How to Audit and Optimize Your Commercial Property’s Water Use in California
Are your efforts to nurture your landscape leading to increasingly expensive water bills? Are you struggling to figure out why your water conservation efforts aren’t paying off? These may be signs that your irrigation system needs an assessment. In this post, the landscape management experts at Petalon explain how to audit and optimize your California commercial property’s water use.
What is a Water Audit and Why Is It Important?
A water audit, also called an irrigation audit, is a way to understand your property’s water use. This process assesses how water moves through your landscape, evaluates your irrigation system’s efficiency, and identifies areas where you can make improvements. In California, where drought and water restrictions are common, a water audit can help you reduce waste, lower your utility bills, and stay compliant with regulations.
How to Conduct a Water Audit
Step 1: Locate Irrigation Inefficiencies
A water audit begins with a thorough irrigation system inspection. As you examine each part, be alert for any signs of water waste or poor system performance. Here’s how to identify some common problem areas in commercial irrigation systems:
- Drip lines: Walk the length of each drip line and inspect emitters, connectors, and tubes for leaks, cracks, or mineral buildup. Wet soil near emitters may indicate a leak, while dry soil can point to a clog or disconnected line.
- Overwatering zones: Look for areas with soggy soil, standing water, or visible runoff during or after irrigation. These problems can be signs of watering for too long, overlapping sprinkler coverage, or poor soil absorption.
- Faulty controllers: Review the programmed start times of your irrigation controllers, run durations, and zone frequency. Then, run the system to verify that each zone activates on schedule. Skipped cycles, stuck valves, or malfunctions can lead to overwatering, missed watering, or uneven coverage.
Step 2: Perform Repairs and Upgrades
With your inspection complete, it’s time to make improvements that will help your irrigation system operate more efficiently. Here are a few changes that can make a big impact on water use and landscape health:
- Repair irrigation leaks: Fix leaks in drip lines, pipes, and valves so water reaches your plants instead of areas where it’s not needed. Upgrading aging and damaged components can also improve the efficiency of your system.
- Install modern emitters: Pressure-compensating emitters provide consistent water output on slopes or irregular terrain. This upgrade can help you resolve the runoff issues and dry zones noticed during your inspection.
- Upgrade to smart irrigation: Installing a smart irrigation controller in combination with moisture sensors allows your system to automatically adjust to changing weather and soil conditions. Modern systems are also able to detect problems such as high-water use, faulty emitters, or inconsistent soil moisture.
Step 3: Calibrate Irrigation Components
With repairs complete and new components installed, it’s time to fine-tune your irrigation system for peak efficiency. Calibration ensures your water-saving upgrades deliver the best possible results.
- Calibrate irrigation coverage: Test your irrigation by placing small cups throughout a zone and running the system for ten minutes. Measure the water collected to identify any spots that are getting too much or too little water. Adjust sprinkler heads, change nozzles, or modify run times until water collects evenly across the entire zone.
- Set smart controller and sensor settings: Set your irrigation controller to use weather data and soil moisture to determine watering schedules. Enable alerts so you receive immediate notifications about leaks, stuck valves, or system errors. This way you can respond quickly and prevent water waste.
- Group your plants by irrigation needs: Continued high water use could mean it’s time to reorganize your landscape. By arranging drought-resistant plants and high-maintenance plants in separate zones, you can concentrate your water use on the plants that need it.
Don’t Have Time to Conduct A Water Audit? Petalon is Here to Help!
It takes time and planning to carry out a detailed water audit. At Petalon Landscape Management, we take care of the hard work for you. For over two decades, our team has helped businesses, property managers, HOAs, and municipalities install efficient irrigation systems, repair damaged components, and transition to smart irrigation controllers.
Call Petalon Landscape Management at 408-453-3998 to schedule a water audit with our team. Still unsure about how to audit and optimize your commercial property’s water use in California? Contact us online to learn more. We serve the needs of commercial properties across the Bay Area, including in San Jose, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Redwood City, Palo Alto, Dublin, Hayward, Foster City, Fremont, and Livermore.