How to Size an Irrigation Mainline (Step-by-Step DIY Guide)
Vložit
- čas přidán 6. 07. 2024
- Adam walks through determining the best mainline size for your irrigation project.
Poly Friction Loss Calculator: www.dripdepot.com/irrigation-...
Friction Loss Charts: www.dripdepot.com/file/parent...
Water Velocity Calculator: irrigation.wsu.edu/Content/Cal...
Explore our selection of complete Irrigation Kits: www.dripdepot.com/category/dr...
How to Design a Drip Irrigation System: • How to Design a Drip I...
Planning a Drip Irrigation System Guide: help.dripdepot.com/support/so...
TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 - Intro
FOLLOW US
▶️ Subscribe / @dripdepot
▶️ Website - www.dripdepot.com
▶️ Instagram - / dripdepotinc
▶️ Pinterest - pin.it/LCKDJAu
▶️ Facebook - / dripdepotinc - Jak na to + styl
Crazy this video was released three hours ago, I just got through watching your tutorials on setting up an irrigation system and had everything planned except for what size mainline I should use! Thanks for making these!
What great timing! And you're very welcome -- this one is a "boring technical" one but was one of my favorites to make. I'm glad it came out in time to help with your planning :)
Drip irrigations are never boring for me 😂. Adam is hands down the best drip irrigation source in CZcams.
Not all hero’s wear capes.
@@GardeningwithDave The same could be said about you too Dave! Gardening with your baby and pets and getting that time with them is heroism as it's meant to be!
@@dripdepot can tell me how to install a Perma-Loc Tubing Coupling? Meaning, were to install if there is more then one location that I want water flow. Thanks.
@@warrior8021 You can connect a Perma-Loc coupling pretty much anywhere you want to join two pieces of tubing together -- likewise, if it's easier, you can use a Tee to split it into multiple directions or an Elbow to join two pieces but turn 90°.
To use one, turn the locking nut as far as you can back towards the fitting so it is fully retracted -- then push the tubing on over the barb, followed by turning the locking nut so it clamps down over the tubing to secure it in place.
We have a short video that shows how to do what I described above just in case it helps to see it done: czcams.com/video/ZuGa8B25gIY/video.html
Absolutely crazy-lucky. I've been looking for this exact information for days, and it came on demand. Thanks...
I'm glad this one came out in time to be helpful to you! :)
Your comment had good timing as well, it gave me a chance to check out your channel and some of your recipes look amazing, thank you!
Another excellent video, Adam!
Thank you so much! This one was one of my favorites to do, I like the technical side of irrigation :)
super helpful thank you
Thank you for this informative video @DripDepot. Can you also do a video on how to size the laterals? Thank you
You bet, we'll add that to the list!
In the meantime, I can help here as well -- sizing a lateral is very similar to sizing a mainline. The lateral will be considered its own line in regards to its friction loss and velocity calculations.
As a quick example, if this lateral was feeding two sprinklers, each of which delivered 1 GPM, you would run the calculations for a line with only 2 GPM going through it -- essentially, you wouldn't be considering the water that's going through the mainline, as it is feeding many laterals who are calculated individually.
Thank youuu
You're very welcome, any time!
If the spigot is 30 feet away from the containers that I am setting up irrigation for, is it fine to just have the head assembly then have 1/2polytubing running 30ft before having any emitters/drippers?
I think this plan sounds fantastic -- a head assembly at the spigot, followed by 30' of 1/2" tubing and running microtubing with emitters and drippers to your containers is exactly how we'd do it, your instincts here are spot on. With that route, everything is well into the green specification wise :)
Do you have, or can you make, a video on irrigation for small tree farms….e.g. Christmas trees, fruit, etc? Being spaced 5-6’ for Christmas trees and 15’ or so for fruit, I assume drip tape is not the way to go. Also, sometimes these have pretty long runs, not necessarily nice squares. These are often on slopes as well. Thanks!
We do actually have a video showing the installation of a tree irrigation system (located here: czcams.com/video/NkGTXrGkcRM/video.html).
The system we made in the video is fairly small, but it is scalable up to larger systems with a few small changes (larger diameter main/laterals, potentially zoning, etc).
The one potential issue with the system in the video is that it's not necessarily ideal in locations with topographical slopes, though this depends on how significant the elevation changes are. Low points in systems with elevation changes will emit more water than at high points since the emitters are not pressure compensating -- if the elevation change is slight, the volume released won't be too different, but if it's enough of a difference the increased pressure could be detrimental (and water can sometimes drain at low points if the low point is under enough pressure).
Any rough idea on what the elevation difference would be between the water source and the lowest point trees? With that we can determine how much additional pressure those locations will be under :)
@@dripdepot thanks again for quick response. I’ve seen that video but the process seemed too labor intensive for 1000-2000 trees spread over 2 acres 🙂. I’ll keep studying the options. Thank you!
@@brandonletzko2472 I do agree, at a couple thousand trees it would be pretty labor intensive -- sore fingers wouldn't even begin to describe it :)
Another option often used for trees are Microsprinklers -- by comparison, the labor would be minimal in just punching a hole in the mainline, inserting the barb on the microsprinkler and then pushing the stake in near the tree.
If you were wanting to stay on direct soil application (drippers), you could consider pressure compensating drip tape (very high cost for that right now though) or even potentially just running poly tubing down the row and punching in pressure compensating drippers at the trees. The labor time (and material costs) would be reasonable and you'd get the benefit of having pressure compensating emitters so that low-point drippers would still be emitting volume very close to high point emitters.
@@dripdepot thank you!
What if I have a straight run of 100’ mainline and then break off into two rows each of 50’ mainline to access two rows of trees. With this “Y” in the mainline, Do you measure the total 200’ or since it’s in parallel just use 150’ ? (Regarding mainline diameter sizing) thanks!
Great question, and it does get a little fuzzy at that point as the segments after the Tee are not necessarily cumulative in the same way as a continuous run. Like a magician's secret, finding concrete information and/or math on this is difficult.
In cases like this I like to defer to friction loss and velocity calculations and treat the segments off the Tee semi-independently. In this case, the 100' run is going to carry the full flow rate, including the flow that branches off the two outlets on the tee, so I'd calculate the friction loss and velocity for the full flow rate in the 100' run.
The two 50' runs I would calculate only for what flow was going through those. Flow, in this case, just refers to the sum of all emitters operating off that line. Since the line splits, not all the flow of the system will be going through both segments coming off the Tee.
Basically, if the system had a total of 200' of drip line with a 0.5 GPH emitter spaced every 12", the total flow rate of the system would be 100 GPH and the initial 100' run would carry all of that 100 GPH. I would use that to calculate velocity and friction loss through 100' of 1/2" tubing.
If that drip line was split evenly, you'd have 100' of drip line through one segment of the tee and 100' of drip line through the other segment of the tee. That means each segment would be responsible for 50 GPH, which I would calculate for those individual lines and not add them to one another, but only to the 100' main segment that came before the split.
I know that's a lot of information so please don't hesitate to ask any follow-up questions that come up!
In Example 1. is it not important to take into account the length of the tree rings? I used 1/2" mainline in my project but am now realizing I've used it more as a manifold for 1/4" tubing to reach my plants. So far I've used 100' of mainline and ~15-20' of 1/4" but had intended to extend my mainline and use more 1/4". How concerned do I need to be?
This is a great question -- for the most part, the friction losses incurred by the length of the tree rings will be minimal. In the first example, our tree rings were going to have 8 0.5 GPH emitters -- with 12" spaced drip line this gives us an 8' length of 1/4" drip line and a flow rate of 4.0 GPH. 4.0 GPH going through 8' of 1/4" line will only lose 0.1 PSI from friction.
In your example (15' to 20' of 1/4" line), the friction loss would only be 0.3 PSI assuming 8 0.5 GPH emitters in the tree ring.
Basically, it is something you account for if things are on the cusp of not having enough pressure, but for the most part tree rings (or even 1/4" tubing with drippers at the end) will be low enough flow that their friction loss will be minimal.
@dripdepot we have an odd situation and can't figure out what parts of your tutorials apply to. We live in a condo above our business office and have a deck where I container garden. Its insanely cumbersome to go downstairs, outside, and around the building to turn on the spigot, then back inside, upstairs, and out to the deck each time to water with a hose. How can I get hose access and drip irrigation (on a timer) up there? I dont want the timer at the spigot because customers can mess with it, plus it won't be convenient to adjust. I rather have the timer up at the deck as a point to run a hose, plus 2 "zones" of irrigation - 1 zone for pots, 1 zone to use the GreenStalk vertical planter watering system. Not sure how to configure the "head assembly" at the spigot VS what goes up at the deck. Any recommendations?
Would the following work?
Spigot > backflow preventer > garden hose 50ft along building then 20ft up to deck > timer with 2 outputs/zones...
Timer zone 1 with hose to 1/2" mainline adapter > 1/2" mainline along deck > 1/4" tubing to emitters
Timer zone 2 with quick connect fitting > quick connect to hose / quick connect to GreenStalk's 1/2" line watering system. Be able to swap out the GreenStalk's line for a garden hose if needed on the deck.
This one will be tricky, as the valve in the timer is really the only part of the system that is rated for constant pressure -- this means everything should come after the timer, as anything before it will always be under pressure.
That constant pressure will quickly wear out backflow preventers, pressure regulators, filters and can cause garden hoses to rupture and create a big mess -- there are garden hoses out there that are rated for constant pressure, but they're not the default unfortunately. The backflow preventer not being rated for constant pressure is the real big obstacle though, as it's one part you don't want to compromise on but there'd be no way to have it connected to the spigot and not be under constant pressure if the timer were downstream of it.
Depending on the total number of plants, you could go with a type of self-contained system. We see this used a lot in this exact application: www.dripdepot.com/aqua-magic
It's self contained (has everything except a tote or container to hold the water) and includes programmable watering cycles.
If the deck is reasonably protected from the elements, a similar self contained setup (though this one is also a container to hold the water) is at this link: www.dripdepot.com/oasis-evolution-drip-watering-system
Another option could be to go with a timer that has a closing cabinet -- while it could be opened, customers and others might be less tempted to press buttons if the cabinet were closed (something like this: www.dripdepot.com/8420-duplo-evolution-water-timer )
@dripdepot thanks for your reply! It is a tricky situation isn't it! It seems the only options are drip pumped from a reservoir/possible rain barrel? or having a hose end timer at the spigot. Neither of these options allow me to turn a hose on/off from up on the deck.... do you see any solutions for hose access without having to go downstairs, outside, and around the building to turn on the timer, then back up to the deck to water? The trips outside and back are cumbersome with toddlers needing to come with to turn the hose on and back off since it's not safe for them to be left alone on the deck.
Is there any device that can be used on the spigot under constant pressure so that the timer can be put "downstream" up on the deck? Perhaps a timer that is always in the ON position and another timer at the deck to actually schedule watering? Or a first backflow preventer/vacuum breaker on the spigot and 2nd used with the head assembly up on the deck? Gosh really stretching for a solution to turn things on/off up there.
@@jIlLiAnganz A WiFi timer could perhaps do this -- you could install a WiFi timer at the hose bib and then use an app on the phone to manually turn it on/off for hose access. Here's a link to an example of a WiFi timer with two zones: www.dripdepot.com/b-hyve-xd-smart-hose-timer-outlets-two
That would allow you to have the backflow preventer right at the timer outlet as well -- no cabinet to prevent people from touching buttons, but it's app controlled so you can turn it on or off anywhere you have internet access.
Another option might be to install a drip irrigation system up at the plants on the deck -- I suspect it would be pretty low in cost and then you could program the timer to just automate them and not have to worry about going up on the deck (at least, not for the watering). If aesthetics are a concern, the white poly tubing could be used -- or, if the hose you're currently using it with is a permanent type thing, you could run the drip system off of it up on the deck and still have the timer at the hose bib.
@dripdepot Brilliant!!! WIFI timer! I think that will be a great solution for not having to run back and forth to turn it on! So one more problem... If I use a wifi timer and head assembly at the spigot downstairs outside, and I can only run ONE hose up to the deck (don't want an eye sore or to bring more attention to what we have rigged up by using poly lines) how can I switch between the drip lines and using a short hose occasionally for odd jobs like extra watering or cleaning things? Could I have a quick connect up at the deck?
@@jIlLiAnganz You bet, a quick connect would work, or even just a swivel fitting so you can just turn the swivel to remove it. That would allow you to swap between poly and hose pretty quickly -- you could even do it with the flip of a switch with a faucet Y that has on/off (this one here: www.dripdepot.com/1228) :)