How to Winterize Your Sprinkler System Without a Professional Blowout
It can be as simple as opening some valves—carefully, of course
Your sprinkler system works hard all summer long to ensure your landscaping remains lush and green. But come wintertime, if you live in an area prone to freezing, the sprinkler system itself may be in need of some love—in the form of winterizing. Here’s how to winterize a sprinkler system without the need for a blowout.
Why Do You Need to Winterize a Sprinkler System and When Is a Blowout Worth It?
Winterizing your sprinkler system refers to the process of ensuring there’s no water left over in the pipes to freeze and expand—which would destroy the pipes. Additionally, insulating the sprinkler system’s exposed components will help further protect them from the harsh winter weather.
The winterizing process can be a bit time-consuming and tedious, but in areas where winter brings a hard freeze, these steps are essential for ensuring your sprinkler system’s survival through the coldest months of the year. After all, a little bit of prep work is way better than having to pay the cost of replacing your sprinkler system come spring.
Below, we’ll walk you through the process of manually draining your sprinkler system—but another option is to use the blowout method. A sprinkler blowout involves hooking up the sprinkler system to a source of compressed air to force every remaining drop of water out.
The blowout method is efficient, but it’s also risky: Some sprinkler systems are simply not designed to handle so much pressure, and even if yours is, you could easily damage your system if you don’t know exactly what you’re doing.
If you want to have your sprinkler system blown out for the winter, we highly recommend consulting a professional to help. But if you’re ready to tackle the manual process, keep reading.
How to Winterize Your Sprinkler System Without a Blowout
Here’s how to get your sprinkler system winter-ready without relying on the blowout method.
1. Turn Off the Water
It might seem obvious, but you’ll thank us when you don’t get soaked! The first step in winterizing your sprinkler system is to shut off the water at its source. There is usually a main valve that you’ll find located close to your water meter, and there may also be one or two backflow prevention valves, which will also need to be turned to the off position.
2. Turn Off the Timer
Next, you’ll need to turn off your sprinkler’s automatic timer, if it has one. Some sprinklers come equipped with a “rain mode” option, which will allow you to save your settings so you can easily power the system back up come spring and get right back to your regularly scheduled programming.
Note: Rain mode is not the same as the sprinkler being turned entirely off, and it may use a minimal amount of energy over the course of the winter. If your sprinkler doesn’t have rain mode or a timer, simply switch it off completely.
3. Drain the Sprinkler System
Now comes—well, maybe not the fun part, but the important part: actually draining your sprinkler. There are two ways to go about this (outside, of course, of the blowout method): manual draining and automatic draining.
Manual Draining
To manually drain your sprinkler system, you’ll use the force of gravity to help you rid the pipes of excess water by opening the valves at the lowest part of the pipes. Slowly open each valve one at a time, and wear goggles and gardening gloves to protect yourself from any pressurized water that may still be in the system. Once the system is entirely drained, you can close the valves back up.
Automatic Draining
If your sprinkler system has an automatic drain function, this step is as simple as using it—which usually involves turning the sprinkler on while the water supply is shut off. However, there will still be some residual water left in the valves, which is why you’ll need to manually loosen each valve’s solenoids. (These are plastic caps with two wires running out of them.) Loosening the solenoids lets water flow out of the system and air flow in. Be sure to tighten them back down once the system is fully finished draining.
4. Insulate the Above-Ground Components
Once your sprinkler is completely drained of water, the final step in winterization is to insulate whatever parts of your sprinkler system will be exposed to the winter weather. This usually includes the water supply shut-off valve, the backflow prevention valves, and exposed pipes. You can use pipe wrap insulation tape to get the job done; just be sure not to block any air vents or drain outlets on the backflow preventers.
5. When in Doubt, Consult Your Owner’s Manual
The above steps are a generalized guide to winterizing sprinkler systems, but your individual system may have specific quirks and requirements. You should always consult your owner’s manual for the full details on exactly how to take care of your equipment.
More Tips for Keeping Your Lawn Happy Year-Round
Your lawn may lie in wait beneath a blanket of snow all winter long, but when the warm weather comes back, there are some simple steps to help turn that icy white field into a layer of plush, green grass.
Know when to water: Having a sprinkler system is a great step toward ensuring even watering at regular intervals, but still, it’s important to understand when is the right time to water your grass. For instance, contrary to popular belief, it’s actually not a good idea to engage your sprinklers (or even just a garden hose) if it’s 95 degrees or hotter outside.
Aerate your lawn: It may sound silly, but poking holes in your yard can actually help your grass grow longer, stronger, and lusher. Just be sure you do so during the grass’s peak growing season, rather than during dormancy. (Thinking of DIYing it? Here’s how to aerate your lawn—and how much it costs for professional aeration.)
Keep it trimmed: Along with looking nice and manicured, a trimmed lawn is less prone to pests, more available to accept oxygen and nutrients, and much easier to maintain in the long run. (Of course, it’s also important not to cut the grass too short; about 2 to 3 inches is usually the right length.)
DIY vs. Hiring a Professional
Winterizing your sprinkler system without a blowout doesn’t have to be difficult, and it costs almost nothing (with the exception of whatever you spend on the insulation tape). It can, though, be a bit time-consuming and tedious. So don’t forget: You can always contact your local winterization pro for pre-winter sprinkler system maintenance and winterization.
Frequently Asked Questions
Depending on what kind of sprinkler system you have, manually winterizing may be as simple as turning off the water, turning off your timer (or setting it to rain mode), and opening all the valves slowly and one at a time, as the water inside the system is likely still pressurized. However, you should consult your owner’s manual to see exactly which steps are required for your model. Don’t forget to insulate your above-ground components, too!
Like anything else, sprinkler pipes will freeze if the temperature falls below freezing, which is 32 degrees Fahrenheit (or 0 degrees Celsius). However, winterizing your sprinkler system is a relatively simple (if somewhat time-consuming and tedious) process, and it can help ensure your system won’t be damaged over the winter, even if it does freeze.
A sprinkler blowout is the process of using compressed air to physically blow any remaining water out of the pipes—which is one way to begin the winterizing process. (You can also drain the sprinkler pipes manually or automatically.) Winterization is the entire process of getting your sprinkler system ready to safely weather the winter, which also includes insulating above-ground components.