If you played golf last weekend I am sure you noticed just how dry the golf course was. Generally, we like for the golf course to be on the dry side...it is preferable both from a players standpoint and agronomically, but what we experienced last weekend was a little extreme.
The problem was an irrigation pipe leak. Not just any leak but a 12" mainline break. There is a lot of "mainline" under your golf course but the one that failed is arguable the most important one on the property since it connects the pump station to the rest of the golf course. When it failed we completely lost the ability to water your golf course.
To compound the problem, we are in a drought period and no rain came to our aid. To water your golf course we were limited, for about two weeks, to hauling water to the most needy areas with buckets and spray tanks. We are quite fortunate that this happened in the fall when temperatures were cool...I am sure you can imagine the potential outcome had this happened in the middle of the summer.
On the upside, this is the first main line failure we have had in the eight years this system has been in the ground. The high density polyethylene (HDPE) piping has a great track record both as irrigation piping and natural gas line. Really, it fails very rarely. The down side to the low failure rate is that the repair parts are hard to come by. The suppliers just don't stock them since there is such a low demand. That left us with no other option than to order directly from the manufacturer resulting in a significantly longer wait time for the required part.
As of Monday afternoon, the pipe has been repaired. As soon as it was functional the greens received a much needed drink. The rest of the golf course had to wait until after sundown on Monday night but the entire course is now re-hydrated. I am happy to report the repair is holding strong and the system appears to be functioning properly once again.
No comments :
Post a Comment