Adding low pressure drip irrigation to existing system?
nativemel
15 years ago
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laura1
15 years agonativemel
15 years agoRelated Discussions
Low pressure drip on same zone as high pressure?
Comments (4)The 'no mixing sprinkler styes rule' doesn't have much to do with pressure, its about application rate and not having one section soggy while the other section is still too dry. Most drip sysems can handle 50 psi, if you're going to mix the zone anyway, I wouldnt bother with a pressure reducer unless your using some real cheap drip brand, it won't affect the amount of water coming out of the emmitters. It's easier to mix a zone with rotors than say spray heads. You can usually nozzle your rotors down so that less water comes out, nozzleing them up might not work, depends on how much of your availabe water is being used already. Drip emmitters also come in sizes. Usually .5, 1 and 2 gpm. really some testing is needed. How long do you usually run the lawn zone and how often? You'll need to choose an emitter size to water your shrubs in the same amount of time. There are also other styles of garden emitters that are individually adjustable, often you can shut them right off, but i find most of them put out a lot of water... if I have to mix a spray zone, thats what I typically use. Hope the rambling helped, I can clarify if it didn't!...See MoreControl valve on drip system (low pressure)
Comments (2)I thought a picture might help. See attached. The bright white fitting on the other side of the filter is a 20GPM pressure reducer. I guess my question is better stated as, can either the control valve or the pressure reducer malfunction in a way that would lead to very little pressure/flow in the drip system. If this isn't the problem and a major leak is more likely, I dont want to mess with this setup. I confirmed that turning the valve off doesn't result in the flow stopping. If I have to replace this, is it safe to assume there is live pressure on the other end of the control valve and I will need to turn off the water to the house to switch it out....See MoreDesign of drip irrigation system
Comments (13)Hi tdscpa, Thanks for your suggestions. I had checked out the rainbird and other websites but I did not see explanations on having the manifold at the water faucet with the lateral lines going 25 feet underground verses having the main line going 25 feet under ground with the manifold in the irrigation area. But see my comments below. Hi homr, Thanks for taking the time to key in all that information. Especially explaining the pressure loss problems. But it looks like my whole plan will have to be revised due to what I learned. See my comments below. REVISED PLAN: Thanks to all who contributed to this thread. I really appreciate it. I talked to a city tech and he gave me a link to city ordinances which deal with irrigation systems. From what I read, it appears that the backflow preventer (BP) has to be installed in the main line prior to any branching. This means the BP will have to be installed near the front corner of our property where the main line first enters our property. This will require longer runs from the BP to the irrigation areas in the front and back yards. I'll have to check with a licensed plumber with experience in irrigation systems confirm whether the BP has to be installed before any branching. But it looks like I have even bigger problems if the BP has to be installed at the front corner of our property: 1. If the BP has to be installed at the front corner of our property, the main line will have to go across our concrete driveway and entry sidewalk to get to our front yard. IÂm reluctant to cut our concrete driveway and entry sidewalk to do this. 2. The path from the BP at the front corner to the back yard is all concrete. That side of the house has concrete from the house to the hollow tile perimeter wall. A DIFFERENT QUESTION: Any licensed plumbers reading this? Is there a universal code that says all main lines have to be buried in the ground? Or is it "generally" permissible to run a main line above ground? (Like attached to our hollow tile perimeter wall above the concrete sidewalk?) Assuming I can get the main line from the BP at the front corner to the back yard, I will have to run the line around the house (buried under ground) to get it to the front yard without having to do item-1. (The other side of the house does not have concrete.) Sorry for the long post. I guess there is no such thing as a simple drip irrigation system if it is to be done right, Sky...See MoreVideo of my long awaited drip irrigation system
Comments (20)Brian, A larger line doesn't give you more pressure, only more volume. Your faucet coming out of your house is probably a 1/2" line operating at 60 PSI which is pretty common. Plastic pressure regulators aren't needed, IMHO, as you can effectively regulate the pressure with the faucet handle. Just another plastic part to degrade and fail in the hot sun. If you're setting up sprayers, go ahead and crack the sprayer adjustment enough so when you blow through it, some air escapes, then hook everything up and crank the faucet half way open and see how they're covering. The only advantage to high pressure is that the line pressurizes completely sooner than later. As an example, on one run I have eight sprayers, and about two dozen 1-10 gal emitters, and I run full pressure on the faucet, which is coming through a 3/4" galvanized nipple from a 1" PVC water line. The only time you run out of pressure is when you have a lot of large sprayers operating at max output, then they'll drop the pressure downstream quite a bit. Don't forget a vacuum breaker....See Morenativemel
15 years agobabalu_aye
15 years ago
fawnridge (Ricky)
15 years agoabendwolke
15 years agobsewall
15 years agousafretired
15 years agocorar4gw
15 years ago
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