Maintaining a Outdoor Mist System

If you neglected to take care of it at the end of the last season, now is the time to check your mist system and prepare it for the upcoming summer.

The first thing to do is replace the mist system filters on the mister system. If you have a second set of filters, such as one for hard water, replace it too. Then check each of the fittings to make sure they’re secure.

Reconnect the lines, then test the pump (or water source) to check that it’s functioning. Some pumps require lubrication so check yours and add oil according to the pump’s instructions. Inspect the electrical connections to ensure they’re properly connected and inspect the insulation on the wiring for breaks, repairing any that have worn out.

Now start the pump and follow the length of the mister tubing, examining it it for leaks. If your mister system utilizes stainless steel mist tubing, it won’t be a issue. Take a moment to examine the joints and fittings for leaks. Tighten any fittings that have become loose. If your system has ABS lines, you’ll need to examine the entire system for cracks and breaks.

Examine the mister system for dripping misting system nozzles. Misting nozzles that leak abundantly are most likely to have enlarged orifices and must be replaced. Blocked nozzles will have no water coming from them, or a little spray and perhaps some dripping.

After you’ve turned off the system, remove and replace the worn-out nozzles with new high-quality mist nozzles. Make sure they have the same size orifice as the old ones. Remove the blocked nozzles and look for debris in the fixture and also in the base of the nozzle. If they are clear, then check the orifice on the face of the nozzle. If you live in a locale that has mineralized water, the mist nozzle could be clogged by lime. If there are mineral deposits on the face, carefully scrape the deposits off being careful to not damage the orifice. It might be possible to simply just scrape the deposits off the top of the mist nozzle. If it appears the orifice is internally clogged, it may be possible to clear the clog by soaking the nozzles in lime remover .

Cleaning nozzles is time consuming and may not fix all the clogs. For the time spent in trying to clean the nozzles, it might make sense to just replace all the nozzles at once.

If your mister system uses AmFog mister nozzles, you can determine the thread size by the marking on the side of the nozzle – cross-hatching indicates 12-24 thread, while straight grooves indicate 10/24. The color of the o-ring on the AmFog nozzles tells you which orifice it has. Be sure you’re looking at the o-ring on the nozzle itself, not the o-ring on a nozzle extender or anti-drip body.

Now that you’ve taken care of the maintenance on your misting system, it’s time to start enjoying a cooler summer!