But it only takes one hard freeze to turn your sprinkler system into a spring repair project. Here's how that usually plays out.
It starts with water you can't see
Shutting off your system doesn't empty it. Water stays behind in the lines, valves, and low spots. When the temperature drops far enough, that water freezes and expands, and the pipe around it has nowhere to give.
Then nothing happens for months
This is the sneaky part. A cracked pipe doesn't leak while the system is off, so your yard looks perfectly fine all winter. There's no warning and nothing to fix yet. The damage just sits there waiting for you to turn the water back on.
Spring is when you find out
The first run of the season tends to tell the story. Here's what freeze damage usually looks like:
- Soggy patches or standing water when it hasn't rained
- A zone with weak or uneven spray
- Water bubbling up around a sprinkler head or along a line
- Water dripping or spraying from your backflow preventer
- A water bill that's higher than it should be
If you see any of these, shut the system off and have it checked before running it again.
The repair is more than a part
The broken pipe is often the cheap part. The labor adds up fast, because someone has to find the break, dig down to it, fix it, and patch the lawn afterward. If the damage is at your backflow preventer, you're looking at one of the more expensive parts of the whole system.
There's also the timing. Lines get dug up right when your grass should be filling in, which can undo some of the work you put into your lawn last fall.
Already had a frost?
Don't write off the season just yet. A light frost usually isn't the same as a hard freeze, and getting your lines cleared now is still better than leaving them full all winter. Just don't wait for a warmer week that may never come.
The easy way to skip all of this
A proper blowout uses compressed air to clear water out of every zone, so there's nothing left to freeze. It's a quick visit compared to a spring repair, and your system will be ready to go when the weather warms up.
We'd rather see you this fall than in April with a shovel. Book your blowout before the first hard freeze by calling 804.598.2723 or visiting aerationsplusinc.com.
