Drip irrigation pressure too high? Emitters popping off

8 years ago

The pressure at the hose bib is just over 40psi, while at the end of the drip line its about 35, but many emitters pop off regularly and other components seem to pop apart under the pressure sometimes. The flow is 5gpm.

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Comments (7)

Jeremy Millrood
8 years ago
That's not a lot of pressure at the bib, so I'm not sure what problem is..I know the recommendation is for the pressure at the line to be at 25 for drippers..I'm using a 50 psi reducer on mine but have a combination of spray and drip and have never had a problem with components popping apart.

micro-irrigation

I am in the process of setting up drippers to irrigate my fruit trees and will be using a 25 psi reducer.

can you post some pics of your set up?
joncongaroo
8 years ago
Here if the sun has been heating up the plastic when the water comes on, emitters will pop off. I set my timer to come on before sunrise.
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lehua, Unfortunately the money situation is such that I'm stuck doing this on my own. What difference would the pressure and flow of water have on grouping plants ? I'm no irrigation specialist but my logic tells me that once you have grouped your plants and/or established a drip scenario which could cover certain plants, then you need to know whether the water supply will allow it without breakdown into more zones - or have I missed something obvious ;) ? What I'm after is just a comment on whether my grouping of plants (which by default I made into separate zones) could be reduced i.e. are plants from one or more of those zones compatible in their water cycles to be joined into a bigger group / zone if the water supply allows it ? I had a few postings in this forum before about my concern about which plants could be grouped but the answers implied that you could water anything if the supply was there. As far as I understand fruit trees, citrus trees like deep watering - eg once a week. Vegetables every day or once every two days and so on. Which plants would you definitely put on a separate zone just because their watering needs are not compatible with others (forgetting about water supply for a start) ?
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Hi Charlie, What is your water source's flow(gpm) and pressure(psi)? How many emitters do you have per line? Are the two drip lines connected? How many valves are you using? You have the right idea. You don't have enough pressure to move the available water to all the emitters. It could be a combination of several things. After you answer my questions, I can suggest a few test and then you can make a new plan for your system and see where you are. At least you will be making decisions with a little more knowledge. Aloha
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jk, You are someone who knows hydraulic theory and likes to calculate the troubleshooting of the issue. I am thinking in a different tack. If things don't make sense, I revert to trial and error methods if it is not too expensive. Here is my $0.02. My opinion may not b e totally accurate but so what. When you open the end of the 1/2" line you drop the pressure for the emitters to near zero and they work. This leads me to believe 20 psi is way to high for your pressure compensating emitters. You, in essence, are doubling regulating the line. Most drip system work at optimum at 10 to 15 psi. So the issue is two different types of drip on the same system. The bubblers don't really care what the pressure is (with in a range) but need flow. The emitters are the opposite. So to get to the point, change the emitters that aren't pressure compensating or reduce pressure to 10 psi with an additional in-line regulator or separate the two types of drip and reduce the emitters to a lower pressure or change them out. Those type are generally called torture-track(that's how they internally regulate pressure) and tend to clog reasonable quickly. With a level area, you don't need that type of emitter. There are many ways to go. So let us know what you tried and if it works out. JMHO Aloha
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If you're still looking for drip solutions, I have found a perfect solution for my garden in adjustable drip emitters on a stake. See link below. It's kind of a pain to try to drip every single plant, especially if you're trying to distribute water evenly to start seeds. I can water 4 or 5 plants at a time with each adjustable drip emitter. They adjust easily from 0-10 gph by just rotating the heads open or closed, and having them on stakes allows me to put the water exactly where I want it rather than wrestling with the ever-curling 1/4 tubing. I buy the 25 packs of emitters at Home Depot for $17, and I can put 25 emitters (attatched to 1/4 tubing) on one 1/2 inch line with perfect pressure to all. I water for 45 minutes every evening at 6pm. I have no solid data to back me up here, but my theory is that my plants are resting and restoring their strength in the evening and throughout the night and can best use the water then. I also think it ends the heat of the day a little faster for them. I also like to start my early mornings in my garden, so I walk around before it gets hot and wet the ground in an attempt to keep them cool for as long as possible. They seem to respond positively. Good luck! Here is a link that might be useful: Dig Adjustable Drip Emitters
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Jeremy Millrood
8 years ago
never had a problem with that here and mine are set to go off around 6:30 PM when it's still pretty hot..maybe the holes are too big..
joncongaroo
8 years ago
I've had them pop out of spaghetti tubing, but they don't consider it hot here until it's over 110 degrees.
hortyhodge
8 years ago
We installed a leaky pipe system recently and some of the narrow pipes are popping out where they join onto the wider pipes . it has happened at the tap end and on another one in the first zone . One of the areas is soaking wet and another very dry .

I am wondering what this could be . Can anyone please suggest anything ?
Mark Mark
Original Author
8 years ago
Clarification: They run in the middle of the night, so its not heat.

A couple of the emitters even broke surprisingly (standard ones from home depot)

Everyone I talk to has a diff opinion. I call hardware store, they say 25psi, and then Sprinkler world who says 40 is perfect. Cant get a straight answer, or someone really knowledgeable.

Its not a complicated setup. Hose does go downhill a bit at the end, but the emitters pop off up top too.
oldgardenguy_zone6
8 years ago
Drip works includes a 30 psi reg. in all of their kits I would try that's what I use and have had no issues

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Drip irrigation pressure too high? Emitters popping off

Comments (7)

Jeremy Millrood

joncongaroo

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joncongaroo

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Original Author

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Drip irrigation pressure too high? Emitters popping off

Comments (7)

Jeremy Millrood

joncongaroo

Related Discussions

Jeremy Millrood

joncongaroo

hortyhodge

Mark MarkOriginal Author

oldgardenguy_zone6

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

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Mark Mark
Original Author