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Nov 27, 2008 Thanksgiving Nov 30, 2008 Pro Shop Open for Christmas 10 to 2 Dec 06, 2008 Pro Shop Early Bird Sale Dec 07, 2008 Pro Shop Open for Christmas 10 to 2 Dec 10, 2008 Val Halla Board of Trustee Meeting Dec 14, 2008 Pro Shop Open for Christmas 10 to 2 Dec 21, 2008 Pro Shop Open for Christmas 10 to 2 Apr 04, 2009 New Member Orientation Apr 11, 2009 2009 Open House Apr 17, 2009 MSGA Open House & Tournament |
Irrigation Update Page
The New Pumps Swing Into Place...
As we begin replacing our outdated irrigation system this Fall, we will update this webpage daily so you know what's happening and what you can expect when you arrive at Val Halla.
Facts - We purchased a RainBird System from Burco of Dedham, Mass. George Ley, Inc., of Philadelphia, PA, will be installing the new system. We also purchased a new pump station from RainBird. The pump station is built off-site and will be installed by Warren Michelson, Irrigation Systems of Maine of Yarmouth, ME.
We are installing a double row system with nearly 600 sprinkler heads covering all 18 holes. We are replacing "main lines" on the Back 9 and they will be installed in the rough. We are using existing main lines on the Front 9.
Any questions or comments, please email Brian at bbickford@cumberlandmaine.com.
Date |
Update |
Thursday 9/11/08 |
John Byers from George Ley Company is on-site performing the pre-installation inspections and finalizing logistics. Delivery of equipment is slated for Wednesday, 9/17, and will consist of two 40-foot trailers and several feet (it will look like miles) of large main-line pipe. The trailers will be located at the Maintenance Building and the pipe will be located on the dirt parking lot section. Two crews will be on-site for several days beginning Monday, 9/22. Main-line is installed on a 2-holes per week pace while sprinkler heads and double-row systems (2" pipe) are installed on a 3-holes per week pace. Main-lines will require trenching (in the rough) while the 2" pipe is installed simply by slicing the ground. The existing system will remain operational through most of October. We will not be aerating the greens this Fall. |
Friday 9/19/08 |
The equipment and pipe is here! Representatives from George Ley and Rainbird are taking inventory to ensure all parts were shipped properly. As you play, you will begin to notice "plugs" and flags in certain holes. These represent placement of new sprinkler heads. It's amazing how many more heads there will be with the new system. Work crews are arriving this weekend and work on the course begins on Monday 9/22 as scheduled. |
Monday 9/22/08 |
Work begins today! This week "Mains" will be dug in the rough on Holes 16 & 17; "Laterals" will be installed on Holes 3 & 4. Play continues uniterrupted on Holes 16 & 17 all week but play may be partially interrupted on Holes 3 & 4. This does not necessarily mean the entire hole is closed or that both holes are closed the entire week. Workers work in a systematic approach from area-to-area. See the Pro Shop for specific directions and how to play around a specific area. As a general rule, play while installation of a "Main" continues uninterrupted while partial interruptions may occur while installing a "Lateral." |
Thursday 9/26/08 |
Main lines have been installed on Holes 17, 16 and half of Hole 15. Laterals have been installed on Hole 3 and work on Hole 4 has begun. |
Wednesday 10/1/08 |
Main lines have been installed on Holes 11, 15, 16 and 17. The 11th Hole installation was amazing as the pockets of water held by the clay just below the surface of the fairway poured into the trench with such force that crews thought they had hit a existing main line. Pumps were brought in and the water was removed temporarily for continued installation of the main. Keep in mind the main was in the rough which is slightly higher than the fairway so you can imagine how much water the fairway is holding right now. Laterals have been installed on Holes 3, 4, 6 and half of Hole 5. They Front 9 crew is working their way to Hole 7 and should be there shortly. |
Sunday 10/5/08 |
Main Lines are now complete on Holes 10, 11, 15, 16 and 17. Laterals on Holes 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 10. Today the crew is going to work on Holes 16 and 17. The crew installing laterals will be working both Saturday and Sunday. Play started on Hole 10 Saturday and will start on Hole 1 Sunday. |
| Wednesday 10/8/08 |
Main Lines are now complete on Holes 10, 11, 15, 16, 17 and 18. Remaining main lines to be installed include 1, 9, 12, 13 and 14. Laterals on Holes 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 15, 16 and 17. The lateral installation has gone a lot faster on the Back 9 as the new mains make installation a lot easier. When Geo. Ley Company foreman John Byers is asked about the is going installation according to schedule, he replies that they are currently "ahead of schedule." The Pump House is also slated for installation and members will begin to see changes on Hole 2 near the bridge. A few trees need to be removed (to the right of the road near the existing Pump House); a concrete slab needs to be poured next to the existing Pump House; and delivery of the "new" Pump House will occur the week of October 20th. Irrigation Systems of Maine will be installing the Pump House. Large main lines leading to Holes 1 and 3 will be installed and connected to the work completed by Geo. Ley Company. Re-routing of traffic will be interesting as the Pump House pipes are installed in the pond. More to come... |
| Saturday 10/11/08 |
This week was a great week weather-wise and the crews really made a lot of progress. The Main Line on Hole 12 is complete and the crew is beginning work on Holes 13 and 14. The stretch of Main Line from the 10th tee to the front men's tee on Hole 13 is a critical stretch as the entire Back 9 connects somewhere in that length of pipe. The water from the Pump House (which travels up Hole 2; behind Hole 1 green; across Hole 9 fairway near the 150 yard marker; through the woods; and behind the front tee on Hole 13) is the critical installation for the entire Back 9. This is the area we had the most problems with our old system. Special care has been taken to make sure we have the proper fittings and thrust blockers so as not to repeat past problems. Of special note is a large number of isolation valves and junction boxes in this stretch of pipe. A critical improvement over the past system. The pad for the new Pump House has been poured by Cumberland Public Works and looks great! The trees removed to make room are barely noticeable. We continue ahead of schedule and hope the nice weather continues! |
| Tuesday 10/14/08 |
The 8" Main Line feeding the entire Back 9 has been completed from the 12th tee to behind the 1st green...the only part left is behind the first green and down to the Pump House.
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| Wednesday 10/15/08 |
The Main Lines have been complete on Holes 13 & 14. The crew has moved to installing the Main Line on Hole 1. Once the first hole is complete, the only Main Lines left to complete are on Hole 9 and the Driving Range. |
| Tuesday 10/21/08 |
All Main Lines have been installed. Now attention turns to installing heads around greens and tees. Hole 1 installation is complete...from tee through the green and it looks great! Crews will now begin jumping from hole to hole. Please avoid hitting into a green in which the crew is working! The pad and retaining wall for the new Pump House is complete. We anticipate delivery of the pumps later this week. Following which the Pump House will be connected to the new system; introduced to the pond; and a final structure built. Overall, progress has been outstanding and steady with very few major snags and minimal impact on the course. Today, we are one month into the installation and we are on or slightly ahead of schedule! |
| Friday 10/24/08 |
All Main Lines are complete! The 9th Hole was finished last night. The original timeframe for completion was 12/1...simply awesome with minimal disruption to the course. Several tees and greens have been completed as well. Next week we are finishing tees and greens and begin removing old heads on the Front 9 and Back 9 (remember Holes 3 thru 8 use the existing Main Line so special attention needs to be given to closing the holes created for the old heads). We will not be testing the new system for leaks and functionality until Spring 2009 (as planned) and George Ley, as well as Irrigation Systems of Maine, will be returning to ensure the new system is fully operational. It simply didn't make a lot of sense to do it this late in the season with winter on our doorstep. The Pump House will be installed by crane either Monday or Tuesday next week. This is an exciting step and one of the more "visible" changes (since you can barely see where the pipes were installed). Warren Michelson from Irrigation Systems of Maine will be present for installation of the Pump House. I know I for one will be positioning my lawn chair on the 2nd tee to watch! :)
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| Tuesday 10/28/08 |
Early Tuesday morning the pumps arrived from Arizona on an 18-wheeler. A crane lifted the pumps (all 6,800 lbs.) and placed them on the new slab perfectly. What a process! Warren Michelson was present and Irrigation Systems of Maine begins installation of the pipes, including the feed from the pond, today. In case you haven't been around the pond as of late...we have drained it. It's amazing how much silt has accumulated and you can almost walk across 3/4 of the pond (as many have to pick up all the Pro v1's). The pumps were tested before delivery so they are ready to go. Warren Michelson will winterize them before closing for the season. Public Works will finish the Pump House building before winter. Until then, you may see a tarp over the pumps. Given that it's almost November and played has dropped considerably during the week, we may look to close the Front 9 while we cut a path from the pond to the new Pump House. Re-routing is almost impossible when we begin this process. This should not affect weekend play but it will most certainly affect play on the front for a few days. On the installation of the laterals around tees and greens, it's hard to keep you updated as George Ley is moving so fast. Needless to say, the crew continues to pull pipes around tees and greens at a pace of 2-3 per day! As previously mentioned, we will not test the system until Spring 2009 and everyone will be returning to ensure proper installation, etc. After talking about it yesterday, we're shooting to have the system up and operational extra early next year in case there are any issues. Typically a May fire-up will be April next year! |
| Tuesday 11/04/08 |
The trench from the pond to the new pump house has been dug. It's a lot deeper then I envisioned...from the tar to the bottom of the trench it's approximately 12 feet. Quite a drop off and makes Hole 2 impassable for few days. Players have been great in dealing with the closed hole. Many play the Back 9 or drive to the third tee enjoying the ride. Work is beginning on removing the old heads. Removal of the old heads will only improve our fairways and greens as many of our depressions in the fairways are the result of the old heads. Look down a fairway and the low spots are our old heads. Near the greens, many of the old heads have krept close to the putting surface so removal will make fringes and play around the greens less ricky. The new heads around the greens are well back from the putting surface and stand zero chance of ever making it onto the green. There's no question that the shorter days and colder weather have narrowed the working window but the teams from George Ley and Irrigation Systems of Maine are working hard and taking advantage of a small window indian summer-like temperatures over the past two days. On a separate note, the Greens Committee has decided to hold on planting new trees until the Spring (normally a Fall item). The main reason is that we want to see the irrigation coverage before planting the new trees. The Greens Committee will be purchasing the trees this Fall, thus saving big $, and storing them at a nursery until it's time to plant in the spring. |
| Friday 11/07/08 |
The Pump House connection is almost complete. As of this morning, we have connected the main line from behind the first green, to the pumps. We are half way to connecting the main line to the third hole which will essentially complete all connections of the pump house. We expect these two "key" connections to be completed today and the second hole will reopen for the weekend. The physical building over the pump house is should be completed by early next week. |
| Thursday 11/13/08 |
The pumps are installed and all connections to the rest of the system are complete. Hats off to Irrigation Systems of Maine as they had a very tricky time working in a very narrow space along the second hole. The sides of the structure covering the pumps are up and an outside crew is working on putting on the roof. You will note that access to the pump house is a "garage door" rather than a small wooden door. This is a smart improvement over the last design as you can now fit more than one person in and around the pumps should any work need to be done (hopefully not for a very long time). As the weather begins to turn for the worse, it's nice to know that the pumps will be winterized, cover and put to bed for the winter. Last night I witnessed an 18-wheeler "packing up" some of George Ley's heavy equipment. At this point they are are wrapping everything up with regard to the new system but still have some head removal on the old mains we are still going to utilize. To say it's been a smooth installation would be an understatement. All of that credit goes to Toby Young of Val Halla and Jeff Brown of Rain Bird who forsight and planning worked to a "T". We can't wait to fire up the new system next spring! Only 154 days until we open! |
