# Sprinkler Heads leaking underground



## ctbear (Jun 4, 2018)

Looks like I have a couple of leaks under sprinkler heads as I've noticed pools of water when running. Upon digging up the sprinklers, I've discovered that two 90 degree elbows are used as "risers" that attach to the sprinkler heads. What's the proper solution?

One can not fully tighten these elbows and align it such that the sprinkler heads are standing straight up and not at an angle.

Elbows used: https://www.homedepot.com/p/1-2-in-...PIPHorizontal2_rr-_-202257127-_-100171746-_-N

Pics:


http://imgur.com/WZanGOH


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## Ecks from Tex (Apr 26, 2018)

Those elbows are meant for swing joints/risers, so they're not actually used properly in your scenario. BUT I see no reason why they would all of a sudden leak just because they're attached directly to the sprinkler head. In reality you should come off that with a Male-to-female elbow then go up with a swing joint of some kind to give the head a little flexibility if you run over it.

At a bar minimum, I would do is remove them and re-tape everything on the male ends as well as apply some pvc thread compound to the female ends.

I guess my question is are you sure the elbow joints are leaking? It could also be the base of the sprinkler head that is leaking.


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## Ware (Jan 28, 2017)

Moving this to the irrigation subforum. :thumbup:


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## TC2 (Sep 15, 2017)

As Ecks says, the proper solution would be similar but with flexibility like the Hunter prebuilt joints https://www.hunterindustries.com/irrigation-product/accessories/sj-swing-joint

What has possibly happened is that the joints have been rotated into position by screwing/unscrewing and it's unscrewed too much causing water to leak.


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## Ballistic (Mar 19, 2018)

I have had this problem on a lot of heads, but it seems to be a issue with older sprinklers bodys leaking, as soon as i put a new one in it stops making a big puddle. Also Funny Pipe + Barbed fittings are good option too.


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

This thread makes me wonder if mine were attached in the best way. There's an elbow screwed into the bottom, and then the tubing appears pushed onto the other end of the elbow...maybe it's the barbed fitting mentioned above...?


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## Ecks from Tex (Apr 26, 2018)

Green said:


> This thread makes me wonder if mine were attached in the best way. There's an elbow screwed into the bottom, and then the tubing appears pushed onto the other end of the elbow...maybe it's the barbed fitting mentioned above...?


I think you just go straight to the poly tubing elbow with the barbed fitting. I usually come out with a male to female fitting and then hook into a poly tubing riser of some sort (or swing joint). But @Greendoc is the one who could tell you if what you're doing is a good idea. He had some helpful info in this thread: https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3209


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

Ecks from Tex said:


> I think you just go straight to the poly tubing elbow with the barbed fitting. I usually come out with a male to female fitting and then hook into a poly tubing riser of some sort (or swing joint). But @Greendoc is the one who could tell you if what you're doing is a good idea. He had some helpful info in this thread: https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3209


Thanks. Looks like my installer uses the "typical funny pipe assembly" described early in that thread you linked to. Advantages/disadvantages to that method?


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## Ecks from Tex (Apr 26, 2018)

Green said:


> Ecks from Tex said:
> 
> 
> > I think you just go straight to the poly tubing elbow with the barbed fitting. I usually come out with a male to female fitting and then hook into a poly tubing riser of some sort (or swing joint). But @Greendoc is the one who could tell you if what you're doing is a good idea. He had some helpful info in this thread: https://thelawnforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=3209
> ...


It's easier but can be prone to leaking. I am having some underground leaks myself in my existing system. I dug them up and installed new heads/poly risers, but when I turned them on to test I still had leaks that filled the holes up entirely within 20 minutes. So I'm letting them dry out and going to try and assess the situation and see if I need to just build a new riser setup and better secure the poly.


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

Ecks from Tex said:


> It's easier but can be prone to leaking. I am having some underground leaks myself in my existing system. I dug them up and installed new heads/poly risers, but when I turned them on to test I still had leaks that filled the holes up entirely within 20 minutes. So I'm letting them dry out and going to try and assess the situation and see if I need to just build a new riser setup and better secure the poly.


How do you know when there are leaks? Is it when the system is running?

He said we could use risers if the heads sink down too much over time and need to raise them. I think I should learn to do it myself, though. One time a guy in an irrigation store advised me against that, saying you could screw up the system easily. Not sure how true that is, or tough it is to learn to do the work yourself if you have no plumbing experience. Is it really that hard to learn?


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## Ecks from Tex (Apr 26, 2018)

Green said:


> Ecks from Tex said:
> 
> 
> > It's easier but can be prone to leaking. I am having some underground leaks myself in my existing system. I dug them up and installed new heads/poly risers, but when I turned them on to test I still had leaks that filled the holes up entirely within 20 minutes. So I'm letting them dry out and going to try and assess the situation and see if I need to just build a new riser setup and better secure the poly.
> ...


Yeah, I've got the joints exposed and turn the system on and inspect quickly for leaks.

In my opinion anyone who has irrigation should know exactly where their lines are, how they were installed, and how to maintain it. Too many people know nothing about their irrigation. It takes a little effort to get a better understanding of it, but it is extremely easy and once you understand how your system works you will never need to call anyone out again unless you just don't want to do a big project.

There was another partner at my firm that paid $800 to replace a frozen backflow preventer this spring. When he told me that my jaw dropped. Do yourself a favor and learn how to DIY, you'll save thousands over time.

The best resource for learning how it all works and learning the best practices is irrigationtutorials.com. Everyone on this site has probably relied on that resource at one point or another. Even if you only need to do small repairs, going through the entire thing several times helped me understand the big picture and made it so that I have no hesitation if I want to modify one of my zones or change something about my system (like add a personal weather station).


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## Green (Dec 24, 2017)

@Ecks from Tex , good advice. I know where my lines are (or have photos somewhere from during installation), but no idea how to replace or move a head. I've looked at that site before, but only small parts of it. I think I need to learn the maintenance and repair stuff over time. Right now, my experience ends with changing nozzles on rotor and spray heads, starting up the system in the Spring after being winterized, and replacing top caps on rotor heads. That's as far as I go right now.


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## Ecks from Tex (Apr 26, 2018)

Green said:


> @Ecks from Tex , good advice. I know where my lines are (or have photos somewhere from during installation), but no idea how to replace or move a head. I've looked at that site before, but only small parts of it. I think I need to learn the maintenance and repair stuff over time. Right now, my experience ends with changing nozzles on rotor and spray heads, starting up the system in the Spring after being winterized, and replacing top caps on rotor heads. That's as far as I go right now.


I will try to link you some youtube videos that I feel were helpful to me in my "journey" so to speak. There are some really good irrigation guys out there to learn from and sort of get your feet wet.


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## ctbear (Jun 4, 2018)

Ecks from Tex said:


> Green said:
> 
> 
> > Ecks from Tex said:
> ...


So flexible poly tubing isn't the leak proof solution? I'm tired of all the water accumulating around/near all my sprinkler heads from the under ground leakage. Lots of wasted water in the system . Don't understand why the original contractor cobbled the system in this way with these 90 degree fittings...probably to save money.

ps. I also went in and added tape to the threads. Leaks less...but still leaks and the hole fills up with water when the system is running.


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