PVC Pipe and Mainline Repair in Glendale, Arizona

Pipe repair in Glendale starts with identifying which pipe is wet. On some lots there are three different water lines in the yard: the sprinkler mainline, the sprinkler laterals, and the ditch line for the city's urban flood irrigation.

Three pipes, three owners

• The sprinkler mainline runs from the backflow assembly to the zone valves and holds city water pressure all the time. A break here leaks whether or not the system is running.
• The laterals run from each zone valve to its heads and hold pressure only while that zone runs.
• The urban irrigation line exists only on lots in the downtown area that still take the city's raw Salt River Project water. The city describes delivery through open or underground ditch systems. That water arrives on a schedule, every two weeks in season, through its own valve, and it is not part of the sprinkler system at all.

A wet patch that appears with the controller off, on a day that is not a flood delivery day, points to the sprinkler mainline or a valve that will not close. A wet patch that appears only during one zone's cycle points to that lateral.

Caliche and the misleading puddle

University of Arizona Cooperative Extension describes caliche layers that stop water from soaking down. Over a hard layer, water from a cracked pipe can run sideways and come up well away from the break. Dig where the water shows and you may find dry pipe. Running zones one at a time and following the slope saves digging.

The part of the pipe the city regulates

Pipe between the water meter and the backflow assembly feeds the drinking water side. The City of Glendale's tester policy requires a permit and an inspection for any backflow installation or replacement, and the inspection covers the underground piping as well as the assembly. A repair that disturbs the assembly is a permitted job. A repair to a lateral out in the yard is not. Mark the wet spot and the station number before digging, and photograph the open trench. If the repair is near the backflow assembly, the city's inspection covers the underground piping, so it has to stay visible until it is checked. Because a permit makes the job licensed work, the Arizona small-job exemption does not apply to that part.

Repairing in Glendale heat, and closing the trench

Solvent-welded PVC needs time to cure before the line is put back under pressure, and summer heat makes it tempting to rush. Bed new pipe in fine soil rather than rocks, since a rock pressed against the pipe is the next crack. If a mainline break has been running, it may have reached the street. Glendale's drought plan treats runoff that travels 250 feet or pools over 200 square feet as water waste.

The pipe repair service page covers the general method. For finding the break, see leak detection in Glendale and how to spot an irrigation leak. For the flood system, read the urban flood irrigation guide.