Choosing sprinklers: pop-ups, rotors, oscillating and hose-end

The best sprinkler is the one that puts water evenly where the lawn is, and nowhere else. Each type does that differently, and the right choice depends on the size and shape of your lawn, your soil, your water pressure and how much time you want to spend moving hoses. This guide covers the main types, what each suits, and how to get even coverage from whatever you have.

The two big decisions

In-ground or hose-end? An in-ground system with a controller waters on a schedule without you, and when it’s designed well it waters more evenly. A hose-end sprinkler costs far less and suits small lawns, rented homes and anyone happy to move a sprinkler around. Both can water a lawn well.

Sprays or rotors? In-ground systems use either spray heads, which water a fixed pattern quickly, or rotors, which sweep streams of water across larger areas slowly. Most homes use sprays in small areas and rotors in large ones, on separate zones.

In-ground pop-up sprays

Pop-up spray heads sit flush with the lawn and rise when the water comes on, spraying a fixed pattern: full circle, half, quarter, or a strip.

• Suit: small to medium lawns, narrow or irregular areas, and lawns with lots of edges.
• Strengths: cheap, simple and easy to adjust with interchangeable nozzles.
• Watch out for: they often apply water quickly, which can cause run-off on clay or compacted soil. Wind distorts fine sprays. High pressure makes a fine mist that drifts.

Choose a body tall enough to clear the grass when it pops up; a head that sprays into the leaves can’t throw its full distance.

Rotary (multi-stream) nozzles

These fit many standard pop-up bodies but throw several rotating streams instead of a fan of spray. They apply water more slowly and throw a little further than standard spray nozzles.

• Suit: clay soils and slopes where standard sprays cause run-off, and medium lawns.
• Watch out for: longer run times, which is normal, and they shouldn’t share a zone with standard spray nozzles.

In-ground rotors

Rotors (including gear-driven and impact types) rotate streams of water across the lawn and throw further than sprays.

• Suit: medium to large lawns.
• Strengths: fewer heads cover the same area, and the slow application rate suits heavier soils.
• Watch out for: they usually apply water more slowly, so run times are longer; that’s normal. They need more water pressure and flow than sprays, so check your supply before you buy.

Oscillating sprinklers

The hose-end type with a bar that rocks back and forth, covering a rectangle.

• Suit: rectangular lawns watered by hose.
• Strengths: adjustable width and length, easy to move.
• Watch out for: the ends of each sweep can get more water than the middle, and fine droplets drift in wind.

Hose-end impact and rotating sprinklers

Portable sprinklers on a spike or base, connected to a hose.

• Suit: occasional watering and lawns without an in-ground system.
• Strengths: cover a large circle or part-circle, and impact types throw well in light wind.
• Watch out for: coverage depends on where you put them; overlap them so the edges of each pattern meet.

Static and ring sprinklers

The simplest hose-end sprinklers: a fixed base with holes or a spinning ring.

• Suit: small patches and spot watering.
• Watch out for: they often put most of the water in a ring and little in the middle. A catch-cup test will show you where.

Travelling sprinklers

Hose-end sprinklers that move slowly along the hose as they water.

• Suit: long, open lawns.
• Watch out for: they need a clear path for the hose and a level, firm surface.

Sub-surface drip under lawn

Drip lines can be buried under turf to water from below, with no spray, drift or evaporation from the surface.

• Suit: narrow strips, odd shapes and areas where spray would hit walls or paths. Greywater systems usually need sub-surface irrigation.
• Watch out for: they’re hard to inspect and repair once buried, need good filtration, and must be installed before the turf goes down.

Comparing the options

Application rate here means how quickly water goes down. A catch-cup test gives you your actual rate.

Matching sprinklers to your soil

• Sandy soil soaks water up fast but holds little, so it suits shorter, more frequent cycles within your water rules. Watch for water-repellent patches.
• Clay and compacted soil takes water in slowly. Rotors, rotary nozzles or several short cycles help water soak in instead of running off.
• Slopes shed water. Use shorter cycles with a break between them so water has time to soak in.

Getting even coverage

• Don’t mix types on one zone. Sprays, rotors and other sprinklers apply water at very different rates, so mixing them gives some areas far more water than others.
• Overlap the patterns. Uneven coverage is the most common cause of dry patches. Spray heads are typically spaced so each one’s spray reaches the next head; check the manufacturer’s spacing guide for your heads.
• Match the nozzles. A quarter-circle head should apply water at a similar rate to a full-circle head on the same zone. Many nozzle ranges are designed to do this; mixing brands often breaks it.
• Keep heads clear and upright. Trim grass around them and replace broken ones.
• Test it. A catch-cup test shows how evenly each zone waters and how long to run it.

Edges, paths and nature strips

Water on paths and driveways is wasted and runs into drains. Use part-circle and strip nozzles along edges so the spray points at the lawn, and adjust the arc so it stops at the path. On narrow strips, side-strip nozzles or sub-surface drip waste far less than full-circle heads. If you want to water the nature strip, check your council’s rules first.

Water pressure and flow

Every sprinkler needs a certain pressure and flow to work as designed. Too little and heads don’t pop up fully or throw their full distance; too much and sprays turn to mist. Before buying an in-ground system, measure your flow with a bucket test, as described in the DIY irrigation design guide, and compare it with what the heads need. A supplier can help you match them.

Buying tips

• Look for Smart Approved WaterMark. It’s an Australian certification for water-efficient products, assessed by an independent technical expert panel, and covers sprinklers and other garden products.
• Buy from one range for all heads on a zone, so nozzles and pressures match.
• Check spare parts are easy to get. Nozzles and seals wear out.
• Think about the controller too. A controller with a rain delay, seasonal adjustment or weather data saves water whichever heads you use.

Looking after sprinklers

• Check every zone each spring. Run it and walk the lawn: look for heads that don’t pop up, spray crooked, mist, leak at the base or water the path.
• Clean nozzles and filters. Most spray nozzles unscrew and have a small screen underneath that collects grit.
• Keep heads at the right height. Heads sink over time as the lawn builds up. Raise them so they sit level with the soil surface.
• Replace like with like. A replacement nozzle from a different range can change a zone’s output.
• Move hose-end sprinklers off the lawn when you’re not using them, so they don’t mark the grass.
• Check after the mower. Mowers and line trimmers are the most common cause of broken heads; mark heads near edges so they’re easy to avoid.

Upgrading an old system

If an older system leaves dry patches, you don’t always need to start again.

1. Do a catch-cup test to find which zones are worst.
2. Replace worn or mismatched nozzles with one matched range.
3. On clay or slopes, consider swapping standard spray nozzles for rotary nozzles.
4. Add heads where the spacing is too wide.
5. Fit a controller with a rain delay or weather data.
6. Test again.

Small changes like these are often cheaper than a new system and make a bigger difference than running every zone longer.

Common mistakes

• Buying on price alone and ending up with heads that don’t suit your pressure.
• Mixing sprays and rotors on one zone.
• Spacing heads too far apart to save money, then watering longer to make up for dry gaps.
• Using full-circle heads along fences and paths, watering the hard surfaces.
• Never testing what the system actually puts out.

Water rules

Whatever you choose, use it within your water authority’s rules. Many treat hand watering, sprinklers and automatic systems differently. Sydney Water’s Water Wise Guidelines, for example, set separate rules for hand-held hoses with a trigger nozzle, for sprinklers, and for watering systems. Check before you buy or install, and see the watering under restrictions guide for each city’s official page.