Stone Ridge was planned as one piece, and it shows. Streets read as a set rather than a collection, front yards are shallow and visible from the sidewalk, common area turf runs right up against private lots in a lot of sections, and the association takes its design standards seriously. None of that makes irrigation harder. It does mean the order of operations is different from a job in a place with no covenants: the approval comes first, the shovel comes second.
Superior Sprinkler Systems has worked in this part of Loudoun County since 1991. We are family owned, based in Dulles, and Stone Ridge, South Riding, Arcola and Brambleton are all inside our normal daily radius.
Stone Ridge Association reviews exterior improvements through its Architectural Review Committee, and its own guidance is blunt about it: there are no exemptions and no automatic approvals, every application is considered individually, and starting work without written approval puts you in violation of the covenants. Applications go in ahead of a scheduled ARC meeting, they have to be complete to be considered, and depending on what you are proposing the committee may want a landscape plan, a marked up plat and signatures from neighbors whose view of the property changes.
Where an application is required for irrigation work at your address, we supply what the committee needs from our side, which is normally the layout drawing showing head positions, zone boundaries and where the backflow assembly and controller will sit. You submit it, because the association deals with the homeowner rather than the contractor. We then schedule the install around the meeting calendar instead of turning up hopefully and having to stop. The practical advice is simple: start the conversation with the association early. A submission that misses a deadline waits for the next meeting, and in April that can cost you a month of the season.
In a community with uniform standards, the best irrigation system is the one you cannot see from the street. That is a design goal, not a slogan, and it drives several decisions.
Heads sit flush with the finished grade rather than proud of it, so they disappear when the system is off and survive the mower. Pop up bodies are sized so the spray clears the turf without the body standing up like a periscope. The backflow assembly, which has to be above ground to be testable, goes where planting or a low screen can soften it while still leaving the ball valves (faucets) accessible, because an assembly buried in shrubbery is an assembly that fails its next inspection. The controller goes inside the garage rather than on an exterior wall wherever the run allows.
Front yards in Stone Ridge are shallow enough that a badly aimed head waters the sidewalk more than the grass. We set arcs individually and use matched precision nozzles so the spray stops at the edge of the turf, which also keeps water off the walk in freezing weather.
A lot of Stone Ridge lots back or side onto association maintained ground, and the boundary is not always where people assume it is. We locate the property line before we design, not after, because a head that throws twenty feet into common turf is watering ground you do not pay to maintain, and a valve box installed a foot the wrong side of the line is a problem for whoever owns the house next.
Where a lot line runs through open turf we bring the coverage right to it and stop, using half and quarter circle heads along the boundary rather than full circles set back. It costs a couple more heads and it avoids an argument.
New system design and installation, drawn to suit a planned community lot and the approval process attached to it.
Repairs and service, covering broken and sunken heads, valve failures, wiring faults, low pressure and controller problems.
Backflow testing and certification by DPOR certified testers, with results filed to Loudoun Water.
Spring start up, opening the system in stages, checking every head and resetting the schedule for the year.
Winterization, compressed air blowout of all zones before freezing weather sets in.
Landscape lighting, low voltage lighting for entries, walks and planting, again designed to sit within community standards.
Point of connection and shut off. The tie-in is made inside or outside the house to suit the plumbing, and a master shut off valve is fitted where you can reach it without moving anything.
Backflow assembly. Loudoun Water requires an approved device on every irrigation system in its service area, tested when installed and every year after that, with the report filed to Loudoun Water. We install a device the authority will accept, place it so it can be tested and screened at the same time, and handle the annual test.
Controller. A garage wall is standard here and it keeps the equipment out of sight. Basement, shed or a weather rated enclosure are alternatives.
Smart scheduling. Soil moisture input, weather based adjustment and rain shut off. In a community where water conservation is a shared expectation and a regional drought watch affects everybody at once, a controller that skips unnecessary cycles is worth having for reasons beyond the bill.
Materials. Irritrol, Hunter and Rain Bird components, WaterSense certified. Rigid PVC pipe rather than the flexible tubing cheaper bids rely on. Matched precision nozzles on the shallow front turf, rotors on the larger rear areas, drip through beds.
Design standard. Laid out by a licensed irrigator after utility locating, head to head coverage guaranteed, dry spots corrected under warranty.
Warranty. Three years against defects, including the first year of winterization, spring start up and backflow testing.
Ongoing service. The same crew comes back for adjustments, seasonal work, repairs and additions.
A three-year defect guarantee. The seasonal services for your opening year are folded into it, meaning shutdown, spring opening and backflow certification.
Utilities are located and the layout flagged before work starts, so you see the plan on the ground first and can put a drawing in front of the review committee. A licensed irrigator designs for even coverage across the lot. Head-to-head coverage is guaranteed and dry spots fall under the warranty.
Moisture sensors, weather-based controllers and zoning, WiFi options included. Water conservation is a shared expectation in a planned community, and a controller that skips unnecessary cycles handles that without you thinking about it.
Years of experience, applied with the precision a close-set Stone Ridge lot demands. Efficient water distribution, with trenches closed and turf relaid as we go.
Connection made inside or outside to suit the plumbing, and a master shut-off valve fitted where you can get to it without moving anything.
An approved assembly on every system, positioned so planting can screen it while the ball valves stay reachable for the annual test. Loudoun Water requires it. We install it, test it and file the report.
Fitted in the garage by default, which keeps the hardware off your street elevation. A basement, shed or weather-rated cabinet is available on request.
Irritrol, Hunter and Rain Bird components. Rigid PVC pipe rather than the flexible alternatives cheaper bids rely on. Matched precision nozzles on shallow front turf, rotors behind the house, drip through the beds.
The same crew comes back for adjustments, seasonal work, repairs and additions.
We measure the lot, confirm where the property line runs, and check pressure and flow before anything is designed. Written estimate within 24 hours.
Permits obtained, utilities located, layout flagged on the ground for your approval. Then trenched, piped, wired, pressure tested, backfilled and restored, with the property left tidy.
Every zone run, every arc set, the schedule programmed, backflow tested and filed, the warranty activated, and a walkthrough of the finished system.
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Professional& ExperiencedQ: Do I need ARC approval before you install?
A:Assume yes and confirm with the association. Stone Ridge reviews exterior improvements individually and its guidance states there are no exemptions or automatic approvals, so the safe course is to submit an application and get written approval before any work begins. Proceeding without it can leave you having to remove the improvement at your own expense, which is a bad outcome for a buried system.
Q: Who prepares the plan the committee wants to see?
A:We produce the irrigation layout drawing showing zones, head positions and equipment locations, and you attach it to your application. The association corresponds with the homeowner, not the contractor, so the submission has to come from you. Applications are due ahead of the ARC meeting, so allow time for it in your planning.
Q: Will the sprinklers water the common area behind my house?
A:Not if the system is designed after the property line is located, which is how we do it. We run half and quarter circle heads along the boundary so coverage stops at your line. Watering association turf costs you money and gains you nothing.
Q: Can the backflow device be hidden?
A:It can be screened, not enclosed. The assembly has to stay above ground and its ball valves (faucets) have to be reachable, because a certified tester needs physical access every year. Low planting or an open screen in front of it satisfies both requirements. Anything that boxes it in will cause a problem at the next test.
Q: My heads sit above the grass and the mower keeps hitting them. Can that be fixed?
A:Yes, and it is a common call here. Heads that have risen or tilted get reset flush to the finished grade on a swing joint, which also absorbs future movement instead of transferring it to the lateral. If a head has already been struck, replacing the body is inexpensive compared with the leak that follows a cracked one.
Q: How much disruption should I expect on a small lot?
A:One to two days of work, with trenches closed and turf relaid as we go. The lawn will look disturbed for a couple of weeks in the growing season and longer if the work is done in cold weather. We plan the routing to keep trenches out of the most visible sightlines where the design allows.
Q: Is the annual backflow test something I have to remember?
A:We track it for customers on our books and get in touch when yours is due. The obligation itself sits with the property owner under the Loudoun Water program, so if you move the system to another company make sure the test still gets done and filed.
Call 703-957-4946 or request a quote. We will measure the lot, produce a drawing you can put in front of the ARC, and give you a written price at no cost.