Season checklist
Startup and shutdown, one season at a time
The list we work from. Use it to plan your calendar, and to know what to ask of any electrician.
Spring startup
March to April, before first water.
Look at the panel and disconnect for heat marks and nests
Tighten lugs and connections
Check motor leads, then run the motor and listen
Walk the pivot and open the tower boxes
Test the safeties, pressure switch and phone link
Write up what we found, and what to fix first
In season
May to August, when something quits.
Call or text with a photo of the panel
We say plainly when we can come
Water on a crop goes before everything else
After a storm, we write up what it hit
Repairs are quoted in writing before the work starts
Fall shutdown
October, after the last water.
Open and lock out the disconnect
Seal the panel and tower boxes against mice
Note any noise, heat or slow starts
Save the controller settings
Write the winter list in the order the water needs it
Winter work
November to February, the quiet weeks.
Calving barn lights and circuits
Heated tank circuits before the hard freeze
Bin and dryer wiring ahead of harvest
Shop and yard work that can wait for the shop to be quiet
An inlet for a standby generator
Your part
What you can do from the ground
You don't need to touch a panel. A few notes help us find a problem quickly.
Four notes
Write down the date and what you noticed: a buzz, a trip, a slow start
Keep weeds and brush back from panels and disconnects
Know where your disconnects are
Tell us if lightning, hail or an animal got to something
The startup visit
In order, so nothing's skipped
- 01
Step 1: Power off and locked out
Nobody opens a box until the disconnect is open and locked, and we test the line dead.
- 02
Step 2: Panel and disconnect
Look, tighten, clean, and work the disconnect.
- 03
Step 3: Motors and leads
Look at the leads, turn the motor, listen.
- 04
Step 4: Towers
Walk the line and open every tower box.
- 05
Step 5: Controls
Test safeties, the pressure switch and the link.
- 06
Step 6: Power on, run it, write it up
We run it with you and leave a written page.
Questions about the season
When should I book startup?
The valley wants the same two weeks in April. Booking in winter gives you the most days to choose from.
Is the shutdown visit worth it?
It's when we find the cracked box or the tired motor, so the fix lands over winter and not in June. You decide each year.
Do you do this for a single well?
Yes. A single well and a ten-tower pivot get the same checklist, in different amounts of time.
Put your startup on the calendar
Text a photo of the panel, or ask for a visit.