Often when your sprinkler system was running fine, and then one zone began to lose water pressure, the culprit is a leak in the zone's lines or a leak at a nozzle or two. Leaking nozzles won't produce the same water pressure and need to be replaced, which is fairly simple.
The solenoid controls the water pressure. Knowing that, it's not surprising that a bad solenoid can lead to water pressure issues. If your system isn't delivering water to every corner of the lawn like it once did, the solenoid is one of the most likely culprits.
Technical Note: While a zone refers to the sprinklers controlled by a single valve, a station actually refers to the valve(s) controlled by an automatic controller. Typically, one controller station runs one sprinkler zone, which is why “station” and “zone” are often used interchangeably.
Check all of the valves to make sure they are fully open, especially the main system shut-off valve and the valves on your backflow preventer. A partially closed valve will reduce the water to the sprinklers, causing them to not fully pop up. This could affect some or all of your zones.
Pop-Up Sprinkler Head isn't popping up: Water pressure is what releases a pop-up sprinkler head. A decrease in irrigation pressure can be caused by a broken irrigation pipe or a worn sprinkler wiper seal.
There are several reasons why one of your sprinkler zones is not working, but it's often the result of an electrical problem, such as a faulty controller or bad solenoid. Otherwise, an irrigation zone might quit working if the valve in that zone is damaged or blocked with debris.
What's a Solenoid? Every sprinkler valve has one — a coil component that uses electrical signals from the irrigation controller to open and close each valve, letting water move through the system. Why should you care? If a valve is worn out or damaged in one zone, or a solenoid is bad, that zone won't turn on.
The cheapest and easiest way to find buried irrigation valves is often to probe the soil with a thin rod, such as a long screwdriver. Often you can estimate the rough location of the irrigation valve, then find a buried valve box by probing the ground.
Quick Facts…. Backflow prevention devices must be installed on all sprinkler systems (including sprinklers attached to hoses) using potable (fit for drinking) water.
The most common solenoid valve issues are the valve not opening or closing, leaking or getting very hot. Whenever your sprinkler is acting funny, it may be a sign that your irrigation solenoid valve is damaged. The solenoid controls the valve's water pressure.
We recommend that you use 40 psi when designing your system. Example: if your sprinkler heads use 2.5 gpm @ 40 psi, then a ¾” service (20 gpm) could operate approximately 8 heads at one time. Based on this example calculation, you would not have more than 8 heads on at one time.
Fluctuating Water Pressure: Drops or changes in water pressure often point to a leak or internal issue within the backflow preventer. Unusual Noises: Hissing or whistling sounds coming from the system may also signal a leak or faulty component.
Your installer may have connected two zones to use the same water pressure, which often results in one zone having significantly less pressure. Alternatively, they may have installed a faulty valve, not programmed the timer correctly, or made some other mistake.
Water leaks: High pressure from a broken or faulty solenoid stresses your sprinkler system, causing minor or large cracks and leaks. Low water pressure: With low pressure from a bad valve solenoid, you'll see dry, brown spots develop on your lawn because of inadequate, uneven watering.
Typically, a zone can accommodate between five to ten sprinkler heads, with the understanding that each sprinkler head has a watering radius of about 15 feet.
The solenoid is always located on the outlet side of the valve (a few valves have the solenoid located on the side) turn the water off before you begin to replace a valve and then relieve the pressure by going to the controller and turning on one of the zones if you don't want to walk back to the controller you can ...
The most common irrigation shut-off valve location is near the corners of the house or main building. Check just downstream of the backflow preventer to find the shut-off valve. Keep in mind that it's illegal to install underground irrigation valves without an approved backflow preventer in most residential areas.
As with any standard irrigation controller, you can wire multiple solenoids/valves to the same zone output if you want.
One of the leading reasons for low sprinkler water pressure relates to the valves on your backflow preventer device. If you notice limited water pressure in your sprinkler system but normal water pressure inside your home, then the problem might be that your backflow preventer valves are not completely open.
Faulty wiring is probably the most common reason for a sprinkler zone not working. If the power source is not connected correctly to the valves or if the wires have been damaged, then the sprinklers won't operate. There are many reasons for faulty wiring in your sprinkler systems.