During summertime, grass and plants in a lawn need a water system that will help prevent drying and decay. For a small yard, this is not a problem. You can always use watering cans and a garden hose to water your plants and soil. However, maintenance can be a lot of work for large lawns. You need a sprinkler for this.
Most need watering gradually to prevent ending up with a puddle. This can be achieved by providing a steady water source for hours. Who wants to water their plants and lawn this long? The best alternative is to make your watering system with a timer.
This article will help you set up an above ground lawn sprinkler system using only sprinklers, a garden hose, and a Bluetooth timer.
Step 1: Plan Your Sprinkler Location & Study Your Lawn
This is the most important step. With careful planning, you can maximize your irrigation. You have to be familiar with the shape and the size of your lawn. Scan through your field and determine how big it is. You must set-up sprinklers on your lawn so that it will cover and reach a lot of areas.
Determine if your lawn is either rectangular or circular. You can then decide on the kind of sprinkler that will best cover all the areas in your lawn.
1. Circular or Oval-shaped Lawn
A small, circular-shaped lawn like the photo above will benefit from a long-reaching, pulsating sprinkler in the middle. However, you can also connect sprinklers if a single one cannot reach all the areas completely.
You can also use a rotating sprinkler for smaller but circle-shaped lawns.
2. Rectangular Lawns
In addition, a rectangular lawn will be covered better by using an oscillating sprinkler located in the middle. Again, check the range of the sprinkler so that it can reach up to the farthest part of your lawn.
Moreover, determine if you will need to set-up only one sprinkler for the whole lawn or if you need more. Planning will prevent you from having overlooked areas that can dry and turn brown especially during scorching weather.
Step 2: Gather Needed Materials
1. Garden Hose
First, have a garden hose. Make sure to use one with the appropriate length. The basis for the length is the distance between your main water supply to the location where you will install your above-ground water sprinkler.
Teknor Apex, zero-G, and Gilmour brands are available on Amazon. They offer good quality hoses. Their prices range from $10 to $100 depending on your needed length. For more garden hose options from Amazon, click on the product images below.
2. Above-ground Sprinkler
After obtaining a garden hose, buy a sprinkler head. There are varieties of this product depending on your lawn and plants. There are oscillating sprinklers, pulsating, and stationary.
The following paragraphs will show you products from each sprinkler head kind that you can choose from.
3. Oscillating Sprinklers
Use oscillating sprinklers for a rectangular lawn. Pulsating sprinkler heads, also known as impact sprinklers, are better used in big, circular areas. Moreover, stationary sprinklers can either be used for rectangular or circular lawns but has a smaller and limited range.
4. Pulsating Sprinklers
Oscillating sprinklers and pulsating sprinklers with a weighted base are useful for above-ground systems. Similarly, it is fitting to use stationary sprinklers with pointed ends that can easily be pushed in the soil.
5. Stationary Sprinklers
Furthermore, we recommend a sprinkler head that is fitting for above-ground systems. Do not buy a ‘pop-out’ sprinkler head because this is better-equipped for an in-ground set-up.
Also, those without a base may need additional piping work before being suitable on top of the ground.
6. Bluetooth Timer
The last material you need is a smart timer that can be easily controlled by Bluetooth. A good example of a smart water timer is the Orbit B-hyve 21005 hose faucet timer. All you need to do is connect this first on your main source of water and then you can connect your garden hose after.
Another similar product is the time irrigation controller by Hunter Industries. Both products are available on Amazon.
Step 3: Assemble your Above-ground Lawn Sprinkler System
Once you have completed obtaining the list of materials, you can now assemble your above-ground lawn sprinkler system. The following steps will not involve any digging.
First, connect your Bluetooth timer to your main water source. Garden hose connectors will come in handy for this step. The set-up should look like the photo below.
Second, connect your garden hose and situate the end of it where you want to position your sprinkler. Putting the sprinkler in the middle of the lawn is the best position. You can make your sprinkler as the end of your system if you have a smaller area that needs water.
Try to turn on your sprinkler system and check if it can reach the farthest areas of your lawn. If there are areas that do not get water, increase the water pressure in your sprinkler head. Most sprinkler heads have adjustable settings.
If you are already using the highest power and there are still parts that are not reached, utilize multiple sprinklers for a larger coverage. You will need to connect multiple sprinklers using cuts of your garden hose to achieve this arrangement.
You need to buy additional hose connectors and fittings to achieve an interconnected sprinkler system like the photo above. Do not worry, if you have the tools needed, making your own connected sprinkler system will not be that hard.
Conclusion
Lawn maintenance during hot weather conditions will become less of hard work if you have an irrigation system at hand. Moreover, a better choice is to have a smart sprinkler system that you can control wirelessly!
By only having a sprinkler head, a garden hose, and a Bluetooth timer, you can already achieve an above-ground lawn sprinkler system. Who would have thought watering your plants would be this easy?
