Designing Irrigation Systems to Save Water

Skip to page navigation

The design of an irrigation system significantly impacts water efficiency. First, read about Efficient Irrigation Services and Products (pdf).

Then ask yourself or your designer these questions

  • Is the contractor certified? Learn about Hiring a Certified Irrigation Contractor. They are often better trained to design and install sprinkler systems.installation
  • Are plants grouped by watering needs? Water is wasted by grouping plants with different watering needs into one sprinkler zone. This results in some areas being over or under-watered. The following scenarios should never be together on one sprinkler zone:
    • Shrub and lawn
    • Sun and shade
    • Spray heads, rotors and drip irrigation
  • Will the sprinkler system components work properly with the water pressure? High or low pressure will result in dry areas. . High pressure can cause water to drift and blow away from the site.
    • Is your pressure too high or low?
    • What is the optimal pressure for your sprinkler head or drip type?
    • If you have high pressure, will the system have pressure regulation?
  • Will the system have a rain sensor? Rain sensors pause the irrigation system during rain events.
  • Will the sprinkler system over-spray? Does the design prevent over-spraying onto sidewalks, driveways or patios?
  • Will the system be controlled by weather or soil moisture sensors? Also called smart controllers, they modify the sprinkler runtimes according to the weather or the soil’s moisture content.
  • Are non-grass areas being watered with dripline? Watering non-grass areas with overhead sprinklers is very inefficient.
  • Do you know the schedule. Make sure the contractor documents the sprinkler system run-times for each zone, including days per week, time of day and number of start times. Use the Irrigation Scheduling Chart (pdf) – use as is or make modifications for your site. Irrigation Scheduling Tools (pdf)

Resources