Tennis irrigation repair

Many clubs have a golf course plus other amenities like a pool, tennis, etc. Not many have quite the portfolio of Bretton Woods though, with soccer, a ropes course, mountain bike trail and more, plus the usual like tennis and a pool. Maintaining all the different aspects of the property from the Grounds department means tackling all issues that arise. Father’s Day Sunday morning was one of those instances.

Portions of the damaged pipe

The irrigation system used on the golf course extends to soccer and the clay tennis courts. When issues arise, the Grounds department handles the repair. Yesterday, one of the pipes handling water for the clay tennis courts sprung a leak.

More of the damaged pipe

Two things were more remarkable about this particular break compared to others. First, there were two cracks in the pipe that each stretched for an entire stick of pipe. A stick of PVC irrigation pipe is 20 feet long. Usually, a crack or break is isolated, and occasionally might span a couple of feet. Not only did we find a break that was drastically longer than normal- we found two. The second significant aspect of this repair was just how severely damaged the pipe was. Along part of the pipe, the crack was just a hairline fracture, which is typical. However, over a good portion of the stick, the two breaks had swerved close enough together to actually eject chunks of pipe. Aside from times when a pipe is crushed, or trenched through, the PVC does not usually shatter. Needless to say, this allowed a lot of water to escape very quickly and make a big mess.

The span where the damaged pipe was removed

PVC pipe does have a lifespan- about 25-30 years when underground. This pipe is about 22 or 23 years old, so it is old by irrigation pipe standards. Nevertheless, this kind of damage is still atypical. The pipe was buried about 18 inches deep, so there is no chance of being crushed. Likewise, no trenching or other earthwork was being done. This is just an example of a small pin-hole leak expanding quickly.

We made the repair and water will flow through the pipe by tomorrow. We have made lots of repairs, but sometimes they can still be surprising.

 

Completed repair

Etiquette Reminder of the Month

Please be careful not to damage the lip of the cup when retrieving your ball after putting out.

Also, as part of a Golf Committee initiative to improve course etiquette, we have included links to videos teaching proper on course etiquette. Please take a moment to watch:

Ball Marks - How to properly repair

 

 

See you on the course!

Joe

jvillegas@bwrc.org