Make the Switch to Water-Efficient Sprinkler Nozzles

The fine mist from traditional spray type heads is often lost to wind and evaporation before ever reaching the intended target, your turf and planting beds.  Besides wind and evaporation, inefficient sprinkler heads can cause excessive run off, misting and over-spray onto concrete areas. There are essentially two types of sprinkler nozzles; spray and rotating.  You can tell the difference in the way they apply water to your landscape.  Spray nozzles usually throw water in a solid "V" shape.  Rotating nozzles throw water in small jet streams at alternating lengths.  Replacing spray nozzles with rotating nozzles can save more than 6,600 gallons of water per nozzle over a 5-year period. These new and improved water-efficient rotating nozzles apply water more evenly than conventional spray nozzles, thus saving water and reducing the amount of run-off.

High efficiency, rotating nozzles deliver bigger droplets. The extra weight helps prevent those droplets from being carried off course by hot summer breezes. According to manufacturers, on a windy day, these high efficiency nozzles can still land about 85 percent of the water on the desired area as compared to an estimated 50% from the older style spray nozzles.

Each of the major irrigation system manufacturers (Hunter, Toro and Rain Bird) offer high efficiency rotating models. They’re a bit more expensive at approximately $5 per nozzle as opposed to about $1 for a spray model, but the added efficiency would translate to cash savings on your water bill, along with more actual irrigation for your landscape.

Rotating nozzles are available in a wide array of sizes and shapes, from 4 feet up to 15 feet. They are designed to work with nearly all manufacturers’ spray bodies, making them one of the most sought-after retrofit tools in the irrigation industry today. “Precision Spray nozzles have revolutionized the watering of outdoor landscapes similar to the way low-flow toilets, shower heads and CFL light bulbs have made the inside of homes more efficient,” said Jeff Miller, marketing manager for Toro’s Residential and Commercial Irrigation Business.