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

Toro installation guide pages 16-21 on drip irrigation may help.

http://www.toro.com/sprinklers/pig.pdf

Great idea. I have seperate zones for my containers. There higher water demands allow me to water them and not overwater other plants in the area.

You can do it. It would be nice, that if along with that 32 zone clock, the installer put some extra (unused wires )next to the mainline. If not, there are battery operated valves that will work well.

Suggest you determined the flow you will be using on this zone. Some valves will not function properly at low flow rate (they don't close). Manufactures website specify the flow rate minimum and maximum for their valves. A zone with just a few plants, may not have a very high flow rate.

A pressure regulator is also flow dependent. Most work well at low flows, but IF you are planning a very large drip zone ( Over 8/gal/min = 480 Gal/hr), suggest you look at the flow rates. I think DIG and Rainbird are offered by sprinklerwarehouse.com, and they list flow rates for valves and PRV's. Rainbird offers a all ini one, - valve, filter and PRV in a nice compact unit that fits in a 10 inch circular valve can. Sprinklerwarehouse has them. (I am not paid to promote them, but unless you have access to a "to the trade" distributer, you will have troble finding elsewhere)

You didn't mention a filter. In low volume irrigation, instead of real estates "location, location, location" - it is "Filtration, Filtration, Filtration" A screen (wye) filter should be installed before the PRV. Pressure regulators are notrious for failure secondary to debrie collection. Depending on emitters you will be useing. Suggest you try the shrubbler type, a they are higher flow, larger water streams, and can cover a large pots surfface. They dont need "fine" filtration. 100 mesh should suffice. The shrubbler type of emitters are good for large pots, and I personally like short pieces of drip-along type of 1/4 inch on top of other pots. They have emitters spaced at 6 or 12 inches, and drip at 1/2 gal/hour. Depending on pot, plant size, plants water need, and frequency of irrigation, I put varying amount of the line in the pot. Goof plug in the end on short pieces, but usuall loop it around plants stem and join each end to the feeder line with a barbed "T". These are turbulent flow emitters built into the 1/4 inch line, and are clog resistent.


FYI, I use 150 or 200 mesh on all my drip installation. 200 if they are going to use sprayheads, which other than the shrubbler type I discourage (sprays too fine = evaporative loss). 150 works well with 1 GPH PC drippers. PC means pressure compensated, and with containers at iffeerent heights and sizes, sometime individual drippers work bes. Again, I use 1/gph, and will use "T's" to place the required number over the pots mediuims surface. I use these in containers and will hang them from the overhead to water hanging baskets.

Nice tghing do for your wife. She will think fondly of you each times she sees her unused watering cans.

Need more info? let me know. Jeff

Low volume Jeff covered it pretty well. My only word or caution is what goes up will eventually come down. Only a thought over time.

It sounds like a good project.

Dan