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IMPROVE YOUR SPRINKLER EFFICIENCY |
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 Sprinkler lay
out is very important. Distribution Uniformity (DU) of the water is critical. Distribution
Uniformity (DU) is a measure of how evenly water is applied across a specified area
being watered from the same valve during irrigation. For example, if one inch
of water is applied in one part of the same valved area and only half an inch
is applied in another part of the same valved area that is poor DU. DU is
expressed as a percentage between 0 and 100%, although it is virtually
impossible to attain 100% in practice. DUs of less than 70% are considered
poor, DUs of 70 - 90% are good, and DUs greater than 90% are excellent. We have
seen DUs as low as 20%.
 In short, bad DU means that you are
probably watering part of your yard (on a particular valve) too much and
another part too little. Most people will turn up the timer or water long
enough to keep the area with little water green and lush, so that means you are
overwatering the other area too much. With a 20% DU that means 5 times more
water than was needed was applied.
Garden View Irrigation crews measure DU before turning
the irrigation system over to our clients. Garden View Maintenance crews
measure DU in early stages of a new maintenance contract. Sometimes relatively inexpensive
adjustments or changes to the irrigation system will result in significant
water savings.
This image shows the inefficiency of many sprinkler systems 
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