Sprinkler Guides for Titusville Yards

Irrigation 101 for this part of the Space Coast

These guides are written for yards in and around Titusville, not for lawns in some other climate. That means sandy soil that drains fast, watering days set by your street address, a mix of city, well and reclaimed water, and storm drains that lead toward the Indian River Lagoon. Each guide explains one topic in plain words and tells you what you can safely handle yourself and when a repair needs a pro.

Ten checks you can do this weekend

1. Run each zone for two minutes and walk it. Note anything spraying pavement, walls or windows.
2. Look for heads that lean, sit below the grass or stay up after the zone shuts off.
3. Trim grass back from around each head so the spray isn't blocked.
4. Find your controller's current program and make sure it only waters on your allowed day.
5. Check that no start time lands between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
6. Press the test button on your rain sensor while a zone runs. The zone should stop.
7. Find your irrigation shutoff valve now, so you aren't hunting for it during a leak or a freeze warning.
8. Look at the backflow preventer for drips, cracks or green corrosion.
9. Lift a valve box lid and look for standing water, which can point to a leaking valve.
10. Read your water bill for a jump that doesn't match the season.

If any of those turn up something you'd rather not take apart, that is what we are here for. Each guide links to the service that handles the problem it covers, and you can always ask us directly.

Where the rules come from

Whenever a guide mentions watering days, hours or rain sensors, it is drawing on the City of Titusville's irrigation pages, the St. Johns River Water Management District's watering restrictions and Florida law. Those can change, so each guide links to the official source. Our watering days page keeps the current schedule in one place.

Words you will see in these guides

Zone

A group of heads that run together off one valve. Your controller turns zones on one after another.

Valve

The underground gate that opens to send water to one zone. It usually sits in a plastic box with a green or purple lid.

Lateral line

The smaller pipe that carries water from a valve out to the heads. Most leaks in a yard happen here.

Spray head and rotor

Spray heads throw a fixed fan of water a short distance. Rotors turn slowly and reach farther. Mixing the two on one zone is a common cause of uneven lawns.

Backflow preventer

The above-ground valve assembly that keeps sprinkler water from flowing back into the drinking water supply.

Rain sensor

A small device, often on a gutter, that tells the controller to skip watering after enough rain.

Reclaimed water

Treated wastewater delivered through its own purple-marked pipes for irrigation.

Emitter

The small fitting on drip tubing that lets water out slowly at the base of a plant.

Controller

The timer, usually on a garage wall, that holds the watering schedule and switches each zone on and off. Some newer ones connect to Wi-Fi.