If you're dragging hoses every evening or watching one corner brown while another squelches, your watering setup is working against you. Here are the signs we look for on audits — and what an upgrade actually involves.
Five Signs It's Time
Dry spots next to soggy ones mean mismatched heads or pressure problems. Geysers and misting mean broken or wrong nozzles. A controller without rain-skip waters through storms. Water bills climbing while the lawn declines is the classic symptom. And if coverage misses new beds or the new patio, the system no longer matches the yard.
What a Good Upgrade Includes
Matched-precipitation heads so every area gets the same inches per hour. Separate zones for lawn, beds, and trees. Drip lines where sprinklers waste water on foliage. A smart controller that adjusts for weather. Most retrofits finish in a day or two without tearing up the yard.
- Book a spring audit before the dry season starts
- Ask for a zone map, not just more heads
- Insist on winterization to protect the investment
