally fertilized! Finally, direct rain gutters to drain where you need water most.
  Water Savings: 5 Gallons per Day (air conditioner)
  
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Outdoor Cleaning

• Don’t touch that hose!!! Cleaning sidewalks and driveways with a hose is a wasteful and unnecessary practice. Use a broom and get some exercise.
  Water Savings: 8-18 Gallons per Minute
  
  
• Relax! Take your car to a car wash that recycles its water. If you must wash your car, use a self-closing hose nozzle and do it on the lawn to water the grass simultaneously!
  Water Savings: 8-18 Gallons per Minute
  
  
• Use pool and spa covers to reduce evaporation (and keep the water clean!).
  Water Savings: 30 Gallons per Day
  
  
• Repair any leaks around hosebibs, spigots, and pool and spa pumps.
  Water Savings: 15-20 Gallons per Day per Leak
  
  
• “Backwash” can be a bad word! Some pool filters don’t have to be backwashed, and you’ll do a more thorough job by manually cleaning your pool filter.
  Water Savings: 250-1,000 Gallons per Cleaning
  
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