We need to include several rectangular areas in our sprinkler system. These areas are 5 x 15, 4 x 14, and 4 to 5 x 17. The Toro catalog illustrates side, center, and end strip patterns as all rectangular. The Rainbird catalog shows the center strip shaped like a bow tie (spraying wider from a narrow center) and the end strip as half a bow tie (spraying from narrow to wide). If you've had actual experience sprinkling rectangles, your advice would be appreciated.
I'll assume you're watering lawn. I had an automatic lawn sprinkler system at my last house, with Rainbird heads. With the configuration you have (long rectangles) setting the sprinkler heads at the perimeter in the center of the long and short edges worked best... set each to spray a half circle and adjust for size of area covered, a little overspray and overlap is desirable. From my experience avoiding the pulsating heads as much as possible resulted in far less pattern readjusting and head replacements... especially when heads are set at curbside, even in the best neighborhoods the hooligans strolling home in the wee hours from a night of carousing will decide your pulsating sprinkler heads are great fun for cooling off on a hot night and they'll usually use a few for soccer practice before they move on. For some reason they weren't attracted to the quiet stationary type heads
I've not seen heads that cover other than a circular, or semi-circular, area, with the exception of drip watering systems.
For my rectangular front lawn (all heads from one line on the long edge of the rectangle; a line on each long edge would probably be better, but more work), I have quarter circle spray heads at each end, and half circle spray heads along the edge, with enough that each area is covered by two heads. I also have some long rectangular flower beds and I put in drip irrigation there, which works well with flower beds, but I don't know how it would work with a lawn.
I visited Rainbird's site (I have their system) and was disappointed to see that they apparently no longer offer a self-design service; you have to send them a map and rely on their design. Perhaps too many people could not handle the volume and pressure calculations and were mis designing their own system. I also noted that the local store they list as carrying their product in fact does not carry their product (I visited the store), but a local irrigation supply house accommodated me, and I always expect that products sold through suppliers are of a superior grade to those sold to the public. Also, some of the drip supply pieces that I got some years ago are apparently no longer made.
I'm happy with my ra> We need to include several rectangular areas in our sprinkler system.
With sprinkler heads they usuall use a quarter circle (90°) ones in the corners and semicircle (180°) ones on the sides. It works well. They are also out of the way when they are on the edges like that.
My oldest sprinkler is for rectangular areas. It has adjustable stops so you can hit as wide an area as you want. It is called an Oscillator Sprinklers:
It is similar to Gilmour Patter Master Oscillator Sprinkler 8800D
or Ace Hardware Oscillating Sprinkler 4200A
or Ace Hardware Oscillating Sprinkler 4010A
or Gilmour Perfect Cover Oscillator Sprinkler 8836
or Ace Oscillating Sprinkler 261A
and virtually identical to Ace Hardware Oscillating Sprinkler 360MA
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.