Five Tips on Watering Your Lawn More Efficiently
Posted on: 26 August 2015
If your area is in a drought and need to cut back, or if you just feel like saving some money on your water bill, look no further than your lawn. Lawns take a lot of water to maintain, but especially so if watered inefficiently and unnecessarily. By making sure that you're using your irrigation system of choice wisely, you can save yourself plenty of money without letting your lawn go brown.
1. Water in the Early Morning
The best time to water your lawn is in the early morning. The heat of the day hasn't hit, which means most of the water will be absorbed into the soil rather than evaporating before your grass can drink it. Because of this, you can also cut a few minutes off how long you run your sprinklers. Since more water is being absorbed, you don't need to water for as long to get the same effect.
However, you should avoid watering your lawn in the evenings. If your lawn is damp overnight this can promote mildew growth, which can kill your grass.
2. Cycle Watering to Prevent Runoff
Runoff can be a waste of water, and it can also erode your lawn. To do this, split your watering into cycles rather than soaking your lawn all at once. Instead of running your sprinklers for 20 minutes, run them for 10, wait a few hours, then run them for another 10. This isn't always possible to do manually if you have daytime obligations, so this is where a timer can come in handy.
3. Watch Your Sprinklers
Sprinklers that aren't positioned correctly can end up washing the sidewalk, and any water that isn't going to your lawn is wasted. About once a month, go out and supervise your sprinklers to make sure they are all working and positioned properly. One thing to watch out for is broken sprinkler heads. If a sprinkler head is damaged while above ground, it can crack and start losing much more water. This can over water that area of your lawn and also quickly drive your water bill up.
4. Use Water-Efficient Sprinkler Heads
If you're using standard spray nozzles for your sprinklers, there's a more efficient option you can implement without having to change your whole watering system. Water-saving nozzles spray a number of jets of water rather than a mist, and this ends up using less water to cover the same area. In addition, because the nozzles are shooting jets of water, the water is less likely to dissipate in the wind.
5. Get Some Water for Free
Not all water has to come from your municipal water supply. If you get rain even occasionally, set up a drum to catch water flowing from your gutters. If you use a dehumidifier anywhere in your house, you can also use the water it collects. This may not be enough to cover your whole lawn, but it can be useful for giving extra water to browning patches.
Instead of using a hose, use a watering pail. This will spread the water evenly and won't damage your soil. For more information, talk to a sprinkler expert like Krupske Sprinkler Systems.
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