Hello everyone,
We moved into our new house last summer (oh God, that already sounds so long ago). Since then, there has been a lot to do—and there still is. Now, however, the remaining work is increasingly shifting outdoors.
The well has already been drilled. At that spot, I installed a small pit, and the garden shed will be placed on top of it. Now I’ve been thinking about the irrigation system again and realized that it will be difficult to access the pit underground once the garden shed is in place, as I would then be undermining the base slab.
So, I’ve been giving it some thought and reading a lot, but not everything is clear to me yet.
Firstly: before I pour the base slab, I need to run the necessary pipes out of the pit. That means drilling a hole through the pit ring and laying 1 to x PVC pipes (KG pipes) extending 1 to 2 meters (3 to 6.5 feet) beyond the edge of the base slab, so that I can later feed the water line through them when the time comes.
By the way, the garden shed will also house the sub-distribution for the outdoor electrical system. So, I also need to run a cable from the pit through the base slab to the distribution board in the garden shed for the pump. Additionally, I need 2 to 3 PVC pipes from inside where the distribution board is mounted, under the base slab to the outside, for all the electrical wiring on the driveway—such as the gate, lighting, and control cables for the irrigation valves, etc.
Now to the main topic: the automatic irrigation system
In this forum, it seems @rick2018 has good knowledge about this subject. Maybe you could give me some tips as well.
Below is a plan of our property:
Except for the house, none of this has actually been implemented yet. The plants are just planned and may still change. The second terrace on the drawing is currently 10 x 10 meters (33 x 33 feet). It won’t actually be that large; that’s just a placeholder for the approximate future location. However, it definitely won’t be built in the next five years. That brings me to my first point:
1. How do you take that into account now? For example, regarding the second terrace, I would mostly plan the sprinklers as if the terrace will never be built, since it’s still uncertain whether and where exactly it will be placed. What about the trees? If I install the sprinklers now and then plant a tree 1 or 2 meters (3 to 6.5 feet) away next year, there will be shade along the axis behind the tree. In the first few years, this is probably negligible due to the small trunk diameter, but what happens when the trunk gets thicker?
2. What exactly should be irrigated? Lawn, flower beds, and vegetable garden are clear. I’ve read differing opinions about hedges, especially regarding adaptation to watering. What about trees? They should be able to cope on their own, right? Is it really overkill to install irrigation just for the first and maybe the second year?
3. For my large lawn areas, I’m considering Hunter gear-driven rotors. However, these are said to be rather sensitive to wind. Here, it’s usually windy because we’re on a small hill. But once everything around is planted, there shouldn’t be much wind close to the ground, right? @rick2018, why do you prefer rotators like the MP3000 over gear-driven rotors like the I20, for example?
4. My father-in-law took care of the well. I believe a Grundfos SQ2-55 pump is installed “in the hole.” The borehole depth was about 20 meters (66 feet) and the pump hangs at roughly 15 meters (49 feet) depth. The property slopes upwards by almost one meter (3 feet) to the right, so the pump has to push water up about 16 meters (52 feet). The pump is capable of 54 meters (177 feet) total head. So that leaves about 38 meters (125 feet), which corresponds to roughly 3.8 bar (55 psi) and, unfortunately, only about 2 cubic meters per hour (around 880 gallons per hour).
If I understand correctly, I can only operate two gear-driven I20 rotors with the 4.0 nozzle on one zone, since each requires 0.81 m³/h (about 360 gallons/hr) at 2.5 bar (36 psi) with a 11.9-meter (39 feet) radius (planning uses 10.5 meters). That will mean a lot of zones. Alternatively, I could try to return the pump to the well driller (as it wasn’t used before) and get one with 4 m³/h (about 1760 gallons/hr) or more. The question is whether that would make my well wear out faster (clogging?).
5. Let’s say I keep the existing pump and end up with 30 zones. How would that work in practice? Would each lawn irrigation zone run for 30 minutes? And every 3 days? That would cause problems with my planned robotic mower that will almost always be running over the large area. In the end, I won’t have time to enjoy the yard because either the mower is running or the sprinklers are on.
6. It is recommended to start the design in a corner of the property. So, for example, I start at the top right and place the first sprinkler in front of the hedge. The thing is: the hedge is currently very narrow, but will become 1 to 2 meters (3 to 6.5 feet) wide over time.
7. The sprinklers extend during operation and retract afterwards. How durable are these if someone steps on them? It looks like I will eventually have a “carpet” of pop-up sprinklers. The children should, of course, still be able to play freely.
That’s enough for now. Have a nice rest of the Sunday!
We moved into our new house last summer (oh God, that already sounds so long ago). Since then, there has been a lot to do—and there still is. Now, however, the remaining work is increasingly shifting outdoors.
The well has already been drilled. At that spot, I installed a small pit, and the garden shed will be placed on top of it. Now I’ve been thinking about the irrigation system again and realized that it will be difficult to access the pit underground once the garden shed is in place, as I would then be undermining the base slab.
So, I’ve been giving it some thought and reading a lot, but not everything is clear to me yet.
Firstly: before I pour the base slab, I need to run the necessary pipes out of the pit. That means drilling a hole through the pit ring and laying 1 to x PVC pipes (KG pipes) extending 1 to 2 meters (3 to 6.5 feet) beyond the edge of the base slab, so that I can later feed the water line through them when the time comes.
By the way, the garden shed will also house the sub-distribution for the outdoor electrical system. So, I also need to run a cable from the pit through the base slab to the distribution board in the garden shed for the pump. Additionally, I need 2 to 3 PVC pipes from inside where the distribution board is mounted, under the base slab to the outside, for all the electrical wiring on the driveway—such as the gate, lighting, and control cables for the irrigation valves, etc.
Now to the main topic: the automatic irrigation system
In this forum, it seems @rick2018 has good knowledge about this subject. Maybe you could give me some tips as well.
Below is a plan of our property:
Except for the house, none of this has actually been implemented yet. The plants are just planned and may still change. The second terrace on the drawing is currently 10 x 10 meters (33 x 33 feet). It won’t actually be that large; that’s just a placeholder for the approximate future location. However, it definitely won’t be built in the next five years. That brings me to my first point:
1. How do you take that into account now? For example, regarding the second terrace, I would mostly plan the sprinklers as if the terrace will never be built, since it’s still uncertain whether and where exactly it will be placed. What about the trees? If I install the sprinklers now and then plant a tree 1 or 2 meters (3 to 6.5 feet) away next year, there will be shade along the axis behind the tree. In the first few years, this is probably negligible due to the small trunk diameter, but what happens when the trunk gets thicker?
2. What exactly should be irrigated? Lawn, flower beds, and vegetable garden are clear. I’ve read differing opinions about hedges, especially regarding adaptation to watering. What about trees? They should be able to cope on their own, right? Is it really overkill to install irrigation just for the first and maybe the second year?
3. For my large lawn areas, I’m considering Hunter gear-driven rotors. However, these are said to be rather sensitive to wind. Here, it’s usually windy because we’re on a small hill. But once everything around is planted, there shouldn’t be much wind close to the ground, right? @rick2018, why do you prefer rotators like the MP3000 over gear-driven rotors like the I20, for example?
4. My father-in-law took care of the well. I believe a Grundfos SQ2-55 pump is installed “in the hole.” The borehole depth was about 20 meters (66 feet) and the pump hangs at roughly 15 meters (49 feet) depth. The property slopes upwards by almost one meter (3 feet) to the right, so the pump has to push water up about 16 meters (52 feet). The pump is capable of 54 meters (177 feet) total head. So that leaves about 38 meters (125 feet), which corresponds to roughly 3.8 bar (55 psi) and, unfortunately, only about 2 cubic meters per hour (around 880 gallons per hour).
If I understand correctly, I can only operate two gear-driven I20 rotors with the 4.0 nozzle on one zone, since each requires 0.81 m³/h (about 360 gallons/hr) at 2.5 bar (36 psi) with a 11.9-meter (39 feet) radius (planning uses 10.5 meters). That will mean a lot of zones. Alternatively, I could try to return the pump to the well driller (as it wasn’t used before) and get one with 4 m³/h (about 1760 gallons/hr) or more. The question is whether that would make my well wear out faster (clogging?).
5. Let’s say I keep the existing pump and end up with 30 zones. How would that work in practice? Would each lawn irrigation zone run for 30 minutes? And every 3 days? That would cause problems with my planned robotic mower that will almost always be running over the large area. In the end, I won’t have time to enjoy the yard because either the mower is running or the sprinklers are on.
6. It is recommended to start the design in a corner of the property. So, for example, I start at the top right and place the first sprinkler in front of the hedge. The thing is: the hedge is currently very narrow, but will become 1 to 2 meters (3 to 6.5 feet) wide over time.
7. The sprinklers extend during operation and retract afterwards. How durable are these if someone steps on them? It looks like I will eventually have a “carpet” of pop-up sprinklers. The children should, of course, still be able to play freely.
That’s enough for now. Have a nice rest of the Sunday!
Level monitoring using an ultrasonic sensor.
For these pipe lengths to the distribution manifolds, I would use DN40 (1.5 inches). For the circuits, DN32 (1.25 inches).
Keep the cistern water only outside. Avoid making openings through the building. Either simply connect a water column or use a water socket from Plug&Rechtsanwältin.
You can blow out the entire irrigation and cistern piping in autumn using a compressor.
Ideally, a box with a filter and possibly a main valve. How many circuits and valves you will need depends on your garden.
With this setup, it doesn’t really matter. Then (almost) anything is possible.
For these pipe lengths to the distribution manifolds, I would use DN40 (1.5 inches). For the circuits, DN32 (1.25 inches).
Keep the cistern water only outside. Avoid making openings through the building. Either simply connect a water column or use a water socket from Plug&Rechtsanwältin.
You can blow out the entire irrigation and cistern piping in autumn using a compressor.
Ideally, a box with a filter and possibly a main valve. How many circuits and valves you will need depends on your garden.
With this setup, it doesn’t really matter. Then (almost) anything is possible.
M
Marvinius13 Sep 2022 21:40Tamstar schrieb:
You lucky person, I always kill my eucalyptus... already the third attempt and it’s dying again 🙁It needs full sun and plenty of water.M
Marvinius13 Sep 2022 23:15Hausbaufaehig schrieb:
One more question to the group: People in my circle of acquaintances have strongly advised against automatic irrigation systems,
claiming that something always breaks, nozzles get clogged, valves stick, hoses leak or get damaged, and you end up spending more time on maintenance than you save.
However, their experience is from over 10 years ago, and they probably used Gardena products.
What are your experiences? I don’t mind cleaning nozzles occasionally or replacing parts if necessary, but I don’t want it to get out of hand. 😉 I’ve never had to clean any nozzles. The irrigation controllers and manifolds are installed in the basement, and the pipelines have air release valves. I only had to replace one soaker hose once, but in terms of cost, it wasn’t a big deal.
H
Hausbaufaehig14 Sep 2022 10:43rick2018 schrieb:
Level monitoring using an ultrasonic sensor.
For these pipe lengths to the distributors, I would use DN40 (1.5 inches). For the circuits, DN32 (1.25 inches).
Keep the cistern water outside only. Avoid making penetrations. Either connect a simple water column or a water valve from Plug&Rechtsanwältin.
In autumn, you can simply blow out the entire irrigation and cistern piping with a compressor.
Ideally, have a box with a filter and possibly a main valve. How many circuits and valves you need depends on your garden.
But with this preparation, it doesn’t really matter. Almost anything is possible then.One last question regarding this: What do you mean by "box with a filter and possibly a main valve"? Are you referring to valve boxes, i.e., does each box contain a filter and a main valve? And concerning draining the circuits in winter: Can the pipe from the cistern pump to the distributors really be blown out easily? Since the pump is installed at the end (underwater), won’t the remaining water be trapped there?
I would install a filter and a main shut-off valve right after the cistern pump, ideally inside an empty valve box.
The main valve has the advantage of keeping the system pressure-free. This way, the pump won’t keep running if there is a small leak (or a larger one) somewhere. Hydrawise can control both the main valve and the irrigation zone.
It is also possible to do without a main valve, but then everything must be completely watertight; otherwise, the pump will periodically build pressure.
A filter is essential if your water comes from a cistern.
The main valve has the advantage of keeping the system pressure-free. This way, the pump won’t keep running if there is a small leak (or a larger one) somewhere. Hydrawise can control both the main valve and the irrigation zone.
It is also possible to do without a main valve, but then everything must be completely watertight; otherwise, the pump will periodically build pressure.
A filter is essential if your water comes from a cistern.
H
Hausbaufaehig15 Sep 2022 00:36rick2018 schrieb:
I would install a filter and a main valve after the cistern pump. Preferably inside an empty valve box.
[...]
A filter is mandatory if your water comes from a cistern. Once again, a very good idea—I would never have thought of that! A quick question: Is it possible to install the main valve inside each of the two actual boxes, or would that cause issues with space or control?
So, the overall water line layout would look like this: pump ==> one branch each for Box1, Box2, and one for every water outlet/tap point/etc.
Or can the outlets/tap points be connected in series as well?