Outdoor irrigation help

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tvc

tvc

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We are running 4 10x100 dep houses this year. We are going to set up drip irrigation system for timed waterings when needed, we are planting straight into the ground. Our site is slightly sloping. Its not level and we don't want to level it, the slopes not that major just slight, don't want t disturb native soil. Only doing light till and top dress before drilling our holes to place month old babies into. We need a system that has good pressure to push water (and organic nutrients when needed) down the lines to adequately water evenly over its cycle. Previously we have done hand watering and it was tough with 2 houses. Automation is a must, just trying to learn the ropes here.

we have multiple 550 gallon water tanks setup at the topside of the holler (tanks are all uphill from houses) to feed down the lines which I plan to get some kind of line split so that we can provide different feeding to each house if need be. Also given the slope slight down hill the water will naturally flow but I'm sure I will need some type of pump

I also am not sure as to what size irrigation lines I should get because given we are growing organic I have heard its more likely to clog lines. So I'm thinking if we could get a size larger might help but then we'll need more pressure. Our nutrients using is "key to life" so they are water soluble if that helps in diagnosing our setup.


any help here is greatly appreciated!
 
JadedMarxist

JadedMarxist

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Look into a company called rainbird. I work a service tech at an irrigation company and they sell a drip line tubbing, 17mm inside diameter and have multiple volume emitters spaced at 12 inches apart. Now don't quote me but for every 1 inch line at 12gal per min with city water pressure around 80psi. That line can feed 100 feet of drop to plants. To get more distance you can loop the drip line back to the 1inch feed line to make it 200 so on and so forth. There drip is designed to be used with or with out ferts nutes ect. You can buy poly pipe black, automatic valves, electric controllers all at home depot. Cheap if you buy the orbit brand. (rain bird is top of the line).

There will be some math involved not knowing how many sq feet you looking to cover. Just a thought if I knew what kind of flow you would need I could determine the pump size if you even need a pump.
 
JadedMarxist

JadedMarxist

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1 inch line is good to 12gpm. 11/4inch is 23gpm. 1. 5 inch 32 gpm for example
 
Seraphine

Seraphine

1,192
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I bought an ez flow fertilizer injector. It hooks up to the hose to feed directly through your drip line. It comes in larger sizes too. This 3/4 of a gallon is the smallest they make and is their low pressure model. This model
Was $70.00
 
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Dartmouth.Dank

Dartmouth.Dank

38
18
I bought an ez flow fertilizer injector. It hooks up to the hose to feed directly through your drip line. It comes in larger sizes too. This 3/4 of a gallon is the smallest they make and is their low pressure model. This model
Was $70.00
anyway to adjust the ph???
 
tomatoesarecooltoo

tomatoesarecooltoo

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I run 1/2 lines, no fertigiation but my well water is very hard and my drip emmitters tend to clog rather than the lines. I also have some beds on soakers made from pvc and those are really low maintenance but they don’t water as evenly.

I would make sure you have a release valve at the end of your line so you can release any excess nutrition after watering and flush the system with a little plain water after. Organic nutrition stagnating in the hot lines during the day will be the biggest culprit.
 
PauliBhoy

PauliBhoy

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Those EZ Flo injectors are not great. They tend to get clogged and break.
I run 1/2 lines, no fertigiation but my well water is very hard and my drip emmitters tend to clog rather than the lines

For pH modification get a Mazzei injector and a stock tank for the acid. Just need to size it to your water flow rates. You can mess with acid injection to get the right output. No more clogged lines. You can find one for less money than the silly EZ Flo injectors, and it will last for years and years.

I also am not sure as to what size irrigation lines I should get because given we are growing organic I have heard its more likely to clog lines. So I'm thinking if we could get a size larger might help but then we'll need more pressure. Our nutrients using is "key to life" so they are water soluble if that helps in diagnosing our setup.
Avoid fertigating with anything not 100% soluble, like citric acid. Add your organic fertilizers to the soil. Anything you normally have to shake up in the bottle is not a solution, it is a suspension, and will clog your lines. Notable natural "organic" exceptions include potassium sulfate (potash), magnesium sulfate (epsom salts) and calcium sulfate (gypsum) which won't clog lines if dissolved correctly.

Use a 150 micron filter for any well water. If you have river water you'll need a sand filter.

You want to use drip tape like T-tape. Get the emitter and line spacing and flow rate right for your soil. Sandy soils require high flow rates and close spacing while clay soils require low flow rates and wide spacing. These are 5/8" drip lines that can be easily connected to normal 3/4" or 1" poly pipe coming from your water system.
Be sure to use a pressure reducer; most drip lines won't take more than 20 PSI, sometimes less.

Also you'll have to size your irrigation "zones" to the drip tape and volume your pump can provision. If you have sandy soil you may not be able to water all four of your greenhouses simultaneously so you might have to split them into irrigation zones. but they do make valves with electric timers if you don't want to have to do it all manually.

Check out Berry Hill Drip or Rain-Flo for one stop shopping.
 
CantStop

CantStop

2
1
Your gonna have todo sone plumbing. You need a water pump I’ve been using harbor freight’s 1hp shallow well pump with a pressure tank plumbed to it. Run 3/4 poly blk tube, 1/4 ply drip line and you need to use Netafim PC (Pressure Compensating) Spray Stakes. This are the best sprayers. After every feeding you need to flush your lines with pure water for 1 min to prevent clogging. Been using this system for 2 years now a still going strong. I’m running 4 32x180 greenhouses with no problem. Also as good practice whenever feeding or watering walk your lines to make sure your system is watering every plant no clogged sprayers.
 
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