Blow outs and the big east coast storm potential problems

[Mdirrigation]

One potential problem coming up due to the big storm involving blowouts of systems................NO ELECTRICITY to run the controller , sure you can try to chase down valve boxes , that takes too long . TAKE ALONG GENERATOR . I dont want to lose a week of prime time doing blowouts , I bought the cheap little 700 watt generator from harbor freight tools just for emergencies and to have a light weight generator .

Another possible solution is a battery pack , to power each valve from the controller , this should be possible but how long would the batteries last .

[Mike Leary]

Originally Posted by Mdirrigation

One potential problem coming up due to the big storm involving blowouts of systems................NO ELECTRICITY to run the controller , sure you can try to chase down valve boxes , that takes too long . TAKE ALONG GENERATOR . I dont want to lose a week of prime time doing blowouts , I bought the cheap little 700 watt generator from harbor freight tools just for emergencies and to have a light weight generator .

Another possible solution is a battery pack , to power each valve from the controller , this should be possible but how long would the batteries last .

That seems stupid, IMHO. You should know where the valves are and flip the bleeders. Move on to the next. Good luck, looks like you might take a major hit.

[lawns Etc]

The small generator is a great idea. I'm not going anywhere till Wednesday. Working tomorrow and part day Sunday then batten down the house stay safe.
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[Mdirrigation]

Originally Posted by Mike Leary

That seems stupid, IMHO. You should know where the valves are and flip the bleeders. Move on to the next. Good luck, looks like you might take a major hit.

Well if i were the only one doing blow outs , I could probably find most of the valves on systems I installed . But since I have 2 other guys and they havent seen all the properties , and alot of these systems are 15 years plus old , there are boxes buried in mulch beds , grass grown over them in the lawn , and alot we dont know where they are . Using the generator adds about 5 minutes to a blow out , where looking for valves is an unknown . I schedule my guys 8 to 12 a day and add a few as the day goes on , I shoot for 15 since i know where each house is , no time to search for valves .

[1idejim]

Prolly want to bypass the hardwired clocks with a spare transformer and attach some good alligator clips to the leads.
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[irritation]

Just shut off the mains and drain the backflows and pumps. They will be fine untill late Dec. when the ground freezes.

[Kiril]

Just eat some cheese.

[mitchgo]

A station master would work and be the cheapest

[Wet_Boots]

Originally Posted by 1idejim

Prolly want to bypass the hardwired clocks with a spare transformer and attach some good alligator clips to the leads.
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two words - Remote Pigtails

[DanaMac]

Originally Posted by mitchgo

A station master would work and be the cheapest

That's my vote too. Just keep some extra 9 volts with you just in case.
I use the controller maybe 5%-10% of the time on blow outs. Usually I open at the valves with the bleeder or solenoid, but we also manifold and rarely see scattered separate valves. As someone else said, maybe just drain the systems and go back when there is power. I've done that as well when we get a cold front coming in and can't get to all the blow outs. Then we go back at our leisure. At least you make the systems safe from freezing, and keep the customer happy. I can drain down more 2x-3x more systems in a day, than if I were to blow them out. Not as profitable, but when a storm like this comes in, ya gotta do, what ya gotta do.