A watering session should be long enough to soak the area sufficiently so all the roots receive a beneficial drink. Sprinklers should be set to run for about 30 to 35 minutes at a time twice a week. Your goal is at least 1″ of water a week for your lawn.
Water up to 25 minutes for rotors, rotary, and impact sprinklers. Tips for new seed: Keep the top 2 inches of soil moist watering daily, morning would be best to get it through the heat of the day.
Be sure that they are evenly space in each section of grass that you want touched by your sprinkler. After your containers are evenly placed about your lawn, turn your sprinklers on for 15 minutes. Running your sprinklers for 15 minutes gives your sprinklers enough time to cover your entire lawn at least three times.
The amount of time varies by season and your grass type. As a rule, it is best to water your lawn with an oscillating sprinkler during the early morning hours to achieve the right amount of moisture absorption. It is advised to operate the sprinkler for one-two hours.
You can operate 2 or 3 sprinklers at one time with 'Y's and extra hoses, depending on your water pressure. To run more than one sprinkler off the same faucet, attach a 'Y' to your faucet and run a hose to each sprinkler.
A common rule that is followed for obstructions within 18 inches of the sprinkler deflector is the “three times rule”. This requires sprinklers to be positioned away from obstructions a minimum or three times the maximum dimension of the obstruction.
The “Four Times Rule” is really just an extension of the “three times rule” however it covers extended coverage sprinklers and the maximum clearance is 36 inches (0.9144 m).
If your sprinkler output is 1½ inches per week, your sprinklers should run for only ⅓ hour or 20 minutes that week (½ divided by 1½). On a twice-weekly watering schedule, run your sprinklers 10 minutes each time.
On average, it will take 30 minutes to get a half inch of water. So, 20 minutes, three times per week will give a lawn about an inch of water. This formula works best with healthy, well-cultivated soil.
Shallow root systems require frequent watering to keep the surface wet, creating an ideal environment for weeds and diseases. Although some grasses have less extensive root systems than others, deep, infrequent watering that allows water to penetrate the top 6 to 8 inches of soil will promote healthy root growth.
The average system uses approximately 15-16 gallons per minute, per station. Here is an easy formula to help you calculate the approximate amount of water you are using each month.
Watering with a typical sprinkler using a standard 5/8" garden hose for one hour uses about 1,020 gallons of water; if you water three times per week, that's about 12,240 gallons per month.
How Much Water to Use. When watering an established lawn, it's typically recommended to water until the top 6 to 8 inches of soil (where most turfgrass roots grow) is wet. Most lawns need 1 to 1.5 inches of water per week—either from rain or watering—to soak the soil that deeply.
Our Recommendation… If you have a rectangular shaped yard with no obstacles, we would recommend the oscillating sprinkler, as it will typically cover the whole yard if placed correctly. Also, if you have newly planted grass seed, this is the sprinkler to use.
The high volume pressurised water stream gets harder to be distributed evenly. Thus, that size of impact sprinklers have another small (4-6 mm) nozzle to water the area for the closer area to the sprinkler. The main stream will start spreading in the air after a certain distance to the sprinkler head.
Avoid watering grass on a hot afternoon when it's 95 degrees or higher. The best time to water grass is at dawn or in the early evening. Water deeply three times a week instead of a little water daily. Test whether your sprinkler system is watering your lawn evenly.
Most lawns need to be watered no more than three days a week in the spring as well as in the summer and two days a week in the fall. This watering schedule is recommended under normal water supply conditions.
The best time to water grass is in the early morning, ideally before 10am, or in the late afternoon. During these times, the temperature is cooler, and the wind and sun are less intense, which allows the grassroots to absorb the moisture before it evaporates from the soil.
Sprinklers generally cover up wider ground and spread out water at a slow yet steady pace, which makes all the soil moisturized evenly and soaked underground. A watering hose takes time to cover space and can clutter the soil if there's too much water.
Nothing should be in that area between the bottom of the sprinkler heads and the imaginary horizontal plane parallel to the ceiling that is 18 inches below. This is done to allow an even and unobstructed spray pattern from the sprinklers when triggered to extinguish the fire.
Typically, though, a sprinkler system zone will boast 5 to 6 rotor heads and/or 8 to 10 spray heads.
The best time to water is in the early morning hours. Allow 30 to 60 minutes between watering cycles so water has a chance to soak in the soil. The heavier the soil, the longer the soak time needed. As water needs increase, don't add time to the cycles, or you will get runoff.