Good Evening,
We are currently experiencing issues with our wet well portion of the irrigation system. There is a 24″ line that goes from the bottom of the wet well into the irrigation pond. This is where the water is drawn into the system and the screen is missing after 20 years of use.
There are two large screens protecting our 6″ intake lines to keep debris out of the system. The missing screen is causing a lot of debris to build up on the intake screens and reduce the availability of water causing low pressure failure. Aquatic vegetation and tadpoles seem to be the main culprits right now.
This morning I started irrigating greens and tees at 4:00 AM. I had to continuously brush the sides of the intake screens to remove the debris and keep them from clogging. I found the lower the amount of gallons per minute flow, the less issues I had with debris build up.
Tonight I will run the system at 675 gallons per minute instead of our normal 805 gallons per minute. I’m very hopeful that once I can get the screens cleaned initially and get the system up to pressure it will work through the night. Hopeful, not optimistic.
The solution will be to add a 90 degree elbow on the line out in the pond with a new screen attached. This will hopefully eliminate the problem in the future. The current issue is that the line is about six feet below the surface of the water 20 feet out in the pond. Sounds like a lot of fun.
I am going to try and draw the pond level down further in order to access this line at some point. I will also spray the aquatic vegetation in this area later in the fall to try and eliminate the problem. It’s been another adventure in the wonderful year of RONA 2020.
Staff and I are doing our best to work through this situation and continue with our irrigation practices. Please help spread the word as we move forward with this situation.
—
Brian C Mohr
Director of Golf Operations
City of Spencer
Spencer Municipal Golf Course
Spencer, Iowa
51301712-260-5370www.spencermunigolf.com
Spencer Municipal Golf Course 