Irrigation Christchurch

Christchurch is one of the drier cities in New Zealand, with about 618 mm of rain a year at the airport, and a hot nor'wester can dry a garden out in an afternoon. A well designed irrigation system waters at the roots, at the right time of day, without wasting water or tipping your household over the council's daily allowance.

We design and install drip and sprinkler systems, fit the backflow protection your council requires, connect rainwater tanks and pumps, and set the system up to survive Christchurch winters.

Pricing: quotes are free, and every job gets a fixed price before we start, so there are no surprises on the invoice.

Irrigation Jobs We Handle Across Christchurch

• Irrigation christchurch
• Garden irrigation system installation
• Drip irrigation installer
• Irrigation backflow preventer
• Rainwater tank irrigation pump
• Irrigation repairs

Backflow protection is not optional

An irrigation system can draw dirty water back into the drinking supply if pressure drops, through fertiliser injectors, puddled sprinkler heads or buried drip lines. Christchurch City Council requires a boundary backflow device on residential properties with irrigation systems that have underground controllers, along with other medium or high risk uses such as swimming and spa pools.

The device goes on the private side of the boundary, and the owner pays for its installation, annual testing by an Independent Qualified Person and any maintenance. The council has a streamlined building consent for boundary devices, and if an owner does not comply it can install one at the owner's cost. Internal protection under Building Code clause G12 is separate. We fit the right device and can arrange backflow testing every year.

Choosing the right system for your garden

The best system depends on what you are growing, the soil and how much time you want to spend on it. Most gardens end up with a mix:

• Drip line for vegetable beds, shrubs and hedges, putting water at the roots
• Micro sprays for dense planting and ground covers
• Pop-up sprinklers for lawns, zoned so each area gets the right amount
• A controller with a rain or soil moisture sensor so it skips watering when it does not need it
• Separate zones for sunny and shaded areas
• Isolation and drain valves so the system can be emptied for winter

How It Works

The excess water charge and water restrictions

Most Christchurch homes do not pay for every litre, but since October 2022 the council has charged households on a single residential connection for water use above an average of 700 litres a day. Median household use is about 470 litres a day, so garden watering in summer is often what pushes a home over. A leaking drip line or a stuck valve can do it on its own. Efficient zones, drip instead of spray where possible and a controller that responds to rain all help.

Selwyn is different. Households in Rolleston and Lincoln on council supplies pay a charge for every cubic metre, so every litre of irrigation shows up on the bill. Christchurch has also had summer water restrictions, including alternate-day watering by odd and even street numbers and bans on outdoor use in the afternoon and early evening, so a programmable controller that can be adjusted quickly is worth having.

Running irrigation from a rainwater tank

A rainwater tank can take some of the load off the mains in summer, though with Christchurch's low rainfall it is a top-up rather than a full supply for most gardens. A tank system needs a pump sized to the number of zones and the height of the garden, and a mains top-up or changeover valve if you want the irrigation to keep running when the tank is low. Where tank and mains water meet, backflow protection matters again.

We install rainwater tanks and water pumps and connect them to the irrigation so it all works as one system.

Winter, frost and repairs

Christchurch averages about 80 ground frost days a year, and water left in irrigation pipes, valves and backflow devices can freeze and split them. Master Plumbers warns that freezing can split pipes and fittings. At the end of the season we drain the system down, lag or insulate exposed backflow devices and valves, and shut the controller off until spring.

In spring we check every zone, clear blocked emitters, adjust heads and look for leaks. If your water use has jumped without a clear reason, we can run leak detection on the irrigation and the rest of the property.

What affects the cost

We give a free quote after a site visit. Price depends on:

• Garden size and the number of zones
• Drip, spray or pop-up sprinklers, or a mix
• Whether a boundary backflow device and consent are needed
• Trenching through lawns, paths or established beds
• Rainwater tank, pump and controller choices

Why Choose Cheeky's Plumbers for Irrigation

Irrigation FAQs

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