Sprinkler Blowouts For Thursday, October 30, 2025

No major hiccups in Sprinkler Blowout Land yesterday—just the usual locked gates and a few surprise canine encounters. You’d think after all these years we’d be issued honorary “dog whisperer” certifications. I’ve personally wrangled as many as four furry escape artists at once while juggling a tool bag, water keys, and dragging a 75-pound hose through the yard. If there were an Olympic event for sprinkler blowouts and dog herding, I’d be bringing home the gold.

We did, however, run into one property where the customer had removed their irrigation filter, which prevents us from achieving the air pressure we need for the blowout. The system has to be closed for it to work correctly. It’s totally fine to remove the filter, but wait until after the blowout. In the meantime, you can drain the canister so it doesn’t freeze while you’re waiting for us to swing by. Otherwise, it’s like trying to inflate a tire with a hole in it—lots of noise, no results.

Challis limped along like a three-legged mule chasing a carrot on a string, but by the end of the day, he was surprisingly nimble. Eddie, on the other hand, was locked in mortal combat with downtown Boise traffic—trying to park on streets barely wide enough for an ant on a tiny skateboard. More than once, he had to double-park to get the job done, earning a symphony of honking horns, a few choice expletives, and plenty of “friendly flag-waving.” Sometimes a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do—and hey, no traffic jams lasted more than 15 minutes, so I’d call that a win in Boise terms.

Meanwhile, Ben spent the day in Meridian working mostly with city water systems and backflow preventers. We’re trying to knock out as many of those as possible before Idaho pulls one of its classic stunts—an overnight cold snap that makes everyone panic, only to warm right back up the next day like nothing ever happened. He won’t be working today, but will be back on Friday, then picking up another shift on Sunday to keep things rolling smoothly.

We haven’t even blown out our own sprinklers yet, and our system has an expensive RP on it and a dog-watering bib that the furballs use to lick for water. I’m not ready to shut it down and resort to heated bowls just yet. Between Paisley (our Bernese Mountain Dog) and Ziva (our 7-month-old Saint Bernard), they drink enough to refill Lake Superior daily. I’m just trying to keep up with the demand.

Here are the routes for today:

Challis with “Orange Julius” in Boise 83709

West Sandhurst Drive
South Pepperview Way
South Moonfire Way
South Pepperridge Way
West Henrys Lake Drive
West Brownstone Drive
West Bear Lake Drive
South Kimmer Cove Way
South Cheshire Avenue
South Harrington Way
South Aleut Avenue
South Silvermaple Avenue
West Canford Drive
West Harness Drive
S Cree Way

Eddie with “Purple Rain” in Garden City

North Harbor Town Place
North Yaquina Head Way
West Osprey Meadows Drive
W Utahna St
W Gillis Rd
West Pocono Street
W Limelight St
West Lamplighter Street
North Amesbury Way
West Baron Drive
West Cove Street
Lakes Edge Place
West Millstream Way
North Millstone Drive
West Marigold Street
Hoff Drive
Ethan Pl