If they have enough money for a helicopter they most likely can afford a subsurface drip system.
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Three words: Proximity infrared sensor. I worry about a drip system being damaged by a helicopter landing on it. Could also consider pressure switch in conjunction with the proximity sensor so that as soon as the chopper stops moving you don't have irrigation coming on. OR have 2 sensors set up like you would a garage door, something crosses in front of the beam it trips the system to turn off. You'd have to figure out the circuit set up for 24 volts though....

Helicopter landing pad... that's a new one.

 

Three words: Proximity infrared sensor. I worry about a drip system being damaged by a helicopter landing on it.
Helicopter landing pad... that's a new one.

You really think an infrared sensor can RELIABLY shut the irrigation while the helicopter is hovering 50' up while preparing to land? I'll bet there's a safety issue here (pilot visibility and all that). And what if it somehow turns on while the chopper is on the ground. Could the spray damage anything?
I don't think a sensor is going to cut it.

Subsurface drip was the first thing that came to my mind, but your damage issue is a reasonable point. My biggest concern would be how the drip lines interact with the permeable paving mat or whatever is used to stabilize the surface...

Here's a crazy idea: Wifi irrigation controller, and a GPS tracker in the helecopter with geofencing capability that somehow disables the irrigation while inside the geofence. You'll need a wizard of an IT guy to make it work, and it would be limited to a single helicopter though (so it wouldn't be suitable for a public helipad, but might be suitable for a private one).

Yeah, helipad, that IS a new one.

 

Good point about the infrared interference and issues with FCC/FAA. Maybe anemometer to measure air speed when the chopper is landing and pressure sensor to know when there's a chopper on the pad?

 

I was hired to do a design for a pad, the more I thought about it, the more the liability issue bothered me + the cost!

 

I doubt the pad itself is grass, prolly concrete surrounded by turf.

Sub surface drip would be my answer.
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I doubt the pad itself is grass, prolly concrete surrounded by turf.

These guys seem to use grass (though in looking at the pictures that show the wheels on the ground, everything I can find has these "targets" under the wheels themselves)

edit:
I found a picture of the Carters exiting Marine 1 on the White House lawn that had nothing under the wheels. The landing target was instead by itself, in front of the nose.

 

Why can't anyone be taught to simply turn the controller to the "Off" position if needed as long as it's located in a convenient location. How hard is that. Or have the controller wired to a conventional light switch that is clearly marked and in a convenient location.

 

Why can't anyone be taught to simply turn the controller to the "Off" position if needed as long as it's located in a convenient location. How hard is that. Or have the controller wired to a conventional light switch that is clearly marked and in a convenient location.

I see three problems that need solving here.

1) Shut the irrigation while the chopper is parked so it does not get sprayed. This could be solved by turning off the zone on a post-flight checklist, but if you turn on the zone during your pre-flight checklist, there's a chance it may start during takeoff.

2) Shut the irrigation if it happens to be running while the chopper is returning home. Can this be done easily if the site is unattended? Can you do this remotely from within the chopper?

3) Maintain irrigation on the pad if the chopper happens to be parked there for a week. I don't see any way to do this without subsurface drip.

looking at this:
http://www.typargeosynthetics.com/p.../products/ground-reinforcement-mesh/grassprotecta-grass-reinforcement-mesh.html
I see that they claim it is good for a helipad, and even show an example of that use.
From the looks of it, I don't think it would harm a subsurface drip system. Though other grass stabilization products might.

another example:
http://www.grassreinforcement.com/airfields.html

 

Another Idea i have came from when I was getting my private pilot license. I learned on a airfield in Lakeville MN called airlake. the field is not tower controlled only call out signals meaning you turn your radio to the prescribed frequency and let other pilots know your intentions. When flying at night and wanting to land all the lights on the runway are dimly light you cant see them from the sky but when you get into the landing pattern you would hit your radio transmission switch 3X and the runway would fully illuminate. That would maybe work to turn the system off and then a timed relay would then start to countdown a predetermined time and then would open the circuit again to allow for watering of the zone.

I like the subsurface drip idea I need to find more information the soil stabilizer that will be used.

If the helipad is illuminated my other solution may work

 

Glad you asked this question. IBM had one at their plant in Dayton NJ and I think J&J had one at their Lawerenceville NJ site. These were onsite spray irrigation fields which were part of of a well extraction system that treated contaminated manufacturing sites. It has been many years but if memory serves me right, there were photo eyes that shut the system off for 15 minutes if tripped. They were giant sand mounds that instantly dried out in 3 or 4 seconds so you could cut grass there without getting stuck. And if memory serves me right, the pop up heads were misters. Because of the heat of the water, grass grew and needed cutting 11 months of the year.

 

I simply would suggest a proper pad and grass is not it.
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Couldn't you use a wind sensor? And then have a delay take effect... So, say it won't turn back on for an hour after the sensor is tripped.
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Are the Turf Bubblers still around :laugh:

 

here's my idea: landing lights? don't these things usually have marker lights that turn on for landing/takeoff? Have a switch wired in on that system that would delay/pause the sprinklers. The switch (reverse relay) would need to open the circuit when lights are energized thus you could wire it into your controller as a sensor and have it delay the watering.

 

The issue is the helicopter may be there when the system comes on and if you have one you don't want it to have water spots on it. This keeps a delayed switch from being a good idea. The idea that the helicopter will damage subsurface would depend on what's landing there. Most likely a small helicopter wouldn't be an issue.

 

Artificial Turf is your answer here. No watering, will last for years, and looks just like real grass. Nothing to damage.

 

Thanks for all the ideas will let you know what happens in a few weeks

 

Anyone who owns a heli doesn't want a dedicated pad of grass thats just silly
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I think when you go to the FAA for your heli pad permit they have a whole list of requirements for the pads. One of which is that you can't use artificial turf because the backwash of the rotors could get under the artificial turf. If memory serves me right, the IBM site had the heli pad before they installed the irrigation field

 

I think when you go to the FAA for your heli pad permit they have a whole list of requirements for the pads. One of which is that you can't use artificial turf because the backwash of the rotors could get under the artificial turf. If memory serves me right, the IBM site had the heli pad before they installed the irrigation field

Ca., Mn., and Mi. are lucky enough to have 280 pgs of state regs to also contend with.
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ive found drip works well for my helicopter pad.

 

ive found drip works well for my helicopter pad.

A beanie cap with a propeller on top does not constitute a helicopter Rhett.
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A beanie cap with a propeller on top does not constitute a helicopter Rhett.
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:clapping:

 

well played