Absolutely more than happy to help here! Before I launch into linking some videos, you are 100% welcome to contact us, we have actual people (and I'm one of them) at various levels of expertise who can assist, and you won't have to go days waiting for a reply -- during office hours we get back pretty fast depending on the complexity. Here is the link to our contact us, don't hesitate for a second to use it for any questions: help.dripdepot.com/support/tickets/new This link goes to our Drip Irrigation Project playlist -- there's at least a couple on there that are likely relevant to you, particularly the Gravity Video and the Large Farm video. Both projects are smaller than what you're doing but still relevant given how irrigation scales (the system we did for the farm video for example could simply be 1 or 2 of your zones and the rest might end up looking very similar). The gravity video was a very small project, but we do talk about the physics of gravity systems in it. Here is that link: kzbin.info/aero/PLWFC4jLbQV2nlUTpYG72Htlp4uJN2xDFk This next one goes to our Drip Irrigation Basics playlist -- the most relevant one for you here will be the Design video. The design we did was smaller, but all the same concepts apply to a larger drip system: kzbin.info/aero/PLWFC4jLbQV2khJxYB3AhsX4V4gx8puseN This last one is one you'll want to revisit after you've started receiving parts (lots of videos on how to use the larger agricultural stuff line Layflat) -- this one is our Drip Irrigation for Farms playlist, the most relevant in the planning stages is probably "How to Size a Mainline": kzbin.info/aero/PLWFC4jLbQV2l1higMQ09iXEPxgG4JAgD8 Jot down any questions that come up and don't hesitate to send them our way!

David, thank you for the kind words! I hope your Spring is going awesome so far, I'd love to be down there growing right now (cold and rainy up here in Oregon) :) You do have the right of it -- chemicals at certain concentrations can be injected into the lines to destroy bacterial sludges and phosphoric acid is one that is indeed used (sometimes sulfuric, citric or nitric even as well). A couple other options out there: Hydrogen Peroxide solutions, Enzyme based cleaners, copper-silver ionization systems, Peracetic Acid solutions and many others. As you likely suspect, the proper concentration is what is important, particularly if there are live plants at the moment (but even when there are not due to soil life). Proper concentrations can depend on a variety of factors as well -- current soil pH, extent of the bacterial life in the irrigation lines, material of the irrigation lines, etc. Without calling in a specialist (expensive!) to do all this, it might be easier to go with a commercial product that has done all the mixing for you, there's probably quite a few companies down there that sell these types of cleanses -- you can contact them, explain the problem in detail and they'll be able to recommend a specific product. Images of the sludge might be helpful too, a lot of these companies can also help prevent it from occurring again (filtering out whatever nutrient they are feeding on -- for us it's often iron and we identify it by the rust colored sludge). I did a quick search for Australian companies in this field and got a couple results that may be able to at least point you in the right direction: The Pure Water Shop and Hydrosmart -- they both have the same address in Adelaide so it looks like they can tackle a variety of situations. I'll link them below (and hope they're able to help you out!). hydrosmart.com.au/contact/ www.waterworld.com.au/contact/

@dripdepot Thanks for the great leads. Sympathies re the cold. I grew up in BC. We used to travel to Oregon on the coast road as a kid every summer in the eighties. Although 38c summers here are a shocker.

You bet, thank your for watching and your wonderful comment as well!

How high is the water source elevated? If it has good elevation (which results in higher pressure), you could use one of the better timers since they require water pressure in order to operate. If the elevation is minimal, Irritec makes a 0 Pressure Timer that can open with no water pressure assisting. The 0 PSI timer is this one here: www.dripdepot.com/zero-pressure-timer

@dripdepot I haven't installed the water source yet but I was thinking of installing it at a height or 2 meters. The timers on link you provided are all 3 quarter inch but I plan on using 1 inch PVC pipes. Are there 1 inch timers out there? Thanks for your response

​@steelncm At 2 meters the 0 PSI timer is going to be your best bet -- 2 meters is going to give you about 2.84 PSI (0.19 bar / 195 mbar) which isn't enough to operate most timer valves (the lowest of which require about 7 PSI (0.48 bar / 483 mbar). Another option would be a mechanical timer -- the downside there is you have to go turn it on, but it will shut itself off after the it has ran its cycle. You can still use these types of timers on 1" PVC, usually it will just mean an adapter at the inlet/outlet (something like this for the inlet for example: www.dripdepot.com/3491 ). A 1" DC solenoid valve would be a good match to your 1" PVC pipe, but those also require a minimum pressure to engage the diaphragm of the valve. If you were able to achieve about 5 to 6 meters of elevation there are a couple 1" solenoid valves that would work (though I do realize that much elevation may not be practical). Basically it's a pretty tricky spot to be in, kind of in between needing a solenoid valve to match your pipe diameter or more elevation which may not be possible. Timer solutions for low pressure gravity systems are in their infancy still, hopefully more solutions start popping up soon, as drip can work very well with only 2 meters of elevation.

At my house it's the raccoons! The easiest method is to provide an easier source of water, preferably away from the location of the tubing. That way they get used to going elsewhere for water (and will always prefer the easiest to access unless there are predators around it). This method might not always work depending on how cold your winters are. This route can be supported by placing squirrel feeders away from the tubing/garden area. Castor oil based deterrents work pretty good too, animals cannot stand the stuff, though this method is usually used during the season when you can run some through the tubing (they'll stop in a hurry though once they get into the castor oil). On the more expensive end (though maybe not as expensive as replacing tubing every Spring) you can use hardware cloth -- the hardware cloth will prevent the moles from being able to dig up into the tubing. Along the same idea, PVC conduit works pretty well -- you can use the thinner walled (costs less) PVC like Class 200 or Thin Walled Drain-Waste-Vent PVC pipe. I hope one of these does the trick for you!

You got it exactly right! PVC-Lock fittings are essentially shark-bites for PVC, the exact same principles apply (and the same wide variety of opinions on them does too!) :)

You bet! The filter and regulator are rated for direct burial -- the backflow preventer we used in the video is not, but there's a very good chance you already have backflow prevention in place for the sprinkler system. I'd recommend using a small valve box to house them in -- the parts are pretty small and should fit comfortably in the smaller valve boxes.

Thank you for the comment, a great tone-setter for Friday afternoon down here! I don't think I said it in the video, but I think of drip-lock fittings as a sort of really easy to use compression fitting :)

Potentially so! To some degree it's going to depend on the emitter spacing and flow rate of the tape, but it's definitely possible. If you have a way to elevate the barrel at all, even just a couple feet, you'll increase the odds of great performance to a significant degree (every little bit of extra pressure will help to push water to the last row of drip tape). I'd go with a lower flow drip tape, probably around 0.25 GPH -- this way each emitter will use just a little bit less water so there's more available for those downstream. If any questions come up, don't hesitate to drop a line, gravity systems are my favorite!

@@dripdepot Thanks so much for the reply! Your videos are by far the best resource I've found for learning about garden irrigation.

You sure can! I'd say 1/2" and 1/2" is very common in smaller to average sized gardens -- on really small systems, like just a few potted plants, we even see systems made of all 1/4" tubing. Basically so long as everything is within spec (not too much flow or length for the size of the line used) it's perfectly acceptable to use the same sized line for both main and drip line. More than acceptable even, as it saves some of the material costs which is always a good thing. :)

Great question! In general, it means that the emitters will put out uniform amounts of water over a pretty wide range of operating pressure. One roll we carry is pressure compensating between 12 to 50 PSI, so if one section if getting very low pressure (12) and another pretty high (50) the emitters are still going to put out very close to the same volume of water. This does mean sometimes you can go without a pressure regulator -- if the pressure is on the higher side, I'd still recommend using one to help ensure tubing doesn't pop off the fittings or anything, but if it's in between somewhere you can definitely go without one safely. Quick note: Pressure compensating emitters are available in other styles as well -- they also come as button drippers if you don't want to use inline emitter line, and even some microsprinklers are pressure compensating. :)

@dripdepot Man! This channel is like Drip Irrigation Utopia! Thank you! 😅

You can indeed loop the ends! On raised beds I don't think it would improve efficiency any, but it also wouldn't hurt it -- we do like to loop the ends when we're doing bigger plants like trees or shrubs though :) We connect both sides of the drip line to a 1/4" tee to make a ring out of it -- that gets emitters to all sides of the plant's root zone, which in turn encourages even root growth.

@dripdepot Thank you!

@@SouthCarolinaTransPlant Any time! =D

16 PSI is definitely on the lower end for a winterization blow out, but I'd still give it a shot -- if it's a smaller system it may be sufficient to get the bulk of the water out. If it's a larger system or a sprinkler system you'll want something in the neighborhood of 30 to 50 PSI. You could give it a shot at 16 PSI, you'll hear it ejecting water and can then walk the lines afterwards and see if much water remains :) If it's a drip system and you have an end cap at a low point, let it gravity drain as well, for drip irrigation systems using poly tubing that's often more than enough (not if PVC is involved, however).

There is definitely something satisfying about solvent welding two pieces together when you're burying them! For whatever reason I also enjoy using the primer and solvent. I would trust bite fittings in a buried application (if operating pressure is reasonable) but only if I checked the work myself -- if the pipe isn't seated firmly in the bite fitting the odds of it popping out do indeed go up.

You're very welcome, any time!

You bet, a 25 PSI regulator could maintain downstream pressure in a 100' line so long as the line has been sized correctly -- by this I mean in regards to friction loss. Friction loss is largely based on line length, the total flow going through it and the line's diameter (with larger diameters losing less pressure from friction). Basically, you want to size your lines to minimize friction losses. If you've done that, you'll get good performance out of the regulator (maintaining around 25 PSI throughout the system) almost no matter how long the line is :)

Got it, thank you very much for the response.i appreciate it.

There is definitely always a worry when gone! Timers failing and causing a big leak are incredibly rare, but they do happen. In your position I still likely would setup the system (the odds are heavily in your favor) but I would try to find someone who could check on things occasionally. You could also go with a WiFi timer, the Bhyve (www.dripdepot.com/bhyve-smart-hose-faucet-timer) can let you know when a zone is running and has a flow meter that you could monitor, that way if there is an issue you can at least be aware of it so someone could turn off the water. The batteries should be good to go for 6 months, most timer manufacturers recommend changing them every growing season (taking out at winter, putting back in at the start of spring). Be sure they're fresh -- the valves in hose timers are "normally closed" as well, so if for any reason the batteries died, the valve would return to its default position of closed.

You're very welcome, thank you for watching!

You do have the right of it in regards to mixing sprinklers and drippers -- it is generally advised against since drippers tend to put out significantly less water than a sprinkler, so either the drippers end up under watering (running the cycle for the sprinklers) or the sprinklers end up over-watering (running the cycle for the drippers). It can be planned around, but usually it's easier to just run them on separate zones. The adjustable spray jet and adjustable dripper would be much easier to have on the same zone since both can flow at similar rates, or at a difference that's small enough that it's easy to plan around (but you wouldn't want to run one at its minimum setting and the other at its maximum). Using a larger mainline tubing wouldn't necessarily change the calculus here, as you'd want a diameter large enough to handle the flow without incurring too much friction loss either way. Drippers drip at such a low flow (0.5 GPH is very common) that you can run quite a few on even 1/2" tubing before there is any significant friction loss. The flow can add up quick with microsprinklers, adjustable drippers and spray jets, however. We made a reasonably short video that goes over how to size your mainline in case you're interested in learning more -- from some general guidelines you can use for a quick version, to using online calculators: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nGmUc3uHo72cZrs

Outside of anything digital, the easiest (and least expensive) would probably be large format drafting paper -- there's large graph/drafting paper out there that can be as large as 24” x 36” or even 36” x 48” that would allow you to create a reasonable scale to work with :) You could break it up into smaller chunks on separate pieces of graphing paper and tape them together afterwards, essentially creating your own large format drafting paper. There's always digital options/apps, but most of the free ones are focused on lawn irrigation (if you're irrigating a pasture or a large lawn they'd be worth looking into) or are cost prohibitive at the moment. Definitely more of a challenge when you start getting into larger sizes, happy to help with any questions!

Everything we use in our videos is available on our website here: www.dripdepot.com/ There are also links to all the parts we used in this video in the video description. If there's something specific you're looking for, I'm more than happy to link you directly to it as well :)

Sam, it's good to hear from you! I just got back from vacation and this was the first thing I opened up today, great way to get back into things :) I watched some of your live stream a couple weeks ago, the community of fishing enthusiasts in your chat were great folks -- fish on Sam!

I just got back from a short vacation and walked into this comment -- thank you! What a way to get back into the swing of things :)

Phil, I just got back from vacation, thank you for sending the update! I hope you and yours (and the ducks!) made it through the hurricanes reasonably unscathed, those are one weather event I've been fortunate enough not be in so far (been in more than my share of tornadoes though). And good call planning for the expansion and second zone now, that is going to save you both time and funds -- and that's awesome on growing plants for each holiday celebration! Are you going to be doing it commercially or just for personal use? A little side hustle running a holiday plant nursery would probably work pretty well even if it was just for friends/family/neighbors :)

@ You caught me at a good time. I’ve been switching my priorities around with the disarray of the community. Cedar Key Florida *Time Away from Everyday Work is Relaxing* vacation is something to enjoy. After the chaos of the last hurricanes, I've found happiness in taking care of some unexpected feathered friends. Two days before the storm, someone abandoned a few ducks in my neighbor's yard. Luckily, she had a chicken setup that worked for a short time, so I offered to look after them. They all grew up and are males. So 25 more female ducks! Have to keep the proper male to female ratio. *The Ducks' Narrow Escape* Hurricane night, the ducklings took refuge in my house, which proved to be a blessing in disguise. A tree fell on the duck coop, splitting it in half! It took a few days to clear the debris and rebuild. No ducks were injured, just super noisy. *Hurricane Prep and Community Support* Following the storm, - Installed a generator plug for the house, ensuring power for the ducks' automatic drinking water and garden irrigation (the well pump) Can’t forget about the fridge too. - Helped neighbors recover from the hurricane and tornado damage. Yeah a tornado went through the neighborhood and my driveway. Tree fell in between my cars! Kind of impressive. - Focused on community support, assisting people in getting back into their homes. *Gardening and Sharing* Amidst the chaos, - Installed the second zone of irrigation using the extra parts I ordered for the first zone for future repairs or changes. - Planted seeds and bulbs around the front yard. But out there with the garden hose to keep them happy, no irrigation yet. - Started growing spare plants for the holidays. - Planned to share excess produce with the community and food pantry, which took a significant hit. The water was to the top of the door. *Future Plans* - Designed the front house layout for optimal planting. - Experimented with paper cutouts and hanging baskets on a drawing to visualize the perfect setup. - Envisioned adding flowers to each neighborhood mailbox, complementing existing decorations for the upcoming holidays. Sharing my harvest brings me more joy than selling it. So no side hustle. I actually just got notice that the vegetable basket I have been ordering for a few months will start back up soon. The growing season is way different in Florida.

​@@philschopshop4591 What a wild time! I'm absolutely happy to hear that the ducks are not only ok, but growing in number -- what a pleasant surprise that must be! I agree on the sharing of produce, I always end up with more than I need and give it away too -- I have two plums trees that produce more plums than any family could eat. So glad to hear you not only made it through, but have made progress on everything in the mean time and still had resources to help your neighbors. This has to be one of the most heartwarming and wholesome comments we've ever received, thank you!

I think that order would work, but I do recommend the filter come before the regulator. This helps prevent any debris from getting in the regulator. In addition to that, every filter causes some pressure drop, and it's best if that drop happens after the regulator than before. We've seen some strange behavior on low pressure systems when the regulator came before the filter. In most cases having the regulator first won't cause any major issues, but for best results, filter first :)

On the large farm kits there is not -- largely due to every location having different requirements in regards to the type that can be used (and some will be pumped from non-potable water sources that won't call for backflow). When using it with a potable water source you'll still definitely want some backflow protection, but which type is usually determined by local water authorities (Anti-Siphon Valves, Pressure Vacuum Breakers, Reduced Pressure Zones, etc).

Hey, thank you for the comment! Happy to take this one and I hope more like his Gladiator days :P

You could, and chances are it would work ok, but I can confirm it is best for the filter to come before the regulator. Partially to filter the water to keep anything out of the regulator, but all filters also cause some pressure loss and it's best if that loss occurs before regulation. :)

Your experience is very similar to mine with the push n lock -- in a lab setting, they're pretty easy to remove, but the moment some dirt gets in them it becomes extraordinarily difficult (and of course there's no way to avoid dirt out in the field!). :) Happy Monday Martin, always good to hear from you!

Apologies for the late reply on this one! For some reason we didn't get a notification of this comments (happens sometimes with KZbin unfortunately). Happy to help :) To some degree this will depend on the type of backflow preventer used, but if you mean the threaded hose bib type, as soon after the pump discharge as possible is the best place for it -- this will keep water from the irrigation system from flowing back into the pump discharge and then into the water source you're pumping from (which helps prevent things like algae blooms growing in your water source or pump housing).

@@dripdepot Thank you. Very helpful.

Martin, I struggled with that same thing when I installed my first system -- the optics of a small wet spot on top of the soil away from my plant made me think I wasn't getting enough water, so I probably ended up overwatering. I'm truly glad that was helpful, and I can confirm beneath the surface water will travel (and roots will seek it out!) :)

Thank you for the feedback, clarity was exactly what I was going for on this one!

Thank you for the shout out, and cheers from Oregon! :)

Yes, save those fingers some blisters! Also happy to confirm the hot water trick works with all sizes of tubing -- when on site, I'll often bring a thermos of hot water with me just to make sure :)

Absolutely, gotta save those fingers from some blisters! Particularly now with the cooler weather we're having -- during summer, the sun will usually get it hot enough, but right now we're getting highs in the low 60s and cloudy. The hot water thermos is coming with me :)

At the time of this writing (October 21 2024) the Punch-N-Cut is $17.15 :)

It's not done yet, but that is indeed one we'll be making -- we'll cover submersible, centrifugal booster and transfer pumps at the minimum since we see those the most. :)

The tubing and dripline does have a low enough profile that some folks mow over them -- it's definitely a risk every time you do, but raising the mower to a higher position can help reduce the risk. If you do hit it with the mower (I'd say that's one of the most common ways tubing gets damaged) it is fortunately very easy to repair -- quick too, if you already have some on hand. I generally advise against it, but I have done it myself when I didn't have time to get it buried for a season -- I raised the mower which ended up increasing how often I had to mow, but the tubing made it through the season :)

If it's a kink that won't work itself out in the sun, the best bet is to cut it out and then use a coupling to rejoin the two sections of tubing together. In most cases you could probably use the tubing without issue even with a kink, but a true kink (where the crease doesn't work itself out when expanding in the sun) is a weak point that could eventually fail so best to cut it out :)

You're very welcome, thank you for watching!

You're very welcome, I'm glad it was helpful! If any questions ever come up while you're repairing your system, don't hesitate to drop a line, happy to help :)

You're very welcome, and thank you for watching as well!

With some of the emitters (particularly the black cleanable button dripper we used and the coupling valves used as emitters) you could have the raised bed quite high as some of them require very little pressure (near 0 even) to drip. I think the drip tape would be the first to encounter uniformity problems from too little pressure, though even that would drip so long as there was flow, even if the pressure were minimal. Essentially, the emitters we used in the video could all work with a raised bed that was elevated fairly high, so long as the water source was enough above it to generate at least a minimum of pressure and flow. :)

A calcium filter will typically come just before the mesh screen filter, so you'd have an order similar to this: Spigot --> Timer (optional) --> Backflow Preventer --> Calcium Inhibitor --> Mesh Filter --> Pressure Regulator --> Hose x Tubing Adapter --> Tubing Run. That order keeps the calcium from building up in the downstream components -- you might need to clean your backflow preventer a little more often since it needs to be placed before the rest, but a good vinegar solution soak can typically get them cleaned without much trouble :)

@@dripdepot Glad I asked, because I would have put it AFTER the mesh filter! Thanks!