Over 50 % of the annual water consumption a residential customer uses goes to sustaining the landscape. Performing an audit of your sprinkler system, and fine-tuning its performance can save water. A good rule-of-thumb is to thoroughly check your system in the spring when you first turn it on, and also perform a quick check after every mowing. It is important to check the system after mowing, because mowing can easily knock heads out of alignment and/or break sprinkler heads. Your sprinkler controller needs to be adjusted frequently so you’re not applying too much or too little water.

The checklist (pdf) will help you to create a better sprinkler schedule by understanding all the areas of your yard. Start with your clock and write down the number of minutes you have per zone. If your clock has more than one program, be sure to fill out a separate sheet for each program. Each program has separate start times and usually more than one. Write down all this information at the top of the sheet.

To inventory your sprinkler system using the checklist (pdf), turn on one zone at a time, and collect the information requested on the sheet. Continue this process until you have completed all the zones on the clock. This information can be used to develop a schedule for your clock. Once a week after mowing, go back through all the zones to make sure everything is functioning properly. You can use this information that you have collected to develop a schedule on the Internet. Use the run time scheduler that Denver Water developed.

The information you have collected will allow you to develop the most efficient water schedule possible. If you have a zone of turf that is on a slope, then you would want to apply your water in small amounts to prevent runoff. Utilizing the start times on the clock and dividing the amount of water into several start times can achieve this. Our run time scheduler will help you develop the correct schedule.

Some of the other information that you will collect on the checklist (pdf) will help with general maintenance of your sprinkler system. Dry spots indicate that you might not have proper coverage by your sprinkler head layout. Heads can be adjusted to compensate for the "weak" area. Wet areas could be caused from a leak in the system or low-head drainage. If you notice that you have a leak starting, be sure to fix it quickly to stop water waste and other problems that can result.