How to Replace Irrigation Pop-up Sprayers

An effective irrigation system is only as good as its original design and regular maintenance. Part of a good recurring maintenance schedule is to check and replace pop-up sprayers, which are subject to wear and tear, clogging or physical misalignment from gardening or casual accidents. In any case, ignoring your irrigation system can waste water, ruin your lawn or even damage the foundation of your home. Here's how to maintain and replace pop-up sprayers.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Replacement pop-up sprayers and manuals
• Wrenches or adjustment tools for your particular brand of sprayer
• Shovel (if necessary)

Remove Existing Pop-up Sprayers

1. Remove the damaged or old pop-up sprayer. For most brands, no special tools are required, as the sprayer slides in and out of the housing. Some brands require a simple key or wrench that fits into an appropriate slot. Insert it and lift out the sprayer.

2. Write down the make and model of the sprayer. If a replacement is required, you should get the same unit, as different models use different amounts of water and pressure.

Check the Sprays

3. Check the nozzle. Sometimes dirt or hard water calcification clogs the nozzle, disrupting the spray distance, accuracy or volume. If this is the case, clean, replace and test the cleaned nozzle.

4. Check the alignment of the entire body. Sometimes the entire sprinkler unit has been knocked out of alignment and can be manually adjusted. If so, straighten and rebury the unit as securely as possible.

Replace the Pop-up Sprayers

5. Check the owner's manual of the new sprayers. You may have to readjust the degree of spraying before installing the sprinkler into the housing.

6. Make sure that the replacement pop-up sprayers fit directly into the housings that held the originals. For simple replacements like these, no digging or resetting of timers is necessary.

7. Test the newly installed sprayers. Most automated systems will allow you to override preset sprinkling times to test zones or individual sprays.

Tips & Warnings

• Pools of water or dry patches in your lawn are simple signs that your pop-up sprayers aren't working properly or that your irrigation system needs tweaking. Check these monthly.
• See other simple tips at the Irrigation Association website (see Resources).
• Automated irrigation systems may require turning both plumbing and electrical systems off temporarily to make replacements or adjustments. Familiarize yourself with these systems as they are potentially very dangerous.

Resources

• Irrigation tips at the Irrigation Association website