Which Is The Best Garden Sprinklers In The UK?

So you’ve finally got the compound of your dreams all perfectly laid out huh? Well, if you’re hoping to keep that lawn green, flower bed blooming and garden thriving, you’ll need to make sure everything is watered and fertilised regularly. And nothing gets the job done better, faster and more consistent than garden sprinklers.

Unlike hoses that leave flooded regions, sprinklers give you far more control over your water usage and even do all the hard work for you. But how do you know which garden sprinkler will work best in your lawn? It all starts with knowing the different types.

Types of Garden Sprinklers

Stationery Sprinklers

These are the simplest and cheapest types of sprinklers available. As the name suggests, these models are placed in position and release water through several holes in a singular pattern. They work well with low pressure making them ideal for small gardens and lawns.

Oscillating Sprinkles

Made from a tube with holes along the length, oscillating sprinklers wave back and forth cascading water in a rectangle. They can be adjusted to water shorter or longer paths making them good for mid sized lawns and gardens.

Rotary Sprinklers

This type makes use of several arms to water your garden and lawn as it rotates to create maximum coverage. While it can cover large areas, it’s more suited for small plants since it’s gentle.

Pulsating Sprinklers

Also known as impact sprinklers, these move water around when a weighted lever hits the anvil. This creates a strong stream that carries a long distance making it suitable for large gardens and lawns.

Travelling Sprinklers

These are unique since they move along a hose to water larger compounds. You can lay a set pattern to water your entire compound with virtually no supervision required.

Key Features and Considerations When Buying Garden Sprinklers

i) Coverage

This is the most important feature to consider. If your sprinkler can’t cover your entire garden or lawn, then you’ll have dry patches and dying plants all over.

ii) Water Flow

Even with a maximum coverage, a sprinkler is useless if it has dismal water flow. A larger water flow means you can water your entire garden faster.

iii) Range Adjustment

Instead of relying on water pressure alone, it’s more convenient and effective to get a sprinkler with adjustable range. If you’re going for a rotary sprinkler, rotational adjustment will allow you to set the circle distribution size so you can either chose between water throwing and deeper soil watering.

iv) Durability

Unless you’re buying those cheap, plastic set sprinklers, you’ll want to pay close attention to the quality. Metal sprinklers are a great investment since they offer the best durability and years of reliable service.

v) Tech Integration

Today’s breed of gardening is one that allows for easy integration with technology. That’s why you want to get a garden sprinkler with a ton of advanced features to make watering plants that much easier. Some garden sprinklers even make use of intuitive tech such as Wi-Fi and apps for long distance farming.

Best Garden Sprinkler Reviews

So which is the best garden sprinkler on the UK market? Here are my 5 top picks:

1. BEST OSCILLATING: Gardena Oscillating Sprinkler ZoomMaxx

 

Whether you’re dealing with a small, long garden or a large and wide lawn, an oscillating sprinkler gives you all the variety you need to get that water where it needs to be. Gardena have realised this and given us what is possibly the best oscillator currently in the UK – The ZoomMax garden sprinkler.

The ZoomMaxx is a compact, rectangular sprinkler that comes fully adjustable. This allows you to not only choose the exact amount of pressure reaching the sprinkler, but also adjust the length, angle, width and even direction of the spray. With enough water pressure, the manufacturer claims its sealed turbo gear unit can shoot water 50 feet away.

Another unique feature with the ZoomMaxx is the weighted sled base that gives the sprinkler a stable footing even on steeper inclines of up to 15%.

Gardena incorporated an integrated fine-mesh that helps save your unit from dirt, sand, and other debris. With robust construction, powerful water control and a wide reach, the ZoomMaxx is indeed a worthy oscillator.

What I like about it:

• Allows for multiple adjustments
• Incredibly powerful water spray (50 feet)
• Weighted base for stable anchoring support

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2. BEST LARGE SPRINKLER: Gardena Premium Pulse Sprinkler

 

There’s more than one reason why serious gardeners with massive pieces of land prefer to go for pulsating sprinklers. And that’s because in addition to carrying streams of water over long distances, the final outcome is actually gentle enough to use even in nurseries.

Gardena has done it yet again, only this time, they went bigger, stronger, and faster with this one. Introducing the largest, most powerful model on the list, the Gardena Premium Pulse Sprinkler definitely delivers as expected.

This massive pulsator boasts of robust metal construction with strong plastic parts that combine well to create a stable unit. As either a full or part circle sprinkler, this bad boy plots a strong jet of water to create a wet pact roughly 490 square meters.

But that’s not the best part; the premium sprinkler allows you to select a range of settings for different sectors to be watered. There’s also a large knob that allows for infinite adjustment with a range of up to 12.5 metres. The manufacturer also added their patented Gardena system that allows you to connect several sprinklers in a row for even more irrigating power.

What I like about it:

• Robust construction with high performance
• Larger and wider coverage
• Gardena system allows for connecting several sprinklers

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3. BEST SMALL SPRINKLER: Gardena OS 90 Oscillating Sprinkler

 

Like most people in the UK, you probably have a decent cottage with a small, neat yard out in the front. But just because your lawn is small doesn’t mean you should neglect it.

On the contrary, any unkempt areas will just show up even more in a small yard. If you want something that will keep your entire lawn and garden hydrated without having to cough up a lot of money, how about the OS 90 Oscillating Sprinkler?

This model is among the smallest, most affordable yet incredibly effective units from Gardena. It might just be over a Kilogram in weight, but it can comfortably irrigate areas from 1 to 90 square meters.

Similarly, the OS 90 can be attached or screwed on to solid surfaces and offers gardeners the easiest installation process of all models on the list. The adjustable width of spray is between 0.5 to 7 metres making it ideal for irrigating flower beds, vegetables as well as ornamental gardens.

What I like about it:

• Small, compact and affordable sprinkler for small gardens
• Easy to install and use with surface attachments
• Integrated dirt filter for delicate ornamental gardens

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4. FOR LOW PRESSURE: Kärcher Premium Oscillating Sprinkler

 

Let’s face it; not all of the homes in the UK have high pressure water connections. Either something’s wrong with the piping, or the garden is simply too far away from the water source. With such low pressures, it’s no wonder that some people don’t even want to consider sprinklers.

Well, the Kärcher has a model built just for situations like these, and it’s called the Premium Oscillating Sprinkler.

This feat is made possible by Karcher’s simple yet innovative spray control system that is quite unique. It uses plastic sliders to slide through both extremes of the sprinkler motion.

Not only does this control the range, but you can also close off one side completely to give the other more reach. The sprinkler covers 320 square metres.

Kercher is well known for its durability, and this model is no exception. It guarantees a stronger base with two fold out anchor spikes to give the unit that much more support.

What I like about it:

• Great value for the money
• Works well even with low pressure water
• Unique splash guard to protect user

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5. BEST SPRINKLER SYSTEM: Gardena Automatic Watering Sprinkler

 

As you’ve no doubt noticed, today’s form of gardening is as automated as it gets. With the right kind of setup, you might never even need to physically attend to your plants and lawn.

If your main reason for getting a garden sprinkler is to reap benefits such as convenience and water savings, then look no further than Gardena’s smart automatic watering sprinkler. As the name suggests, this is not your ordinary sprinkler system.

The model might just be the most technologically advanced sprinkler system ever made by Gardena. It boasts of fully automated watering that can be used to hit about 6 independent irrigation zones depending on what you’ve got planted. But that’s not the exciting part.

This sprinkler system can be controlled from an app in your phone so you can irrigate even while not near your home. Together with the system’s smart sensor Pro, you can be sure that no single area will be either dry or flooded. The fact that it’s compatible with 24 v valves makes it a favourite in many households.

What I like about it:

• Fully automated irrigation system
• Allows for individual watering settings
• Incorporates smart apps and sensors for accurate watering

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How do garden sprinklers work?

Garden sprinklers make the job of watering your garden far easier, as they are automatic and you don’t actually have to do any work – just connect them to a garden tap and sit back to enjoy watching your plants getting a well needed drink.

You can get all sorts of different garden sprinklers, from spray heads that spread water around a small distance; to impact spray heads that are designed for sending stronger jets of water further distances; to rotor sprayers that send strong jets of water at just about any angle; to piping – this is a simple way of using a garden sprinkler, as it is a simple pipe that drip feeds water rather than spray it.

Garden sprinklers use a motor or a sensor system to decide where and when to send the water, so deciding what type you want for your garden is the first step.

Q: How to adjust garden sprinklers?

Before you adjust any type of sprinkler, make sure that the water is turned off, otherwise you will get soaked!

To adjust an impact sprinkler, you can start by simply checking the strength of water flow from your water source by turning the tap up or down. You can also adjust the diffuser nail on the side of your sprinkler by turning it to the right to lower the distance of the spray, and to the left to increase it. You can also use the deflector shield which is just above the diffuser; keep the shield up high to lengthen the spray, and lower it to bring the spray closer to the nozzle.

For a sprinkler spray head adjustment, turn the head of the nozzle clockwise to reduce the spray distance – this will water a smaller part of your lawn but add more water concentration to the area. Turn the nozzle anti clockwise to increase the spray distance and water larger areas – this will make the watering more sparse but will spread it out further.

If you want to fix your rotor head sprinkler, you will need to find the Allen wrench that comes with the head. Insert the wrench into the hole beside the raised arrow on top of the head, and turn it clockwise to decrease the radius of the water spray, or anti clockwise to increase the coverage. To adjust the angle of the spray, use the other side of the wrench into the second hole on the top of the nozzle, which has a + and – sign next to it. Twist the wrench towards the + sign to increase the coverage of the sprinkler, and towards the – side to reduce it.

Q: Where to buy garden sprinklers?

There are a great many places you can buy a garden sprinkler – from your local gardening to store to large hardware stores. If any of these options fail you, shop online to find your ideal garden sprinkler – there is a wealth of choice out there and you are sure to find what you are looking for.