Questions, Answered
If it is about your sprinklers, your drainage, your gutters, or your lighting, somebody in Kingwood has already asked us. So we wrote the answers down — all of them — in plain language, the way we would explain it standing in your yard.
These are real questions from real homeowners, answered from the way we actually do the work: test first, explain what we find, fix it the right way. No job is ever the same, so if the answer sounds like your yard, call or text (281) 504-9998 and we will come take a look.
Most asked questions
- Why does my sprinkler system have low pressure all of a sudden?
- Why does my lawn have dry spots even though the sprinkler system runs?
- Do I need a French drain or catch basins?
- Why will one sprinkler zone not turn on?
- Why does a sprinkler head not pop up completely?
- Why does a low spot in my yard hold water after it rains?
- Why are my sprinkler heads misting instead of producing a clean spray?
- Is a Wi-Fi sprinkler controller worth installing?
- Why do mosquitoes seem worse around one part of my yard?
- What does matched precipitation mean in irrigation?
Browse by topic
Irrigation Questions — 445 questions
Sprinklers, zones, heads, valves, controllers, pressure, leaks, and watering — the questions Kingwood homeowners actually ask us, answered the way we answer them on the job.
Drainage Questions — 134 questions
Standing water, French drains, catch basins, grading, and soggy yards — Houston clay soil does not drain on its own, so here is what actually works.
Gutter Questions — 125 questions
Seamless gutters, 5-inch vs. 6-inch, K-style vs. box, pitch, leaks, guards, and downspouts — gutters are the first line of drainage, so they are worth getting right.
Gutters & Drainage Questions — 101 questions
Where roof water and yard water meet — downspouts, French drains, roof-water volume, and the shared drains that cause the most confusion.
Landscape Lighting Questions — 75 questions
Low-voltage landscape lighting, transformers, LED, beam angles, timers, and curb appeal — how to light a yard so it looks good and is safe to walk through after dark.
Permanent Lighting Questions — 50 questions
Permanent roofline lighting — placement, spacing, warm white vs. color, app control, holidays, and how it looks in the daytime.
Can’t find your question?
Use the search box on this site and type a few words from your question — every one of these 930 answers is searchable. Or just call or text (281) 504-9998, 24 hours a day, and ask us directly. That is what we are here for.
All questions by topic
Irrigation Questions
- Why does my sprinkler system have low pressure all of a sudden?
- Why does one sprinkler zone look weak while the others work correctly?
- Why does my lawn have dry spots even though the sprinkler system runs?
- Why is one area of my lawn much greener than everything around it?
- Why are my sprinkler heads misting instead of producing a clean spray?
- Why do my sprinkler heads barely rise above the grass?
- Why does water continue leaking from sprinkler heads after the zone turns off?
- Why does one sprinkler zone run even when the controller is off?
- Why will one sprinkler zone not turn on?
- Why does my sprinkler controller show that a zone is running when no water comes out?
- Why does my sprinkler controller keep losing its program?
- Is a Wi-Fi sprinkler controller worth installing?
- Why is my sprinkler system watering the driveway and street?
- Why do sprinkler nozzles keep clogging?
- Should I repair the sprinkler system before installing new sod?
- Should I water my Houston-area lawn every day during August?
- Why does water run down the curb before my lawn finishes watering?
- Why do mosquitoes seem worse around one part of my yard?
- How do I know whether my sprinkler system needs a repair or a full overhaul?
- What does a complete sprinkler system assessment include?
- Why should sprinkler heads have head-to-head coverage?
- Why are 6-inch sprinkler heads better for thick St. Augustine grass?
- Why does grass block the spray from a sprinkler head?
- Why should a sprinkler head be installed on a swing joint?
- Why is connecting a sprinkler head directly to rigid PVC a bad idea?
- Why does a sprinkler head stay up after the zone shuts off?
- Why does a sprinkler head not pop up completely?
- Why does a sprinkler head leak around the stem while it is running?
- Why does the lowest sprinkler head drain after the system turns off?
- What is a sprinkler check valve?
- Why is my sprinkler head spraying onto the driveway?
- Why does my sprinkler head spray farther than it should?
- Why does my sprinkler head not spray far enough?
- Why does my sprinkler spray look like fog or mist?
- Why is dirt getting inside my sprinkler nozzle?
- Why does a clogged sprinkler nozzle cause a dry spot?
- Why does a missing sprinkler nozzle create a geyser?
- Why does sprinkler nozzle size matter?
- Why shouldn’t you mix random sprinkler nozzles on the same zone?
- What does matched precipitation mean in irrigation?
- Why shouldn’t spray heads and rotors normally be on the same zone?
- Why do rotary sprinklers usually run longer than spray heads?
- Why does changing a sprinkler nozzle affect the whole zone?
- Can too many sprinkler heads cause low pressure on a zone?
- Can oversized sprinkler nozzles cause low pressure?
- Why does one sprinkler zone have lower pressure than the others?
- Can a broken lateral pipe cause low sprinkler pressure?
- Can a valve that doesn’t fully open cause low sprinkler pressure?
- Why does sprinkler pressure change when the house is using water?
- What is static water pressure?
- What is dynamic water pressure?
- Why doesn’t good static pressure guarantee a sprinkler system will work properly?
- Why is water flow just as important as pressure in a sprinkler system?
- Why does sprinkler pipe size matter?
- Why does pressure drop through a long sprinkler pipe?
- Why does one sprinkler zone not turn on?
- What does a sprinkler valve solenoid do?
- How can a broken sprinkler wire stop a zone from working?
- What does the common wire do in a sprinkler system?
- Why can several sprinkler zones stop working at once when the common wire breaks?
- Why does a sprinkler valve work manually but not from the controller?
- Why does a sprinkler valve stay on after the controller shuts it off?
- What does the diaphragm inside a sprinkler valve do?
- Why can a torn sprinkler valve diaphragm cause problems?
- Why does dirt inside a sprinkler valve matter?
- Why is my sprinkler valve box full of water while the zone is running?
- Why is my sprinkler valve box wet when the system has not run?
- Why do sprinkler valve boxes disappear underground?
- How do irrigation technicians locate buried sprinkler valves?
- Why do tree roots grow inside sprinkler valve boxes?
- Can tree roots damage a sprinkler valve?
- Why is my sprinkler system leaking when no zones are running?
- Why does an irrigation mainline stay under pressure?
- Why does a broken lateral line leak only when that zone runs?
- Why does an underground sprinkler leak create a soft spot in the yard?
- Why does an underground sprinkler leak create a greener patch of grass?
- Why does an underground sprinkler leak create a hole in the yard?
- Can a sprinkler leak cause a high water bill?
- Why can a small irrigation mainline leak waste water 24 hours a day?
- Can my water meter help identify an irrigation leak?
- Why should irrigation pipe under concrete be sleeved?
- Why is an unsleeved sprinkler pipe under a driveway difficult to repair?
- Why should irrigation wiring be sleeved under concrete?
- Why do sprinkler pipes break near sidewalks and driveways?
- Why does sprinkler pipe break after fence installation?
- Why does sprinkler wiring get damaged during landscaping?
- Why should sprinkler heads be moved after a landscape bed is expanded?
- Why should sprinkler heads be moved after installing a new patio?
- Why should irrigation be modified before installing a pool?
- Why is my sprinkler controller completely dead?
- Why does my sprinkler controller have power but no zones run?
- Why does my sprinkler controller show a zone running when no water comes out?
- Why does my sprinkler system run twice in the same morning?
- What is a sprinkler controller start time?
- Why is my sprinkler system watering every day?
- Why is my sprinkler system running at the wrong time?
- Why did my sprinkler controller skip watering after rain?
- What does a sprinkler rain sensor do?
- Why does a sprinkler rain sensor need the right location?
- Why should I consider a Wi-Fi sprinkler controller?
- What does a weather-based sprinkler controller do?
- Can a smart sprinkler controller fix bad sprinkler coverage?
- Can a smart sprinkler controller fix a leaking sprinkler system?
- Why does my sprinkler controller keep losing Wi-Fi?
- Why should irrigation schedules change during the year?
- Why shouldn’t I water my Houston lawn the same amount all year?
- Why is early morning usually a good time to run sprinklers?
- Why can watering during the hottest part of the day waste water?
- Why shouldn’t St. Augustine grass be watered every day?
- Why does St. Augustine grass need different watering in sun and shade?
- Why can watering longer make a dry spot worse instead of fixing it?
- Why does my grass die between two working sprinkler heads?
- Why does my lawn have a perfect brown arc around a sprinkler?
- Why does one part of my lawn stay wet while another stays dry?
- What is sprinkler precipitation rate?
- Why does sprinkler runtime depend on precipitation rate?
- What is cycle-and-soak irrigation?
- Why does water run off my lawn before the sprinkler cycle finishes?
- Why does Houston clay affect sprinkler runtimes?
- Why shouldn’t sprinkler water run down the street?
- Why shouldn’t sprinklers water the sidewalk?
- Why should grass and flower beds be on separate irrigation zones?
- Why can drip irrigation work well in flower beds?
- Why does a drip emitter stop flowing?
- Why does drip tubing come apart?
- Why does drip irrigation need pressure regulation?
- Why does drip irrigation need filtration?
- Why can buried drip irrigation be difficult to repair?
- What does an irrigation backflow preventer do?
- Why does a sprinkler system need backflow protection?
- Why should an irrigation system have its own shutoff valve?
- Why is knowing where your sprinkler shutoff valve is important?
- Why should exposed backflow equipment be protected during a Houston freeze?
- Why should I inspect my sprinkler system after a Houston freeze?
- Why should sprinkler heads be checked after lawn work?
- Why should a sprinkler system be checked after tree work?
- Why should a sprinkler system be checked after fence work?
- Why should a sprinkler system be checked after a pool installation?
- Why is a sprinkler system map useful?
- Why should sprinkler zones match the landscape they water?
- Why does sprinkler design matter more than simply adding more heads?
- Why can an old sprinkler system still work well?
- Why doesn’t replacing a sprinkler controller fix an old irrigation system?
- Why should a sprinkler system be inspected instead of just replacing the broken head?
- What is a complete sprinkler system inspection?
- What’s the difference between Hunter and Rain Bird sprinkler systems?
- Rain Bird 5000 vs. Hunter PGP: what’s the difference?
- Can I replace a Hunter rotor with a Rain Bird rotor?
- Can I mix Hunter and Rain Bird sprinkler heads in the same system?
- What is Rain Bird Rain Curtain technology?
- Why does a sprinkler rotor spray separate streams of water?
- Is the grass between the streams from my rotor actually getting watered?
- Why does a rotor water right next to the sprinkler head?
- Why is the grass around my rotor dry even though it sprays far enough?
- Why does my sprinkler rotor stop turning?
- Why does my sprinkler rotor turn really slowly?
- Why is my sprinkler rotor spinning too fast?
- Why does my sprinkler rotor get stuck pointing in one direction?
- Why does my rotor rotate past where I adjusted it?
- Why won’t my rotor go all the way back to its starting point?
- What does the arc adjustment on a sprinkler rotor do?
- What does the radius adjustment on a sprinkler rotor do?
- Can I reduce a rotor’s distance without changing the nozzle?
- Can I make a sprinkler rotor spray farther by adjusting it?
- What does the screw in front of a rotor nozzle actually do?
- Why is the adjustment screw sticking into my rotor’s water stream?
- Can I adjust a sprinkler rotor while it’s running?
- What’s the difference between an adjustable rotor and a full-circle rotor?
- What’s the difference between a 4-inch and 6-inch rotor?
- Should I use 6-inch rotors in St. Augustine grass?
- What is a low-angle rotor nozzle?
- When should you use a low-angle rotor nozzle?
- Does changing a rotor nozzle change how far it sprays?
- Does changing a rotor nozzle change how much water it uses?
- What do the numbers on sprinkler rotor nozzles mean?
- Can I put a bigger nozzle in my rotor to make it spray farther?
- Can I put a smaller nozzle in a rotor to save water?
- Why did changing one rotor nozzle make other heads work differently?
- Why are rotor nozzles different sizes on the same zone?
- Should a full-circle rotor have a bigger nozzle than a quarter-circle rotor?
- What are matched-precipitation rotor nozzles?
- Why is my full-circle rotor area drier than my half-circle rotor area?
- Why does one rotor look stronger than every other rotor on the zone?
- Why does the last rotor on my zone barely spray?
- Can too many rotors be installed on one zone?
- How many rotors can I put on one sprinkler zone?
- How much water does a sprinkler rotor use?
- How do I know what nozzle is installed in my rotor?
- Why does my rotor spray a heavy stream in one spot?
- Why does my rotor have good distance but bad coverage?
- Why is wind blowing my sprinkler water away?
- Do larger sprinkler droplets handle wind better?
- Why do my sprinklers look like fog?
- Can high water pressure actually make sprinklers water worse?
- What is a pressure-regulated sprinkler head?
- What does PRS mean on a sprinkler head?
- What’s the difference between a 30 PSI and 40 or 45 PSI pressure-regulated sprinkler body?
- Why are spray nozzles commonly paired with 30 PSI pressure regulation?
- Why are rotary nozzles often paired with 40 or 45 PSI pressure regulation?
- What does EPA WaterSense mean on a sprinkler head?
- Does EPA WaterSense certify sprinkler nozzles?
- Can pressure-regulated sprinkler bodies actually save water?
- Should every sprinkler system have pressure-regulated heads?
- Can I regulate pressure for the whole sprinkler system instead of every head?
- Why does pressure matter so much with sprinkler nozzles?
- What is a rotary nozzle?
- What is a Hunter MP Rotator?
- What’s the difference between an MP Rotator and a regular spray nozzle?
- Can I replace regular spray nozzles with MP Rotators?
- Can I mix MP Rotators and regular spray nozzles on the same zone?
- Why do MP Rotators need longer runtimes?
- Do MP Rotators use less water?
- Why isn’t my MP Rotator turning?
- Why is my MP Rotator spinning too fast?
- Why isn’t my MP Rotator spraying far enough?
- Can you adjust the distance on an MP Rotator?
- Can you adjust the arc on an MP Rotator?
- What is an MP Rotator side-strip nozzle?
- What’s the difference between standard MP Rotators and MP800 nozzles?
- Can MP Rotators be used in narrow strips of grass?
- Why do rotary nozzles have filters?
- Can I clean a clogged MP Rotator?
- Why does my rotary nozzle spray uneven streams?
- What is sprinkler nozzle trajectory?
- Why does sprinkler trajectory matter near shrubs?
- Can shrubs block sprinkler coverage even if the head is working?
- Why did my sprinkler coverage get worse as my landscaping grew?
- Should sprinkler heads be moved when shrubs mature?
- Can I put a sprinkler head on a riser above my shrubs?
- Should flower beds use sprays, rotary nozzles or drip irrigation?
- What is microirrigation?
- What’s the difference between dripline and individual drip emitters?
- What is inline drip tubing?
- What is blank drip tubing?
- What does GPH mean on a drip emitter?
- Should every plant get the same size drip emitter?
- How many drip emitters does a tree need?
- Why shouldn’t I put one drip emitter right against a tree trunk?
- Does drip irrigation need a pressure regulator?
- Does drip irrigation need a filter?
- Why is my drip zone spraying instead of dripping?
- Why does my drip tubing keep blowing apart?
- Why do the plants at the end of my drip line get less water?
- Can drip irrigation be too long?
- Can you bury drip irrigation?
- How do you know if buried drip irrigation is working?
- Why is buried drip harder to troubleshoot?
- Can roots clog drip emitters?
- Why does my drip zone keep running after the controller shuts off?
- Can I convert a spray zone to drip irrigation?
- Can drip and spray irrigation be on the same zone?
- What is a sprinkler valve solenoid?
- How does a 24-volt sprinkler valve work?
- Why does my sprinkler valve buzz?
- Why is my sprinkler valve clicking but not opening?
- Can a sprinkler solenoid get weak?
- How do you test a sprinkler valve solenoid?
- What are sprinkler solenoid ohms?
- Why does my sprinkler controller show a fault on one zone?
- Why does my controller blow a fuse when one zone runs?
- Can two sprinkler valves run from one controller station?
- Why are two sprinkler zones coming on at the same time?
- Why does one sprinkler zone come on when another zone runs?
- What is a master valve on a sprinkler system?
- Why would a sprinkler system use a master valve?
- How do I know if my sprinkler system has a master valve?
- Can a bad master valve stop every sprinkler zone from working?
- What is a pump-start relay on a sprinkler system?
- Why does my sprinkler controller say the zone is running but the pump doesn’t start?
- What is a flow sensor on a sprinkler system?
- What can a sprinkler flow sensor actually detect?
- Can a flow sensor detect a broken sprinkler head?
- Can a flow sensor detect an underground sprinkler leak?
- Can a smart sprinkler controller shut the water off if a pipe breaks?
- What’s the difference between a flow meter and a master valve?
- Do I need both a flow sensor and a master valve?
- Why is my sprinkler flow sensor showing high flow?
- Why is my sprinkler flow sensor showing low flow?
- Can a sprinkler flow sensor find a slow leak?
- Does every smart sprinkler controller support a flow meter?
- What is a smart sprinkler controller?
- What makes a sprinkler controller EPA WaterSense certified?
- What’s the difference between a smart controller and a Wi-Fi controller?
- Does adding Wi-Fi automatically make a sprinkler controller smart?
- What’s the difference between weather-based and soil-moisture-based sprinkler controllers?
- How does a weather-based sprinkler controller know when to water?
- Does a smart sprinkler controller know how much rain fell at my house?
- Can a smart controller be wrong about the weather?
- Why did my smart sprinkler controller water after it rained?
- Why did my smart sprinkler controller skip watering when my yard looked dry?
- Does a smart sprinkler controller replace a rain sensor?
- What’s the difference between a rain sensor and a smart sprinkler controller?
- How does a sprinkler rain sensor work?
- What’s the difference between a wired and wireless rain sensor?
- Are wireless rain sensors reliable?
- Do wireless sprinkler rain sensors need batteries?
- How long does a wireless rain-sensor battery last?
- Where should a sprinkler rain sensor be installed?
- Why is my rain sensor not stopping my sprinklers?
- Why does my rain sensor keep my sprinklers off too long?
- Why do my sprinklers run while it’s raining?
- Can I add a rain sensor to an old sprinkler controller?
- Can I add a wireless rain sensor without running new wire outside?
- What is seasonal adjustment on a sprinkler controller?
- Should I use seasonal adjust on my sprinkler controller?
- What does 50% seasonal adjustment mean on my sprinkler controller?
- Why did all my sprinkler runtimes suddenly get shorter?
- Why did my sprinkler runtimes suddenly get longer?
- What is a rain delay on a sprinkler controller?
- What’s the difference between rain delay and turning the controller off?
- What is a sprinkler controller program?
- Why does my sprinkler controller have Programs A, B and C?
- Do I need to use all the programs on my sprinkler controller?
- Why does my sprinkler system run again later the same morning?
- What’s the difference between a start time and a zone runtime?
- If I have six sprinkler zones, do I need six start times?
- Why is my sprinkler system running for hours?
- Can two sprinkler programs overlap?
- What does odd/even watering mean on a sprinkler controller?
- What does interval watering mean on a sprinkler controller?
- What does “permanent day off” mean on a sprinkler controller?
- Why would I set a permanent day off for my sprinkler system?
- What happens to my sprinkler controller when the power goes out?
- Will I lose my sprinkler schedule during a power outage?
- Why is the time wrong on my sprinkler controller after a power outage?
- Does my sprinkler controller need a backup battery?
- Can a sprinkler controller get damaged by a power surge?
- Can lightning damage sprinkler valves too?
- Why did several sprinkler zones stop working after a storm?
- Should my sprinkler controller be plugged into a GFCI outlet?
- Can a sprinkler controller be installed outside?
- Can an indoor sprinkler controller be installed in the garage?
- What’s the difference between an indoor and outdoor sprinkler controller?
- Can I replace my old sprinkler controller without replacing the whole system?
- Will a new smart controller work with my old sprinkler valves?
- How many zones should my new sprinkler controller have?
- Should I buy a sprinkler controller with extra zones?
- What is a modular sprinkler controller?
- What’s the difference between fixed-station and modular sprinkler controllers?
- What is Rachio?
- What is Hunter Hydrawise?
- What is the Rain Bird sprinkler app?
- Rachio vs. Hunter Hydrawise: what’s the practical difference?
- Rachio vs. Rain Bird Wi-Fi controller: what’s the difference?
- Hunter Hydrawise vs. Rain Bird Wi-Fi: which should I choose?
- Do I need a Rachio controller to have smart irrigation?
- Does Hunter Hydrawise still work if the internet goes down?
- Will my Wi-Fi sprinkler controller still water if my Wi-Fi goes down?
- Why does my sprinkler controller keep losing Wi-Fi?
- Does my sprinkler controller need 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi?
- Why won’t my sprinkler controller connect to my new router?
- Will changing my Wi-Fi password disconnect my sprinkler controller?
- Can I control my sprinklers when I’m away from home?
- Can my sprinkler contractor access my smart controller remotely?
- Should I give my irrigation contractor access to my smart controller?
- Can more than one person control a smart sprinkler system?
- Can I manually run one zone from my sprinkler app?
- Can I shut my whole sprinkler system off from my phone?
- Can a smart controller notify me when something is wrong?
- Can my sprinkler controller tell me I have a leak?
- Does a smart sprinkler controller actually save water?
- Is a smart sprinkler controller worth upgrading to?
- Can a smart controller fix an overwatered lawn?
- Can a smart controller fix a dry spot?
- What information does a smart sprinkler controller need about each zone?
- Why does soil type matter to a smart sprinkler controller?
- Why does sun exposure matter to a smart sprinkler controller?
- Why does sprinkler type matter when setting up a smart controller?
- What is evapotranspiration in sprinkler irrigation?
- What does ET have to do with my sprinkler schedule?
- Does my lawn need the same amount of water every week in summer?
- Why shouldn’t I set my sprinkler controller once and never touch it again?
- How does Houston humidity affect lawn watering?
- How does Houston clay soil affect sprinkler scheduling?
- Why does my Houston lawn run water into the street before it gets enough water?
- What is infiltration rate?
- What is a catch-can test for sprinklers?
- Can I measure sprinkler output with tuna cans?
- How do I know how many inches my sprinklers put down?
- Why do you need multiple catch cans instead of one?
- What is distribution uniformity in irrigation?
- Can a sprinkler system have good pressure but poor distribution uniformity?
- Why does poor sprinkler coverage waste water?
- What does sprinkler efficiency actually mean?
- Is watering longer always better during a drought?
- Should I water my St. Augustine lawn deeply or frequently?
- How can I tell when St. Augustine grass actually needs water?
- Why does St. Augustine grass fold its leaves when it needs water?
- Why do my footprints stay visible in dry St. Augustine grass?
- Can too much sprinkler water hurt St. Augustine grass?
- Can watering every day make grass roots shallower?
- Should newly installed St. Augustine sod be watered differently?
- When should I reduce watering on new sod?
- Why is new sod drying out between sprinkler heads?
- Why is new sod staying soaking wet?
- Should shaded St. Augustine get the same sprinkler runtime as full-sun grass?
- Why is the grass under my trees wet when the rest of the yard is dry?
- Can tree roots steal water from my lawn?
- Can tree roots break sprinkler pipes?
- Should sprinkler lines be run right next to large trees?
- Why do sprinkler heads sink into the ground over time?
- Why are my sprinkler heads suddenly too low?
- Can you raise a sprinkler head without replacing it?
- Why is a sprinkler head leaning sideways?
- Does a sprinkler head need to be perfectly straight?
- Why does my sprinkler head move when I step near it?
- Why does my sprinkler head keep breaking after I replace it?
- Can lawn mowers damage sprinkler heads?
- Can cars driving over sprinkler heads break them?
- Why do sprinkler heads break next to the driveway?
- Should sprinkler heads be installed flush with the ground?
- Why is dirt packed around my sprinkler nozzle?
- Why won’t my sprinkler head retract after watering?
- Can sand or dirt damage sprinkler heads?
- Why does water squirt from the base of my sprinkler riser?
- Should I replace just the sprinkler nozzle or the entire head?
- Can you replace the inside of a rotor without digging up the body?
- Why would you replace rotor guts instead of the whole sprinkler?
- Can I replace a sprinkler head with a different brand without digging up the fitting?
- What size pipe thread do residential sprinkler heads use?
- Why do spray heads and rotors use different inlet sizes?
- What is funny pipe in a sprinkler system?
- Is funny pipe the same thing as polyethylene irrigation pipe?
- How long should a sprinkler swing-pipe connection be?
- Can sprinkler funny pipe kink?
- Can roots crush sprinkler swing pipe?
- What is a sprinkler saddle fitting?
- Should sprinkler systems use saddle fittings?
- What’s the difference between Schedule 40 PVC and Class PVC irrigation pipe?
- Why do some sprinkler systems use thin-wall PVC?
- Can you glue Schedule 40 fittings onto Class PVC pipe?
- What causes PVC sprinkler pipe to split?
- Why does sprinkler PVC break right next to a fitting?
- Can sprinkler pipe fail years after installation?
- Why does an old sprinkler repair start leaking again nearby?
- Does repairing a sprinkler system cause other old parts to fail?
- Why did more sprinkler leaks appear after I started using an old system again?
- Should I replace every old sprinkler head just because some are leaking?
- When is a sprinkler system too old to keep repairing?
- Can a 20-year-old sprinkler system still work well?
- Should I replace my entire sprinkler system or repair the one I have?
- What should be checked when buying a house with a sprinkler system?
- Should I have the sprinkler system inspected before buying a house?
- What should a professional sprinkler system inspection include?
- What’s the biggest mistake homeowners make with sprinkler systems?
Drainage Questions
- Why is my yard muddy when it has not rained?
- Why does my side yard stay wet for several days after rain?
- Do I need a French drain or catch basins?
- Can gutters and downspouts solve a wet-yard problem?
- Why is water standing next to my foundation?
- Why does my backyard flood while the front yard drains correctly?
- Why is my existing drainage system no longer working?
- Can tree roots damage underground drainage and sprinkler lines?
- Can a sprinkler leak cause a drainage problem?
- Why does a low spot in my yard hold water after it rains?
- Can poor grading cause standing water in my yard?
- Can compacted soil cause standing water in my yard?
- Why does Houston clay soil hold water for so long?
- Can roof runoff cause standing water in my yard?
- Why does my yard stay wet when the water has nowhere to drain?
- Why does my side yard stay soggy after it rains?
- Why does water collect between two houses?
- Why does one corner of my backyard always flood?
- Why does my backyard flood while my front yard drains normally?
- Why does my lawn stay muddy for days after rain?
- Why does my lawn feel soft and spongy after rain?
- Why does grass die where water stands in my yard?
- Can standing water in my yard attract mosquitoes?
- Why does standing water leave bare spots in my lawn?
- Why does rain wash mulch out of my flower beds?
- Why does soil wash out of my flower beds?
- Why is soil washing away next to my foundation?
- Why does a downspout wash out my landscaping?
- Why does water cut channels through my yard?
- What is positive grading around a house?
- What is negative grading around a house?
- Why does water run toward my house when it rains?
- Can soil settlement create a drainage problem?
- Can adding soil to my yard create a drainage problem?
- Can adding mulch create a drainage problem?
- Can landscape edging create a drainage problem?
- Can a raised flower bed trap water next to my house?
- Can installing new sod change my yard drainage?
- Can a new patio create drainage problems?
- Can a new driveway change how my yard drains?
- Can a swimming pool installation change my yard drainage?
- Can installing a fence create a drainage problem?
- Why does water collect along my fence?
- Can tree roots affect yard drainage?
- What is a drainage swale?
- Why does a drainage swale need slope?
- Why does my drainage swale hold water?
- Can landscaping block a drainage swale?
- Should I use a swale to move surface water?
- What is a French drain?
- What does a French drain actually collect?
- Why does a French drain use perforated pipe?
- Why does a French drain need gravel?
- Why does a French drain use filter fabric?
- Why shouldn’t you wrap only the pipe in fabric on a French drain?
- Why does the type of rock matter in a French drain?
- Why shouldn’t a French drain be filled with dirt?
- Why does a French drain need an outlet?
- Does a French drain need slope?
- How deep should a French drain be?
- Can a French drain be too deep?
- Can a French drain be too shallow?
- Why doesn’t a French drain fix every wet yard?
- Can a French drain work in Houston clay?
- Why can a French drain fail in Houston clay?
- Can a French drain clog with sediment?
- Can tree roots grow into a French drain?
- Why does an old French drain stop working?
- Can a French drain be cleaned?
- What is a catch basin?
- When should a catch basin be used?
- Why should a catch basin be installed at the low point?
- Why does water stand next to my catch basin?
- Why does my catch basin fill with dirt?
- Why does my catch basin fill with leaves?
- Why does my catch basin overflow during heavy rain?
- Can a catch basin be too small?
- What is a channel drain?
- Why would I put a channel drain across a driveway?
- Why does rainwater run into my garage?
- Can a channel drain help keep water out of a garage?
- Why does my patio hold water after rain?
- Why does water collect where my patio meets the house?
- Why does my pool deck hold water?
- What is a surface drain?
- When should I use a surface drain instead of a French drain?
- What is the difference between a French drain and a surface drain?
- What is the difference between a French drain and a swale?
- What is the difference between a French drain and a channel drain?
- Why use solid pipe for downspout drainage?
- Why shouldn’t downspout water be dumped into perforated pipe?
- Why should downspouts be carried away from the foundation?
- Why does my downspout create a puddle next to the house?
- Why does my downspout wash a hole in the yard?
- Can underground pipe carry my downspout water away?
- Why does my underground downspout drain back up?
- Why does water come back out of my downspout cleanout?
- Why do underground downspout drains clog with leaves?
- Why should underground downspout drains have cleanouts?
- Can roots clog an underground drainage pipe?
- Why does corrugated drainage pipe hold debris?
- Why can corrugated drainage pipe get crushed underground?
- Why use PVC for some yard drainage systems?
- Why does smooth drainage pipe matter?
- Why does underground drainage pipe need slope?
- Why does my drainage pipe hold water after the rain stops?
- What is a belly in a drainage pipe?
- Why does drainage pipe settle over time?
- Can yard drainage pipe be too small?
- Why does a drainage system work in light rain but overflow in a storm?
- Why does adding more catch basins increase drainage pipe flow?
- Why does roof size matter when designing downspout drainage?
- Why does rainfall intensity matter for yard drainage?
- Why is the drainage outlet so important?
- What happens when a drainage outlet is underwater?
- Why does my yard drain back up when the street floods?
- Why does a drainage outlet need to stay clear?
- Why does grass grow over drainage outlets?
- Can a drainage system simply end underground?
- When does a yard drainage system need a pump?
- Why is gravity drainage usually simpler than using a pump?
- What happens to a pumped drainage system during a power outage?
- Why do drainage contractors measure yard elevations?
- Why can’t you design drainage just by looking at the yard?
- Why is it useful to look at a drainage problem while it’s raining?
- Why should you figure out where the water comes from before installing drainage?
- Why should surface water and subsurface water be treated differently?
- Can my sprinkler system create what looks like a drainage problem?
- Can a leaking sprinkler line make my yard stay soggy?
- Can air-conditioner condensation create a wet spot in my yard?
- Why does my yard stay wet in the shade longer than in the sun?
- Why does water collect around large tree roots?
- Can drainage completely prevent my yard from ever flooding?
- Why should a drainage system be designed for the actual property instead of using the same solution everywhere?
Gutter Questions
- Why does my house need gutters?
- What happens to rainwater when a house doesn’t have gutters?
- Can gutters help keep water away from my foundation?
- Why does roof runoff dig holes around my house?
- Can roof runoff wash mulch out of my flower beds?
- Can roof runoff damage plants below the roofline?
- Why does dirt splash onto the bottom of my house when it rains?
- Why does water pour off one section of my roof during heavy rain?
- Why does so much water come off a roof during a Houston storm?
- How much water can one inch of rain put on a roof?
- What does a rain gutter actually do?
- What does a downspout do?
- Why does gutter size matter?
- What is the difference between 5-inch and 6-inch gutters?
- When does a house benefit from 6-inch gutters?
- Can gutters be too small for a house?
- Why do gutters overflow during heavy rain?
- Why does my gutter overflow in only one spot?
- Why do gutters overflow below a roof valley?
- What is a gutter splash guard?
- Why does water shoot over my gutter?
- Can a steep roof overwhelm a gutter?
- Why does my gutter overflow even though it isn’t clogged?
- Why does my gutter overflow near the downspout?
- Why does my gutter overflow at the opposite end from the downspout?
- Why does the number of downspouts matter?
- Can a gutter have too few downspouts?
- Can adding a downspout help an overflowing gutter?
- Why does downspout size matter?
- Can a downspout be too small?
- Why are my gutters holding water after it stops raining?
- Should gutters hold standing water?
- Why does gutter pitch matter?
- Can a gutter have too little pitch?
- Can a gutter have too much pitch?
- Why does water sit in the middle of my gutter?
- Why do gutters sag?
- Can standing water make a sagging gutter worse?
- How much does water in a gutter weigh?
- Why is my gutter pulling away from the house?
- What holds a seamless gutter to the house?
- Why does gutter hanger spacing matter?
- Can loose gutter hangers be repaired?
- Why does my gutter look wavy along the roofline?
- What is fascia?
- Why does fascia condition matter when installing gutters?
- Can gutters be installed on rotten fascia?
- How can a gutter leak damage fascia?
- Why is water running behind my gutter?
- What is gutter flashing?
- What is a drip edge on a roof?
- Why does the relationship between the drip edge and gutter matter?
- Why is water dripping between my gutter and fascia?
- Can water behind a gutter rot wood?
- Why is my gutter leaking at a corner?
- Why is my gutter leaking at an end cap?
- Why is my gutter leaking around the downspout outlet?
- Can gutter seams leak?
- Why do seamless gutters still have some seams?
- What does “seamless gutter” actually mean?
- How are seamless gutters made?
- Why are seamless gutters made at the jobsite?
- What are sectional gutters?
- What is the advantage of reducing gutter seams?
- What are aluminum gutters?
- Why is aluminum commonly used for seamless gutters?
- Do aluminum gutters rust?
- Can aluminum gutters dent?
- Why does gutter material thickness matter?
- Can tree limbs damage gutters?
- Can ladders damage gutters?
- Can hail damage gutters?
- Can wind damage gutters?
- Why do gutters get clogged?
- Why do downspouts get clogged?
- Why do gutter downspout elbows clog?
- How can I tell if my downspout is clogged?
- Why does water shoot backward out of my downspout?
- Why does my gutter overflow after leaves fall?
- How often should gutters be cleaned?
- Do houses without many trees still need gutter cleaning?
- What are those little rocks in the bottom of my gutter?
- Why are shingle granules collecting in my gutters?
- Can gutter debris make water stand in the gutter?
- Can clogged gutters cause water to overflow next to the foundation?
- Can clogged gutters damage landscaping?
- Can clogged gutters damage fascia?
- What is a gutter guard?
- Do gutter guards mean I never have to clean my gutters?
- How do micro-mesh gutter guards work?
- Can pine needles get into gutters?
- Can small seeds clog gutters?
- Can debris pile up on top of gutter guards?
- Do gutter guards need maintenance?
- Can gutter guards handle heavy Houston rain?
- Why can water run over a gutter guard?
- Can roof valleys overwhelm gutter guards?
- Should gutter guards be screwed into the roof?
- Can gutters help with a yard drainage problem?
- Why should gutters and yard drainage be designed together?
- Can downspouts connect to underground drainage?
- Why shouldn’t a downspout just dump next to the foundation?
- What is a downspout extension?
- Why does the end of my downspout wash out the yard?
- Can a downspout extension create a new drainage problem?
- Why shouldn’t my downspout discharge onto a sidewalk?
- Why shouldn’t my downspout discharge onto my driveway?
- Why does my underground downspout pipe overflow during heavy rain?
- Why should underground gutter drainage use solid pipe?
- Why should an underground downspout system have cleanouts?
- Why does gutter placement matter?
- Can a gutter be installed too low?
- Can a gutter be installed too high?
- Why does roof overhang matter when installing gutters?
- Why do roof valleys matter when designing gutters?
- Why does roof area matter when sizing gutters?
- Why does Houston rainfall matter when designing gutters?
- Why shouldn’t gutters be designed only by looking at the length of the house?
- Why do some parts of a house need more downspout capacity than others?
- Why should gutters be inspected after a major storm?
- Why should gutters be checked after roof replacement?
- Can replacing a roof change how water enters my gutters?
- When should gutters be repaired instead of replaced?
- When does replacing old gutters make more sense than repairing them?
- What should a properly designed gutter system accomplish?
Gutters & Drainage Questions
- Should downspouts be connected to a French drain?
- How much water actually comes off my roof during a rainstorm?
- How do I calculate how much rainwater comes off my roof?
- Does a steeper roof collect more rainwater than a flatter roof?
- Why does roof pitch matter when sizing gutters if it doesn’t create more rain?
- Why do roof valleys dump so much water into one section of gutter?
- Can one roof valley overwhelm a 6-inch gutter?
- Why does my gutter overflow only during really hard rain?
- Why does my gutter overflow for only a few minutes during a storm?
- Can my gutters be perfectly clean and still overflow?
- Why does water jump completely over my gutter?
- Can gutters be installed too far under the roof?
- Can gutters stick out too far from the roof?
- Why does rainwater run behind my gutters instead of into them?
- Why is water staining the fascia behind my gutter?
- Why is the wood behind my gutter getting soft?
- Can bad gutters cause soffit damage?
- Why is water dripping from my soffit when it rains?
- Can a gutter problem look like a roof leak?
- Why does my gutter leak only during heavy rain?
- Can gutters overflow because the downspout is too far away?
- How far can a gutter run before it needs another downspout?
- Can I solve gutter overflow by adding another downspout?
- Where is the best place to add another downspout?
- Why does my gutter overflow even though the downspout isn’t clogged?
- Does downspout shape affect how much water it can carry?
- Why do downspout elbows clog before the straight pipe?
- Can too many elbows reduce downspout performance?
- Why does water spray out where two downspout pieces connect?
- Why does my downspout shake during heavy rain?
- Why does my downspout make a gurgling noise?
- Why does my underground downspout pipe gurgle?
- Should gutters and underground drainage be designed together?
- Can new gutters make my yard drainage problem worse?
- Why did my yard start flooding after I installed gutters?
- Can connecting multiple downspouts to one drain pipe overwhelm it?
- How many downspouts can connect to one underground drain?
- Should each downspout have its own underground pipe?
- Can I connect my gutter downspouts to a French drain?
- Why should downspout water usually travel through solid pipe?
- Can a French drain and downspout drainage system share the same outlet?
- Can catch basins and downspouts connect to the same drainage line?
- Why does my catch basin overflow when the gutters are draining?
- Why does water come out of my catch basin instead of going into it?
- Can a yard drain become a fountain during a storm?
- Why does my drainage system work during light rain but fail during a thunderstorm?
- Can you design a drainage system for absolutely any amount of rain?
- What does drainage-system capacity actually mean?
- Is bigger drainage pipe always better?
- Why can a large drainage pipe still drain poorly?
- Does a drainage pipe need to be completely empty after every rain?
- Why is there always a little water in my catch basin?
- Is standing water inside a catch basin normal?
- Why does my yard drain smell bad?
- Why are mosquitoes coming from my yard drain?
- Can I drill holes in the bottom of a catch basin so the water disappears?
- Why doesn’t water soak into Houston clay very quickly?
- Why does my yard drain worse after several days of rain?
- Why does the first storm drain fine but the next storm floods my yard?
- Why is my yard still wet when my neighbor’s yard is dry?
- Can my neighbor’s yard drain into mine?
- Why does water come under my fence from my neighbor’s yard?
- Should I block water coming from my neighbor’s property?
- Can a retaining wall cause drainage problems?
- Why is water coming through my retaining wall?
- What is hydrostatic pressure in yard drainage?
- Do retaining walls need drainage behind them?
- Can a new flower bed redirect water toward my house?
- Can landscape edging act like a tiny dam?
- Why does water stand between my flower bed and sidewalk?
- Can removing landscape edging improve drainage?
- Can artificial turf create drainage problems?
- Can a concrete patio make another part of my yard flood?
- Why did my drainage change after a patio extension?
- Can a new driveway cause standing water beside it?
- Why does water stand where my driveway meets the street?
- What is a trench drain?
- When is a trench drain better than a catch basin?
- Why put a channel drain in front of a garage?
- Can a channel drain stop all water from entering a garage?
- Why does my driveway slope toward my garage?
- What is a pop-up drainage emitter?
- How does a pop-up drain emitter work without electricity?
- Why is water always sitting underneath my pop-up emitter?
- Why won’t my pop-up drain open?
- Can grass grow over a pop-up drain?
- Can a lawn mower break a pop-up drain?
- Should a drainage outlet be visible?
- Why does my drainage outlet keep getting buried?
- Can animals clog a drainage pipe?
- Should a drainage outlet have a grate?
- Why is dirt coming out of my drainage pipe?
- Why is my drainage water muddy?
- Can erosion clog my drainage system?
- How do I keep dirt out of my yard drains?
- Why should catch basins be cleaned before they’re completely clogged?
- How do you know whether a drainage problem is a clog or a bad design?
- Should drainage be tested with a garden hose?
- Why is watching my yard during a storm so useful for drainage diagnosis?
- Should I take pictures or video of my yard flooding before calling a drainage contractor?
- What should a good residential drainage system actually accomplish?
Landscape Lighting Questions
- What is landscape lighting?
- What is low-voltage landscape lighting?
- Why is low-voltage lighting commonly used for landscapes?
- What does a landscape lighting transformer do?
- How do you know what size landscape lighting transformer you need?
- Can a landscape lighting transformer be too small?
- Why should a landscape lighting transformer have extra capacity?
- Why are LED lights commonly used for landscape lighting?
- How much electricity does landscape lighting use?
- Can landscape lighting run automatically every night?
- Can landscape lights turn on automatically at sunset?
- Why should landscape lighting times change as sunset changes?
- What is an astronomical timer for landscape lighting?
- Can landscape lighting be controlled from a phone?
- What is uplighting?
- Why would you uplight a tree?
- What is downlighting?
- What is moonlighting in landscape lighting?
- What is path lighting?
- How far apart should landscape path lights be?
- Why shouldn’t path lights be installed in a perfectly straight runway?
- Do I need a landscape light on both sides of a walkway?
- What is accent lighting?
- What is grazing in landscape lighting?
- What is wall washing in landscape lighting?
- What is silhouetting in landscape lighting?
- What is shadowing in landscape lighting?
- Why does beam angle matter in landscape lighting?
- When would you use a narrow-beam landscape light?
- When would you use a wide-beam landscape light?
- Why does fixture placement matter more than simply adding more lights?
- Can you have too many landscape lights?
- Why shouldn’t every part of the yard be equally bright?
- Why does landscape lighting look better with layers?
- What is color temperature in landscape lighting?
- What does 2700K landscape lighting look like?
- What does 3000K landscape lighting look like?
- Why does landscape lighting color temperature matter?
- Can landscape lighting change colors?
- What is RGBW landscape lighting?
- Why is a dedicated white channel useful in color-changing landscape lighting?
- Can color-changing landscape lighting still look elegant?
- Can different landscape lights display different colors?
- Can landscape lighting be changed for holidays?
- Can landscape lighting improve curb appeal?
- Why does the front of my house disappear at night?
- What parts of a house look good with uplighting?
- Why light the columns on a house?
- Why light brick or stone walls?
- Why light large trees in the front yard?
- Should every tree in the yard be illuminated?
- Can landscape lighting make a small yard look larger at night?
- Why light the back of a property instead of only the patio?
- Can landscape lighting make a patio more inviting?
- Can landscape lighting help illuminate outdoor steps?
- Can landscape lighting help illuminate a walkway?
- Can landscape lighting help around a driveway?
- Why should landscape lights avoid shining directly into people’s eyes?
- What is glare in landscape lighting?
- Why should landscape lighting fixtures sometimes be hidden?
- Why do landscape lights move out of position over time?
- Why do landscape lights need occasional adjustment?
- Can growing plants block landscape lighting?
- Why should landscape lighting be planned around mature plant size?
- Why did one of my landscape lights stop working?
- Why did several landscape lights stop working at the same time?
- Why do landscape lighting wire connections matter?
- Why shouldn’t landscape lighting connections just be twisted together and taped?
- Why does voltage drop matter in landscape lighting?
- Why can lights farther from the transformer behave differently?
- Why does landscape lighting wire size matter?
- Can landscape lighting wire be damaged by landscaping?
- Why should landscape lighting be inspected after major landscape changes?
- Can an existing landscape lighting system be expanded later?
- What makes professional landscape lighting look different from simply putting lights everywhere?
Permanent Lighting Questions
- What are permanent outdoor lights?
- How are permanent lights different from Christmas lights?
- Can permanent lights look like normal house lighting?
- Can permanent lights be used year-round?
- Where are permanent lights installed on a house?
- Why does permanent-light placement matter?
- Why shouldn’t permanent lights just be attached anywhere along the roofline?
- Why does the distance between permanent lights and the wall matter?
- Why does spacing between permanent lights matter?
- Why does permanent lighting look different on different houses?
- Can permanent lights follow roof peaks?
- Why do roof peaks look good with permanent lighting?
- Should every roofline on a house have permanent lighting?
- Can permanent lighting be installed only on the front of a house?
- Can permanent lighting be installed around the entire house?
- Can permanent lights produce warm white?
- Can permanent lights produce different shades of white?
- Why does white-light quality matter on permanent lighting?
- Can permanent lights change colors?
- Can each permanent light be a different color?
- What does individually addressable lighting mean?
- Can permanent lights create moving patterns?
- Can permanent lights be used for Christmas?
- Can permanent lights be used for Halloween?
- Can permanent lights be used for July Fourth?
- Can permanent lights be used for game day?
- Can permanent lights be used for birthdays?
- Can permanent lights be used for parties?
- Can permanent lights automatically turn on every night?
- Can permanent lights automatically turn off at bedtime?
- Can permanent lights be controlled from a phone?
- Can I save my favorite permanent-lighting patterns?
- Can permanent lighting be scheduled for holidays?
- Can I change my permanent lighting without climbing a ladder?
- Can permanent lights be dimmed?
- Why does brightness matter with permanent lighting?
- Can permanent lights be too bright?
- Can permanent lighting bother my neighbors?
- How visible are permanent lights during the daytime?
- Why does the track or mounting system matter?
- Why does matching the permanent-lighting track to the house matter?
- Why shouldn’t permanent lighting have loose wires hanging along the roofline?
- Can permanent outdoor lights handle rain?
- Why do connections matter on permanent outdoor lighting?
- Why does power-supply sizing matter for permanent lighting?
- Why can voltage drop matter on a long permanent-lighting run?
- Can permanent lighting be expanded later?
- What happens if one permanent light stops working?
- Do permanent lights eliminate the need to hang Christmas lights every year?
- Why would someone install permanent lighting instead of temporary holiday lights every year?
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Orion’s Rain Smartscapes and Exteriors — (281) 504-9998 — LI0029444
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