French Drain Service Choctaw since 1993.
Oklahoma Drainage and Sprinkler Repair, 405 203 9419
French Drain Installation without much slope can be difficult. Oklahoma Drainage makes sure that water moves through the French Drain Properly. This is done by a simple process.
We dig the French Drain Trench. Before putting in the pipe, liner, and filter, we ensure that the water will flow to the exit. This is done by using a garden hose and pouring water in the trench alone.
Making Sure Water Flows
The water will flow along the trench a certain distance and then slow down or stop. At that point we dig the trench deeper, so the water flows again down-hill. We repeat this process the entire length of the trench.
If the water flows continuously in the trench, it will flow even better once we install the pipe. This assures that the water will flow correctly when it rains.
French drain Installation
with trench liner and pipe filter
Surface Drains Installed in Driveway.
We also install Channel Drains in sidewalks and driveways. Many types and styles are available.
All Drainage Systems
needs to have an exit point. The water needs a place to go. Oklahoma Drainage installs cement curb outlets as one possible exit. There are several other possibilities.
Installing Cement around Curb Fitting for French Drain in Norman
Oklahoma Drainage can install a very simple drain or a complex drainage system.
Drainage Systems can be made up of one drain or a combination of many drains. Drainage problems can be very complex. Complex Drainage Problems may require a combination of several different types of drains all inter-connected and working together. Other times the drainage problem may be simple and straight-forward requiring only one drain or several of the same type of drain connected together.
French Drain Service
Complex Drainage System
An example of a complex drainage system would be: A French Drain in the back yard connected to a Surface Drain near a flower bed connected to several gutter downspouts, which are connected to a Channel Drain going across a driveway, which is connected to additional Surface Drain in the front yard, which runs to a Curb Fitting that lets all the water drain out on to the street.
Simple Drainage System
A simple Drainage System might consist of a Surface Drain that is connected to a second Surface Drain which runs to a Pop-up Emitter which lets water drain over the curb and into the street.
An “Exit Point” is the term used for where all the water leaves the Drainage System. Determining the Exit Point is very critical. It is one of the first things we do when diagnosing a Drainage Problem.
French Drain Installation can be tricky sometimes. Recently we installed a French Drain in Norman with very little “Fall”. This means that the “Intake” For the Drainage System is close to the same level as the “Exit.” Simply Put, it is hard to make a Drain work if it isn’t ” Down Hill,” to where the water is going.
French Drain with very little fall
This was the Situation for the French Drain we installed last week in Norman. The standing water was in the back yard. There was only one direction that we could take the unwanted water to drain away. In this case it was only slightly downhill.
The French Drain was installed at a shallow level in the back yard. The solid drainpipe that was attached ran from the back yard, along the side of the house to a curb outlet at the street.
Connecting Gutter Down Spout to French Drain Under Sidewalk
French Drain Trench
As the trench for the Drain Pipe was dug, it had to start shallow and slowly get slightly deeper as it approached the street. This was an absolute Precision Job. The trench could not be even an inch too deep or too shallow along its course.
At the street, a “Pop-Up” Emitter could not be used. It would cause the water to stop flowing. Two Install a Pop-up Emitter at the Exit of any Drainage System, There must be at least 6 inches of “Fall” from the Drain to the Exit.
In Our Case, we only had 3 inches of fall to work with.
The solution was to Cut the curb and Install a Curb Outlet.
This process involves cutting the Curb with a concrete saw and placing a rectangular Curb outlet in the empty space. We then put acrylic concrete around the outlet to make it look nice.
The fact that the outlet is square or rectangular is very important.
Using a Square Curb Outlet
Many times, I look at Round Curb outlets installed by my competitors and just shake my head! This is a mistake. Round Curb outlets are bad when the Drainage System is at Max Capacity, and the pipe is completely full. Air needs to be able to get into the pipe at the curb to ensure that the Drainage System can work at its Max.
The Drain will work with a Round Outlet, just not very well.
Have you ever tried to Pour liquid out of a Jug or 2 liter bottle holding it completely upside down?
It Drains and Stops and Starts as the liquid comes out. ” Chugs” and struggles to get air up inside the hole. It doesn’t work very well.
A Square Outlet allows air to constantly flow into the top corners of the Curb Outlet.
As a result, Much more water is moved in the same size pipe.
Curb outlet with more than 6 inches of fall
Sprinkler pipes may leak for many reasons. Pipes that are too shallow can freeze and break during the cold of winter. Repair of PVC Sprinkler pipe in cold temperatures can be difficult. Frozen Ground is difficult to dig up to get to the damaged pipe. PVC Glue and Primer don’t bond very well in temperatures that are low. Even using “Hot Glue,” which is designed to be used in cold temperatures doesn’t always produce the best results.
I use a Heat Gun
to warm the new PVC Pipe Fitting so the Hot Glue will bond correctly. This stops the leak and ensures that the Sprinkler Pipe Repair Will Last.
Fixing a Sprinkler Pipe Leak in cold temperatures can be very difficult. It takes a person who is willing to get wet when the temperature is below 32 degrees.
Digging in Frozen Ground isn’t easy either.
Oklahoma Drainage and Sprinkler Repair can provide the necessary expertise to handle difficult sprinkler repairs.
Oklahoma Drainage and Sprinkler Repair provides Expert Service for Sprinkler Heads, Valves, Controllers and all other Sprinkler System difficulties. We service Norman, Edmond, Oklahoma City, Moore, Yukon, Mustang, and Midwest City.
Sometimes things go wrong with sprinkler systems.
One Common problem
is that they continue to run and won’t shut off. In most cases this is a problem with a sprinkler valve that has “Stuck” in the on position.
This can be temporarily solved by shutting of the Emergency Shutoff Valve. The problem is that some sprinkler systems don’t have one to turn off or if they do the homeowner doesn’t know where it is.
It may be on the back-flow valve which may be located on the side of the house under a big plastic fake rock.
Many sprinkler systems in Oklahoma have them. (50 % ?) Under the plastic rock is a back-flow valve with two shut off handles. Usually, they have blue or green or tan handles. Turn one of the handles and it should shut off the water to your sprinkler system.
Other times the Emergency Shutoff Valve is in a box in the ground out by the curb near your water meter. The valve box will have a green lid. Sometimes they are difficult to open. Many times, I had to pry them open with a flat head screwdriver.
Inside the valve box is a plastic handle that can turn off the water to the sprinkler system. It can be blue or red or grey in color.
Many times, the valve box will be full of dirt, and you can’t turn or even see the handle until some of the dirt has been dug out by hand.
Water might be shooting up in the air somewhere on your property. This can be caused by a broken sprinkler pipe or sprinkler valve.
SHUT OFF THE SPRINKLER WATER IF YOU CAN AND GIVE US A CALL.
OKLAHOMA DRAINAGE AND SPRINKLER REPAIR. SERVICING ALL OF CENTRAL AND WESTERN OKLAHOMA.
405 203 9419
Servicing Oklahoma City, Norman, Edmond and all of Central and Western Oklahoma
Sprinkler Controller Repair is a service provided by Oklahoma Drainage. A Sprinkler Controller is the “Brain,” of a Sprinkler System. They can wear out or stop working. Power surges in the home can cause damage to a controller.
Programming can be difficult for homeowners. We can help with programming or replace a Sprinkler Module if it is defective.
Start Time Programming
“Start Time” programing many times is confusing for homeowners. The definition of a Start Time is a time that is chosen for the sprinkler system to start watering. It causes zone 1 to start running. When zone 1 is finished it automatically stops and zone 2 begins. When Zone 2 is complete it stops and zone 3 begins. Simple enough Right! This continues until the last zone programed available runs.
The confusion begins when people think that a time needs to be set to start zone 2 and 3 and so on. This is not the case. They follow zone 1 which has the only Start Time programmed into the controller.
Be Careful with Multiple Start Times, just use One at first.
Sprinkler Controllers have a feature providing multiple start times, up to 4 Start Times are usually available. These additional start times are only used when a person wants to run the entire system more than once in a 24-hour period.
For Example, the first Start Time is set at 9Am. Zone 1 begins to run at 9am. When Zone 1 is done, say 10 minutes later, Zone 2 begins and runs for 10 minutes, then zone 3 follows and so on. By 10 am let’s say all the zones have run. Let’s say 8 hours later you have a second start time at 6 Pm. Zone 1 comes on and runs and by 7pm all the zones have run again. So, the controller has 2 start times which have caused the Sprinkler System to run start to finish twice in a 24-hour period.
Here is the big problem! Some Homeowners believe the second start time is to start zone 2 running. They also think that the 3rd start time is to start zone 3 and the 4-start time is to run zone 4. No!!
So, this is how they program the controller. At 9am they have a start time and zone 1 starts. The homeowner programs a second start time at 9:10 am to mistakenly start zone 2. Nope! It starts zone 1 all over again. At 9:2o they have a 3rd start time for zone 3. Nope! It starts zone 1 for a third time. Now the controller is stuck in a loop and zone 1 runs constantly and won’t shut off.
If Sprinkler Controller Programming is confusing? Make sure you only have One Start Time!
“Run Time,” is completed Next. It determines how long each zone runs. Zone One 10 Minutes, Zone Two, 15 Minutes, Zone Three 8 Minutes. You can set how long you want each zone to run.
French Drain Repair and Installation is a Central Focus for Oklahoma Drainage. We installed our first French Drain and completed our first Sprinkler Repair in Norman in 1993.
We started with the Valves
The Sprinkler Valves were located in the back yard near the pool. Six valves were located in one place. They were very tightly connected in one Manifold. None of the Sprinkler Valves had worked in a long time. They were Toro Valves that were over 20 years old. They all had to be replaced.
Surprisingly there was no shut-off valve for the Sprinkler Water. The water had to be shut off at the Meter so we could install a Manual Shut off valve. Once installed, the water was turned back on that ran to the house. The water that ran to the Sprinkler System was shut off with our New Shut Off Valve.
The Sprinkler Valves Were Removed
Now, the 6 valves had to replaced. The valves that were used were made by Rain Bird. Before we began, I had to talk to the Customer. The previous valve design was a bad idea to repeat.
The original Sprinkler Valves were crammed into one large valve box in one very tight manifold. This is bad because the valves were too close to the fittings. Simply put, if one valve had to be replaced or worked on in the future, all 6 valves had to be taken out and replaced. If one valve was bad and 5 worked fine, they all still had to be replaced.
That’s Stupid!
I recommended that an additional Valve Box be installed putting 3 valves in each Valve Box. This would allow plenty of space between the valve fittings. If one Sprinkler Valve had to be adjusted or replaced in the future, the other 5 valves need not be disturbed. Simple Enough!
Check For Leaks
Once the valves were replaced and working, it was time to turn on each Sprinkler Zone, one at a time. Water was shooting up from the ground in several places in zone 1. Two broken Sprinkler Pipes and 5 bad Sprinkler Heads in zone 1 had to be fixed and replaced. We went through each of the 6 zones in similar fashion fixing lots of leaks and replacing bad sprinkler heads.
OKLAHOMA DRAINAGE AND SPRINKLER REPAIR, Provides Expert Sprinkler Repair for: Sprinkler Valves, Sprinkler Heads, Sprinkler Controllers, and the most common problem, Sprinkler Pipes or Sprinkler Leaks.
Sprinkler Repair Service is provided for: Oklahoma City, Norman, Edmond, Yukon, Mustang, Moore, Midwest City, Blanchard, New Castle, and all surrounding areas.
The Sprinkler Repair Cost About Half of the Cost of Completely New System.
