Showing posts with label Gilmour. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gilmour. Show all posts
Fixing Break On Gilmour Spike Hose Connector
One common complaint I've seen regarding the Gilmour Sprinkler on Metal Spike
is that the hose connector breaks. Once it breaks you can no longer attach a hose which means you can't use the sprinkler.I haven't had mine fail but I've come up with a solution that will reduce strain on this connection which will make it last longer. It will also make it easier to use the sprinkler.
The hose connection is the black plastic nut on the right side of the photo. This is where the male end of a hose connects to provide water to the sprinkler. The green plastic on the left is a cap. If you have enough pressure and water flow to connect multiple sprinklers you can unscrew the green cap and connect the female end of a garden hose to it, and then the male end of the garden hose to another sprinkler input.
If your Gilmour Sprinkler hose connection has broken I think the only thing you can do is buy a replacement Orbit 58197N Zinc Step Spike Base
and unscrew the Impulse head from the old spike and screw it onto the new one. The Orbit Spike has a sturdier construction than the Gilmour spike. The threads are metal and not plastic.
If your hose connection nut is still intact, you can buy a Orbit Brass Hose Quick Connect Set 58117 and attach the male part (right) to the sprinkler and leave it attached permanently. The female part (left) attaches to the male fitting on your garden hose.Using the quick connect will make it easy to attach your garden hose to your sprinkler so you can set up your sprinkler faster. Since you won't be screwing and unscrewing that plastic nut all the time will reduce wear and strain on the plastic nut which will extend it's life.
These quick connect fittings also make it easy to switch between different wands. You can buy multiple Orbit Brass Quick Connect Male
fittings to attach to different hose end sprayers. Put one on your sprinklers, one on your spray head, one on your wand sprayer, one on your Dial-n-Spray and you can quickly switch between them. There are some cheaper plastic quick connect fittings but I like the brass ones. They are very sturdy and last a long time without leaks. I have had one on my pressure washer for years without issue.When not using your sprinkler try and keep it indoors or at least in the shade. Sunlight also degrades plastic.
How To Mount Rotor Sprinkler On Spike
I have a couple of Gilmour Metal Impulse Sprinklers on Zinc Spike Bases
. They work very well but they can be loud, even after using my technique to make them quieter so I decided to attach a Hunter PGP Adjustable Rotor Head
to the spike base.The gear driven rotor sprinklers are a lot quieter than the impact sprinklers. If you don't already have the impact sprinklers you can just buy the Gilmour Turbine Rotor Sprinkler With Polymer Spike Base
and not have to add the rotor head on it. I already had these impulse sprinklers so I decided to convert my impact sprinkler to a rotor sprinkler.The Hunter PGP Rotor Head is also recognized as one of the better gear driven sprinkler heads out there. These sprinklers are meant for in ground installations but I'll be using them above-ground on spike bases. By the way, if you already have the sprinkler heads you can also buy the Orbit Zinc Step Spike Base
to mount it on.
Quieter Than an Impact Sprinkler
Because the sprinkler is gear driven and doesn't use the impact from the swing arm to turn the sprinkler the Hunter PGP is considerably quieter than an impact sprinkler All you hear is the sound of the water spray. Here is a video of my sprinkler installed and running. The hunter PGP has a radius range of 20' to 46' which matches well with the impact sprinkler. Take a look at the video below to hear how quiet it is in action.
Materials
Since I already had the spikes from the impact sprinkers, to upgrade my impact sprinkler to a rotor I only needed to purchase the following two items:
Tools
Step 1: Remove Impact Sprinkler Head
The old impact sprinkler head is screwed on to the spike base. It comes off easy by turning it counter clockwise with a pair of pliers.
Step 2: Cut Down Cut-off Riser
The cut-off riser has multiple threaded sections on it. It is used when installing in-ground sprinklers to connect the lateral lines to sprinkler heads. It will also work to connect the Hunter PGP sprinkler to the spike base.
To get the sprinkler head close to the ground I elected to cut the riser down to the first threaded section. The riser cuts easily with a utility knife.
The cut section on the left is what will be used to attach the sprinkler head to the base.
Update: The cutoff riser is designed to be weaker than the other components so it breaks easily. I made the mistake of trying to push the sprinkler spike into the ground by holding it by the sprinkler body and not the metal spike base. The riser snapped. It's designed to do this because the riser is cheaper to replace than the sprinkler body or the other fittings which are either more expensive or more difficult to replace. I'm considering replacing the broken cutoff riser with either a metal or PVC 1/2" to 3/4" reducing nipple
which would be more durable. I would need to make sure to be careful handling the sprinkler since it would obviously break before the metal fitting.
Step 3: Attach Riser To Base
The thinner end of the nipple screws into the spike base using a clockwise motion. Make sure the threads are seated correctly because the plastic threads are easy to strip. I tightened as far as I could by hand and then continued with a pair of pliers to get it nice and snug.
Step 4: Attach Sprinkler Head To Riser
The final step is to screw the sprinkler head onto the top part of the riser. Again be careful to not mess up the threads.
I tightened the sprinkler head as much as I could by hand. At this point you're ready to connect the sprinkler to a garden hose, place it where you'd like and adjust the arc and radius to suit your needs. Instructions on how to adjust the sprinkler come with your sprinkler head.