Some oscillating sprinklers contain high and low settings.
Any sprinkler head that moves back and forth between set boundaries as it waters the lawn is an oscillating sprinkler. The most common water sprinklers with the oscillating feature include rotary, traveling, impact and traditional oscillating sprinklers. Each sprinkler's oscillation range adjusts in a different way.
Rotor Sprinkler
A rotary sprinkler is installed underground out of view and pops up when activated by an opened water valve or irrigation timer. The rotary sprinkler oscillates back and forth between 40 and 360 degrees. The arc adjustment or rotation range slot is located on the top of the sprayhead. Access it with a supplied tool or a screwdriver.
Traveling Sprinkler
A traveling sprinkler moves along the ground on top of a water hose, which maps the watering pattern and feeds the sprinkler. The spray arms on top spin around watering, which also propels the sprinkler forward. If the arms aren't correctly adjusted, the traveling sprinkler stops moving. The arms must be adjusted to the same angle from the ground but in opposite directions so they spin.
Impact Sprinkler
Place an impact sprinkler on the ground if mounted onto a flat base or spiked into ground if it has a spike on the bottom. The impact sprinkler contains a trip pin and two trip collars at the unit's base. The trip pin when lowered between the two trip collars activates the rotation or oscillation boundaries. Pinch the sides of each trip pin and shift it to align with its opposite watering area edge. The sprinkler head oscillate between these two boundaries. If the trip pin is lifted, the sprinkler head rotates in a continuous circle.
Oscillating Sprinkler
An oscillating sprinkler is placed on the ground and fans out horizontally from one side of the sprinkler base to the other. The features an adjustment knob located on the base. The sprinkler then oscillates up and down within the set rotation range. An oscillating sprinkler can usually be set to water just one area or to a full 180-degree range at different strengths.
