Gophers Destroying Drip Emitters & Heads

Quick Answer

Gophers don’t target drip emitters specifically — they chew them because they’re soft plastic obstacles in the way of tunneling. But the result is the same: dead zones in your irrigation, soggy spots where water is dumping underground, and a repair bill that keeps coming back until the gopher is gone. The emitter fix takes ten minutes. The gopher fix takes a trap.

The Gear

• Replacement drip emitters (match GPH rating of originals)
• Barbed fittings and goof plugs
• Utility knife
• Needle-nose pliers
• Small wire mesh scraps for protection

The Process

1. Run your irrigation and walk the zone. Dead plants with wet soil nearby or a pressure drop at the valve are the two signs of a chewed emitter or line.
2. Locate the damaged emitter — look for a hole in the tubing, a chewed emitter body, or a fitting that’s been pulled loose.
3. Pull the old emitter and inspect the barb fitting underneath. If the barb is intact, just press a new emitter in. If the tubing is chewed at the fitting, cut back to clean tubing and install a new barbed elbow.
4. Before reconnecting, press a small piece of hardware cloth loosely around the fitting to discourage repeat gnawing at the same spot.
5. Eliminate the gopher. If you only fix the emitter, you’ll be fixing it again in 2–3 weeks.

Bagger Pro-Tip

Buy a bag of 50 replacement emitters and keep them in the garage. If you’re in active gopher territory, you will use them. Buying one at a time from the hardware store is a tax on not being prepared.

Safety Warning

If your drip system runs near low-voltage landscape lighting wire, hand-dig carefully when tracing damaged lines. Gophers chew wire too — and a nicked lighting cable buried in wet soil is a problem you don’t want.

Fix It

Fix the emitter, then fix the gopher problem.

• Victor Trap Tunnel Intercept — set traps in the run nearest the damaged emitter
• Cinch Trap Mainline Set — good alternative for tight spaces near irrigation lines
• Install Gopher Mesh Barriers — wrap repaired sections in hardware cloth for lasting protection