Summer Slowdown? Not This Year. + Rain Bird Gift Cards
Greetings! Don't plan on a summer slowdown!
Business is good. Our industry is not going to see a traditional summer slowdown.
There are plenty of opportunities out there.
Be sure you are staying in touch with your current customers and following up with new prospects.
Be aware: a booming economy has not killed off the bargain hunter. Customers are still trying to get a better deal. Be sure to stand firm when faced with price objections. Remember when they ask for a better price, it means they're interested! Inflation is on the rise. Be sure you're adjusting your prices to cover your increased costs. Be afraid your price might be too low rather than too high!
The Team at MPR Supply
Buy Rain Bird, Earn FREE Gift Cards - Only at MPR! 
Get yourself some free gift cards from MPR when you buy Rain Bird!Buy $1500 in Rain Bird, get a $50 VISA gift card
Buy $2500 in Rain Bird, get a $100 VISA gift card
Must by total amount on a single invoice (not multiple invoices)
Limit 4 gift cards per company / customer.
Offer valid July 30-August 31, 2018.
New Contractor Marketplace on Facebook
Will It Change How Homeowners Find Contractors?
A recently-announced feature from Facebook promises to be a game-changer in connecting consumers to contractors: a home services search in the Marketplace section.
"More people ask for recommendations related to home services on Facebook in the U.S. than any other topic," Deb Liu, vice president of Facebook.
People access the new feature by going to the Marketplace menu and selecting a service. Facebook returns a list of companies that can complete the desired service request, accompanied with ratings and reviews.
The new Marketplace feature launched May 23 and will be available in more markets in the coming months, according to Facebook.
Combining Pavers & EasyTurf for a Maintenance Free Landscape
Incorporating pavers into a backyard design plan offers a customizable solution to outdoor living. Pavers feel smooth underfoot, unlike crushed granite or recycled rock that can make walking around a backyard uncomfortable. Being able to design a yard with pavers and artificial grass can completely revolutionize a dull space into a full backyard paradise. The options are endless.
Pavers pair perfectly with EasyTurf artificial grass. This combination of materials adds color and dimension to the backyard space. Moreover, the hard stone and soft grass creates a powerful dichotomy of texture with a sophisticated feel. People spending time in the backyard can follow the natural pathways created by pavers and artificial grass as they explore backyard areas. These pathways connect different backyard spaces and blend the backyard together seamlessly. Pavers and artificial grass can add design elements that pair well with a patio, fire pit, pool, deck, or other backyard spaces. Plus, natural grass in those small lines can be a challenge to maintain, so artificial grass is a natural solution to this problem. Not to mention there is need to worry about rogue weeds and messy soil staining or dirtying paver stones so the pavers remain in nice condition. The look is also completely customizable to each backyard, with different colors, cuts, and sizes depending on preference.
Rain Bird Drip Tip: Drip Design for Narrow or Curved Areas
Over-spray on hardscapes is one of the most obvious water wasters.
As municipalities begin to enact more regulations to reduce outdoor water use for landscapes, overhead irrigation on narrow or smaller areas of landscape is often restricted.
A good substitute for irrigating turf and plantings in narrow or confined areas is dripline. Here's what you need to know when designing with subsurface or on-surface dripline irrigation.
XFS Subsurface Dripline can be an ideal way to irrigate narrow strips, confined and odd-shaped areas of turf next to pavement and roadways without over spraying on the pavement.
Using a grid pattern is the recommended way to design with XFS Subsurface Dripline. Generally, the grid design will be the most economical if you place the header along the short dimension and design rows to run the length of the long dimension. This reduces the header material cost and there will be fewer connections. Using Rain Bird's new QF Dripline Header is a great alternative to site-built PVC headers. Using pre-installed rotating barbs the flexible header saves time when installing the dripline.
Tips from the Pros: Installing a Submersible Pump in an Open Body of Water
Traditionally, a submersible pump is installed vertically in a drilled well inside a casing (like PVC). Sometimes customers want the performance that a submersible pump provides, but want to install their pump in an open body of water, like a lake or a pond. Although not ideal, this can be done.
So how do you install a submersible pump in an open body of water and avoid damaging or shortening the life of the pump? There are three keys that will keep your pump operating in these conditions:
- Flow-inducer sleeve This is a length of PVC roughly as long as the pump. It mimics the well casing that is found in a standard drilled well. Simply cut slots in one end of the PVC so that you can crimp/clamp the sleeve near the discharge end. This will force water to enter from the bottom of the sleeve. Water flows toward the intake of the pump, cooling the motor as it passes by. See the image as an example (click to enlarge)
- Angle of the installed pump A submersible pump cannot be installed horizontally. It is recommended that the pump be installed as close to vertical as possible, but no less than 10 degrees.
- Avoid installing at the bottom of the body of water Most open bodies of water have vegetation, sediment, and other debris settled at the bottom. To avoid pumping these elements through your pump, it is recommended that the pump be suspended at least 10 feet from the bottom.
Protect Irrigation Controllers with Proper Grounding
Always install and verify correct grounding equipment
Protecting expensive irrigation control systems is an essential step for a quality installation. The thousands of feet of wiring in the typical commercial installation acts as an attractive target for lightning strikes. The more stations on a controller, the more important the number and placement of ground rods and ground plates becomes for an installation.
Good grounding begins with use of Regency Wire's UL-listed ground rods, 5/8" diameter and 8 foot length. These are driven in the ground no further than 10 feet from the controller locations and connected to the controller's grounding lug with a bare copper wire. A Cadweld connector is used to link the ground rod to the 6 AWG copper wire. The wire is never soldered to the rod. Rather, an exothermic weld is created with a Regency Cadweld kit. A Cadweld igniter must be utilized to properly install the kit.
Regency copper ground plates are often added into many installations. It is essential that the plates be surrounded by appropriate earth contact materials that are both non-corrosive and that aid in the conductivity of current from the plate into the soil. We recommend Regency GEM (Ground Enhancing Material).
The earth-to-ground resistance of grounding circuits are typically measured using a Megger®, or other similar instrument, with a desired maximum reading of no more than 10 ohms within the circuit. Many commercial irrigation specifications require ground testing of new installations to verify proper readings.
For more information on grounding and meeting requirements of project specifications, contact us.
Latest NIBCO Economic Update for Professional Contractors
Keep your business in tune with the latest trends. It's no secret that outdoor living spaces are the hot trend. Customers want the ultimate backyard experience. Are you selling it?With 25 years in the BBQ grilling and outdoor kitchen industry, Bull Outdoor Products has the solutions to grow your bottom line. Outdoor living is now a $6.2-billion industry because these spaces are highly valued. An outdoor kitchen can increase the value of a home by up to 130% of the original investment.
The Bull line is a one stop shop for grills, components, and entire outdoor kitchens. Pioneering the deliverable outdoor kitchen, Bull makes adding a BBQ area to a backyard design as simple as rolling the kitchen into place and unboxing the grill and refrigerator.
Ask your MPR representative for complete details on the Bull product line.