Even though I now know with certainty that I should be using PVC for my project, I was totally enthralled by your coverage of all the possible options. Literally couldnt stop watching. 😂
This is the first thing I opened this morning -- thank you for the great start to my day! If any questions come up while you're planning, don't hesitate to drop a line, always happy to help :)
@@dripdepot You did a fantastic job. Can't state that enough. Should have a version of this in the garden section of the average big box hardware store.
I am in the process of designing my irrigation system for my 14-acre farm. Your videos are a great help to me. I'm trying to do gravity feed watering systems over several different locations using a variety of water tanks and tote that I have acquired. Finding help for my farm is not easy and time and funds are limited. We took early retirement due to health issues and Finding quality information is extremely helpful and hard to find from novice UA-cam videos. Thank you very much. I am very interested in your systems and planning to purchase from drip depot in the near future once I have a better idea of my needs. Do you have a recommendation order for your videos? Are there contacts that we can talk with about our needs? Thank you very much for your time and assistance Martin
Absolutely more than happy to help here! Before I launch into linking some videos, you are 100% welcome to contact us, we have actual people (and I'm one of them) at various levels of expertise who can assist, and you won't have to go days waiting for a reply -- during office hours we get back pretty fast depending on the complexity. Here is the link to our contact us, don't hesitate for a second to use it for any questions: help.dripdepot.com/support/tickets/new This link goes to our Drip Irrigation Project playlist -- there's at least a couple on there that are likely relevant to you, particularly the Gravity Video and the Large Farm video. Both projects are smaller than what you're doing but still relevant given how irrigation scales (the system we did for the farm video for example could simply be 1 or 2 of your zones and the rest might end up looking very similar). The gravity video was a very small project, but we do talk about the physics of gravity systems in it. Here is that link: ua-cam.com/play/PLWFC4jLbQV2nlUTpYG72Htlp4uJN2xDFk.html This next one goes to our Drip Irrigation Basics playlist -- the most relevant one for you here will be the Design video. The design we did was smaller, but all the same concepts apply to a larger drip system: ua-cam.com/play/PLWFC4jLbQV2khJxYB3AhsX4V4gx8puseN.html This last one is one you'll want to revisit after you've started receiving parts (lots of videos on how to use the larger agricultural stuff line Layflat) -- this one is our Drip Irrigation for Farms playlist, the most relevant in the planning stages is probably "How to Size a Mainline": ua-cam.com/play/PLWFC4jLbQV2l1higMQ09iXEPxgG4JAgD8.html Jot down any questions that come up and don't hesitate to send them our way!
Hello! Thanks for the well done videos. I’m starting a drip irrigation project for my back yard. The trench is completed. The 6 zone system has already been installed by a “professional”. One zone is feeding the smaller front yard. The remaining 5 zones will feed the back yard. I will use 3 of those zones now but run the line for the remaining two for the remaining part of the yard to be done at a later date. Taking your advice, I’ve determined the water pressure to be 40 psi. The water flow rate is 207.43 GPH. I will need 900 - 1000 feet of post-shut off valve below ground mainline for the project. The turn angles for the lines will be close to but not exactly 90 degrees and 45 degrees. I will be supplying 4 trees and two raised plant/flower beds. I’m in El Paso, TX. It gets below freezing a few times a year. The soil is sand and rock. I’m leaning towards polyethylene tubing for mainline but I’d thought I’d see if you agree or have a better recommendation.
Great question on the mainline -- to some degree cost of different lines is regional, and of course there's the time investment to weigh as well when deciding on a mainline. Poly tubing is going to be much easier to run and there's a good chance you won't need fittings for the 45° turns. It's not uncommon to use poly tubing in this way, particularly anywhere that gets freezing temperatures during winter (but it's not limited to those locations). I'm a bit biased since I work with a lot of poly tubing, but for DIY I think poly tubing makes a great choice for anything downstream of the zone valves. Because the tubing is so much more flexible, you get a lot more room for error in everything from trenching to fittings, and if you make any mistakes, the repairs are very easy. If this (or any portions of it) will be above surface, poly tubing definitely has the full advantage.
Good information! I have such a nagging question... In regards to in-line emmitter tubing, what exactly does the term "pressure compensating?" Does it mean a user doesn't need a pressure reducer? Does it mean the tubing can compensate for a lack of operable pressure or pressure variations? Can you explain what "pressure compensating" means? Thank you!
Great question! In general, it means that the emitters will put out uniform amounts of water over a pretty wide range of operating pressure. One roll we carry is pressure compensating between 12 to 50 PSI, so if one section if getting very low pressure (12) and another pretty high (50) the emitters are still going to put out very close to the same volume of water. This does mean sometimes you can go without a pressure regulator -- if the pressure is on the higher side, I'd still recommend using one to help ensure tubing doesn't pop off the fittings or anything, but if it's in between somewhere you can definitely go without one safely. Quick note: Pressure compensating emitters are available in other styles as well -- they also come as button drippers if you don't want to use inline emitter line, and even some microsprinklers are pressure compensating. :)
Each Spring I have had to replace my 1” poly tubing drip irrigation system after squirrels and moles have chewed holes in it. The moles even chewed with the main line buried! Any recommendations?
At my house it's the raccoons! The easiest method is to provide an easier source of water, preferably away from the location of the tubing. That way they get used to going elsewhere for water (and will always prefer the easiest to access unless there are predators around it). This method might not always work depending on how cold your winters are. This route can be supported by placing squirrel feeders away from the tubing/garden area. Castor oil based deterrents work pretty good too, animals cannot stand the stuff, though this method is usually used during the season when you can run some through the tubing (they'll stop in a hurry though once they get into the castor oil). On the more expensive end (though maybe not as expensive as replacing tubing every Spring) you can use hardware cloth -- the hardware cloth will prevent the moles from being able to dig up into the tubing. Along the same idea, PVC conduit works pretty well -- you can use the thinner walled (costs less) PVC like Class 200 or Thin Walled Drain-Waste-Vent PVC pipe. I hope one of these does the trick for you!
Great question -- water hammer arrestors are not always needed, but if you are experiencing any water hammer when the timer valve closed, I would recommend one. I usually recommend one for older houses (whose piping may be older) as well. They're fairly inexpensive and the shock of a sudden change in water flow can eventually lead to damage, so if there's any water hammer (or if you want maximum protection) I'd go with one.
@@mnchnn You got it -- the most important part is for it to be before the timer -- it sounds like you're thinking something alone the lines of: Arrestor --> Splitter --> Timer --> Head Assembly If so, that is a solid order -- that order will allow the arrestor to absorb the shock of the sudden change in flow when the timer valve shuts. :)
Even though I now know with certainty that I should be using PVC for my project, I was totally enthralled by your coverage of all the possible options. Literally couldnt stop watching. 😂
This is the first thing I opened this morning -- thank you for the great start to my day! If any questions come up while you're planning, don't hesitate to drop a line, always happy to help :)
@@dripdepot You did a fantastic job. Can't state that enough. Should have a version of this in the garden section of the average big box hardware store.
I am in the process of designing my irrigation system for my 14-acre farm. Your videos are a great help to me. I'm trying to do gravity feed watering systems over several different locations using a variety of water tanks and tote that I have acquired. Finding help for my farm is not easy and time and funds are limited. We took early retirement due to health issues and Finding quality information is extremely helpful and hard to find from novice UA-cam videos. Thank you very much. I am very interested in your systems and planning to purchase from drip depot in the near future once I have a better idea of my needs. Do you have a recommendation order for your videos? Are there contacts that we can talk with about our needs? Thank you very much for your time and assistance Martin
Absolutely more than happy to help here! Before I launch into linking some videos, you are 100% welcome to contact us, we have actual people (and I'm one of them) at various levels of expertise who can assist, and you won't have to go days waiting for a reply -- during office hours we get back pretty fast depending on the complexity. Here is the link to our contact us, don't hesitate for a second to use it for any questions: help.dripdepot.com/support/tickets/new
This link goes to our Drip Irrigation Project playlist -- there's at least a couple on there that are likely relevant to you, particularly the Gravity Video and the Large Farm video. Both projects are smaller than what you're doing but still relevant given how irrigation scales (the system we did for the farm video for example could simply be 1 or 2 of your zones and the rest might end up looking very similar). The gravity video was a very small project, but we do talk about the physics of gravity systems in it. Here is that link: ua-cam.com/play/PLWFC4jLbQV2nlUTpYG72Htlp4uJN2xDFk.html
This next one goes to our Drip Irrigation Basics playlist -- the most relevant one for you here will be the Design video. The design we did was smaller, but all the same concepts apply to a larger drip system: ua-cam.com/play/PLWFC4jLbQV2khJxYB3AhsX4V4gx8puseN.html
This last one is one you'll want to revisit after you've started receiving parts (lots of videos on how to use the larger agricultural stuff line Layflat) -- this one is our Drip Irrigation for Farms playlist, the most relevant in the planning stages is probably "How to Size a Mainline": ua-cam.com/play/PLWFC4jLbQV2l1higMQ09iXEPxgG4JAgD8.html
Jot down any questions that come up and don't hesitate to send them our way!
Hello! Thanks for the well done videos. I’m starting a drip irrigation project for my back yard. The trench is completed. The 6 zone system has already been installed by a “professional”. One zone is feeding the smaller front yard. The remaining 5 zones will feed the back yard. I will use 3 of those zones now but run the line for the remaining two for the remaining part of the yard to be done at a later date. Taking your advice, I’ve determined the water pressure to be 40 psi. The water flow rate is 207.43 GPH. I will need 900 - 1000 feet of post-shut off valve below ground mainline for the project. The turn angles for the lines will be close to but not exactly 90 degrees and 45 degrees. I will be supplying 4 trees and two raised plant/flower beds. I’m in El Paso, TX. It gets below freezing a few times a year. The soil is sand and rock. I’m leaning towards polyethylene tubing for mainline but I’d thought I’d see if you agree or have a better recommendation.
Great question on the mainline -- to some degree cost of different lines is regional, and of course there's the time investment to weigh as well when deciding on a mainline. Poly tubing is going to be much easier to run and there's a good chance you won't need fittings for the 45° turns. It's not uncommon to use poly tubing in this way, particularly anywhere that gets freezing temperatures during winter (but it's not limited to those locations).
I'm a bit biased since I work with a lot of poly tubing, but for DIY I think poly tubing makes a great choice for anything downstream of the zone valves. Because the tubing is so much more flexible, you get a lot more room for error in everything from trenching to fittings, and if you make any mistakes, the repairs are very easy. If this (or any portions of it) will be above surface, poly tubing definitely has the full advantage.
Good information! I have such a nagging question... In regards to in-line emmitter tubing, what exactly does the term "pressure compensating?" Does it mean a user doesn't need a pressure reducer? Does it mean the tubing can compensate for a lack of operable pressure or pressure variations? Can you explain what "pressure compensating" means? Thank you!
Great question!
In general, it means that the emitters will put out uniform amounts of water over a pretty wide range of operating pressure. One roll we carry is pressure compensating between 12 to 50 PSI, so if one section if getting very low pressure (12) and another pretty high (50) the emitters are still going to put out very close to the same volume of water.
This does mean sometimes you can go without a pressure regulator -- if the pressure is on the higher side, I'd still recommend using one to help ensure tubing doesn't pop off the fittings or anything, but if it's in between somewhere you can definitely go without one safely.
Quick note: Pressure compensating emitters are available in other styles as well -- they also come as button drippers if you don't want to use inline emitter line, and even some microsprinklers are pressure compensating. :)
@dripdepot Man! This channel is like Drip Irrigation Utopia! Thank you! 😅
Good info. Thanks
You bet, any time!
Each Spring I have had to replace my 1” poly tubing drip irrigation system after squirrels and moles have chewed holes in it. The moles even chewed with the main line buried! Any recommendations?
At my house it's the raccoons!
The easiest method is to provide an easier source of water, preferably away from the location of the tubing. That way they get used to going elsewhere for water (and will always prefer the easiest to access unless there are predators around it). This method might not always work depending on how cold your winters are. This route can be supported by placing squirrel feeders away from the tubing/garden area.
Castor oil based deterrents work pretty good too, animals cannot stand the stuff, though this method is usually used during the season when you can run some through the tubing (they'll stop in a hurry though once they get into the castor oil).
On the more expensive end (though maybe not as expensive as replacing tubing every Spring) you can use hardware cloth -- the hardware cloth will prevent the moles from being able to dig up into the tubing.
Along the same idea, PVC conduit works pretty well -- you can use the thinner walled (costs less) PVC like Class 200 or Thin Walled Drain-Waste-Vent PVC pipe.
I hope one of these does the trick for you!
Is a water hammer arrester important if I install a hose end water timer?
Great question -- water hammer arrestors are not always needed, but if you are experiencing any water hammer when the timer valve closed, I would recommend one. I usually recommend one for older houses (whose piping may be older) as well. They're fairly inexpensive and the shock of a sudden change in water flow can eventually lead to damage, so if there's any water hammer (or if you want maximum protection) I'd go with one.
In what order would this be installed with regards to the head assembly? Can it be screwed to the tap first then hose splitter after it?
@@mnchnn You got it -- the most important part is for it to be before the timer -- it sounds like you're thinking something alone the lines of:
Arrestor --> Splitter --> Timer --> Head Assembly
If so, that is a solid order -- that order will allow the arrestor to absorb the shock of the sudden change in flow when the timer valve shuts. :)
Perfect, thank you for all your help. Much appreciated!
@@mnchnn Any time!
Good