SPRINKLER TALK FORUM - You Got Questions, We've Got Answers

DIY newbie ready to give this irrigation thing a try.
I've read a lot on this site but would really appreciate some expert advice and guidance.
I'm looking to start a project that will evolve over the next couple of years. To start with I have a 1.5 hp pump with a 2" suction hose pulling 3 feet vertically up to the pump which is sitting on the bank of the lake. On the 1.5" pump outlet, I have a reducer to a 3/4" hose bib and a hose connected to a sprinkler that gets drug all over our 1.5 acres to water our vacation property in Northern Wisconsin.
The first thing I would like to tackle is eliminating the hose off the pump and converting to a mainline that delivers the water to a more central location in the yard that is another 3 feet elevation above the pump and about 80' away. At this location I would like to install a regular hose spigot this year, and then expand to a multi-zone manifold next year. Eventually this will include a controller, drip irrigation, etc.
So here is my idea... I remove the hose bib from the pump outlet and replace it with a 1.5" schedule 40 PVC pipe that almost immediately has an inline t-filter (100 mesh) and then continues underground just below 18" and runs the 80' to central location. When it arrives there I would "T" it, having one line reduce to 3/4" and end at a hose spigot. The other would feed a 4 valve manifold (which wouldn't be connected this year).
I have not measured the PSI or GPM yet, but thought that it wouldn't make sense to measure this until I had the mainline completed. Therefore my question is really...is my plan for running the mainline a good one? Is 1.5" PVC a good size to run, or should I reduce it to 1" right off the pump?
Sorry for the long post. Thanks in advance for the help!

Thanks Wet_Boots, that is exactly what I was looking for!

As far as the whole thing being one zone... I saw you mention that on another post when someone had an centrifugal pump and it really got me thinking, because I had always "ignorantly" assumed the pump would be my limiting factor. Reducing the number of zones is something I would be in favor of and once I have the mainline completed I will do the math and see what I can get away with.

The depth that I am going to bury the pipe at was a little bit of a mistatement on my part. I am going to be running the electrical in a seperate, deeper, gray conduit in the same trench from the pump to the garage. The electrical conduit will be below 18", then some dirt, then some caution tape, then my 1.5" white PVC somewhere between 12-15" (just cause I can ).

Along the 80' run from the pump to the garage, I actually cross through the lowest spot on the property. I was thinking of putting a drain fitting at that point inside a small round box so that to winterize I could just open the drain and it would drain the mainline from both ends. The zone(s) might need to be blown out.

I do have another question... the main point of this whole endeavor is be able to water during the week when we are not at the cabin. I am a little nervous about the system dead heading, so I was planning on putting a "flow sensor" on the mainline just before the manifold. I'm not going to be a cheapo on this project, but those flow sensors seem a little spendy and I would hate to find out they aren't worth the money. I know there are a number of options to accomplish this and I have considered some of them. I would like to avoid adding a pressure tank/bladder to the pump so using a pressure switch wasn't high on my list. What is the "best" way to ensure your pump isn't running when the water isn't moving for whatever reason?

Thanks,
Dan

The pump is an "LSP-150-C Monarch Centrifugal Pump". http://www.pumpbiz.com/shopping_product_detail.asp?pid=69196

Yes it does have a check valve on the inlet side.

Thanks for the pointers on winterizing. I think I can use slope to my advantage and drain the system and avoid having to blow it out. I only have a pancake compressor so blowing out the large pipes likely won't work.

I was planning on having a t-filter on the output side of the pump (say 12" from the port). This would be maybe 2' higher than the underground pipe run, but not higher than the whole system. I'm not sure I understand how a high mounted t-filter would create something to push against as I thought this was an almost zero resistance device. ( I might need some education here. )

The main reason I wanted to avoid a pressure tank was to keep the "footprint" small at the lake shore. Just wanted a small pump enclosure.

By "going thermal" do you mean a heat sensor on the pump? That is one of the options I considered and since this pump is outside, above ground and it's running temp varies based on the outside temp, I was afraid I would be running into a lot of false-positives.

Again, I am not opposed to a flow sensor, provided they have a good reputation of doing their job and not being something that fails regularily. What I saw as a benefit was that I could put it on the main line near the garage, which is where the controller will be (short wire run).

Thanks for the feedback. Getting your advice on this stuff is exactly what I need to move forward with confidence.

Dan

Ok, I was looking at the t-filter that I planned on getting..."Vu-Flow VFNT150-100P 1.5 inch 100 Mesh Polyester T-Style Filter". After reading the specs on it, I have my doubts about whether it will work in my setup. I was planning on putting it right after the pump outlet. The pump is basically pushing 80+ GPM at this point. The filter is rated for a maximum of 50 GPM on the 1.5" version.

The suction side does have a filter with a mesh matting.

Should I forego the filter? Get the filter, but ignore the rating? Or, should I get the 2" version,which is rated for up to 100 GPM, and just patch in a short section of 2" which inlcudes the filter?
Advice welcome!