DIY How to Sprinkler Calibration and Hunter Rotator MP1000 Review

Products Used in Today's Video
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Rain Gauge 10 pack
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AMS soil probe
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Hunter Rotator MP1000
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Ginja’s Favorite Lawn Products
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Fertilizer
Propeat Fertilizer
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Yard Equipment
Sun Joe Scarifier and dethatcher (REQUIRES 12Gaugae Extension Cord)
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12gauge 100ft extension cord
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Thatch Rake
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Spyker hand held spreader
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Levelawn
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Thermometer (Taylor digital thermometer)
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FlowZone Typhoon 2V
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DoMyOwn (PAID LINK): https://tinyurl.com/423najqv
FlowZone Storm Backpack Sprayer
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DoMyOwn (PAID LINK): https://tinyurl.com/53g8qmog
Solo Handheld Sprayer 2 Gallon w/ fan nozzle
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Our daily temperatures went from 60 degrees to 80 degrees overnight! It's been 80 degrees for the last couple of days and it's finally time to turn on the sprinklers.

I have the Hunter Rotator MP1000 sprinkler heads. These "high efficiency" heads are stated to run 30% more efficient than other sprinkler heads on the market. Keep in mind there are some marketing misnomers. This does not mean that they run less time and save you money on water. What it means is these heads have spider leg output which puts out bigger droplet size. This means less evaporation and more water to the lawn. They also run at 40psi or less allowing you to put more heads on one station. They work well in areas that have pressure issues.

It's important to understand these heads run less water per hour than any head on the market. Watering 101, you have to have 6" to 8" of water saturation to keep grass happy. Which means you have to understand how much water is coming out of the sprinklers. These hunter heads only put out .4" or less water per hour. Average sprinklers put out .7" to .85" per hour. Which means you will have to run your hunter rotator mp heads for much longer than the average sprinkler head.

Steps to turning on the sprinklers
1. locate the water irrigation stop valve
2. walk 6 to 15 feet in front of the water irrigation stop valve and find the sprinkler on/off valve tube
3. use a sprinkler key that's shaped like a T bar and turn it counter clockwise to turn the valve to the run position.
4. inspect the line for leaks.
5. if you have an irrigation backflow valve turn the valves to the on position or parallel to the pipes.
6. inspect all the valve boxes for leaks.
7. turn on your sprinklers and inspect the heads

By this point the sprinklers should be up and running. Inspect the heads for spray patterns and leaks. If you have broken heads check the filters first. Many times it's a plugged filter causing the issues and not a broken head.

Calibration water output test
Step 1: go to google maps and print a copy of the arial view of your yard.
Step 2. Place like sized cups or rain gauge cups between heads
Steps 3. run a 20 min cycle
Step 4. Record how many inches are in each cup according to your placement on the map. This will tell you where and if you have coverage problems.
Step 5. Do the math to figure out how many minutes a week you need to run your sprinklers. In Utah for the month of may, average temps between 75 and 80 degrees, we need 1". June average 80 degrees to 90 we need 1.5", July August 87 degrees to 100 degrees we need 1.5" to 2". The goal is to run the sprinklers 2 to 3 days a week maximum for clay and loam based soil and 3 to 4 days per week for sandy soil.