Why are these excluded from home inspections?
Time and money, my friend, just like anything else. What about cable/satellite, blinds, alarm/security systems, etc. etc. etc.??
We could make it an all day process, but unlikely the average joe is going to pay for it
I do not care to get into irrigation systems because it can take all day to locate all the valves and different zones even on a modest sized property.
My own yard has 6 zones in the rear and 4 zones in the front. Valves are in 5 different places, and which valve goes to what zone doesn’t necessarily follow any logical order. To watch them go through every zone is an hour of time.
Also irrigation systems need constant maintenance. Just because a irrigation head worked today doesn’t mean it will work tomorrow. They are easily knocked over by kids, dogs, lawn mowers, the buyer/agent/termite inspector/etc, and subject to getting clogged with dirt, etc.
In addition, here in the Los Angeles area, due to the drought and watering restrictions, many people simply turned their irrigation system off and don’t maintain them anymore. Drought tolerate landscaping is very popular, so irrigation systems are not always necessary.
I keep it simple:
The grass is green? They must work.
Grass is brown? They don’t work.
:lol:
Thanks for the replies. I do not inspect them for the same reasons mentioned above. I was just looking for a handy come-back when asked by the client “did you inspect the sprinklers?” I just say “I don’t inspect sprinklers or any low voltage wiring” (as in landscape lighting). I do say the that the sprinklers may need adjustment when I see yellow patches in the lawn. Also, when the sprinkler valves are easy to access, I manually turn the valve on to see if they start and I say to the client in my report, “valves appear to work but sprinklers are not part of this inspection”.