Why you’re watering your lawn all wrong
Guess what I learned this week?
Most irrigation systems in Minnesota are wasting at least 40% of the water they crank out every summer. And dialing back your irrigation system can save you from a basement flood during the next heavy rain event.
Carver County Watershed event
We had a great turnout at the Carver County Watershed Management Organization event this week. Steve Woods with Freshwater Society and Paul Moline from Carver County gave enlightening talks about the state of our watersheds in Minnesota and the southwest metro region.
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I did not realize just how much our groundwater wells are being drawn down in Minnesota, even with increased summer precipitation.
The fact is, most irrigation systems massively over-water. Your lawn is actually healthier on far less water than you might think. Take a look at your irrigation settings and consider lowering the output, and turning your system off if rain is expected in the next few days.
I was astounded to see that our homeowner's association reduced our irrigation usage by 85% in the summer after I volunteered to control our irrigation box.
If our one small homeowner association can save 760,000 gallons of water in a summer, image the collective impact if every irrigation system was that efficient. And yes, our grass is still lush green.
Added benefits
The benefits of using less water for irrigation go way beyond the cost savings.
Your home is less likely to have basement flooding issues if the soils around your foundation have ample "head-room" to absorb the next rain. If your sprinklers just went off, and you get a multi-inch rainfall you're putting excess and unnecessary strain on your sump pump. You're also at much higher risk for the huge hassle of flooding in your home, and for filing a costly insurance claim. Even worse, many policies do not cover certain kinds of flooding.
An ounce of prevention by dialing back or turning off your irrigation system can go a long way toward keeping your basement dry as the frequency of extreme rainfall increases in Minnesota.
Food for thought as you bring your irrigation system online next spring.