Irrigation Repair After a Storm: Assessing Damage and Recovery

Storms don’t care how carefully you tuned your watering schedule. One wind-heavy night and a season’s worth of irrigation maintenance can unravel. I’ve walked properties after hurricanes, thunderstorm squalls, and early spring ice events. The patterns repeat. A lateral line pops near a tree that heaved. A valve box fills like a fish tank. Heads lean like wilted tulips or disappear entirely. And then there’s the invisible damage that quietly wastes water for weeks unless you look for it.

What follows is the process I use to assess and recover irrigation systems after storms, grounded in field experience from small lawns to commercial sites. It’s written for the homeowner who wants to do the first pass well, the property manager trying to triage ten acres, and anyone coordinating irrigation service in Greensboro or similar climates where thunderstorm cells can be brutal one day and the clay soil cracks the next.

First, stabilize the site before you think about irrigation

If branches hang over walkways, a fence is on the ground, or power lines are down nearby, irrigation can wait. Water and electricity mix in all the wrong ways. I also look for signs of soil movement or sinkholes, especially after multi-inch rain events. You don’t want to pressurize a mainline lying in undermined soil.

Once the immediate hazards are addressed, turn off the irrigation controller. If your controller has a rain delay, that’s fine for a day or two, but a full off prevents accidental cycles while you’re diagnosing. If you suspect a burst main, shut the irrigation backflow’s isolation valves. It’s better to go dry than to turn your yard into a marsh while you troubleshoot.

What storms actually break

Wind and water are obvious culprits, but their effects on irrigation have a particular look. On turf systems, the most common failures include snapped risers, tilted or clogged spray heads, cracked lateral lines near tree roots, wire splices that wick water and corrode, and valve diaphragms that stick open after grit passes through. Rotor heads often survive wind but may be out of alignment. Drip zones tend to flood quietly because small emitters don’t reveal big leaks at a glance; instead, you’ll see a sinking soil pocket or unusual plant stress days later.

In ice storms, low profile is not immunity. I’ve found pressure vacuum breakers split along the casting, even with insulation, because a brief freeze spiked pressure in the body. After hail, plastic head caps crack like an eggshell without immediately breaking off. Those heads will seep under pressure and leave a greenish ring of algae over a week.

The takeaway is simple: don’t trust a quick look from curb height. Get your hands on each part of the system.

A sensible sequence for assessment

I like to work from macro to micro. Start at the water source, move through the controls, then follow the distribution path out to the smallest outlets. You’ll miss less, and you’ll avoid chasing the symptom instead of the cause.

Start with the backflow preventer. In most residential setups, it’s a pressure vacuum breaker or reduced pressure assembly near the side of the house. If you see leaks, feel for hairline cracks by running your fingers along the casting. A hairline often reads as a faint, gritty line rather than a clean split. Close both isolation valves if anything seems off. If it’s intact, leave it off for now.

Open the main valve box and the downstream valve boxes. After a heavy blow, I expect at least one box to be flooded. Scoop out water with a cup or try a small wet/dry vac. Submerged solenoids can survive if the splices are waterproof, but you won’t know until you pull one apart. An irrigation service technician will carry dry-crimp heat-shrink connectors and dielectric grease to re-seal splices. If your splices are simple wire nuts with a dab of grease, plan on upgrading them. Storms punish mediocre connections.

At the controller, run a quick electrical check. Do a visual inspection for lightning marks on the cabinet, a surge protector, or the common terminal strip. I’ve replaced more than one controller that took a strike through the zone wires. If you have a multimeter, test the master valve and each zone’s output when you manually start a zone. A healthy 24–28 VAC at the terminal usually indicates the controller is alive. No output on all zones with power present suggests an internal fuse or board failure. If you’re in the Greensboro area and suspect surge damage, it’s common enough after summer lightning to justify calling a professional for a controller and surge arrestor package. When we handle irrigation installation in Greensboro NC, we now include surge protection as standard on exposed runs.

With controls and valves scoped, you’re ready to put water in the system briefly. Open the backflow valves, but do it slowly to avoid slamming pressure into a compromised line. Then, activate zones one by one and walk them. I try to start at the furthest zone and work back toward the water source because pressure drop can hide smaller leaks if a break upstream is bleeding off most of the flow.

Finding what the eye misses

Some damage is loud. A geyser where a head used to be makes diagnosis easy. More often, especially in established landscapes, you need to read small signs.

A tilted head isn’t just cosmetic. That five-degree lean can shift the spray pattern and create scallops of dry turf. Gently try to twist the body back to vertical. If it spins freely in soil, the connection may be broken beneath. Pull back the sod around the head with a flat spade and check the swing joint. Swing joints save heads in storms, but they can unscrew or crack. If the joint is intact, re-seat it, tamp soil in lifts, and re-grade to the head’s lip. Heads should sit flush with the surface, not an inch high like a gopher’s periscope.

A head that won’t pop up fully under pressure, after a storm, is often clogged with grit washed into the canister. On rotors, remove the cap, pull the riser, rinse the internal screen, and check the nozzle for micro-cracks. On sprays, clear the filter basket and examine the nozzle for hail dimpling. Replace any nozzle that throws a fuzzy edge or spits. It’s a cheap part that controls the entire pattern.

Look for slow leaks at the case seam under pressure. If you see a steady weep, the body may be cracked. I keep a mix of 4-inch and 6-inch bodies on the truck because storms don’t respect consistent head heights, and taller turf or shrub beds often need the 6-inch rise. If you’re making a list for parts, count how many of each height and body type you’ll need.

Valve behavior tells a story as well. A zone that runs weak and never quite shuts off typically has debris under the diaphragm after storm runoff. Shut water, open the valve, clean the diaphragm and seat, and reassemble. If it still won’t close, the diaphragm could be split. Diaphragms and solenoids are consumables that last several seasons under normal conditions; after a major event, replace them in pairs if you already have the valve apart.

Drip zones demand patience. They rarely gush. Walk the line, press your palm into the mulch, and feel for unexpectedly wet pockets. In clay, subsurface breaks can surface ten feet away. When I’m not sure, I use a pressure gauge at the zone head. If a zone normally holds 25–30 PSI and now sits at 10–15, there’s a significant leak or a broken pressure regulator. Storms can jar regulators, especially if they’re inline plastic units. Swap a suspect regulator before you excavate fifty feet of tubing.

Electrical gremlins after lightning and flooding

Electronics are the soft underbelly of modern irrigation. Smart controllers are fantastic until a surge arcs down a field wire and cooks a board. In the field, I start simple. With the controller off, test resistance across each zone’s common and station wire. Typical solenoids read in the 20–60 ohm range. A dead short reads near zero, often from splices that got waterlogged or wire insulation nicked by a shovel when you were clearing branches. An open circuit reads infinite and usually indicates a cut wire or failed solenoid.

If multiple zones share the same short, suspect the common wire run. I’ve found rodent-chewed commons in the same week as a storm, but more often wind-thrown debris pulls on shallow buried runs near edges and breaks a splice. When we do irrigation installation, we use direct-bury rated wire and gel-filled connectors in every splice. If your system predates that practice, a storm can expose that weakness quickly. Rebuild splices with heat-shrink gel connectors and tuck them high inside the valve box, not sitting in the mud.

Flooded valve boxes raise another gotcha. Some valves will chatter or buzz once power returns because the coil is compromised. Swapping solenoids across valves can isolate whether the issue follows the coil or stays with the valve body. If you’re in a rush and parts are limited, move a good solenoid to the most critical zone and hand-water the rest until you can get replacements.

Soil compaction, root upheaval, and the hidden shifts

After a heavy rain, foot traffic compounds damage. I’ve seen perfect heads stay aligned, only to be buried an inch deeper because a mower or cleanup crew compacted wet soil. The fix is simple but time-consuming: lift the head, set it at grade, and backfill with a more granular mix that resists collapse, like a sand-soil blend. It’s tedious, but your distribution uniformity thanks you.

Roots are another storm wildcard. A partly uprooted tree doesn’t just take out a line where it toppled. The root mass can drag laterally and pinch a pipe ten feet away. If a zone seems starved for pressure near a large tree that moved, probe along the lateral’s expected path with a thin spade. Listen as the zone runs. Hissing and a faint water movement underground can be surprisingly audible if you kneel and quiet the area for a moment.

On sloped sites, expect lateral migration of soil that exposes lines. Sunlight degrades PVC. If you can see any white pipe, bury it. Exposed, it chalks and becomes brittle. I mark these areas for a return visit once the soil dries, then trench and bed the lines properly.

When to repair versus replace

If a head body is cracked, replace it. Trying to seal a split body wastes time and leaks will return. With drip tubing, a clean puncture from a stake or branch can be patched with a barb coupler. But if you find a crushed section with multiple kinks, cut and replace a longer section. Poly memory works against you; kinks tend to re-form.

Valves sit in a gray zone. If the casting is intact and the bonnet isn’t warped, a new diaphragm and solenoid will often resurrect a storm-weary valve. When valves are older than a decade and you’re opening them anyway, there’s a strong case for replacement, especially if you’ve seen repeated clogging. Newer valves handle grit better and provide smoother modulation.

Controllers hinge on features and cost. A basic six-zone timer fried by lightning may be cheaper to replace than repair. If you upgrade, consider a model with better surge protection and a replaceable fuse. For properties that rely on irrigation installation in Greensboro NC or similar markets with active watering restrictions, modern controllers with weather-based adjustments save water and protect turf when the next heatwave follows the storm.

Practical field repairs that stick

Experience has taught me to stage repairs in an order that restores control first, water second, refinement third. Replace or fix the backflow, clean and repair valves, then fix obvious leaks and heads, then tune coverage. Doing it backwards leads to one step forward, two back.

Prime swing joints at replacement with thread sealant, not too much, and tighten to firm hand plus a quarter turn with a wrench. Over-torquing fractures plastic fittings. Set heads on a compacted base, not loose mud. If you drop a head into a soupy hole, it will settle crooked no matter how straight it looked on install. I keep a small bag of crushed rock or coarse sand to build quick, stable bases.

On PVC line repairs, bell the trench to give yourself room to glue properly. Dry-fit pieces, mark alignment, then glue with proper primer and solvent cement. Wipe excess and support the joint while it sets. Rushing glue work on a wet day increases redo rates. If the ground is saturated, consider using a repair coupling with a deeper socket to compensate for less-than-ideal curing.

For drip, use barbed fittings with a firm push and a twist. Warm the tubing in the sun for a minute to ease the connection if it’s cool out. Secure with figure-eight end closures instead of makeshift knots, which weaken tubing and leak under pressure.

Coverage tuning after the chaos

Once the system holds pressure and runs without visible leaks, it’s time to bring back distribution uniformity. Storms rarely damage symmetry evenly. One bed may be overwatered while a corner struggles.

Set each zone to run for a minute and observe head-to-head coverage. On rotors, check arc limits. The set screw that controls arc can slip under vibration. Reset arcs to throw water just to the next head, not over it. Many homeowners live with overspray onto driveways after storms because they got used to the new pattern quickly. You can reclaim thousands of gallons a season with twenty minutes of fine-tuning.

Replace mismatched nozzles. I still find random assortments of 10-foot quarter nozzles mixed with 12-foot halves on the same zone after a storm’s ad hoc swap. Standardize so the precipitation rate matches across the zone. If you inherited a zone with changed plant types over the years, consider breaking sprinkler installation it into two zones when you tackle larger irrigation installation updates. Turf and shrubs rarely have the same water needs.

Drip emitters should match plant size and exposure. In shaded beds after a storm, you might see fungal issues. That’s a sign to reduce emitter flow or frequency. In sun-baked areas where a windstorm stripped canopy, you may need to upsize emitters temporarily, then revisit as foliage regrows.

Preventive steps before the next storm

The best time to storm-proof a system is during calm weather. Here’s a compact checklist I’ve used on maintenance routes to reduce post-storm headaches:

Install surge protection on the controller and, for larger sites, on field wire runs; pair with proper gel-filled or heat-shrink connectors in all valve boxes. Replace brittle or shallow-buried wire with direct-bury rated cable, and route it away from tree roots where possible. Upgrade swing joints on vulnerable heads along driveways and under overhanging limbs; set heads at correct grade with firm bases to resist tilt. Service the backflow annually, insulate vulnerable assemblies, and add isolation valves on branch lines for easier shutdowns. Map zones and valve locations with photos and simple measurements so you can find them fast when debris covers everything.

Each item pays for itself the first time a storm rolls through. Clients who sign up for seasonal irrigation maintenance avoid the worst surprises because small issues get fixed before stress tests arrive.

Special notes for the Piedmont and similar climates

In Greensboro and across the Piedmont, clay soils complicate recovery. They hold water after a storm, then crack when sun returns. That yo-yo stresses lateral lines and makes trench work messy. When we handle irrigation service in Greensboro, we plan site visits 24 to 48 hours after a big rain, if possible, to let the soil set. You’ll get cleaner repairs, fewer collapses, and better head alignment. It’s also a region where tall fescue dominates turf. Fescue tolerates their wet-dry cycles better than warm-season grasses but hates standing water. If a zone puddles, consider installing a short-cycle program to split watering into two or three passes with an hour between. Better infiltration means less runoff and less stress on roots that already soaked during the storm.

Local regulations around backflow testing and water use change occasionally. If you’re coordinating a new irrigation installation or a significant rework after heavy damage, check with the city about any updated requirements for backflow assemblies and smart controllers. Many municipalities now encourage weather-based controllers with rebates, which can soften the cost of upgrading a storm-damaged timer.

Knowing when to call in help

There’s satisfaction in fixing a broken nozzle or tightening a leaning head yourself. But a few scenarios argue for bringing in a pro:

A suspected mainline break that floods when any zone runs, especially if you can’t isolate it with valves you can access. Backflow preventer damage, because testing and repair require specific tools and certification in many areas. Repeated electrical faults or controller damage after lightning, where surge protection and rewiring may be needed. Multiple valves that stick open or closed, which can indicate debris throughout the system and a need for systematic cleaning. Large-area coverage problems that persist after simple tuning, a sign that zone design or precipitation rates need rebalancing.

A seasoned technician can knock out a full assessment in a couple of hours, with parts on hand. If you’re in the region, look for teams who handle both irrigation repair and sprinkler installation, not just seasonal startups. They’ll have the inventory and the judgment to recommend when a fix is temporary and when it’s time to update.

Cost expectations and timeframes

Homeowners often ask what a storm recovery will cost. It varies widely, but there are ranges that keep surprises in check. Replacing a handful of spray heads and nozzles, plus a leaky riser or two, typically lands under a few hundred dollars in parts and an hour or two of labor. A cracked backflow assembly can climb quickly, both for the part and testing. Valve rebuilds are modest parts cost but labor-heavy if boxes are flooded and muddy. Controller replacement ranges from budget models to smart units; with surge protection and programming, you might spend a few hundred dollars more to step into a smarter system that pays back in water savings.

For timelines, remember drying time for glue joints and soil stabilization. I avoid scheduling heavy mowing or foot traffic over repaired zones for at least 24 hours. Where soil remains saturated, plan a return visit to re-level heads as the ground settles.

What success looks like after recovery

When the storm dust settles, the goal isn’t just to get water flowing again. It’s to restore efficient, even coverage without new vulnerabilities. A well-recovered system looks mundane. Heads sit flush and plumb. Nozzles match. Valves open and close cleanly, with no hammer. The controller runs a schedule that respects current soil moisture rather than the one you set in April. If you step onto the turf at dawn during a cycle, you feel dampness but not squish, and there’s no mist blowing onto the sidewalk.

Those small signs are worth chasing. Over a season, efficient systems save water, prevent disease, and keep roots resilient for the next storm. As a team that does both irrigation installation and repair, we’ve learned that storms don’t have to be setbacks if you treat them as stress tests. Each repair is a chance to upgrade weak links, tidy the layout, and leave the system better than before.

Final thoughts from the field

I remember a property where a single oak came down and dragged half a lateral with it. The owner wanted the quick fix. We could have patched three spots and walked away. Instead, we rerouted the lateral around the new stump line, rebuilt two valve boxes with proper splices, and swapped mismatched nozzles we didn’t break but knew would haunt coverage. A month later, in a hot spell, that lawn stayed even while neighbors showed donut rings of stress. The invoice was higher than a patch job, but the outcome saved them hand-watering and turf repairs.

That’s the lens I bring to storm recovery. Address the urgent leaks, yes, then spend a bit more attention on the quiet faults storms expose. If you need help, especially for irrigation service in Greensboro, look for a partner who can handle both today’s repair and tomorrow’s optimization. Your landscape will thank you the next time the radar turns angry.

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Pub: 11 Aug 2025 20:40 UTC

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