How Gear Drive Rotary Sprinklers Work

Rotating sprinklers or rotor sprinklers are also referred to as gear driven rotors or rotary nozzles. The sprinklers are commonly found in the pop-up irrigation systems prevalent in many North American lawns.

Rotary nozzles are a type of spray head that is very efficient compared to other pop up irrigation spray heads.  A rotary nozzle typically has a radius between 15 and 40 feet depending on the brand / product and your water pressure and can usually cover anywhere from 15-360 degrees around depending on the nozzle you install.

Many rotor sprinklers come as the single black tube looking sprinklers that fit into a pop-up irrigation system. These pop-up rotor sprinklers come in a myriad of models so make sure and read the details closely so that you understand the range, radius, and the inlet size for the sprinkler head.

You don’t have to get them as popup sprinklers though. There are also many options for these designed to be connected to the end of a garden hose and staked into the ground while they are in use.

By selecting the right distance nozzle and the desired spray pattern it can be possible to fine tune your watering much more-so than you could with an impact sprinkler system to avoid watering concrete paths, fences, cars, neighboring properties, or any other undesirable area which can help significantly in conserving water.