You are well to worry about clogs from the well water. The first component in your system should be a fine mesh filter. Get a "y"-shaped one with a small valve on the end that you can periodically open to flush out the debris.

Slopes are problematic for drip systems. You'll want to use pressure-compensating emitters. This means that the emitters on the bottom of the slope will control the amount of water they release, even though the water pressure in the system is greater at the lower level. This allows the pressure to build and send the water to the higherplants.

However, when the system turns off, all of the water remaining in the system will drain out of the lowest points, the emitters on the bottom of the slope. This generally means that the bottom plants get overwatered, or the top plants get underwatered. One easy way to reduce the problem is to run the main drip tube (the one that the 1/4 inch, or "spaghetti" lines, connect to) all the way down the hill without any emitters attached to it. Then run it back up the hill, and tee off at regular intervals to run across the slope to the plants. Put a bend in the tube, like a p-trap under a sink, after each tee. You can also use spring-loaded check valves installed in the tube to hold back the water.

You may want to have a seperate system for your hanging plants, they will want more frequent watering and smaller amounts per time than plants in the ground, which should be watered for at least 20 minutes at a time, even up to an hour or more, and only a few times per week.

Be sure to use at least two emitters per plant to water the whole root ball, and place them on the uphill side of the roots,so the water runs down.

I don't know what they carry at Harbor Feight, but the typical hardware store lines are adequate, as long as the emitters are pressure compensating, and you get a good filter. You won't be able to clean pressure compensating emitters if they get clogged, they'll need to be replaced. I typically get my parts from commercial irrigation suppliers, such as Ewing, Horizon, and John
Deere; they can give you good advice, and the small amount more that you may pay will get you more reliable materials.

If you are in a snow zone, there are freeze considerations they can help you with as well.

Good Luck!

Tim

Hi Sandy...
I used drip systems for about 8 years in a hilly huge garden and had great luck...Without the technicalities, what worked for me was to put emitters that have specific gph (gallons per hour) on individual plants...That is, if you have plants at the bottom of a hill that will get too much water, put a 1/4 gph on it, and maybe a 1 gph emitter on the plants at the top..this will compensate for leaking extra water at bottom. There are also little faucet like handles you can run "mid-pipe" and the best is to get a timer and hook onto faucet where your system is originating..cost about $25, and you can have them auto water at will. Drip is a great way to go...get quality tubing tho and it will last much longer...soak your emitters and other small "cloggables" in a vinegar solution to get rid of hard water buildup. My well was 24ppm of iron and I had no problems..
hope that helps..
Connie

This is my first time using drip irrigation. I'm using Drip Master. Hope that's a decent brand. One problem I'm having is getting the little sprinkler heads to work. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don't. They don't seem to be clogged when I remove them to check. I'm beginning to think they're more trouble than they're worth.