Image by Matt Brett via FlickrEveryone knows that you can use a lawn sprinkler to water your lawn and any surrounding plants within its watery reach.  But why do the expected?  What are some other things you can do with a lawn sprinkler?

Water Toys

There are a lot of toys that become fun only with the addition of a lawn sprinkler.  These can only be played with outdoors, when it’s warm (because you’ll get quite wet) and not when there’s a drought alert in the area.  They toys can make the water wriggle, blast, move in unpredictable patterns, or the toy is shaped like a friendly animal.  Some water sprinkler toys can be attached to your current sprinkler or to your garden hose.

Dog Toy

Not all dogs know how to swim and some have a real fear of water.  However, on a really hot day, Fido would love it if you turned on the lawn sprinkler.  Not only will he be able to cool off, but dogs are often fascinated by the pattern of moving water.  Sometimes it seems to hypnotize them.  Always keep an eye on Fido when the lawn sprinkler is on, in case he thinks the water is trying to invade his territory.

Flame Thrower

There have been people who have successfully been able to attach a propane gas tank to a common lawn sprinkler in order to make a flame thrower.  (Perhaps these people need part time jobs?)  This is not recommended for kids or anyone who is not experienced with handling explosives, dangerous chemicals or large sudden explosions.

Practical Jokes

Practice these lawn sprinkler practical jokes outside before attempting them inside.  You need a sprinkler that can be hooked up to a regular kitchen faucet.  Some sprinklers can be hooked to an outside spigot and then brought inside.  Great to plant inside a newlywed’s bedroom for their wedding night.  Make a small cover with holes in it so it is not apparent what it is.  As soon as the lights go out, turn on.

Putting Out Very Small Fires

Lawn sprinklers aren’t nearly as good as hoses, chemical sprays or even a bucket of sand on a fire.  However, if it’s getting pretty dry around your home and property, a good spritz can help keep the area around damp and keep from being a fire hazard.  This can be especially comforting if you know your neighbors are smokers or if they love setting off fireworks every time the local sports team wins a game.

Underground garden lawn sprinkler systems offer many advantages for someone with a large lawn and garden, especially if they are away a lot and can’t do the watering themselves.  But there are some disadvantages that are considered major annoyances by some gardeners.

The Problems

First off, the grass tends to hide the garden lawn sprinkler head.   Whoops.  This can clog the sprinkler head and make watering very inefficient.  It also can be easy to roll your lawn mower over it, damaging both your mower and your garden lawn sprinkler.  Double whoops.  And sometimes the dark environment of a sprinkler head makes it an attractive home for nesting insects like wasps and hornets.  Triple whoops.

Enter The Mats

An easy and attractive way to eliminate these problems is to simply use rubber mats placed around your garden lawn sprinkler heads.  They are usually dirt brown in color, making the sprinkler heads easy to spot.  They also help prevent the grass from growing so tall that they hide the sprinkler heads.  Grass can grow very suddenly – even overnight –so that you don’t need to constantly trim the grass back from around the sprinkler head.

Not all garden mats, but some, are made of recycled material, usually something water resistant like rubber.  It’s great to get recycled materials to help lessen your carbon footprint on the planet.  Exercise your consumer spending power to help make companies find more ways to recycle the trash we already make.  Some rubber garden lawn sprinkler mats get their rubber from old tires.

Using The Mats

Garden lawn sprinkler mats for underground sprinkler system heads usually come with a ready made hole of one or two inches in diameter. However, rubber is usually soft enough for you to modify the hole, in case you need it to be bigger.  You just simply plunk the mat around your sprinkler head and that’s about it.

Sometimes these mats are known as “mulch mats” in gardening supply shops and online gardening stores.  There are very similar products made to put around the base of trees, sometimes sold as “tree rings”.  These are also made of recycled tire rubber, making sure that weeds won’t grow around your trees.

Mulch mats, tree rings or whatever you like to call them help turn your garden and lawn into a much more orderly and attractive living space.  If you are thinking of selling your property, then mulch mats and tree rings make your property far more enticing.

Image via WikipediaAfter putting all of that hard work into landscaping the yard, the last thing anyone wants is to see that his or her grass is dying from not getting enough water. For those with a lot of time on their hands and that have a pretty small yard, watering the grass manually with a hose may be an option. In fact, many people enjoy this and find it to be a relaxing experience. For other people, there just may not be enough time, energy, or interest for watering the grass by hose. For these people, there is the option of installing an automatic lawn sprinkler.

By adding an automatic lawn sprinkler into your yard, you are sure to make sure that the lawn is being properly watered without running the risk of over watering or under-watering. Also, this is a great way to make sure that your lawn is being properly cared for while you are away working or on vacation. It is hard enough to try and find someone to watch over your pets, let alone water your lawn so an automatic lawn sprinkler is the perfect solution.

Getting Yours

For those who are handy with projects around the house, the installation process of the automatic lawn sprinkler may be something that is no problem at all. But for those who are a little less handy around the house, it may be a good idea to have a professional come in to do the job. After all, you are dealing with water and any home improvement project dealing with water, if not done right, can result in a huge mess. Water messes can be very costly so you would be better off paying someone to come in to install your automatic lawn sprinkler for you.

The cost of having an automatic lawn sprinkler installed professionally is going to vary depending on how large your yard is and the type of system you are putting in. The best thing to do is to start calling around to get free consultations on price for the system itself and for the labor. And then you will be able to compare the prices of several businesses and professionals to make sure that you are getting the best price for your automatic lawn sprinkler. Just start calling around to businesses and you may be surprised at what prices you find and see that is it truly affordable after all.