Shutting down your sprinkler system in the fall is an important step in keeping you from spending hundreds of dollars in repair and maintenance fees in the spring. When there is water remaining in your sprinkler system, freezing temperatures can cause pipes and irrigation system components to freeze and shatter. Learn how to protect your pipes and why it’s so important to do so in today’s post, and call our expert plumbers for more information.
The Importance of Winterizing the Irrigation System
One of the most important things you can do for your home in the fall is to winterize your outside faucets and your irrigation system. If water were to remain in outdoor pipes and fixtures, it would freeze in extreme temperatures. Water expands when it freezes, occupying more space within a pipe. This expansion is what causes PVC pipes to shatter, and what could force your sprinklers to break.
Winterizing an irrigation system does come with a cost. But the price of this service is much lower than the hundreds of dollars you would spend repairing or replacing pipes and your backflow preventer valve.
Call Professionals for the Job
There are some things you can do on your own to winterize the outdoor portion of your plumbing system. You can drain water from outside faucets by shutting off the water supply to the outdoors and turning on the faucets to allow water to drain completely. But winterizing an irrigation system is a job for professionals.
Usually, a professional will use an air compressor to blow out the water remaining in the pipes underground. A blowout will also be necessary for the backflow preventer valve. While you could potentially purchase the air compressor yourself, this is a costly investment, and if you don’t have the skill to use it properly, you’ve essentially wasted your money. Trust professionals who already know how to do the job correctly.
We have someone in your neighborhood today. Call the father-daughter owned and operated APC Plumbing & Heating for plumbing services in the Highlands Ranch, CO area.
