Vol. 4, Number 2 - July 2007
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Welcome to the July issue of DripNews.
Things are slowing down a bit here so I guess it's time to cut loose with another newsletter. As things heat up in your area, it's still not too late to consider putting in a drip system to help keep your plants healthy during those times when there is no rain. In this issue we will explore some of the "myths" people have about drip irrigation and give our reasoning on why they are myths. As always, if you have any questions, comments, stories or whatever, that you'd like to share, please be sure to drop us a line here at dripnews@dripworksusa.com. We look forward to hearing from you! | ||||
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In this issue...
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Both 1" of water
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Drip Irrigation Myths and Madness Here at Dripworks, customers come to us with some ideas that they have gotten from elsewhere that we, quite frankly (don't call me Frank...), think are not the best way to approach drip irrigation. 1 inch of water per week Well, where to begin with this one... The pictures at left are an inch deep (though Kujo would have liked more). As you might guess, an inch of water in depth isn't going to tell you much without knowing how big an area that one inch is supposed to cover. In irrigation, the inch of water has become a common metric that people think they must achieve for healthy plants. This was originally used as a rule of thumb for overhead watering of lawns. Two things in this sentance should jump out at you; overhead watering and lawns. With drip irrigation the water is applied near the plant to allow easy access to the plant's roots. In addition to that, the rule of thumb takes no account of variations in soil type. With a sandy soil the water will not spread out as far as it will with a clay soil, so watering times and volumes must be adjusted accordingly, with more water for sandy soil and less for clay. With an emitter near each plant you could apply a gallon of water to each plant just by watering an hour with 1 GPH emitters in the line. This will be a far more efficient method of using your water and will still provide the plant with plenty of water. Imagine filling a 1 gallon jug with water and using that for one plant. That's a lot of water, no? And with drip, the water is applied slowly so it will not all just run off with the neighbor's wife. |
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I want to water my orchard with one continuous run of tubing Recently someone called wanting to irrigate their orchard. They planned to snake the tubing around the orchard going by every tree. The flaw in this approach is something called "friction loss". This is the phenomena whereby as water goes through the tubing it loses pressure due to friction against the walls of the tubing. The further the tubing goes in a single run, the more pressure is lost. At some point, you will end up with a trickle coming out the end of the line. This is not what is meant by "trickle irrigation". The better way to go is shown in the second illustration on the left. By having a main line with branch lines it reduces the maximum run length and its attendant friction loss. You'll be using pretty much the same amount of tubing but will need a few extra fittings (tees, elbows and tubing ends in this illustration). Of course, this type of layout can be used for other areas of the yard as well. And if you want to be able to apply less water to the plants on some of the lines, you can put a valve in the line at the beginning of the branch line and shut it off when you want to keep that line dry. |
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Why not just punch holes in my poly tubing Recently I heard about a drip irrigation installer suggesting that a client drill holes in their poly tubing using a power drill. This doesn't strike us as a way to get a drip irrigation system that runs consistently and reliably. This is more like "spurt irrigation" than drip irrigation and chances are there won't be any water getting to the end of the line, unless you're using large tubing. This also is not a way to use water efficiently. Cost was one of the factors cited, but simple drip emitters are really not that expensive. The Take Apart emitters or, for systems with water pressure that is more than 10 PSI, Katif emitters are inexpensive emitters that can be punched into a line, either at regular intervals or one at each plant. Emitters have either a diaphragm or a turbulent flow channel which is designed to regulate the flow from the emitter to a known rate. This will be much more reliable and longer lived at a relatively small increase in cost and will conserve water besides. |
If the filter clogs, don't just throw away the filter
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Filters? We don't need no stinkin' filters We like to think of filters as cheap insurance to protect your drip irrigation system. Even with city water it is possible for debris to get into the lines and out into your emitters with the potential of blocking them. Another thing, if you find that your filter is frequently clogging up and slowing down the water flow, it does NOT mean that taking the filter out of the line will improve the flow in the system. A landscaper called us one time to complain that nothing was working in his system. Upon further discussion it turned out that he had removed the filter from the system because it was plugging up too quickly. Oh, taking it out may have helped for a (short) while, but then whatever was clogging the filter went on down the line and clogged up all the emitters. This is not considered a "good thing" in drip irrigation, though it may conserve water... Instead, try using a much larger filter or check to be sure you are using the right type of filter. |
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What do you mean "my valve's in backwards?" Electric valves, filters and regulators are directional in nature. That is, the water needs to go in the inlet side and come out the outlet side. The manufactures have helpfully embossed or painted an arrow on the body of these products to show which way the water should flow. To the left are examples of where you might find the arrows on a valve or filter. Unfortunately, someone installing a system for the first time may miss the arrow (it can be a tad subtle on a black valve body. In the pictures I cheated and outlined them in yellow since I'm not a good enough photographer to get a good picture of black on black...) and end up scratching his (or her) head wondering why the water is either on all the time or off all the time. In a hose threaded system this won't be an issue since hose threaded components will always have the female connection on the inlet side and the male connection on the outlet side. Now there's a can't miss deal we can all appreciate... With pipe threaded components, where the inlet and outlet are often the same gender, a modicum of observation during the assembly process should be all that is needed. |
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My yard is all done in 1/4" and my plants are dying... While 1/4" tubing is easier to hide, it can only go so far before it runs out of water. We've seen this attempted but have yet to see it successful. The 1/4" DSD6 Soaker Dripline has an emitter every 6 inches and can be run for about 15 feet from the mainline (1/2" or 3/4") tubing. The DSD12 Soaker Dripline has an emitter every 12 inches and can be run for about 28 feet from the mainline. So, the trick is to branch off your mainline tubing at intervals with the 1/4" tubing using a 14TB Transfer Barb. As you can see from the pictures at the left, the amount of water that can be carried by the 1/4" tubing is far less than the 1/2" and the 3/4" can carry more water than the 1/2". For a conservative number, we figure that 1/2" tubing can carry about 240 Gallons Per Hour (GPH) and the 3/4" tubing can carry about 480 GPH. You will want to consider these numbers when planning your drip system to be sure that you don't try to put more emitters on the line than the tubing will be able to supply. You also need to consider how much water you have available. City water systems can usually provide 480 GPH, but with a well or other water source you may have alot more or a lot less. It is always a good idea to measure your flow when starting on any irrigation project. |
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Water Gardening and Pond Kit 3 Water gardens are an increasingly popular feature to add to your backyard. If you're looking for a summer project (and who isn't?), consider a water garden. At our Everliner division, we sell a complete line of quality pond products from liners to pond treatments. We have three pond kits that you can use to get a quick start on your backyard water garden. We also carry pond pumps, pond filters, pond liners and pond treatments that you can use to keep your pond healthy once you have it in. Our Waterfall Pond Kit 3 includes a 15 foot x 20 foot EPDM Rubber liner that can be used for a 10 foot x 15 foot x 2 foot deep pond with a waterfall up to 3 feet high holding up to 2250 gallons of water. The kit includes an Easy Pro 2200 Mag Drive pump, an Atlantic Filter Falls 17" weir filter, a 12" pump protector, 25 feet of tubing, 5 pounds of Ultra Media (for the filter) and 1 pound of Aquatron Beneficial Bacteria to help keep your pond healthy. Give us a call and we can help you plan your pond. In no time at all you'll be meditating with the fishies. |
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About Us DripWorks has been in the drip irrigation business for 15 years. Located in northern California, we ship all over the United States and the Caribbean. We have a 72 page catalog available and offer a free design service to help you get started with your first drip irrigation system. Contact us at:
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