Hunt Irrigation recently joined Governor Heineman and Mayor Beutler in proclaiming July as Smart Irrigation Month in the state of Nebraska.  The City of Lincoln and the State of Nebraska along with Hunt Irrigation celebrated Smart Irrigation Month last month by helping customers save water, save money and see better results in their lawn and landscapes.

Smart Irrigation Month (www.smartirrigationmonth.org) is a public awareness campaign to promote efficient water use. Focused in July, traditionally the month of peak demand for outdoor water use, the campaign highlights simple practices and innovative technologies to make maintaining green spaces easy and convenient, minimize overwatering while keeping lawns, gardens and landscapes beautiful and healthy, save money on utility bills and reduce budgetary demands, and to help protect community water supplies for today and future use.

Property owners and managers tend to over-water, thus unintentionally wasting money every time they turn on the sprinklers. Hunt Irrigation, Inc, The Water Smart Company, a leader in smart water-saving practices, is delivering real results by:

• Installing new irrigation systems that use real-time weather data and soil moisture sensors to automatically adjust watering to meet plant needs.

• Using low volume micro-irrigation to precisely apply very small amounts of water to gardens, trees and shrubs, minimizing evaporation and waste.

• Retrofitting existing systems with rain sensors that prevent watering during and after rain events.

• Outfitting irrigations systems with pressure regulated sprinklers and spray rotators that apply water with lower precipitation rates preventing run-off.

• Helping customers program automatic controllers to comply with community watering restrictions while extracting maximum benefit from every drop of water.

• Auditing irrigation systems to make sure water is being used effectively and making necessary adjustments.

You can also join in the conservation efforts in the following ways:

• Water early, during the cool part of the day, to reduce evaporation.  The best time to water your lawn is between midnight and 8 a.m.  Deep water shrubs and plants in the evening hours.

• Adjust your watering schedule.  The amount of water your lawn and landscape requires varies weekly and from month to month.

• Know your plants’ water needs, as different plants and turf grasses require varying amounts of water, and adjust watering to include rainfall.

• Measure sprinkler output by placing 16 or more cans (tuna cans work well) in various locations throughout a specific zone in the sprinkler pattern, and then turn on your sprinkler for 15 minutes.  The average depth of water in the cans will tell you how much water the sprinkler zone has applied.

• Water efficiently by using a sprinkler that throws large drops of the water close to the ground as opposed to mist or small droplets of water high in the air.

• Check your sprinkler coverage to make sure it is watering just the lawn and plants, not the sidewalk, driveway or street.  Avoid watering on windy days and avoid run-off by watering in multiple, shorter cycles and aerating your lawn.

• Know your soil type, as they all absorb and release water at different rates and have different holding capacities.

• Don’t water every day, only when your lawn is dry.  You can tell by stepping on the grass; if it lies flat then moisture is low and if it bounces back wait a day or two to water.

While we celebrated Smart Irrigation Month in July, these conservation practices should also be continued throughout the rest of the summer.

Hunt Irrigation, The Right Choice, The Professional Choice, The Water Smart Choice.


by Jeremy Hunt, President

Hunt Irrigation

402-438-8151

www.huntirrigation.com


 For more information about how Hunt Irrigation can help your home, business, or multi-family properties do more with less, feel free to contact our office (402) 438-8151.  You may also visit our website www.huntirrigation.com or our Facebook page www.facebook.com/huntirrigationinc for additional water savings tips.