Several years ago, a homeowner hired a contractor to install an irrigation system. Sometime after the contractor was done and paid, the homeowner called him because the system was not working. The phone was disconnected, the contractor had disappeared. After calling another contractor to look at the system, the homeowner was shocked to learn that only the controllers and a few heads were installed. The system had no pipe, valves or wire and was not connected to the water supply. This is a true story.

When I was asked to write this article about how homeowners can protect themselves from fly-by-night or unscrupulous irrigation contractors (same as a sprinkler contractor), I recalled an article my father, Lawrence Keesen wrote for the July, 1958 issue of The Green Thumb. I would like to Quote a portion of this article titled The Low-Down on Sprinkling Systems.

""Here today - gone tomorrow" is an old saying that is particularly applicable to many firms and individuals who have contracted with homeowners to install lawn sprinkler systems one day and folded up and disappeared the next - or a few days or weeks later. As a result, some homeowners find they paid part of their money in advanced for installations that were never completed. Others have discovered, Too late, that they have paid for inferior workmanship and materials and that entire jobs must be done over. And still others, confronted with sprinkler system failure due to defective parts, find they are unable to replace or repair them with standard items.

All such cases represent losses to homeowners which could have been avoided. Since city codes frequently afford no protection to the homeowner in regard to standards to which he may refer, he is therefore "on his own" insofar as protecting himself is concerned."

After 36 years, homeowners are still facing the same problems when selecting irrigation and landscape contractors. Associations like the Associated Landscape Contractors of Colorado (ALCC) and the international Irrigation Association (IA) have developed irrigation certification programs for the design, and installation of irrigation systems. This assures homeowners that the individual has passed a test indicating a certain level of expertise. When selecting an irrigation contractor, use this checklist to avoid problems:

How many years in business?

What is the education and/or work experience?

Is this person certified by an association as an irrigation designer or technician. (ALCC or IA)

Obtain several references and check them out.

Obtain copies of certificates of insurance for liability and workman’s compensation insurance.

Call the Better Business Bureau.

Much of this information can be obtained from the ALCC at 757-5611. ALCC can provide you with referrals, and verify membership, insurance, and other information about contractors. ALCC provides this information as a public service to homeowners and property managers.

Larry Keesen, Keesen Water Management, is a highly respected Denver irrigation consultant and designer with thirty seven years of experience. He is an IA Certified Irrigation Designer and Manager, and the only person in the area qualified to conduct evaluations of existing irrigation systems. Keesen helps clients renovate existing systems, design new ones, and select qualified irrigation contractors to carry out upgrades.

Sidebar:

If you can see your footprints after walking on the grass, you need to water!

Apply only enough water to saturate the soil to a depth equaling the active root zone of the plant, and replace that water.

Water between 10 PM and 7 AM to decrease water loss through evaporation.

Pay attention to the seasons: plants need less water in April and May, more in June and July and less in August.

Using blue blocker sunglasses, its time to water when the turf color appears bluish.