Easier management of rain covers
Easy management for winter rain
By Dave Saltman
I have worked with and looked at, a whole array of rain cover systems in the last fifteen years.
I always wished that there was an easier way to employ their use, some way of taking the pain and hardship out of managing rain covers. Fortunately for us all technology keeps pushing forward and now I have finally seen a system that can be used as a management tool rather than 'a get out of jail free card'.
At the beginning of this year, I was invited along to Portman Road, Ipswich. along with a few other guests,
The design allows air movement to pass under the sheets, but the plastic also allows direct sunlight through, enabling light to get to the grass, therefore the system can stay up without causing discolouration to the grass.
The sheets sit on top of a plastic inflatable sausage that when blown up, creates a giant sealed tent over four metres high in the centre. The height under the covers enables the Groundsmen to work in all weathers. The rain water is dispersed to the pitch surrounds where it empties into storm drains.
The sheets are attached to anchor points on both sides of the pitch and there are straps to tighten and adjust the cover once thegiant sausage has been inflated. The system with the exception of the sausage is completely elevated off the ground.
The cover allows 51.7% of the natural light through, so photosynthesis can continue even when the cover is up. The ability to have constant airflow not only stimulates growth but also minimizes the conditions that can allow fungi to infect and spread across a pitch.
The cover protects against all forms of precipitation and ground frost but also against solar radiation (reducing grass burn and watering needs)
As a result, the MacLeod Cover can be left up continuously for 21 days in the winter, without harm to the grass. It can also be used to protect seeds from birds and ensure germination under more controlled conditions.
The operation to deflate the sausages, unclip the sheets and hydraulically roll them back onto giant reels, took about fifty minutes, again for four operatives.
The beauty of the system, simply, is that the hard work of physically man-handling the sheets on and off has gone, so staff are far happier.
And that was that, the most manageable system yet, the sheets towed off on their reels to be stored safely in the yard, well away from the pitch and the stands.
For further details or to arrange a quote, please contact me on +44 (0) 1902 824392 or e-mail sales@pitchcare.com.